Free The Lost Days (Prairie Town Book 3) by T.E. Ridener

live with, even in your right mind.”
    What had she meant by that?  Were Devin’s parents sadistic bastards?  Was that why he’d grown up to do the things he claimed to have done?  What about his brothers?
    The apple usually doesn’t fall too far from the tree.
    No.  That was bullshit.  He was not his father.  Sure he liked to enjoy a cup of wine every now and then, or maybe a cold beer while grilling out, but he would never let alcohol control his life, and he sure as hell wouldn’t choose it over his own flesh and blood.
    Devin deserved a second chance.
    Closing the door and returning to the kitchen, he found Devin standing in front of one of his paintings—yes, his.  He’d painted it when he was in the eleventh grade and it was his best work to date.
    “So, that was interesting, huh?”
    Devin turned to stare at him and the guilt once again dimmed his gorgeous ocean-blue hues.  “I’m really sorry about that.  I...I didn’t know how to tell you.  I’ll understand if you don’t want me to move in now.”
    “Who said anything about that?” He grabbed for their glasses and extended Devin’s towards him.  “Everybody makes mistakes, Dev-o.  Do you mind if I call you Dev-o?”
    “It’s a little corny.” He snickered and rolled his eyes.  It was the cutest thing Nick had ever seen.  “But I don’t mind at all.”
    “Good.” He clinked his glass against Devin’s and then lifted it to his lips.  “Here’s to new beginnings.”
    “To new beginnings.” Devin echoed.
    And maybe to new love, Nick thought as he sipped at his wine with a smile.

Chapter 5
    D evin
    As he moved his stuff into an empty room upstairs, he couldn’t help but get the feeling that moving into a stranger’s home was highly uncharacteristic of himself.
    He had gone home with the hopes of finding a warm and embracing family, but he honestly should have known better after what he’d encountered during visitation hours with his parents and siblings.
    His mother was actually a very kind person.  She was just as any mother should have been: loving, caring, willing to give hugs on a whim, and always smiling.  But there was a sadness behind her smile, and he learned why a lot sooner than he wanted.
    The men in his family were not good people.
    His father was very cold and distant.  His actions screamed hateful, and after being in a room with him for an hour and feeling the hair on his arms stand on end, he knew living with him wasn’t going to work out.
    Though his mind may have forgotten what happened in their home, his body seemed to remember just fine.  He didn’t like the sudden onset of fear he felt every time they were around one another. 
    His brothers were just the icing on the cake.  Charlie and Lucas joked about his time at the institute and actually had the audacity to say he’d been faking all along.
    Oh, if only that were the case.
    But it wasn’t.
    And they were jerks.
    While lying in his supposed bedroom, he’d had since he was a kid, he thought long and hard about what steps he needed to take to put himself in a better environment.  Being around people like his brothers and father would not be beneficial.  In fact, Doctor Thompson’s voice boomed in his mind as he tossed and turned.
    “This is your chance to prove yourself, Devin.  Show the world you’re a better person now.”
    And God, he wanted to.  He felt like a completely different person, and definitely not the man who had kidnapped an innocent girl and her boyfriend. 
    But where could he go?  What could he do?  He barely had his social security number memorized; he wasn’t ready to be on his own, was he?
    He’d pulled out his laptop at 3 o’clock in the morning and thanked his lucky stars he hadn’t password-protected the damn thing.  It was one less worry he’d have.
    Browsing the local classifieds, he came across a few different requests for roommates, but one stood out more than the others.
    WANTED –