She throws her head back and laughs. “Obsessive asshole sounds about right.”
I give her a pained look, pretending to be hurt. “Now who’s mean?”
“Aww… poor baby. Why don’t we stick with boyfriend?”
I kiss her lightly on the tip of her nose. “I like the sound of that, for now.”
She gives me a confused look but doesn’t ask what I mean. I have a feeling she already knows exactly what I’m talking about. We’ve been on the same page since the day I cleared up the whole hate each other thing. She’s perfect for me, and I think she feels the same about me. Yeah, we are opposites in a lot of ways. She’s sweet where I’m surly, but we’re also alike in that we are both hungry for each other all the time.
Ana might have been a virgin when I took her the first time, but in a short time, she’s become a passionate, wanton woman who knows exactly what she likes. She likes it rough, and with a small bite of pain some days, others she wants it sweet and slow. I’m more than happy to oblige both her hungers.
“It’ll be okay. Ruth loves me.”
“That was before you were practically living with her granddaughter. Not to mention the whole defiling me thing. She probably thinks I should save myself for marriage. We never talked about it because it’s never been a thing before. Now here we are screwing like bunnies,” she flails about some more. “Oh God, what will she think about us if I’m pregnant?!”
I yank her to me, stopping her flailing. “She’ll be happy for us and become the best great-grandma there ever was.”
“Pregnant and unmarried?! No way, she will totally castrate you before she whoops me all the way to Georgia.”
“Calm down, baby. It’s all going to be okay.” I run my hand down over her stomach, hoping that right now, her belly is already growing our baby. Yeah, it’s crazy and fast, and we might be a little insane, but like I said, we’re on the same page. We both want this.
“Yeah, calm,” she breathes, “I can do calm…”
By the time we get to Ruth’s house, Ana is calm. At least outwardly. I can still sense her inner freak out. I keep my fingers threaded through hers as we make our way up to her front door, lending her my calm strength. She knocks on the door and is greeted by an enthusiastic Ruth. She pulls us both inside, giving us each hugs.
“Come in, come in… don’t even bother knocking, little bird. This will always be your home as much as it is mine.”
Ana gives her a happy smile, all of her reservations seeming to vanish into the ether. Dinner goes off without a hitch, just like I told her it would. She relaxes more and more as the evening grows later.
Ruth asks about a million questions about the motorcycle—some of them, including what kind of safety procedures I have taken with her precious granddaughter on the back of my ‘death machine.’ I tell her that I would never do anything to harm Ana. She’s way too important to me.
Ana goes to the kitchen to get dessert, and Ruth gives me an assessing look. “I’m never wrong about people, you know.”
I raise my brow and give her a questioning look.
“I knew you didn’t really hate my granddaughter, though she was convinced.”
“How could anyone hate Ana? She’s perfection.”
“Do you know why I bought the house from you for her?”
I shake my head. At the time, I wasn’t about to ask any questions as soon as I knew who my new neighbor would be. It was worth every penny in lost rent. It was worth every hour of work to get the house to match precisely what Ana dreamed her home would look like.
“Why?”
“Because you’re a fool who couldn’t make my granddaughter love you like I knew she wanted to.”
“So you helped me?” I ask.
“Yep. Just like you wanted, I got my granddaughter in arm’s reach for you to do what you should’ve done months ago.”
There’s a gasp behind me, and I turn and see a very upset Ana standing just in the doorway. “You… you guys set me up? You took advantage of me?” She levels me with devastated eyes.
“I-” she starts but shakes her head, not finishing her sentence. She brings over the dessert, sets it in front of me, and then walks straight out of the door and leaves.
“Well, that didn’t go over well,” Ruth says.
I stand up from the chair so fast that it crashes to the floor. “How did you think she would take the news that you basically orchestrated this whole thing? She probably thinks we conspired against her.”
Ruth rolls her eyes. “Don’t be so dramatic. She’ll understand I did what I thought was best and look at you two. I’ve never seen her so happy. You’re good for her.”
I scoff. “Of course I am. I fucking love her. And now she’s pissed and hurt because you forced my hand, and now, she’s questioning my motives.”
11
Ana
I can’t believe that they could do this to me. My own grandmother knew how much I hated Carson, and yet she conspired against me with him to trick me into forgiving him for all of his meanness. Was any of this even real?
Was he just using me?
My subconscious prickles telling me that’s not right, but I’m too mad and hurt to listen to reason. I know Carson has been incredible these last weeks. He’s made me happier than I’ve ever been. He made my dream house even though he didn’t have to. Grandma Ruth wouldn’t purposely hurt me—I know this as a fact too, but it doesn’t change anything. Not while I’m hurting and angry.
I take a shower and try to stop the flow of tears. It doesn’t work. I get into my comfiest pajamas and see all of his things, the things I loved being mixed
