“Just give me my book back!” I growled low which only caused him to laugh.
“Someone’s getting upset.”
My hands squeezed tighter the more he laughed. And finally my anger exploded when he snatched the book away as I lunged for it. I reared back and kicked him in the shin.
“Fuck! You bi—”
Bracing myself, I squeezed my eyes shut as Wallace balled his fist and aimed like he was about to punch me. But the blow never came.
“You’ve got a real fucking problem.”
I gasped and blinked my eyes open to see Aaron Townsend with one hand wrapped around Wallace’s throat. His face was beet red and terror filled his brown eyes. Aaron’s back was to me and his voice was low but I heard it.
“Your father’s a shit businessman and obviously an even worse father. What kind of shithead tries to beat up a little girl?”
My eyes widened and my heart plummeted. Not because it started to look like Wallace was close to losing consciousness but because Aaron had just referred to me as a little girl. Why did that sting so much?
“You’re going to go back into that dining room, tell your father you’re not feeling well, and take both your sorry asses out of here.” Aaron shoved Wallace away from him, then angrily watched as Wallace coughed and rubbed his throat before stumbling off in the direction of the dining area.
Slowly Aaron turned his eyes roving over me. A tingling feeling started in the pit of my stomach again.
“Are you all right?”
I swallowed and then remembered that this guy had just called me a little girl. I don’t know why that ticked me off but it did. I put my hand on my hip.
“I could’ve handled him on my own,” I told him sharply.
His eyes widened just a smidge and for a second I worried that he was going to give me a piece of what he’d just given Wallace. Much to my surprise, a small smirk broke through on his full lips. A lump formed in my throat.
“I do believe you could have.” He gave me one last look, nodded, and turned to leave.
I was left standing there wondering what had just happened. And why the space between my legs had begun tingling as well.
Chapter One
Patience
“Do you have to go, Mommy?” my five-year-old daughter, Kennedy, whined as she sat on top of my folded clothes in my suitcase.
Stepping out of my small closet, I smiled at the pout on my little girl’s caramel-colored face. I moved over to her, getting on my knees and pushing one of her curly ringlets behind her ear.
“I told you this already, sweetheart. Mommy will only be gone for two days.”
“I knooow, but who’s gonna read with me? Kyle hates reading!”
“Reading sucks!” my other five year old yelled from his position on my bed.
“Kennedy, don’t say hate and, Kyle, you stop saying sucks!” I admonished the twins. “Ms. Sheryl will read to you every night I’m gone.”
That didn’t make Kennedy any happier.
“But she won’t do it like you. And who’s gonna take us to the library?”
“Baby,” I began, plucking Kennedy out of my suitcase and sitting her on my lap, “Mommy will only be gone for two days. That’s only two sleeps. We will go to Mommy’s job when I get back and check-out all the books you want. Okay?”
Kennedy’s little body shook as she sighed but she nodded.
“And what about you, Kyle? Will you come with us to the library once I get back?” I asked my son as if he had a choice.
