I soaked in the moment trying to be unbothered by the number of people with their phones out trying to figure out what we were doing.
I smiled and squeezed his hand because I needed him to know that despite the hiccup, this was the most fun I’d probably ever had.
“Never better.”
CHAPTER TEN
Settled
STERLING
“YOU SEEM VERY comfortable here.”
Miss Sonya hung out with me in the back courtyard on our side of the house. When I glanced at her she didn’t have Ami with her but she was alone.
“I am.”
I shifted thinking about a few nights before when we went out. We’d hung out and grabbed food from a food hall that I ran in and collected everyone’s orders. Aldrich felt bad about my doing it, but everyone else was too damn famous to not cause a stir when they went in. We sat in the beds of their trucks and just vibed. It didn’t matter that we were in dresses and heels, the four of us hung out like we’d done it for years. At the end of it all, Aphrodite and I had exchanged numbers and had been texting like we’d known each other. The way we’d grown up was similar and I enjoyed having someone my age going through something similar to me even if it wasn’t the same. She was dating a player and I was navigating being involved in this lifestyle at least indirectly. We’d made plans to link up over lunch in a few days.
Miss Sonya came to stand in front of me and the mildly serious look on her face made me anxious about what she was going to say. She’d been kind the entire time she’d been here, but that didn’t mean she really wanted me around her son and her granddaughter.
“I’m glad you are. You’re good for them, both of them. And my heart and my mind can be at ease now that I’ve seen they both have someone to lean on.”
I bit my lip because her words sounded far heavier than her thanking me for doing my job.
I cleared my throat because I knew she wanted me to say something but I didn’t quite know the proper way to respond.
“I... I’m honored that I can give you peace of mind.”
“You love Ami, don’t you?”
“Yes, I do.” There was no hesitation in my response because it was almost as natural as breathing.
“I can tell. I’m thankful that you’re the one who was here for her. You care about every aspect of her from her physical growth to her emotional. You care for her like a mother would.”
I got choked up again because that was the highest compliment I knew I could ever get from Miss Sonya.
“That is probably the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me. Thank you.”
“While you’re here, I want to make sure that you’re taking care of yourself and not just Ami or Aldrich’s spoiled ass.”
I giggled at her wording because she was the worst one with spoiling him. I think she was extra attentive because of the drama that had played out in the media with him and Ami’s mother.
“I really enjoy my job so it comes naturally to look after others.”
“No, it’s more than that. You give completely of yourself. Even when Cassie was grilling you when she got here. You took her questions with a smile and weren’t bothered by her obvious suspicion.”
“I can’t fault her for being protective over her brother.”
“Well, Mateo is infatuated so the only problem that might arise is having both of my boys in love with you.”
The air I was breathing somehow went down wrong and I started to choke on it with her words. She laughed as shelovingly patted me on the back and I tried to compose myself so I could refute what she said.
When I could finally breathe again and she stopped giggling at me I stood up straight and gave her an awkward smile. “I think you’re seeing stuff that’s not there.”
“Girl, I know my sons. The older one is in denial and the youngest is in lust. You’re a beautiful girl so I’m sure you’re used to it. But one thing I can tell you is that neither of them is going to be inappropriate with you. I raised them better than that no matter that they’re athletes. They know I’ll beat their asses.”
“Yes ma’am. Neither of them has done anything inappropriate.”
