“Don’t know. I don’t give a fuck and I don’t take her calls. I want nothing to do with her. I have Kenton keep track of her and what she’s up to. Some people are unstable and she’s one of them. Plus, a few years ago, she showed up in town and started talking shit. I lost a good friend because of her.”
Well, I am no longer worried about how he feels about his ex. I hate her and what she did to him, and if I ever see her, I might beat the crap out of her. “I’m sorry that you had to go through that.”
“Even shit like that can teach you the best lessons.”
“What lesson did you learn?”
“Let’s just say the road to hell is paved with good intentions.”
I smile at him. “Good lesson?” My head comes up when my phone starts ringing from the bedroom. “I should get that. It might be Tia.” I kiss him and climb off his lap to answer it.
Being Christmas, I know that I can expect a few phone calls from my friends in New York. When I finally get to my phone, it has stopped ringing so I flip it open to see who the call is from. It is a New York number that I don’t recognize but the person left a voice mail. I put my phone to my ear to listen and have to fight the urge to throw it across the room when I hear my ex-fiancé’s voice.
“Hey, I...um, just wanted to wish you a Merry Christmas. I know it’s been awhile, but I wanted to tell you that I love you and miss you, November. I know I messed up.” There is a long pause and I think he’s hung up, then I hear a deep breath. “I hope you can forgive me. I miss you. Please call me back.” My face must say it all. Next thing I know,my phone is out of my hand and Asher has it to his ear. He takes it away and looks at it, and then presses a button and puts it back to his ear. I know he is listening to the voice mail I just heard. I watch in fascination as his jaw clenches and I hear my phone cracking in his hand.
“Easy with my phone, Hulk.” He looks down at me and I smile. He ignores my grin, takes the phone away from his ear and then throws it onto the bed. He uses his other hand to pull out my hair tie and throw that behind him, and then wraps my hair around his fist.
“You are not calling that piece of shit back.”
“I’m not calling him back,” I repeat. I never planned on it. Actually, I want to know how he got my number and why he is calling me at all. The only thing I can think of is that he called my mom and she gave him my number.
“Why the fuck is he calling you?”
“That’s a good question,” I say, looking over his shoulder and wondering the exact same thing. He tugs my hair and I look back at him. “I have no idea. I haven’t even talked to him in two years. After I found out what he did, I changed my number and avoided him like the Ebola virus.” I watch his eyes go soft and his lips twitch.
“Why didn’t you avoid your mom?”
I take a breath and tell the truth. “I wanted to forgive her. I wanted a mom who loved me. I felt like if I forgave her for what she had done, maybe she could forgive me for whatever it was that I had done to make her hate me so much.”
“You didn’t do anything to her. She was selfish and doesn’t deserve to have a daughter that is as kind and forgiving as you.”
“I don’t know,” I whisper. “She has always hated me. I was never good enough. I don’t know why she is the way she is but it doesn’t mean that I don’t crave her attention or love. It’s not easy growing up with your only comfort provided by people who are paid to take care of you. All I wanted my whole life was to feel wanted. Until I met my dad when I turned eighteen, I never felt like I belonged to anyone.”
“You belong now. Not only do you belong to your dad and his family,you belong to me and mine. And one day, you will belong to our kids.”
“Kids?” I ask, I don’t disguise the shock of my words.
“Kids. I told you, I’m going slowly for you. But you’re going to be my wife, and as soon as we sign the marriage license, I’m working on getting you knocked up.”
I roll my eyes at him. “You have this all planned, huh?”
“Fuck, yeah,” he, smiles. I smile back. His happiness is contagious. “I can’t wait to see you waddling around, knowing that I got you that way.” My eyes narrow. He smiles. “That you are my life, and that you’re carrying a life that we created inside of you.” I feel faint. Even though he said I would waddle, and no woman wants to ever hear that they waddle or are going to waddle, it is still the most beautiful thing anyone has ever said to me.
“How many kids do you have in mind?” I ask softly, wrapping my arms around his neck. His hands slide to my waist and under my shirt. His thumbs rub along my sides, causing goose bumps to break out.
“Two boys and three girls. The boys need to come first so they can protect their sisters, especially if they look like you.”
“What happens if we have a girl first?”
“Then I’m going to buy a few more guns.”
I start giggling. “You do know how hot you are, right? I mean, if we have boys, I’m going to have to buy stock in Trojan just to make sure they are always protected. Either that, or invest my money into a medical company so they can invent men’s birth control.” He starts shaking his head, chuckling.
“I like that you keep sayingwe,” he says softly, his eyes warm. “Now I know you see a future with me.” He smiles his cocky smile and I laugh.
“You know, you’re very bossy and completely cocky.” His lips twitch, but what he doesn’t do is disagree with me. I have to admit, it is a total turn on that he is so sure about us. It puts my mind at ease. I don’t worry that I am thinking things are more serious than he thinks they are.
He softly kisses my nose then my lips. “I’m going to see if Ma needs help. I’ll make sure everyone is ready to go to your dad’s soon.”
