“Wonderful,” he mutters. “And I’m assuming that because you’re still breathing, Mom doesn’t have even the smallest idea.”
“Nope. And it’s going to stay that way.”
“You’re asking for trouble,” he tells me. “Have you even considered how fucking awkward shit will be at family dinners after you inevitably break up?”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” I mutter. “But we’re not breaking up anytime soon. This thing between us, it’s serious. I’m in love with him, and he’s in love with me. Not to mention, he’s an overly possessive grumpy caveman. Even if I tried to break up with him, he’s not about to let me go anywhere. Me and Knight . . . It’s just something you’re going to have to learn to get comfortable with, because neither of us has any intention of stepping away from this.”
“Shit. It’s really that serious?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, fuck. Who would have known that any man would actually want to subject himself to your bullshit? I was going to put your name down at the local pound to be the number one contact for every cat that came through the door to help you get a head start on your inevitable cat-lady lifestyle.”
“Yeah, and I was about to have you subscribed to every dildo manufacturer in the country because you’re obviously a little bitch who likes to take a big dick or two.”
“I hate you.”
“Hate you too, big brother.”
Jonah laughs, but the sound quickly fades. “Listen, I, ummm . . . I’m really glad that you’re doing okay. It’s shit that the cops haven’t found the guy who hurt you, but I’m proudof you for not letting this destroy you. If anything, you sound stronger, and I don’t know if that has anything to do with having Knight in your life, but if it’s as serious as you say it is, and you really are in love with your uncle, then you know you have my full support. All I’ve ever wanted was to see you happy.”
“Thanks, Jonah,” I whisper, a small smile playing on my lips as I think about this new life I’ve started building with Knight, and while it terrifies me to completely hand my heart over to him and make myself vulnerable, there’s nothing I want more. “I’m really happy.”
“Good. I’m glad,” he says. “But would it also kill you to pick up the phone every now and then to give your big brother a call? Hell, doesn’t even have to be a call. A text would do.”
“You’re not getting soft on me, are you?”
“No,” he mutters. “I just think it’d be nice if we didn’t act like such strangers all the time. You know, for the twins, of course.”
“Right. For the twins.”
Jonah laughs, and just as the call goes quiet, a brilliant warmth spreads through my chest. “Hey, Jonah?” I say, my lips quirking into a small smile. “You’re a dork, but I really love you.”
He scoffs. “Nawww. Don’t hit me with that shit because then I’m going to feel compelled to say it back, and you know those words just seem to get stuck in my throat.”
“I know. It’s because you’re an emotionally crippled ape who is incapable of understanding and communicating grown-up emotions. It really baffles me how you managed to get Emily to not only marry you but procreate. Hats off to her. She must be a saint to put up with your shit.”
“Ha. Ha.”
I grin to myself. There’s nothing I love more than giving Jonah a hard time.
“Alright, I’ve gotta go. Some of us actually have jobs to go to and don’t get to spend all day fucking around on the couch doing nothing.”
I roll my eyes, not prepared to let on just how much that jab stung. I’d do anything to get off this damn couch and get back to work, but it’s only a few more days away. “Fine. I’ll talk to you later,” I tell him. “Maybe the girls could call when they get home from daycare and tell me all about their day.”
“Yeah, they’d like that,” he says. “Talk to you later, you big ugly swamp turd.”
“Right back at you, you giant—”
The line goes dead, and I suck in a sharp gasp. He did not just hang up on me before I got the chance to insult him. What an assface.
Letting out a huff, I glance down at my phone and start swiping away the notification for Mom’s missed calls, and I can’t help but wonder if Jonah is right. If I just give her a call and let her know how I’m doing, then she might leave me alone. But if I don’t, I run the risk of her showing up at my apartment, only to realize I don’t live there anymore, and that’s only going to bring more problems.
Fuck. I really hate it when Jonah is right, but that doesn’t mean I have to tell him that.
My thumb hovers over her contact information, not really wanting to speak with her, but more than happy to play it all down. If she knew just how serious this was and just how close I came to losing my life, she would insist on moving me in with her and Elias just so she could pretend to be the perfect mother, looking out for her little girl, simply so she has something to brag to her friends about.
Ugh. I think I’d prefer to risk meeting my crazed stalker in the parking garage again. Anything is better than dealing with my mother.
