“Can you take me shopping after brunch?” I give him a smirk, fully expecting him to say no.
“Whatever you want, baby, whenever you want it.”
That wasn’t the answer I was expecting. There isn’t a hint of sarcasm in his voice, but the dog barks, and I don’t respond. Idecide to ignore his last statement, along with Finch. As soon as I return home, I plan on tossing out the rest of the dog food and the dog dish he had the nerve to bring into my apartment. I don’t know what the fuck this man thinks this is.
“Where are we going?”
“You’ll see. You’ll like it. I promise.” He puts a hand on my lap.
“As long as there are drinks.”
“Unlimited drinks and food. Not to mention, amazing company. You look beautiful.”
The last thing I want to do is blush, but I do. I’ve always been told I was too tall. It’s never been easy for me to find someone to date due to my height. I’m either fetishized or avoided, but Dax Hunt loves my height and everything about me.
He leaves the main road and turns onto a side street. I recognize this neighborhood. I’ve followed him here. My head whips around to stare at his profile, but he won’t look at me. From the expression on his face, I know he knows I know.
“Absolutely not.” I shake my head in disbelief. The car slows enough for me to open the door and jump out without too much injury, but he’s locked me inside. “No!” I yell inside the small car. “Are you out of your damn mind? I’m not going.”
“You know where we are?” His voice is playful. “I knew you followed me that day. Before that, I thought it was a coincidence. That was naïve of me because there’s no such thing as a coincidence. But never did I imagine that you would be brave enough to follow me to my mother’s house.” He taps my lap. “I’m so glad I was wrong.”
He turns into a long driveway. This is the blue house with white shutters. It’s picture perfect. Instead of parking outside, he opens the garage and parks there. Once my door is unlocked, I run out of the car as if it’s on fire.
“I don’t want to be here. This is your mother’s house,” I hiss.
“What’s the big deal? I had dinner with your family. Now, you can meet mine, and you can see for yourself that she’s not ugly or bald-headed.”
“No, you crashed our family dinner on purpose because you’re a manipulative control freak. You wanted to be there, but I don’t want to be here. That’s the difference, and—”
“Says the woman who started stalking me.” He takes slow, calculating steps toward me.
“Don’t you dare, Hunt, or I swear, I will be so rude and—”
“Don’t be rude to my mom.” His voice comes as a warning, but he should know by now that he doesn’t scare me.
“Who’s going to stop me? You can kiss my Black—"
The words die in my throat when the door opens, and a middle-aged woman comes out. She’s an older female version of Dax with blemish-free brown skin. She’s tall, but with an ample chest and a thick waist. I dip behind Dax and hide.
“You’re going to regret this.” He doesn’t seem to care about my warning.
I hear footsteps getting closer. After a few seconds, Dax steps to the side and puts an arm around my waist. He feels nice. He pulls me closer, and I smell his cologne, but I pinch his side as hard as I can.
“Fuck,” he mutters. “You’re so mean.”
His mother stops in front of us. She’s smiling as she looks from him to me, and I make sure not to make eye contact. She seems friendly enough, but I’m not interested in any relationship with her or her son.
“Mom, this is Cori Lamb. She’s the one I told you about.” Now, that takes me by surprise. Why is he talking about me to his mother?
“You told your mother about me?” He chuckles at the outrage in my voice. I try to pinch him again, but he inches away.
“I tell my mother everything.” Of all the things I did not expect to hear. I look at him wide-eyed, but all the idiot does is nod his head. “Everything.” He wiggles his brows.
“You can’t be serious,” I whisper with my eyes wide.
“Cori, this is my mother, Haddie Richardson.” He leans down and whispers, “Though I’m sure you already knew that.”
I plaster a fake smile on my face. The good manners I was taught kick in, and I extend a hand. She knocks it down, pulls me away from her son, and wraps her arms around me.
