“It’s not going to be figured out overnight. It will take as long as it takes for me to earn your forgiveness and show you that I won’t be that asshole I was,” Viking says.
“Plus, your house is looking pretty fantastic,” I chime in.
“If it’s too much for you, I can stay at the club or somewhere else until you fall in love with me again,” Viking says, ignoring my words.
“I don’t know if I want you staying at the club. You were always there and that didn’t fix anything. It just made us drift farther apart,” Ana says.
“There’s a guest room. As you guys know, he can stay there. You guys don’t have to share a room right away. If you don’t think distance will help, that might,” I tell her.
“I guess that will work. We can go as soon as I know my mom is going to be okay,” she tells everyone.
“What about your sister?” I ask with a smirk. No one missed that she was the woman Tank had been looking for.
Ana smiles at me knowingly. “I think she might end up coming back too. I know how long Tank looked for her. He’s not going to let her get away this time.”
“I can’t believe it was your sister this whole time. It never crossed my mind, but she does live in a different city. I never would have guessed it was her,” Viking says thoughtfully.
“Trust me, he’s going to have his hands full with her,” Ana says with a smile.
“Oh, I know. I’ve seen what she was like drunk on tequila,” Viking says.
We are interrupted from our conversation when Ana’s mom comes walking over.
“Ana, your aunties want to help me with sorting through your dad’s things with me. They will be basically moving in. They are going to take over Serena’s and your rooms. You don’t need to stay for me. I might actually come visit you once everything settles down,” she tells Ana.
“Are you sure? I can stay longer,” Ana replies.
“Yes, I’m sure. You need to work on your marriage. I’ll let you know if I need you,” she says, looking confident in her decision.
“Okay, but you just text the word “tacos,” and I will be there,” she says. Dani walks up laughing, and Ana’s mom looks at her in confusion.
“Yes, that’s our ‘I need you’ message. You don’t need to say anything else but ‘tacos.’” Dani says.
“Damn, you girls have a code word?” I ask with a chuckle.
“Of course,” they both say at the same time.
After Ana gets her mother’s blessing, Serena comes walking up with Tank on her heels.
“Ana, can we talk in private?” Serena pleads.
Ana gets up without a word, and they go into another room. The rest of us look at Tank.
“She’s not going to be easy to win over, but I’ve never been one to give up without a fight,” Tank states.
“Looks like it, brother,” I say with a laugh.
“She’s even more stunning than I remember,” Tank says with a grin.
“Of course, she is. She’s related to my wife,” Viking says with a smug look on his face.
“I’m sure Ana will tell her anything she needs to know. Ana is the one who made sure there was room for you beside her today,” I tell him.
“Yeah, I didn’t expect to see her today or again, especially in a situation like this, but I’m glad that I got to be here for her on this hard day,” Tank says.
“Everything will work out like it’s supposed to,” Dani says.
Maverick “Viking”
