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Is she kidding me? I don’t need her to state the obvious while I'm trying to put myself back together after seeing him.
I hate how much he affects me.
“He’s also infuriating,” I snarl. “He’s arrogant and incredibly stupid if he thinks I’m going to just go with him because he came all the way here.”
Okay, there was no need to yell. I put a hand on my chest and breathe deeply.
“But he showed up,” Anya says as if giving him a couple of brownie points for his appearance.
“Don’t read too much into that.”
“He offered to help me if I was being evicted,” she mumbles.
I scrunch my nose because though it sounds like something Iskander would do, he shouldn’t get involved. It just clicks that he mentioned something about losing this house. I was too flustered to pay attention to everything he said at that moment, but as I replay the conversation, he sounded… different.
I raise my eyebrows, puzzled. “Why does he know about it?”
“I might’ve thought he was coming to evict us and gave him a piece of my mind.” She pulls her lips into a small smile as if saying, oops.
No, I almost groan out loud. You don’t tell a Cantú there’s a problem. They have the bad habit of lingering around and trying to save whoever is in distress. Iskander is the worst. How am I supposed to keep him away when he thinks I need his charity? Hopefully, his fear of becoming a father will keep him thousands of miles away from me.
“Well, the good thing is that we already fixed that. There are just two payments that I don’t want to make until I get a few answers from a lawyer. I had no idea Mitchell still co-owned this place—or that you two haven’t divorced. We need to ensure he’s taken off the title before continuing.”
“He likes you.” Anya’s voice is a little taunting. Like a high schooler telling me the quarterback is looking my way.She doesn’t flinch at the mention of Mitchell or their marriage.
I have so many questions about their divorce, the custody of Rumi, and the back child support he owes her. I bet she can even get a few years of alimony. We can fight for those payments.
But since this isn’t something we can discuss now, I ask, “Who?” I feign ignorance.
“Iskander.”
“Of course, if not, we wouldn’t have been screwing like rabbits for three years.”
She shakes her head, giving me a look that almost says I’m in denial. “He seemed concerned about you.”
“But…” I don’t know how to argue that because, honestly, I tried hard to not notice much about him.
“Never mind, maybe I’m the one hoping that Mitch will come back one last time, and he’ll… I don’t know.”
Would she forgive him after he abandoned her? I don’t think I will. I mean, who does that?
Anya deserves someone better, but it’s not like I can tell her that she’ll find the love of her life when we have to focus on her health and hope she doesn’t die. I don’t want to call Nathalie, but she’s the only person I know who might be able to help us.
“We took care of your bills. Now we have to search for a new doctor,” I announce.
“I understand why you want to do that, but I’d rather get the legal stuff out of the way.”
“Rumi is adorable, and if…” I sigh because if I was in her place, I’d push the adoption before anything else. I can’t give up just yet. “Why don’t I talk to my friend, the lawyer?”
“I already have someone working on the adoption process.”
“Yes—but hear me out. If you…” I can’t say it. It feels gut-wrenching to even use the word when referring to Anya.
“Die. The word isdie, Siobhan.” Her voice resonates inside my head, causing a ripple effect that pulls all the air out of my lungs.
“It could happen at any time,” she continues. “I’m living on borrowed time. If it occurs tonight, she’s unprotected and—”
“My friend might be able to advise us on what to do so you don’t just relinquish her, but she’s protected in case you die.”
