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But not with Mace. He will never know how this one day had opened my eyes or the gift he’d given me by allowing me to see myself the way he does. I can never repay him for opening my eyes and my heart to see the real me.
These last two years, I’d fooled myself into believing that I was stronger than I was before my marriage ended, and though I’ve grown some, I think I grew more in this one day than in all that time because I’ve finally come to accept that I deserve to be happy. That a few extra pounds don’t mean that I don’t deserve to have a man look at me like I’m the most desirable thing in the world to him.
No matter what happens in the future, I’ll never forget this day. I’ll never forget how full he made my heart feel or how beautiful I felt with the wind in my hair while he rested his chin on my shoulder with his hands over mine at the helm, laughing as he taught me how to conquer my fear of the water. Or the fact that not once did he chide me for being childish because of that fear.
MACE
It’s amazing! I was beyond pissed when I left my parents’ house earlier in the day, but now, I can hardly remember anything that was said back there. The time spent with her made me forget, which I consider damn near a miracle because I’m not ashamed to admit that I can hold a grudge until it wears out.
Her laughter, and the childish excitement on her face when she took the helm with me standing behind her guiding her, will stay with me for a very long time. It’s weird, but what Roz did somehow drew me closer to Steph. It’s made me want to protect her even more, be more vigilant and not be so quick to dismiss the shit I’ve seen and heard and brushed off as meaningless drivel.
I’d made up my mind that from now on, anyone who came out of pocket was going to feel my wrath because as pissed as I am, I knew she’d feel much worse if she knew that a member of my family had been that disrespectful towards her.
I made sure not to give anything away the whole day, and she had a wonderful time once she got over what she thought was her fear of the water, and by the time I left her that night, I felt like I’d made up in some small way for the disrespect my sister had shown her.
There were a hundred missed calls and as many texts, most of them from my mother, when I got back to my place. It’s about what I expected, and the reason I wasn’t spending the night with Steph because I knew my family would be after me all damn day with their shit.
None of them would expect me to go through with my threats once I’d cooled down because it’s always been like that in the past. But I have no intentions of going back on my word. Not after the time, we’d had together today. She thinks I don’t know that I missed her look of surprise each time I took her to my bed or the way she seemed doubtful each time I complimented her.
I hadn’t set out to prove anything to her, not at first anyway, but once I caught on that she was still under the delusion that she’s not as desirable to me as I am to her, I made it my mission to prove her wrong. I can only surmise that the asshole ex has something to do with her doubt in herself, which reminds me of his mother, who keeps tormenting her with her daily phone calls.
She’s next on my list to deal with because I’m pretty sure she doesn’t hold back when she’s going in on my woman. If I didn’t let my little sister, who I love, get away with that shit, I’d be damned if I’ll let her ex’s mother do that shit a minute longer.
First, I need to find out what they did to her while she was under their care, and there’s only one way to find out since I’m sure Steph would gloss over the truth to keep the peace. I have no shame in putting Jaxx on the job. Besides, he gossips more than ten women any damn way.
I turned off the phone when it started ringing and I saw that it was Roz. She’d already called almost as much as mom did, but I wasn’t ready to talk to her and won’t be for a very long time. I refuse to have the people who are going to be part of Stephanie’s family get away with treating her the same way everyone else does. They’ll either respect her, or we’re through.
