Page 45 of Play With Fire


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A part of me wants to stay, to try to explain to her why I can’t do it anymore. Why for my own well-being I have to cut her off. But I know it won’t matter. It’s never been about me or her love for me, because it’s now as an adult that I know for sure that she doesn't have any love for me. She probably never did.

She begins screaming and yelling and her rage is so much that I can’t understand anything she’s saying. Her words are blending together and the only thing that stands out is the pure hatred and venom in her words. Instead of standing here and listening to her, I grasp Anya’s hand tightly and walk toward the front door. I’m not surprised when my mother doesn’t follow us. At the end of the day, the only thing she has to use against me are her words. Words that no longer have an impact on me or my life. And never will again.

We walk out of the house and straight to our waiting car. I’m ready to get the hell out of here and never have to return again.

I open the car door for Anya but stop halfway when my eyes catch on movement a couple of doors down and across the street. A sweet older woman with light blonde hair that’s gracefully turning to silver walks down the walkway and embraces her daughter that just climbed out of her fancy SUV. Melanie’s mother, Maryanne, was always the type of mom people were envious of. They may not have had a lot growing up, but she loved her family endlessly. She baked cookies and played games and was just present. Always present.

When I started working full-time for Alec, I had Tanner look into Maryanne and how she was doing. Her husband died years ago in an accident at work. She received a decent settlement and life insurance. But she was still working her full-time job in order to stay above water. I didn’t want that anymore. I went and visited her and asked her to let me help her. It took a lot of convincing, but she finally gave in. Every month, an automatic transfer goes to her bank account. She quit her job and now teaches piano lessons on the side to stay busy. We agreed to keep it between us, and as far as her daughter knows, the money from her father's death was enough for her. Maryanne is one person I will never tire of helping. She glances over, seeing Anya and I looking at them, and a bright smile covers her face.

“Do you want to go say hi?” Anya asks quietly, and a part of me wants to say yes. But when Melanie turns in our direction, I just lift my hand in a simple wave then help Anya into the car.

“Nah. I’m good.” I close the car door and give another quick glance to the two women that at one point in my life meant everything to me.

I walk around to the driver's side and look one last time at the house my mother lives in. There’s no sign of her, and I can’t say I’m exactly surprised. There will always be a part of me that hopes she decides to get her life together. Maybe if she does, we can finally have a real mother-son relationship. But the realistic part of me knows that that will never happen. And surprisingly, I’m okay with that.

I get in the car and look over at Anya. The way she looks at me with pure, uninhibited love, is something I always thought would only be a fantasy. I lean over the middle console to give her a quick kiss before starting the car and taking us home.

As we drive out of Maynor Park, I know once and for all, I’m leaving my past behind me. And the woman sitting next to me with her bare feet propped on the dashboard and a bright smile on her face, she’s my future.

CHAPTER THIRTY

Anya

I love my best friend,I love my best friend, I love my best friend.I have to keep repeating those words over and over in my head in order to keep myself from completely losing my shit. I know she just cares. I know that after everything that happened at the hands of her own mother, she worries more than she ever did before.But my hell, this is getting ridiculous!

It’s been over a month since everything happened with Hastings. It’s something I would really prefer to forget about and just move on with my life. I never asked Hunter what happened to Hastings, I probably really don’t want to know. Besides, one thing I’ve learned over the past month is to just not ask questions I don’t want the answer to. It’s a lot easier to deal with what Hunter, my brother, and everyone else does for a living if I don't have the details. It’s an agreement hunter and I came up with a couple weeks ago after I moved in. He can tell me when he is going to work, but he keeps it vague. I know who my man is, and I know what he does. None of it actually matters to me, but for my law-abiding brain, it’s just easier this way.

“Are you sure you don’t need anything else?” I let out a long breath through my nose and resist the urge to roll my eyes.

“I’m fine, Willow.” I really don’t know what she thinks she could get me. I have a glass of wine, I have some water. Alec is still in the middle of grilling the steaks and Hunter is on his way. I told him that the macaroni salad from the sandwich place by my old apartment would go well with the steaks, so he called and asked if he could order a big tub of it. He went to pick it up and I know he’ll probably be back here in a few minutes with it. Just in time to eat when Alec is done.

“Okay, but if you need anything-”

“Will!” Her mouth snaps shut and I almost laugh.

“I’m fine. I just want to relax out here and enjoy the sunshine. Okay?” It’s late-august, so I know that the warm weather will start being less common soon and I want to enjoy it while we can. When I suggested we grill and have a beach day today, everyone was quick to agree. The only two people that aren’t here are Gunnar and Jax because they decided to take a romantic trip to Paris. They didn’t refer to it as a romantic trip, but I’m not an idiot.

“Oh my gosh!” Nicole’s screech draws our attention, and she comes rushing over to where we’re sitting on our beach chairs. She holds her phone out in front of us, but I have to grab onto her hand in order to steady it. A picture of Gunnar and Jax smiling widely at the camera is on the screen. What stands out though, is the way Gunnar is holding up his hand and a ring adorns his finger. The text below the picture saysHE SAID YES!!!

“Oh my God!” Willow and I both jump up in excitement and Lille joins in from where she was sitting on the blanket next to us.

“What’s going on?” I spin to find Hunter standing behind us, a look of confusion on his.

“Gunnar and Jax just got engaged!” His lips slowly spread into a wide grin and it’s one of the sexiest things I’ve ever seen.

“Good for them.” He sounds so genuinely happy for his friends, it makes my heart melt.

Once Alec finishes grilling up the steaks, we all relax back on the beach talking and enjoying the warm weather while we can. After a few minutes of me laying back against Hunter, he taps my thigh a couple of times indicating for me to get up. He stands and quickly starts assembling a fire in the pit Alec has set up.

It’s not dark yet, sunset probably isn't even for a couple more hours, so I’m not sure why he’d be starting a bonfire already.

“What are you doing?” I ask and it’s obvious that everyone else is just as curious. But with his single word answer, my heart warms and I’m reminded that, without a doubt, this man loves me.

“Smores.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

Collins

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