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My sweet girl.
Anya quickly sobered. “Don’t cry unless you want my brains splattered across this table. I am enjoying our little chat. What did I say that upset you?”
“It’s nothing,” I murmured, clearing my throat. “Just something Vaughn used to say.”
“Hmm, well. No tears today. We don’t have much time, so we’re only going to make happy memories. Starting with that bundle of joy you’re hiding.”
“Sammy told you!” Ugh, why did I ever think she wouldn’t spill that can of beans to her mom?
She rolled her eyes. “Did I not just tell you that girl would sooner dispose of my body than give up any information on you? Have some faith, myshka. You have that sickly glow to your cheeks that reeks of morning sickness. I recognize that far too well. I was miserable for the majority of my pregnancy with Samara. Not so much with Christian. I didn’t even know I was pregnant with him for the longest time.”
The blankness fell over her face once more like a shield. I reached across the table, and her hand turned to capture mine. Her grip was tight for a while, but I didn’t care as the two of us sat quietly, missing and mourning her son together.
After a few minutes, she eased her hold, a tired smile lifting her lips. “What are your plans? Will you stay in the area or return to Creswell Springs? I’m rather fond of the small-town life for my grandchild. The air there is so much cleaner, and I trust Bash and his MC to watch over you when I can’t. But that’s my opinion. As long as you are happy, nothing else should matter.”
“I haven’t given it much thought. I have a lot to decide, I know that. But right now, I can’t think about anything except getting through each day without Vaughn.”
She patted my hand sympathetically. “Sammy’s tantrum will be over soon, milaya devushka. She has mostly calmed down at this point. Once she’s got it all out of her system, you won’t have anything to worry about.”
“Um, okay. Sure,” I agreed, wondering if she was having a senior moment. Maybe Cristiano wasn’t the only one who suffered from dementia. “Tell me more about Vaughn.”
“Sadly, I don’t have much to share about my firstborn. He was stolen from me right after birth. For thirty-five years, I thought he was dead.” Her voice cracked, her eyes glittering with unshed tears.
When Sammy told me she and her brother had a tense relationship with their mom, I thought it was over a family disagreement or something trivial. No one told me it was because Anya had thought her son was dead. How long had she had to reunite with Vaughn before he was taken from her again? How terrible it must have been for her to lose him at the hands of her daughter.
“I was hoping you might gift me a little of your knowledge of him. How did you two meet?”
“Oh, we ran into each other in a coffee shop on campus. I nearly spilled my iced latte all over him. But I still embarrassed myself by pressing my nose into his shirt and sniffing him.” I smiled at the memory, the pang of loss echoing inside me, but it felt good to talk about Vaughn to his mom. “It wasn’t my fault. He smelled too good to resist.”
Anya snickered. “I’m sure he took every minuscule detail into account before orchestrating that little meet-cute. I assure you, my children get their stalking tendencies from their father’s side of the family. Ryan has more than proven that hypothesis. When Nova lived in Creswell Springs, he had cameras up all over town so he could have his eyes on her every minute of the day, even while he was in New York.”
“I kind of stalked Vaughn too,” I admitted. “I figured out his morning routine and would sit in the coffee shop until I got my daily dose of seeing him. Even on the days I had his class.”
“His class. So, he really did go so far as to pretend to be a college professor to get close to you.”
A confusing mix of emotions swirled inside me at having it confirmed Vaughn wasn’t actually a professor. Part of me melted over how he’d gone to such an extreme to spend time with me. But it also left me wondering how much of the real him he’d given me. Admittedly, what I did know was a drop in the bucket. I’d fallen hard for those little pieces of him he’d let me see.
“Are you fucking kidding me?”
My head snapped around at the raised voice from across the room. Sammy’s heels clicked loudly on the floor as she stormed toward our table, her hands clenching and unclenching as she kept her blazing blue eyes locked on her mother.
“Time’s up. She’s come to save you from me,” Anya muttered, a mixture of regret and amusement lacing her tone.
“Do I need saving?” I sat back in my chair, a little annoyed that our bonding was getting interrupted, but cautious as well. Vaughn’s relationship with his mom had been explained a little. They weren’t close because they hadn’t been given the chance.
But Sammy’s situation was different; that much I did know. Anya had even joked—I hoped it was a joke, but I truly didn’t know when it came to this freaking family—that Sammy would kill her before giving her something as simple as my phone number. I didn’t fear Sammy, despite her taking the most important person away from me. She always made me feel…safe.
“Samara thinks so.” Blank-faced Anya was back, tugging on my heartstrings.
Reaching the table, Sammy grasped my elbow, gently yanking on me. “Didn’t I tell you to stay away from Abi? Yes.” She nodded, answering her own question, a flash of mania in her eyes. “I clearly remember going into explicit detail about what would happen if you even breathed wrong in her direction.”
I shrugged off her hold on my arm. “Don’t be mean to your mom. She’s been nothing but kind to me. We’ve been getting to know each other.”
“Don’t trust anything she says. She’s just buttering you up so she can get what she wants. Give her five minutes, and she will give you the whole, ‘My family means so much to me. You make my son vulnerable. We have to start on your training straightaway.’” Sammy curled her lip at her mother, violence radiating off her. “I sent her away to protect her from you. My patience is shredded right now, dealing with everyone’s bullshit. I love you, Mom, but I love her more. Do. Not. Test. Me.”
“Sammy, stop. Can’t you see she’s hurting?” I slipped my hand into hers, giving her fingers a little wiggle in hopes of snapping her out of her bad mood. “She misses Vaughn just as much as I do.”
“Right,” she snorted, but she held on to my hand tighter. “Stand up. I don’t want to drag you out of here, but I will.”
