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“What’s the second phase?” I almost forgot nosy Nellie was there.
“That’s where she gets reintroduced to all those friends she made at my mother’s expense as what she really is; trash.”
“I don’t follow.”
“You’ll see!”
“By the way, our first interview has been set for two days away.”
“Great.” I was a bit preoccupied while he spoke because my mind was already moving on to the next thing. I’m not a crazy person who spends every waking hour plotting, but I’d decided that just as I didn’t want to spend my entire honeymoon dealing with my enemies, I didn’t want to spend the start of our life together doing it either.
Which meant I had to take care of everything in the next week and a half so I could just sit back and watch the fallout. Either later at night or early in the morning is when I do my thing; that way, I’m not taking any time away from my new husband.
He was playing in my hair, something I didn’t know I liked, and it made me feel weird, in a good way. I don’t know why that particular action made me realize that he’s always hyper-focused on me and that he’s always right there, ready and willing to do whatever I need.
There was a fluttering around my heart followed by a warmth that seemed to permeate my entire being, and it hit me like a cyclone. Sexual attraction and compatibility are things I can deal with. But I was in no way ready for what I suspected this was.
I gave him the stink eye before hauling off and slugging him. “Ouch, what the hell, Lyssa, what was that for?” Now he’s calling me by a cute name, the bastard. He rubbed his chest and looked at me as if waiting for an explanation.
“Bastard! You did this on purpose.”
“Did what exactly?”
“You know what you did. Why do you have to be so nice to me? I know what you’re up to, you jerk.” Even as I said these words, I knew I sounded crazy, I felt crazy as shit too.
I tried getting off his lap, but he held me hostage. “Stay where you are and tell me what bee got under your crazy bonnet.”
“Don’t you call me crazy, you snake. Ooh, I’m so mad I could spit.”
“Alyssa, baby, what’s the matter?” I folded my arms and turned my nose up with a pout. I will not be moved by his sugar-sweet bullshit. I have cultivated my persona since I was nine years old, and there is no way I am going to let some newcomer upstart change my shit.
He rocked his thighs, “Tell me. Whatever it is, I’ll take care of it.” My nose went higher in the air, and he sighed, which only pissed me off.
“If I’m annoying you, you can always just take your ass off somewhere else.”
Look, I know most people, especially those closest to me, have always thought that I was crazy, but I’m not. At least, I didn’t use to be. But right this second, I feel as if I am losing my damn mind. I wanted to hit something and scream because I did not want to feel these things.
How the hell had he snuck under my guard without my noticing? Was it because I didn’t know what signs to look for? I tried to remember anything he had done that I didn’t like to use against him and this stupid growing feeling, but from beginning to end, there was nothing.
“Aha, you’re too perfect, you bastard. What deep, dark secrets are you hiding?” He rolled his damn eyes at me and came close to losing his life.
“What, pray tell, are you on about now?”
“On about? On about? I’ll tell you what I’m on about, sneaky mcsneaky.” Think fast, Alyssa, before he makes you look crazy. There has to be something I can throw out at him to make my point, which is that I am right.
‘On second thought, I don’t have to tell you.” I went back to my pout because that’s all I had. He had the nerve to turn my face toward him and look into my eyes like he knew me well enough to read them. Ooh, that pissed me off.
GARRETT
Ah, I get it. It must be that time of the month. I’ll have to get her that chocolate she likes and hope to hell I find the ice cream that is her favorite flavor and flowers, I can’t forget the flowers. I had this shit practically memorized, but for the life of me couldn’t remember all of it now.
I should’ve taken notes. You see, her brothers and their wives had tried to warn me about certain things to look for in order to exist in this one’s orbit. I’d laughed it off at the time, but none of them had joined in my laughter, and though I knew that they knew her best, I thought they were entirely full of shit. Now I’m not so sure.
She was sitting on my lap, having one of her fits, but at least it was better than her crying and shaking. I could go the rest of my life without having that experience again.
I’m not in the habit of feeling helpless, but since meeting her, I’ve felt that way a time or two and I can’t say that I’m a fan. She sat there stewing with her nose in the air and giving me dirty looks every few seconds.
I didn’t bother asking her what the hell was wrong again because I knew she would tell me when she was ready. I gazed off into the distance and waited her out.
