Page 6 of Dangerous Attraction

"What are you doing?" I hiss.

Shrugging, he opens the back door, grabs my duffel bag, then slings it over his shoulder.

"I'm coming inside with you."

I shake my head, but he walks around the car, ignoring my silent protest.

"We can assess the damage together and see what you need for the short time you'll be here."

Sighing, my shoulders slump in defeat, and I follow after him.

He stops at the bottom of the small steps leading up to the door of the trailer and holds his hand out towards me, palm facing the sky.

I frown, my eyes flicking back and forth between his hand and his face.

"The keys," he states, folding his fingers into his palm before stretching them back out again.

Chuckling, I move past him and cautiously place my foot on the bottom step before reaching for the flimsy handle.

"There's no need for keys here," I tell him, then pull the handle down, yanking until it flies open. "The door does stick sometimes, though."

"Nothing a hard tug can't fix!" a familiar, high-pitched voice calls from behind us.

Glancing over my shoulder, I spot Wanda, my neighbor, standing in the doorway of her trailer opposite mine.

A wide, genuine smile graces my face, and I hop off the creaky steps, bounding over to the older woman who used to look after me when I was younger.

She's dressed in a fluffy white robe with big purple rollers scattered through her blonde dyed hair, and a full face of make-up.

When I reach the steps of her trailer, she opens her arms wide, and pulls me into a tight hug, almost squeezing the life out of me.

"You're looking so good, Pip. The red hair looks amazing on you!"

The use of my childhood nickname has my nose wrinkling.

"Pip?"

Untangling myself from Wanda's hold, I turn to face Liam and shrug.

"I was a small kid," I tell him. "Everyone called me pipsqueak."

"Such a small and frail little thing. Bless her heart," Wanda adds, patting my cheek affectionately. "I'm glad to see you've finally filled out. It suits you!"

My eyes sweep over my body and I nod. Stepping away, I pull my thin cardigan tighter around myself.

I can understand her comment, because I look extremely different to how I did when I left this place almost four years ago—my hips are wider, my face is fuller and more rounded, and I finally have some meat on my bones. An ample amount in all honesty.

Her comment doesn't make me uncomfortable because of some underlying insecurity. I'm comfortable in my skin, and I've learned to love my body over the years. It may not be what most people would call 'perfect', but I'm happy with the way I look, and that's all that matters.

I spent too many years concerned with other people's opinions on what I looked like. But it was Emery and Liam who helped me see that just because I don't fit into the boxes people want me to, it doesn't mean I need to change myself. They taught me that I don't need to appease everyone else but myself.

However, the reason Wanda's comment fills me with discomfort is because it reminds me of what I was like before I left. Before I spent a lot of time at Emery's house, and before I went away to college.

It reminds me of the life I had with my father, and thinking about that man fills me with dread.

"Well, as much as I'd love to pick your brain for some embarrassing stories about Trix, we were just dropping some things off before we leave again."

I'm grateful for Liam's interruption, and I gladly use it as an excuse to escape.