And now? Now I was sure I was going to blow chunks all over the Camaro’s upholstery.
We got there a little after two p.m., and while Lev got Lidi out of the car, I waited inside, gathering my thoughts. After a minute to myself, Lev opened the passenger door, looking gorgeous in his jeans, tee, and dress jacket, holding an adorable Lidi in her pretty pink dress and white cardigan, her curls a chaotic mess at the top of her head.
With these two by my side, I was ready as I’d ever be.
I took Lev’s offered hand and stepped out of the car. He locked it, put his arm around me, and lead me to the modest-looking house. Then suddenly, the knot in my stomach faded to a pinch. A second later, it was gone completely. Another moment, and I wasn’t afraid anymore. I had once loved these people dearly. There was no reason to be afraid.
We approached the front door together, and Lev’s arm tightened around my shoulders. I stepped forward to press the doorbell.
A loud chiming sounded, and not ten seconds later, the door opened.
The woman who stood there looked different, but under all the lines on her face and salt-and-pepper streaked hair, I found Maggie Peterson.
Her brows drew low and she placed a trembling hand to her mouth in stunned disbelief. “Mina, is that you, honey?”
At my smile, a gasp escaped her and she didn’t ask permission. She wrapped her arms around me and drew me in for a tight, warm hug, her body quaking the entire time. I lifted my arms to hug her back and listened to her shaky whispers of, “Oh, Mina,” and “My little girl.”
I swallowed through the thickness in my throat and squeezed her tight. When she pulled back, her eyes were wet, but she was smiling. “Where are my manners?” She motioned to us all. “Please, come in. John and James are out back.”
I swiped away the stray tear I didn’t know had fallen and followed her inside, with Lev and Lidi trailing behind me. As we walked down the hall, I saw pictures of new family members of all races and backgrounds. I smiled and asked, “More sons and daughters?”
She smiled weakly and shrugged. “We only do temporary fostering now. No more than six months at a time.”
She didn’t say much about that, but I had a feeling that was my fault.
Maggie held my hand as we entered the backyard. “John. James. Look who’s here.”
A much pudgier-looking John than I remembered stood from his place at the table. He smiled wide and didn’t waste time; he came forward and wrapped me up in a bear hug. “Oh, Mina, Mina. What am I going to do with you?”
We separated and I smiled kindly. “You look good, John.”
He chuckled and patted his belly. “Yeah, sure do. I’m surprised you haven’t asked when I’m due.” He laughed good-naturedly.
But the man who stood by his chair, looking at me as though I’d betrayed him in the worst possible way, caught my attention. “James,” I breathed.
He was still handsome as ever in that All-American way. His sandy brown hair cut neatly, his blue eyes clear, he looked harder than I remembered. There were no smiles spared for me that afternoon. He uttered offhandedly, “Mina. Nice to see you.”
The way he said this indicated that his statement was a lie. A big, fat one.
“Yeah.” My voice was small. I absently rubbed at my forearm. “You too. Where are the twins?”
John rolled his eyes but he did it smiling. “At a friends house. Teenagers.” There was a thick moment of silence before John cleared his throat. “Well, are you going to introduce us to this fine-looking fella, or are we going to have to guess?” He smiled wider. “Because if I had to guess, I’d give him the name Thor.”
My smile returned full force. John hadn’t changed a bit.
I stepped back, allowing Lev to place his arm around me. I looked up into his warm cognac eyes and announced. “This is my…my…” My smile softened. “This is my Lev.” His arm tightened around me. He bent down to kiss my forehead. I leaned into him and added, “And the little princess on Lev’s hip is his daughter, Lidiya.”
Maggie came forward, took one look at Lidiya, and beamed. “Hello, princess. Would you like a dolly to play with?” She looked up at Lev and explained, “I’ve got tons of toys if she wants to play with something.”
Lev stared at Maggie a long moment before placing Lidiya on the ground. My heart pumped hard before it slowed in relief as Lidi took Maggie’s hand and blinked up at her. “I pay a dolly?”
Maggie looked down at the cuteness that was Lidiya before announcing, “Of course you can play with a dolly.”
That was the good thing about Maggie. She spoke fluent baby.
As Maggie disappeared inside with Lidi, John gestured to the table and we sat. “What are you having, Mina? And Lev, was it? What can I get you to drink?”
I smiled. “I’ll have a glass of juice.”
“Same,” Lev responded.
John clapped his hands together. “It will be done. Give me a second.”
He left us with James and, the coward I was, I refused to look him in the eye when I asked, “How are you, James?”
I felt his eyes on me. I felt his anger at my small talk. Truth was, I wasn’t ready to discuss what happened. Not just yet.
After a long pause, he responded a low, “Just fine, thanks.”
I nodded. He didn’t ask about me. My guess was he wanted to throw me out of this house and gladly never see me again.
I suppose I expected things to be awkward, but he was angry with me. Furious, even. And I didn’t understand why.
We were both to blame for what happened. The sex didn’t just happen. I didn’t seduce him. We were an item. We loved each other. I’d be damned if I was going to take all the blame for what we were caught doing.
Maggie opened the back door and returned with Lidiya, holding a Barbie doll at the very same time that John returned with our drinks. He placed three glasses of juice down for Lev, Maggie, and me, while he and James sipped on beer.
Well…this was going to be fun.
About as fun as pulling teeth, I thought.
“So,” Maggie started, raising her shoulders in a light shrug. She held a firm smile, but her brows pulled down in a would-be frown. She asked quietly, “Where have you been, honey?”
I opened my mouth to respond, but nothing came out. Gaping fish was a good look on me.
Instead, Lev replied calmly, “Up until three months ago, Mina lived on the streets.”
Silence. Thick as concrete.
“What happened three months ago?” James asked icily.
Lev uttered, “I found her.” His message was implied. I was his. His hand came down on my thigh, squeezing lightly.
John surmised, “You chose being homeless over living with us?” He sounded hurt.
Maggie’s eyes shone brightly. “We would’ve taken care of you, honey. You were our girl.”
It was funny what seven years could do to a person. In listening to all of this bullshit, I found myself bitter. I scoffed, “Oh yeah? I thought I was nothing but a little whore, Maggie? Isn’t that what you called me? Oh wait, no. That’s not right. Apparently, I was a little tramp.”
Maggie drew back, her expression pained, but I wasn’t done.
“You were angry with me.” I turned to a somber John. “You both were.” I looked at James. His jaw clenched tight. “And you…” I shook my head. “You said nothing.” My heart clenched. “You said you loved me, but when we were caught, where were you? Hiding with you tail between your legs, that’s where.” I shook my head. “Don’t tell me I had a place here. I considered you my parents up until that day.” I glared at James. “I wasn’t the only one to blame.”
John spoke quietly, “I think we all handled the situation poorly.”
Maggie shook her head. “No. I handled the situation poorly.” She blinked away tears. “I know it doesn’t mean much now, but I regretted saying those things to you the second they were out of my mouth.” She tried to force a laugh, but it came out a whimper. “I don??
?t even know why I said it. But I’ve regretted it for seven years.”
Her emotion hit me hard.
I felt like an asshole. “It wasn’t just you, Maggie. The whole situation was out of control.” I sighed. “There was no way you would have let James and me be together. Even if somehow you were okay with it, which you weren’t, child services would have placed me in a different home when they found out. I was seventeen. I didn’t want to go to another home.” My breath caught as I let out a broken, “This was my home.”
At my sudden distress, Maggie broke down. She placed a hand over her face and cried silently. The mood at the table had dampened a notch and a half. John sat quietly while James frowned down at his hands.
This was something I caused. I needed to do something, say something. “For what it’s worth, you guys were the best. I loved you, and I never thought badly of you after what happened. I just needed to go. Be on my own. I was sick of being someone else’s burden.”
At that, James stood suddenly. “I’m out.” He didn’t look at me. “Glad you’re not dead, Mina.”
Before anyone could respond, he was gone. I stood before I realized what I was doing and followed him. He was not going to make me feel guilty, dammit.
When I stepped out the front door, he was already unlocking his car. “What is your problem, James?”
He opened the car door. “Go back inside, Mina.”
He tried to sit and close the door on me, but I caught it before it shut, pulling it open. “No. We’re going to have it out. What is your deal?”
James scoffed. “Go back to your man, Mina. Forget about us. Again.”
Oooh. We were finally getting to the point of things.
“Why are you so mad at me?”
His expression turned vicious. He stepped out of the car and stood a foot away from me. “Why am I mad?” He glowered. “Why am I mad?” He blinked a moment before throwing his arms out and shouting, “You left me!”
Uh…what?
His jaw ticked. “You didn’t even say goodbye, just packed a bag and ran. You left me. You left us,” he panted. “I loved you.”
My heart sank. “I loved you, too. But when push came to shove, you didn’t show me at the time I needed it most. Your mother said some vile things to me, and you said nothing.”
He dipped his chin, shaking his head. “I was a kid, Mina. You were my girl. She was my mom. We both knew what we were doing was wrong. Why else would we have kept it hidden? We knew we shouldn’t have been doing it, but we loved each other. Nothing else mattered.” He sighed. “If you’d have just given her some time to cool down… She was shocked.”
I gritted my teeth. “I was seventeen years old. She called me a tramp. She had hate in her eyes. And you…you wouldn’t even look at me.” I told him the honest truth. “You were a coward.”
His hands came up to rest on his hips. He nodded slowly. “Yeah, maybe I was. But I would’ve given up everything for you. I loved you that much. I would’ve dropped everything. My football scholarship, my family, none of it mattered. If you just asked me to pack a bag, I would have come with you. We could’ve been together,” he finished on a whisper.
“You don’t know what you’re saying,” I told him. “I would never wish the life I’ve lived upon someone I loved. I wouldn’t even wish it upon someone I hate.” I leaned against his car and looked out into the street. “I was starving, James. Literally starving before Lev busted me stealing his brother’s wallet. I wasn’t ready to die. I just wanted to get something to eat. Stealing that wallet turned out to be the best thing that happened to me. It changed my life.”
James huffed out a breath, leaning on the car in the space next to me. “I would’ve always provided for you. You never would have gone hungry if we’d done that together. But you didn’t give me the opportunity.”
I changed the subject. “I heard you got divorced.” I turned to him. “What happened?”
He looked at me, those baby blues full of sadness. “I was still in love with another woman. My wife resented that so she left me.” He blinked slowly, reaching out to take my hand. “It’s only ever been you for me, Mina. Only you.”
His hand was warm on mine and a sudden rush of emotion hit me. I squeezed his hand and spoke quietly, “You need to move on, James.”
“Like you’ve moved on?” he uttered sternly as he released my hand.
I nodded. “I moved on seven years ago.”
He puffed out a long breath. “That sucks.”
No, it didn’t suck. It was wonderful. I had Lev, and he gave me things no other man could, not even James.
There was nothing more to say. I held out my hand. “I hope you find what you’re looking for, James.”
He took my hand, shaking it lightly. “I already have, but she doesn’t want me anymore.” He shrugged. “That’s life, I guess.”
It was life, unfortunately.
Just when I moved to let go, James pulled me forward so quickly that I was thrown into his body. His arms came around me and his lips came down on mine hard.
Wide-eyed and my body rigid, my mouth remained slack as he groaned into my lips.
Well, that certainly brought a new definition to the saying ‘stealing a kiss’.
Chapter Forty-Three
Mina
The rest of the afternoon went off without a hitch. Maggie and John apologized for James’ abrupt departure. They apologized even more so for what happened that night seven years ago. I told them that it was long forgotten and that I wished them well. And best of all, Maggie left a moment and came back with the leather-covered photo album I’d left behind. Flicking through, I could see it was untouched apart from some new additions at the end where Maggie had added some photos of us as a family. I couldn’t wait to show the photos to Alessio. We left close to five p.m., and Maggie asked if we could get together sometime for lunch. I hugged her tight and told her that I would love to, even though I was somewhat sure that wasn’t going to happen.
As we drove home, Lidi fell asleep, which gave me the perfect opportunity to speak to Lev without distraction. “What did you think about Maggie and John?”
He thought about it. “I think they regret causing you pain. They seem like nice people.”
“And James?”
His jaw tensed. “He was an ass.”
I agreed in a sense, but now I had to tell him the awkward part.
“He kissed me today.” I turned to look at him. His hands had tightened around the steering wheel so tightly that his knuckles turned white. “After I followed him out, we had it out. He was angry with me for leaving. He told me he was still in love with me. That it was why he got divorced.” I paused before landing the biggest blow. “He told me to leave you today and asked me to marry him.”
At the last part, Lev turned to me, his face slack. He gathered himself before clearing his throat and asking, “And what did you say to that?”
I feigned indifference, “Well, after I slapped him for that rude kiss he planted on me, I told him he needed to get a grip. I explained that I only wanted to marry one man, and I was already with that man.” I let out a breath of frustration. “You called it, baby. I was wrong. He definitely wanted a slice of Mina pie.”
Lev uttered an irritated, “I’m not sure whether to find him and beat the shit out of him, or just sit here and be thankful in the knowledge that you wish to marry me one day.”
I grinned saucily. “How about a kiss of gratitude?”
He glanced at me and his hard face softened, a small smile gracing his lips. He leaned over and I pulled back. “Not on my lips.”
He looked confused. “Then where?”
I smirked, turning to look out the window. “I’ll show you when we get home.”
His low growl caused goose bumps to trail up my arms. And when we got home, he kissed me well and good.
In fact, he kissed me boneless.
It was the night before the club reopened, and Sasha called together a dinner meeti
ng before the grand affair. It was held at the main house. Ada had prepared a wonderful banquet in celebration, and I was salivating at the look of it all.
We ate. We talked. We laughed.
Everything was going well. Almost too well, if you know what I mean. So when Anika turned to me and said what she did, it was hardly a surprise. It was expected. “So, Mina, what’s happening? Are you looking for your own place yet?”
The entire table went silent.
“Ani.” Nas stared at her. “Honey, don’t.”
Anika had been drinking since we arrived. She was currently on her fourth glass of wine and she looked rather mellow. She waved Nas off and blinked slowly. “What? We’re all friends here.”
We were?
I wasn’t so sure of that.
I cleared my throat and responded, “Well, actually, I have been looking online at apartments.”
Nas sounded taken aback. “What?” While Lev stated a firm, “No.” And Sasha… Oh, Sasha. All he said was, “Good.” They did this simultaneously, stopping to look at each other after they heard the others’ response.
Lev cleared his throat, putting his napkin down. “Not that it’s your business, Anika, but there would be no point in Mina moving.” He lifted his glass of wine and sipped at it. “Mina proposed to me two days ago.” The table went silent. He placed his glass down. “And I’ve accepted.”
What?
What what what?
Where the heck was I when this proposal was happening?
I was surprised that Lev’s pants hadn’t caught fire, because he was clearly a liar.
“Um…” I started as everyone turned to stare at me.
But Lev helped me out. “Remember? In the car. You told me that you planned to marry one man, and that one man would be me. I agree with you. I think you should marry me.”
I leaned forward, forced a light laugh, and then whisper-hissed, “That was hardly a proposal, sweetie.” I said sweetie like it was sticky and needed to get off me, like, now.