Page 115 of Scandalous Contract

“Okay. Well, it’s going in the garbage on trash day.”

“And a new one will arrive the day after.”

“I won’t sign for it,” I vowed.

“ThenI’llarrive the day after that.”

“Is that a threat, J.C.?”

“No, that’s a promise, S.A.”

“Ugh!” I stood up and gripped the teddy bear.

What to do with it?For now, I could put it in the corner and turn it to face the wall. That would keep him from seeing me. I did just that.

“You can listen in all you like,” I said to the back of the bear. “But you won’t see anything. Eventually, you’ll give up.”

“If you think that, you don’t know me very well.”

I rolled my eyes at the bear. I was not about to stand here and argue with a stuffed animal. Arms folded, I tried to stomp away dramatically, but the slick plastic underfoot nearly took me out. I yelped, flailed, and caught myself.

“You almost fell, didn’t you?” Julian’s deep chuckle filled the room. “That’s what happens when you mistreat the man who loves you. It’s called instant karma.”

“Shut up!” I called out, stomping from the room with his laughter following behind me.

“Do you want me to kill that plastic for you?” he shouted.

I ignored his jokes. In the kitchen, I stopped and pressed my back against the wall. I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.Love. He said he loved me. Had loved me for a while. Not liked. Not cared for. But loved. I peeked around the corner into the living room.

The bear was in the corner, facing away from me, in timeout. I smiled at it. Julian Cattaneo was creative, I’d give him that. Damn, I wish I’d made better decisions in my past. If I had, I’d be free to be with a guy who wasn’t ashamed to say what he felt.

But if I hadn’t made those decisions, I wouldn’t have India. Every storm had its rainbow, and she was mine. I pushed away from the wall. There was no point in standing around, wishing for something that couldn’t be.

On trash day, I would get rid of that bear. Until then, the only thing Julian would see was the wall. I was heading toward my bedroom when my phone rang. India’s ringtone. I strode over to the kitchen table and answered it.

“Hello.”

“Hello, my caramel sundae,” India greeted me.

I burst out laughing. “Hello, my mischievous minx. Finally worked up the courage to call me and confess your crimes, huh?”

“I was soooo scared, ma. And Ronnie was scared, too. It took us an hour to plan out how to handle it.”

“Are you serious?” I asked as I walked to the bedroom.

“I am. Are you really okay with it?”

I hesitated. “Is this what you want, sweetie?”

“I want to earn some money to buy the things I need for next semester myself. I also need to start working on my resume. I don’t have a lot of job experience.”

“You’re not supposed to. You’re a teen.”

“I know. But... mom... I. That’s not the only reason I want to work here. I... I’ve got a question.”

Oh, no! What had she heard?

I stopped just shy of entering my room. “What is it?”