“No, I don’t need, nor do I want, new things.” It wasn’t like I was used to new things anyway. Growing up, all my clothes had come from boxes of clothing donated to the home I lived in. Then once I was out on my own, I saved all the money I could by getting the items I did happen to need from secondhand stores.
“Tavia—” Theo started to argue, but I didn’t want to hear what he was about to say. No doubt it would only piss me off or hurt me. Either way, I wasn’t willing to hear what was about to come out of his mouth.
I shook my head at him, disturbing the towel wrapped around my damp hair. Blowing out a heavy sigh, I pulled off the towel and rewrapped it around my thick hair. It would take hours for it to air-dry, but I didn’t have the energy to blow-dry the heavy locks.
“Flick went to pick up the kids from school,” Raven commented. “But when she gets back, she can help you with your hair if you want.”
“Thank you, but it’s fine. I’ll just let it air-dry.” And I wasn’t going to care if it got frizzy or turned into a mop. It wasn’t like I had anyone I needed to impress with straight hair that didn’t look like a pack of rats lived in it. Least of all Theo.
“I’ll help you,” he offered in his deep voice from right beside me, causing me to jump. I hadn’t expected him to be so close, and when I turned my head, it was to find him less than a foot away. He lifted one of his huge hands, touching my towel, and for a moment, my heart skipped a beat. But then I remembered I hated him and jerked my head back. “I know how much you dislike letting your hair go untamed.”
“It’s fine,” I repeated between clenched teeth. It wasn’t so much that I didn’t want to accept help; I just didn’t want to be a bother.
But Theo helping me could not happen, no matter what. I couldn’t let him touch me. Every brain cell in my head seemed to go on vacation when he was close enough to touch. If his hands were on me, even innocently helping me dry my hair, I would melt for him like a popsicle dissolving into a sticky mess on the sidewalk in August.
I couldn’t let him have that much control over my body when I was still weak from being shot.
Chapter 12
Tavia
The back door that led into the kitchen opened. I turned to find a beautiful girl, no more than fifteen, walking into the house. Her hair was long, a lighter brown color, and her eyes the same shade of gray as Willa’s. Dressed in jeans and a pastel pink shirt, she looked sweet and innocent.
In her hand, she was carrying a Victoria’s Secret bag, which she placed on the table. “I got a few different styles. You didn’t say who it was for or why, so I didn’t know which ones would be more comfortable,” the girl said in a voice that was musically soft.
“Thanks, honey,” Willa said, continuing her chopping. “Tavia, this is my youngest, Monroe. Mon, this is Tavia.”
A shy smile lifted at her lips, and she waved. “Hi,” she murmured in that voice that made me want to sit down and just listen to her talk for hours.
“Hi,” I greeted. “Thank you for the bra selection.”
“So, they’re for you,” she said with a brighter smile. “I thought they were going to be for one of Max’s girlfriends or something.”
Raven snorted. “Like he would bring one of them home.”
“True,” Monroe agreed with a laugh. “But you never know around here.”
The back door opened again, and I had to blink a few times when another girl walked in. This girl was the same height and build as Monroe, her eyes the same shade of gray, and there was no mistaking that this was Monroe’s twin. They looked so alike it was disconcerting. But even though I suspected they were identical, it was very easy to tell who was who.
The new girl’s hair was jet-black, no doubt dyed, although it looked good on her. She had a distinctive style, a kind of punk-rocker vibe going on with her shredded shirt and distressed jeans. Where Monroe’s face was devoid of makeup, the other girl’s eyes were heavily made-up, making the gray stand out more. Her nails were painted black, and several leather and beaded bracelets dangled from her wrists.
“Mom, Maverick said he was going to be late,” she said as she walked to the fridge and pulled out a can of Diet Coke. Closing the door with her hip, she popped the top and tipped back the can, drinking it thirstily.
Willa sighed heavily. “Of course he is. That boy is going to make me a grandmother if he’s not careful,” she grumbled. Shaking her head, she tossed her chopped peppers into the pot on the stove. “Tavia, this is my other daughter, Mila. I would like to introduce you to their brother, but apparently he’s somewhere dicking around.”
“With River,” Mila told her, a wicked gleam in her eyes.
“Ah fuck,” Willa groaned, while Raven laughed.
“Told you,” was all the blonde said to the other woman before wiping her hands on a clean dish towel. “Girls, take Tavia upstairs and help her dry her hair. She’s still sore, so she needs some assistance with the hair dryer.”
“Sure thing, Aunt Raven,” Monroe readily agreed.
Mila eyed my hair in the towel then shrugged. “Yeah, I don’t have anything else going on. Let’s go play hair and makeup.”
I wanted to protest, but Monroe took my hand and started tugging me toward the door. “Mila, grab the VS bag. Tavia can try on all the bras I brought over for her.”
“So, they’re for her? That’s cool. I thought maybe they were for one of Max’s slutty girlfriends or something.” She picked up the bag and followed us out of the room. “Mom jokes and says Maverick is going to get River pregnant, but I think Aunt Raven is the one who should be worried about becoming a grandmother before her dumb-ass son finishes high school.”