Her mouth snapped closed and I grinned at the idea of making my feisty ginger angel speechless.
“You have me to support you now,” I mused aloud. “You could go ahead and quit.”
Macy’s spine went rigid. “I will not be a kept woman,” she snapped. I stifled a laugh at her turn of phrase. So fucking cute.
“I wasn’t suggesting that, angel. I was merely pointing out that you don’t have to wait until we’re married for me to support you.”
“M—married?” she shrieked.
My brows furrowed and I frowned at her tone of disbelief. “Of course we’re getting married.” My voice was stern, solid with conviction. I was not leaving any wiggle room in this.
“We can’t get married!” Her cheeks were flushed bright red with emotion.
“Why the fuck not?” I had to stop myself from roaring the question.
“We only met a day ago.”
“And if you’re pregnant?” I asked, trying a different tactic.
She swallowed hard. “Well, I suppose it would make more sense then, but—”
Problem solved. I cut her off by kissing her hard and then guided her to her feet while she was still flustered. If I sat there any longer with her barely clothed body so accessible, I would never get to work.
“I have to go, angel,” I said grudgingly and kissed her one more time. “I’ll be back in time to take you to work.”
“If you would just get me to my car, I can—”
“Macy,” I growled. She huffed and spun around, marching towards the connecting door to the other bedroom and on into the bathroom. I chuckled at the sight, shaking my head wondrously. How could so much personality fit in someone so tiny? She was certainly one of a kind, made just for me, and I would do anything for her.
That thought festered as I called goodbye to her through the bathroom door and headed to my car. On the short drive to my office, I considered both of our needs. I wanted her away from her current job and I wanted her permanently mine, with a ring on her finger that proclaimed it to every son of a bitch who looked her way. Waiting for her to get pregnant so she’d marry me, while definitely an enjoyable task, could take longer than I had the patience for.
Considering Macy’s desire for her future as well, an idea started to take shape. I could potentially solve both of our issues if I begged a favor from an old friend. It could be a win/win. And Macy would be none the wiser.
I let things go for a week or so while I put my plan together. Macy seemed happy to avoid the topics of marriage and babies, though, I noticed she hadn’t protested when I’d continued to fuck her bare. I was adamant about her staying with me and eventually she gave up the fight. I drove her to work when she had a shift and picked her up, keeping in close contact with Xander to make sure she was always protected. On the nights she had off, we chose to stay in and order food, or I cooked for her, and we spent more time getting to know each other. My ultimate goal, before I could call in that favor, was to get Macy to let me read her manuscripts.
I’d been slowly convincing her to bring more and more stuff to my house each time we swung by her place to pick up clothes. After seeing her dingy apartment in a questionable area of town, I wouldn’t allow her to go there without me at all. At the end of the week, when we stopped by, I asked again about reading her work. To my surprise, she grabbed a couple of padded envelopes from a small filing cabinet and hugged them to her chest, watching me nervously.
I didn’t pressure her about it and the next morning, I found one of them set on the bar in the kitchen where I drank my coffee and read the paper every day. Something told me that Macy was very talented, but once I opened the first page, I couldn’t put it down. The story, the writing, all of it was fucking amazing. My plan was definitely going to work.
“Kassidy Bell, it’s been a while.” I grinned into the phone, even though she couldn’t see me.
“Peanut Buttercup!” she exclaimed, using the nickname she’d given me in high school. “How the hell are you? And why haven’t I heard from you in almost a year?” Her tone was chiding at the end. I’d kind of lost touch with a lot of my friends over the last year. I didn’t realize what a shell I was becoming until Macy started breathing life back into me. Kassidy was like a big sister to me. Growing up, her younger brother, Dillon, had been one of my best friends. With our other best friend, Logan James, we’d gotten into a lot of trouble together. My parents were useless and when they took off right after I turned sixteen, I moved in with the Bells until I graduated. They weren’t my blood, but they were my family.