Page 141 of Mama Si's Paradise

“Why? What’s the matter?” He looked down at my body like he was analyzing my insides, and once he realized the shirt I wore was a dark green, he actually had the decency to look disappointed.

Couldn’t blame him—I’d worn blue because he’d liked it on me two days in a row, and I couldn’t even explain to myselfwhy.

“Just that time of the month soon,” I muttered.

Grey arched a perfect brow. “You were on your period two weeks ago.”

Ah, shit.

I swallowed hard. “Must be ovulation then.”

“Must be,” he said, looking at my cheeks that were quite possibly steaming.

Again, he looked like a different person right now—not the hostile guy you didn’t want to be even looking at for fear you’d provoke him just by existing. Instead, he seemed curious—even more curious about me than that night I saw him in the kitchen. As curious as I was about the inside of his head.

Don’t look at his face, don’t look at his face, don’t fucking look at his face…I chanted in my head, knowing I’d lose the battle if I focused on him harder because he was absolutely breathtaking. Such a fucking sin for a monster like him to look like this, to lure me in better than that siren did in the ocean.

“I want to show you something I made for you,” Grey said after a second, and my heart fell all the way to my heels. “You think you can spare a moment for me when you’re feeling better?”

“Of course,” I choked, both terrified and thankful that he would let me go for now, at least.

Because the thoughts in my mind were a mess, and my body was even worse.

The simple truth was that, whatever it was about him, I was not ready for Grey yet. God, I was not ready for him at all. I couldn’t trust myself to be around him, not until I’d gotten my body under control and killed this stupid attraction and impossible curiosity about him that burned me from the inside.

“Then I will fi?—”

“Grey, darling.”

We both turned toward the other end of the hallway, and I was sure I was just hearing things because I thought I recognized the voice.

It was Genevieve wearing her white shawl around her shoulders, the ends of which touched the floor lightly as she walked—and her bare feet.

“Mother,” Grey said, just as shocked as I was. I’d considered maybe I was seeing things because of my desperation to escape this situation, but she wasdefinitely there.

“I need you for a bit upstairs. Do you mind, darling?” Genevieve said with a bright smile on her face, her hair loose around her head, silver and curly like it was made out of satin.

Brows narrowed, Grey turned to me, and he was back to being his usual self, the guy people turned away from at first glance.

But even so, when he spoke to me, his voice was soft. “Please excuse me, Fall.”

“Of course,” I said again, owning no other words in my vocabulary at the moment.

Regretful. Grey looked fucking regretfully at me for one last time, and he started walking toward Genevieve, who smiled at him just like a mother does at her child.

Until that moment I’d had a very hard time thinking of him as her son, but now I saw it. Same jawline. Same round cheeks. Same straight brows without an arch.

“Go ahead, darling. I’ll be right there,” said Genevieve with a light touch on his arm as he passed her by. Grey threw one look back at me quickly, then disappeared around the corner without a word.

I forced a smile on my face as the woman came closer. She was a bit taller than me, which I hadn’t realized while we were sitting down in her sky room. “So good to see you, Genevieve.” Especially since most days I was convinced I’d made her up.

“It’s good to see you, too, Fall. I really must go soon, but I just wanted to say I adore how the amethyst looks on your finger. It has already made such a difference on you.” With the same genuine smile, she raised a hand to my cheek but never actually touched me.

“Thank you. I never take it off anymore,” I said, looking down at the ring she’d gifted me. And I meant it—I never took it off, not even when I bathed.

“I’m glad,” Genevieve said, putting her hands to her heartas she slowly started to move backward, making not a single sound as if she wereglidingon the hardwood floor, not stepping on it.

“Wait—can’t you stay? How are you? You look well,” I said because she was so full of positive energy and I was desperate for some of it to rub off on me.

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