Page 50 of Broken Grump

“Yes?” Her defeated tone caught me off guard.

“You can’t just come in here unannounced like this.”

“I can’t?” I raise an eyebrow, and I look all around me. “Because last time I checked, I’m a partner in this business. Unless you forgot about that.”

She rubs at her temples now.

“No. No, I did not. But this is what we’re paying Steven for, is it not?”

Honestly, I have no idea.She’s made the demands to only talk through him but reneged on them several times as well.

“I—I don’t know.”

I then pull out the chair and sit across from her, pushing the pizza box closer to her.

“Oh, God. Is that what I think it is?”

“You know it. Sausage, peppers, onions, and anchovies. Lots and lots of anchovies.” Personally, the fishy smell makes me want to gag, but it’s all worth it if it makes her smile.

And I get that affirming grin as soon as she opens it.

“Do you know how much I wanted to kill someone for one of these while I was pregnant with Luna?”

“Really?”

“Oh, yeah. I probably would’ve just stopped shy of shivving some poor bloke,” she mumbles in a British accent before picking up a slice and admiring the cheese pull.

I laugh inside at the reminder of her alternate personality when she’s hungry.

“Well, I’m happy to deliver it to you in one piece and without the threat of murder.”

She giggles and is about to take a bite, but then she seems to have second thoughts.

“Actually.” The piece of pizza goes down, and she brushes crumbs off of her hands. “I don’t really have time for this right now.”

Oh, come on.

I check my watch and see that it’s almost eleven-thirty.

“Just one. Please, Addie.”

“Why do you care so much?”

“I—I like to know that my business partner is eating well and taking care of herself.”

Her eyes turn into slivers. “Really?”

“Yes,” I insist. “In fact, I worked with a man in the past who was so focused on the job that he forgot to eat and, well. He was dead two days later.”

She blows raspberries into the air. “Oh, please. You can survive more than two days without food.”

“Not foodandwater.”

With that, she exaggerates a reach for her water bottle and takes a drink. “Happy?”

“I will be once you take a bite.”

“Ugh!” she groans. “Fine. Just one slice.”

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