Page 72 of Broken Grump

I take her by the shoulders. “I fully intend to stick to my word there, Adds. I mean, I like to think I’m a man who sticks to promises.”

She scoffs a little.

My eyebrow raises. “What’s with that attitude now?”

“A man of your word. Really, Hayden? Because I remember not so long ago, you promised me forever, but then you broke my heart into pieces.”

“Wha—”

With that, she storms back into her car and drives off.

Chapter twenty

Addie

Now that I’ve gotsome extra cash, I didn’t feel so guilty about going out and getting Luna a new bathing suit for the occasion.

The one she picked out is absolutely darling. It’s purple and has blue and green flowers on it.

The next Saturday morning, I’m helping her get into it when I hear the doorbell ring.

Who in the world?

“You got things from here, Loones? I’m just going to check who that is.”

She’s too busy examining herself in the full-length mirror in my bedroom to respond.

Alright then.

I leave her and head downstairs.

Overall, I’m in great spirits. I’m actually looking forward to spending time at Hayden’s place.Go figure.But after looking through the peephole and seeing the monster who gave birth to me on the other side, I feel immediately worn out and ready for a nap.

That’s what succubuses do. They drain you dry.

“Adriana? Hello! I can see your shadow under the door.”

I roll my eyes and open the door. “Good morning to you too, Mother.”

“Hmph.” As usual, she’s in some hoity-toity get-up that makes her look like the evil stepmother from any animated movie ever made.

Besides that little grunt, she doesn’t say anything before slapping a closed folder down on the small table where I put my keys every night.

“I just wanted to come and deliver those personally.”

“Seriously?” I don’t need to look inside to know they are the legal papers she swore she’d file against me.

My mother sighs, dramatically crosses her pashmina over her shoulder, and sticks her nose, which has been dramatically narrowed through the help of cosmetic surgery, high in the air.

“A woman’s got to do what a woman’s got to do.”

My teeth gnaw together. “Okay, butyoudon’t have to do this. As I said, we can work something out. After all, I’m not after the company.”

At this point, we’re both distracted when Luna comes cascading down the stairs in her summery robe.

“Hi, Grandma,” she says in her little voice.Poor thing, I can’t blame her for being terrified of the real-life Cruella de Vil before her. Lord knows that I was at her age—and still am to this day.

In response, she just sneers at her granddaughter and reminds her, “I told you not to call me that.”

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