Page 125 of This Pack of Ours

A few minutes later, grandmother came down the stairs again with a shoebox. She held it out to me.

I opened it up, my throat tightening. It even smelled a little bit like Dee still. There were a few bits of jewelry, and a crystal rose. A photo album that I’d spent days searching for in Dee’s place. God, that wasn’t even worth anything—had she just taken it out of spite?

“Right,” I said thickly, handing the box to Vander. She held out the cheque and a pen she’d grabbed. Steadying myself, I inhaled deeply and took the cheque from her… and tore it in half.

“Fuck you,” I said, my voice only shaking a little bit, and I spat at her feet.

I was speaking for my mother.

For Dee.

For Juniper.

And for me, too.

“Why you little—” she shrieked, launching forward, but Vander stepped in front of her with a snarl.

“Give me a reason,” he said, his voice cold as ice. He bared his teeth, and she took a step back, her face red and twisted with rage.

“You ungratefulbastard!You useless fucking—” she continued, but I was done with her. I turned around and walked back to the car, her vitriol now falling on deaf ears. She’d be the only one listening to it now.

“Good job, Kit,” said Vander as we climbed into the car. “Proud of you.”

“Thanks,” I said, bouncing up and down on my seat as he started the engine. He took me to a coffee shop and got me a mocha with extra whip.

“Oh, that’s so nice,” I said, smiling at him. “Thanks for being there with me. I really appreciated it.”

He shrugged, looking a little uncomfortable.

“It’s the least I owe you,” he said.

“What do you mean?” I asked, picking up some whipped cream with my finger and popping it in my mouth.

“Well, I was such a dick to you,” he replied.

“Oh, it’s fine. I don’t really hold a grudge,” I said.

His eyebrows rose. “I called you a slut. Multiple times.”

“Well, I liked that.”

“I didn’t know that!” he said, incredulous. “And I ignored you and treated you like shit. Made you feel like I didn’t want you.”

“You literally told me you wanted me,” I replied.

“No, Kit,” Vander said sternly. “I told you I wanted to fuck you and nothing else! That’s not okay! You can’t just move on like it didn’t happen!”

“Oh,” I said, hugging my knees and looking at him. “Right. Um, so what do I need to do?”

He blinked at me.

“You need to be mad at me. Make me grovel at your feet or something.”

I scratched my head. “I don’t think I’m gonna be good at that. Maybe you could just get Juni to do that part?”

Vander went white as a sheet.

“But that means… I need to tell her everything I did,” he said, aghast.

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