Page 48 of The Baby Bargain
"Promiscuous?" he offers.
I can't help but laugh. "Yeah."
"Usually, I'd say yes, but in this case, I think we need to appeal to baser instincts."
"You mean—"
"Find a guy who sees this and thinks 'I need to come on those tits.'"
My cheeks flush. "But, uh, he would have toaheminside me—"
"Trust me. There's no guy in his right mind who's gonna see this picture and think anything butI need to fuck her."
"So—" Any guy who looks at that picture will want to fuck me. He's a guy. He's looking at it now. That must mean he wants to.
Oh my God.
Deep breath.
Slow exhale.
Ultimate confidence.
I am not thinking about Chase naked. I'm not. "What now?"
"We wait."
Chapter Eleven
Chase
Most of the time, my life is rote. Work. Gym. Dinner. TV. Sleep. Repeat.
Sometimes, I go out with Griffin or Wes.
Occasionally, I see my entire family.
I visit Mom once a week. But we're so far past the point of catching up. We're both transparent.
It's like I'm screamingare you really staying sober this time?
Like she's a kid, throwing a tantrumare you ever going to trust me?
It's a fair question. It's the question at the center of my entire universe.
People act like figuring out your shit fixes things, but it doesn't.
I know why I don't trust my mom. I know why things are strained with Hunter. I know why my heart refuses to let go of Grace.
The knowledge doesn't make it easier to forgive or trust or move on.
Hell, I don't know where the line is anymore. I don't know what normal is anymore.
I understand why Hunter lied to me. I understand why he slipped. Why he failed.
I blame him a lot less than I blame Mom. With that kind of role model—
It's amazing Wes and I aren't dodging rehab right now.
