The Last Woman (All That Remains #1) (17 page)

“Relax; I’ve been to therapy a
time or two.”

I laugh with relief. “I went
when I was pregnant and struggling with whether or not to have the baby.”

“Because Jon left you?”

“Because I was afraid it would
be like me,” I confess quickly, spitting the words out like poison. “That’s
enough for now, Airen. You know more than I ever intended to tell. We should
get back.”

“All right.”

The look of pity on his face
pisses me off. “Don’t look at me like that!”

“Like what?”

“Like I’m a starved puppy left
out in the rain.” He snorts and grabs my hand as we walk back. “You know, I
expect to hear your deepest, darkest secrets as well,” I warn.

“I don’t have a lot of dark
secrets, but I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.” We walk in silence for a
while. “Were you close to your brother?”

“Airen! We said we were done
talking about this for now.”

“I’m sorry. I just thought
being in that situation together may have made you closer.”

“No, I don’t blame him,
though. He always tried to get me in trouble. He thought if he sided with her
against me, she might hate me more and love him,” I explain.

“That’s really sad,” he
whispers.

We’re quiet the rest of the
walk back. When we get to the yard, he turns to me. “I’m sorry I let that
happen with Amanda. I didn’t encourage her, but I should have thrown her ass
out the second she stepped through the door.”

“It’s not your fault.”

“I know how hurt you were, and
I never want to see that look on your face again. It gutted me.” He pulls me
into a warm hug and strokes the back of my head.

“I’m sorry I hurt your
feelings,” I murmur. “I didn’t mean to. I trust you, but I let my jealousy get
the best of me.”

“It happens to the best of us,
darlin’.”

“I thought I lost you.” My
voice wavers and I squeeze him tighter.

“Don’t cry, sweetheart. I told
you. You’re stuck with me.”

“I’m not crying.”

Chuckling, he pulls away and
swipes a tear from my cheek with his thumb. “Okay.”

Joseph smiles as we step
through the door. He has explained to the kids that Mandy is staying at her
house to get it ready to move in. What would we do without him?

A few days after Mandy’s
abrupt removal from our house, she approaches me in the garden. “Do y’all have
some shampoo? I’m out.”

The nerve of this bitch! She
has tried in every way possible to take Airen from me, and here she stands as
if nothing ever happened.

The front door squeaks as
Joseph leans out and calls to me, “Is everything all right, Abby?” I give him a
brief smile before I turn and punch her as hard as I can. I didn’t exactly plan
to knock her tooth out, but I’m pleased with the result. She’s so proud of that
face she assumes makes her better than me.

“Abby!” Joseph is out the door
and holding my arm before I can add a broken nose to her injuries. She doesn’t
even try to fight back. She’s bawling and holding her mouth while blood drips
down the back of her hand.

“Damn it, Abby!” Joseph curses
as he tries to see how much damage I’ve done.

Airen and Sara must have heard
the uproar because they come running.

“Abby! Are you all right? What
happened?” Airen demands.

Joseph is still holding my
arm, though I’m not resisting him. Apparently, he doesn’t trust me not to hit
her again. He grabs me by the shoulders and pushes me toward Airen.

“Just get her in the house and
keep her there!” he barks.

“She...” I begin.

“Abby, go!” he yells. “I can’t
believe you did this!”

Why is he so pissed? He knows
what she has done. I’m taken aback and frankly, I’m hurt. Joseph has never even
given me a dirty look, much less yelled at me. I’ve never seen him so angry at
anyone.

“Come on, your hand is
bleeding,” Airen insists.

I shoot Joseph a thunderous
look before allowing Airen to escort me inside. Traitor.

“What happened?” Jayla cries
as I sit down in the kitchen, and Airen grabs an ice pack.

“I cut my hand.”

“On Mandy’s teeth! She popped
her right in the mouth! Knocked a tooth out!” Carson hoots.

Damn, that boy is always
watching.

“Oh Abby, we need to clean it
out then. A human bite is full of bacteria, and there’s no telling what disease
that skank is carrying.”

I challenge Airen. “Are you
mad at me too?”

He smirks. “No darlin’.” That
sexy southern accent creeps into his voice. “I think you showed amazing
restraint. If the situation was reversed and some man was trying to get between
us, I would’ve beaten his ass a long time ago.”

“Did you really knock her tooth
out?” Jayla asks, pouring peroxide over my knuckles.

“Yes.”

“A front one?” Carson asks
excitedly.

“All right, that’s enough for
now. Don’t you two have something to do?” Airen suggests, trying to mask his
amusement.

“Not better than this.”

“Don’t tell Walker,” Airen
warns and shoos them from the room.

“What the hell is Joseph’s
problem?” I demand as soon as they’re out of earshot.

“I don’t believe he shares our
proclivity for violence.” He smiles at me.

“I’m not violent! I haven’t
hit anyone since high school. She had it coming!”

“You’re preaching to the
choir, sweetheart. Don’t worry. Joseph will get over it. I think you shocked
him. He just didn’t expect it from you.”

“He shouldn’t have taken her
side!”

“Just let it blow over,” he
says, dropping a soft kiss on my temple.

Joseph doesn’t come back until
after dark. The kids are in bed, and I’m curled up in the recliner with a book
while Airen lounges on the sofa. Joseph looks tired as he plops onto the love
seat.

“Well, she lost the tooth.
There’s no way to fix it.” He gives me a stern, sobering look.

“So make the bitch a get well
card!” I snap.

“Abby!”

I march to my room, fighting
the urge to slam the door. He’s still taking her side! He feels sorry for her.
I fume while I take a shower and get ready for bed. I’m never going to fall
asleep tonight.

Airen eyes me warily as he
gets into bed. I suppose he’s wondering how much of my bad mood I’m going to
take out on him. I sigh and rest my head on his chest.

“Don’t worry, darlin’. You two
can’t stay mad at each other forever,” he assures me, running his long fingers
through my hair.

I don’t want to put him in the
middle of me and Joseph. It’s not fair. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Okay. Do you want me to knock
his teeth out?”

I chuckle and kiss his cheek.
“You always make me feel better.”

“I’m just getting started.
I’ve got the perfect stress reliever for you right here.”

* * *
*

“Good morning,” Joseph says, joining
me in the kitchen while I crack eggs for breakfast.

“Morning,” I mumble. I’m still
pissed. He watched Mandy antagonize me and try her damndest to screw up my
relationship with Airen. He should be on my side. Instead, he shouts at me and
runs to take care of her.

Jayla and Carson eat quickly
and flee the room while Airen heads outside to work on the mower. The tension
between Joseph and I is palpable. I know he wants to talk, and he’s only
waiting until we’re alone. He turns to me as soon as the room empties.

“Abby,” he begins.

I don’t want to hear it right
now. I stalk deliberately past him and out to the porch. I realize I’m being
petulant. Okay, I’m pouting like a scolded four year old.

He follows me. “I’m not Airen,
and we aren’t going to play the ignore and avoid game,” he says sternly, sitting
beside me. “Tell me why you’re so angry.”

What? Why I’m so—he can’t be
this obtuse! I study him incredulously. “You took her side.”

“Abby, someone had to help
her,” he argues, exasperated. “Airen wasn’t going to be any help, and Sara
didn’t know what to do.”

“You know all of the shit she’s
done! She deserved exactly what she got,” I hiss.

He sighs and studies me a
moment. The morning sun is making his blond curls shine. He shifts
uncomfortably in his seat and finally speaks calmly. “Abby, this isn’t you.
Don’t let her do this to you.”

“Apparently, she has the right
to do anything she wants to me, and I’m expected to roll over and take it. I’m
supposed to let her shovel shit on me while I just beg for more.”

“No. Honey, how can you say
that to me? You aren’t like this, and you know it. Don’t let her get to you and
make you do things you’ll regret later.”

“Maybe I’m not the person you
think I am, Joseph. I don’t regret it.”

“What if she had fallen and
hit her head, or the cut in her mouth became infected? What if, by some fluke
your next punch permanently injured her or even killed her? You can’t tell me
you wouldn’t care. I know you. You’re a good, compassionate person, and I don’t
want her to take that from you.”

Damn. It’s hard to stay mad at
him when he says such sweet things.

“Although, I didn’t suspect
you have such a temper,” he says with a smirk.

“There’s always a line you
can’t cross, and she stomped on it.”

“She did. You’re right.” His
fingers close over mine. “Are we good now?” He gazes at me with that open,
honest face, and I suddenly find my feet interesting.

“You yelled at me,” I mutter.

“Oh, honey.” His arm slides
around me and I’m pulled into his warm embrace. “I’m sorry. I wanted to stop
you and separate you from her before things got worse. I didn’t mean to hurt
your feelings. I wouldn’t hurt you for the world.”

I tighten my arms around him.
I can’t stay mad at Joseph. He’s the sweetest guy I’ve ever met. There isn’t a
drop of hostility in him. “I’m sorry I was hateful to you. You didn’t deserve
it. You’re always so good to me, to all of us.”

Airen materializes, grinning
at us. “Good, now that’s settled, what are we going to do about her house?”

“One problem at a time,
buddy.”

“There’s my sexy little
brawler.” Airen pulls me into his lap, kissing me.

“Don’t encourage her, you savage.”

* * *
*

Airen hasn’t been working on
Mandy’s house since our fight. I know he doesn’t want to be around her, but
Joseph needs his help. The only two people who are speaking to her at all are
Sara and Joseph. Jayla despises her as bad as I do, and Carson has never really
given her the time of day. I’m extremely proud of my son’s instincts.

“She’s asking to take a shower
here,” Joseph casually remarks at lunch.

“Did you tell her to go fuck
herself?” Airen asks, equally calm.

“Airen!” I exclaim, trying to
suppress a grin even though Jayla and Carson are grinning at each other. I’m
certainly not ready to forgive her for the shit she pulled at the trailer,
especially since she hasn’t even apologized.

Still, I don’t want Mandy to
think she has affected me to the point that being in her presence is too
distressing. Besides, she knows I won’t hesitate to widen the gap in her teeth
if she tries anything. I also want Sara to be comfortable staying here, and I
know she feels caught in the middle.

“Just let her come back and stay
until her house is done,” I suggest. They all look at me as if I’ve sprouted
mushrooms from my forehead.

“Excuse me?” Airen asks.

“Just make it clear to her if
she tries anything with you, she’ll be out for good.”

Joseph asks the kids to help
load the truck so Airen and I are left alone.

“Are you planning on doing
something to her?” he asks.

Christ, punch someone once and
they never let you live it down. “Of course not.”

“Why would you want her back
here?”

“I don’t, but this animosity
between us is causing problems. Joseph is running messages back and forth, poor
Sara doesn’t know where she fits in, and...” I trail off, and he gazes at me
expectantly. “I feel like she got the best of me. She thinks I’m worried about
you being near her, and I’m not. I want to make it clear she can’t get between
us. Besides, Joseph needs your help to finish the house, and it’s not fair to
stick him with all the work.” His stare makes me feel self conscious. “If you
don’t want her back here, believe me, I understand.”

He shakes his head in
amazement. “If you can be the better person, so can I, but what makes you think
she won’t try something again?”

“She might, but I trust you to
deal with her and to be honest with me about it.”