Total pages in book: 101
Estimated words: 98255 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 491(@200wpm)___ 393(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98255 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 491(@200wpm)___ 393(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
She was happy for her sister and wished she could be part of that process, but hearing her mother saddened her. All she ever did was tell her how bad she was, how horrible she looked. The last thing she needed now was to constantly be reminded by her mother just how much she had failed at everything.
Tears filled her eyes, and as she headed toward her home, she came to a stop when she caught sight of Grant walking with Wanda. Swiping at her tears, hoping they didn’t fall, she forced a smile to her lips as she looked at him.
“Grant, hi,” she said.
“Aria, is everything okay?”
The smile on his lips faded as soon as he looked at her.
“Yeah, yeah, everything is fine. Of course it’s fine.” She laughed. “Why wouldn’t it be?” He cupped her cheek and she looked up at him. “You’re upset.”
“I’ve had a really shit day, and I … I just want to…”
“Drink?” he asked.
“Huh?”
“You know, drink? Lose your head.”
“I have no idea?” Aria asked.
He held out his arm. “Care for me to help you with whatever demons you’re fighting?”
In the back of her mind, she knew she should tell him no, but after thinking about her mother and what just happened, she didn’t want to go home alone. Putting her arm through Grant’s, they made their way back toward his apartment. It was already warm and she removed her coat. Grant once again threw it across the back of his chair.
“I don’t have anything classy, but when I need a moment, I think nothing beats whiskey,” he said.
He returned from the kitchen with a bottle of dark amber liquid and two glasses. She watched as he poured two generous shots. Aria had already taken a seat on the sofa, and she leaned forward, picked up the glass, and took a drink. She couldn’t help but wrinkle her nose at the taste. It was nasty.
Grant swigged his back in one gulp and took a breath after.
She giggled. “It’s disgusting.”
“But it will get the job done.”
Aria finished the whiskey and it burned on the way down. She wrinkled her nose at the taste. The fire was welcome in the pit of her stomach.
“How is Wanda doing?” she asked.
“Wanda’s doing great. Why don’t we talk about you?” he asked.
She giggled. “Me?”
“Yeah, why you looked close to crying? Do I need to go and kick the crap out of someone?” he asked.
Aria thought this was the funniest thing she had ever heard. She also snorted, which was a gross sound.
She covered her face. “Sorry. You would kick the crap out of someone because they had upset me?” she asked. “Isn’t that a little extreme?” The words seemed to roll off her tongue.
Should she warn him that she’d never drunk anything before in her life? Never drank at a party, not even with Lidia. She’d always been the designated driver and she took her role seriously.
Grant had poured her a second glass of whiskey. “What is extreme?” he asked. “Protecting you from the evils of the world?”
“The world cannot be that evil.” She sipped the whiskey and the fire in her stomach was building.
“There is evil in the world. Fucking monsters that would kidnap dogs and have them kill other dogs. Rapists, murderers, all that shit. You know the drill.”
Aria sighed. “Wow, now I do feel like utter shit.”
Grant laughed. “Why?”
“With everything going on in the world and how bad it can be, my problems are not that bad.”
“Everyone has bad shit. Don’t compare yours to others, but whatever it was, it made you cry.”
“I didn’t cry.”
“I saw you wipe at your tears. You can’t argue with me.”
She wanted to stick her tongue out at him but she stopped herself. Grant was … she didn’t exactly know what he was, but it didn’t seem right to stick her tongue out at him.
Grant swallowed back his third whiskey while she was still drinking her way through her second. She finished her second and he immediately poured her a third.
“Are you starting to feel better?”
“Yep. You’re right, but it could just be you.”
“I’m the best medicine there is.”
This made her laugh and snort.
“You know, my sister is pregnant.”
“Is this good news or bad?”
“Good news. I’m happy for her.”
“But?”
Aria finished her third whiskey, knocking it back, swallowing it, and then trying not to cough.
“Brave woman,” he said.
She had lost count of the number he drank.
“My mom is already putting my sister on a diet—a pregnancy diet because no man wants a fat woman. No man wants a woman like … me.” Aria hated how fucking pitiful she sounded.
“What?” Grant asked.
“That’s what I hear all the time I’m near my mom. ‘No man wants a fat woman.’ No one wants an ugly ass like me.” She laughed. “That’s why I get gym memberships. That’s why I get to eat sprouts, carrots, and a few slices of beef. I have to watch my weight because I’m not good enough for my mom.”