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do nothing about it. Doesn t the fact that everyone thinks you re wrong even register with you?
What did she think? Everyone wouldn t have to live with my broken heart. I d be all alone in that
one.
That s not the point and you know it. Marcus is a terrific young man and he likes you. More to the
point, you like him too. I never thought I d say this about any blood kin of mine, but you re being stupid
and a coward.
Wow. Gram was very upset with her. Her temper rose a bit in defensive response. Don t hold back.
Tell me what you really feel.
Don t sass me. I m telling you what I think because you need to hear it.
The only stupid thing I did was to get involved with Marcus in the first place.
No, that was the first smart thing you ve done since Davis showed his true colors. You ve done
nothing but lick your wounds ever since. I tried to give you time to get over it, but you just aren t. You re
set in cement.
Asia s anger deflated and she shrugged. So what if I am? I m comfortable with things the way they
are. Well, not really, but she wasn t going to own up to that one.
Gram harrumphed. Comfortable is just another word for boring.
Asia grumbled. I m not boring.
Anara Bella
You re that and worse, a coward.
Asia didn t touch that one, because deep down she suspected Gram was dead on with that particular
observation.
Ha, you know I m right. I didn t raise you to hide from life. I raised you to live it to the fullest and I
can t stand seeing you like this anymore.
There was nothing Asia hated more than disappointing her grandmother. Her shoulders sagged. I just
don t know what to do.
Yes, you do. You need to stop being so afraid to put your heart out there. If you hold onto it too
tight, it ll shrivel up and die. That s no kind of life.
But look at what happened to you and to Mom. You were both abandoned and left to raise a child on
your own. The women in our family suck at picking men. Look at our track record.
Gram snorted. You can t live your life based on that. Sure things can go wrong, but nothing will ever
go right either if you don t take some chances. Life is all about taking chances, putting yourself out there,
going for it. It s not about hiding away from men and doing nothing fun and exciting.
You don t wish you d made different choices?
Hell, no. And your mother didn t either. If I hadn t married your grandfather, your mother wouldn t
have been born, which means you wouldn t have been born. The two most precious people in the world to
me wouldn t have existed. I can t even bear to think of that kind of loss.
Asia s throat tightened and tears threatened to spill. I love you, Gram.
I love you too. But right now I m not very happy with you.
I m sorry about that, Gram. I really am. But I can t help the way things are.
Of course you can. You can suck it up and go for it. Now do me proud and show some courage.
All of a sudden she was six years old again. Vulnerable. Unsure. Scared. But how do you fight back
the fear? I don t know if I can.
Course you can. Haven t you figured it out yet? Courage isn t the lack of fear. Courage is being
afraid and doing it anyway.
Asia blinked, taken aback. She rolled the thought over, looking at it from different angles. I d never
thought of it that way before.
It s the only way to think of it. You have to acknowledge that you re afraid and decide to do it
anyway. It s the only way you re ever going to be happy.
A part of Asia leapt with hopefulness, another part held back. Afraid to take that first step. But then
that was the point, wasn t it? To take that step in spite of the fear.
But was Marcus even interested in her anymore? After all, it had been a week since she d sent him
packing. He might have been so angry he d decided she wasn t worth the effort and moved on. No one
could blame him. Least of all her.
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Bound and Determined
There was only one way to find out.
So, in other words you blew it.
Marcus gave his sister a withering look. How do you figure that?
Jen returned his look with one of her own. She s not here, is she? You two aren t talking. It s pretty
self-explanatory.
To you.
Well, you can t leave things the way they are. I can tell you really like this woman. You need to go
talk to her again.
I plan on it. I ve just been giving her some space, a chance to figure things out.
Don t wait too long. A woman needs to know she s wanted.
I know that too. I didn t grow up in a houseful of women and not learn at least that much.
Jen chuckled. I guess that s true enough.
She got up from the couch and stretched. I wish I didn t have to go already, but I have to meet Eric.
Marcus stood and walked Jen to her car with an arm around her shoulder. Thanks for coming out.
Once they reached her car, she enclosed him in a huge bear hug. You know I couldn t stay away. I
was worried about you.
He squeezed her back. Don t worry about me, sis. I ll figure out a way to get past the walls Asia s
erected.
She squeezed him again and stepped back. You do that. I ve never seen you this interested in a
woman before, so don t you dare let her get away.
Marcus chuckled. You re determined to get me married off, aren t you?
She nodded with a firmness that showed just how determined she was. We all are. You don t stand a
chance.
Marcus grinned ruefully. Don t I know it.
The sound of an approaching car caught his attention, and he turned to see a familiar red Pontiac G5
coming toward them. He couldn t believe his eyes, but fresh hope washed through him. Well, look at this.
You re going to get to meet her after all.
Jen strained to catch a glimpse of Asia through the car window. You re kidding.
He tried not to let his hopes get too high while he strove to catch a glimpse of her himself. Nope.
Damn.
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Anara Bella
Asia thought she d have a bit of time to mentally prepare once she got to Marcus s place, but there he
was standing in his driveway.
And he was hugging a beautiful woman, no less.
A jolt of pain lanced through her heart, followed by the jealousy that had turned into a knee-jerk
reaction thanks to her ex. It roared to life fresh and raw, ready to rip her hard-earned common sense to
shreds. The unwelcome green-eyed monster urged her to turn and run, get away. It was so strong she
almost did. But the need to fight her fear was still stronger. She was nothing if not determined. And logic
was her friend.
Don t be such a ninny jumping to hasty conclusions. You don t know what s going on here. It was
stupid to assume this was another woman. She might be, but even if she was, Asia had broken things off
with Marcus so he had every right to see someone else if he wanted.
But she also knew he had four older sisters. This could easily be one of them. She was of similar
height and coloring, after all. Come on, woman, have the decency to ask questions first and draw
conclusions later.
Feeling in control once again now that the jealousy had been bumped down to a background hum, she
pulled up beside the Buick Enclave in the driveway.
Nerves fluttered like leaden butterflies, making her slightly queasy as Marcus walked over to her car,
followed by the mystery woman.
Don t panic, take one step at a time and you ll get through this.
She hoped it was true as she watched him reach out and open her door.
Her hungry gaze drank him in. She hadn t seen him for almost a week and she couldn t believe the
way just seeing him made her feel. He looked so good. Strong, solid and sexy as hell.
He took hold of her hand and helped her out of the car. He didn t look angry, just a bit wary.
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