Seduced The Unexpected Virgin - By Emily McKay Page 0,61
wasn’t going to turn around and come back, having forgotten his sunglasses or something. And then she waited another five for the knot in her throat to loosen. Then she climbed out of her car and walked up to Lena’s door, cursing the way fate had put her and Ward in the same place at the same time. It was bad enough that she’d still have to work with him occasionally for Hannah’s Hope. Why did she have to see him today, when she was already feeling so emotionally vulnerable?
When she knocked on the door, Ricky answered right away. His gaze widened in surprise and he gave a nervous little glance down the block as if to verify that Ward was truly gone.
“Ana. ¿Cómo estás?”
“I’m good. Is your mom here?”
“Ward just left,” Ricky said, instead of answering. His posture was belligerent. Protective almost.
“I saw that,” she answered.
Apparently, Ricky was hoping she’d press him for more information, because his expression soured into a snarl. “Don’t you want to know why he was here?”
She really didn’t. The less time Ward spent in her brain, the faster she’d recover. But Ricky obviously had no interest in protecting her. “Fine. Why was he here?”
“He was saying goodbye. He’s going back to Charleston.”
That defensive challenge was so strong in Ricky’s gaze, she couldn’t say anything.
“Look, I’m sorry. I know you really liked him.”
“He’s leaving because you broke his heart,” Ricky accused.
“He told you that?”
“He didn’t have to. I’m not an idiot.”
“Right.” And now she felt like that bad guy. What a fantastic day this was turning into. “Is your mom here or not?”
As if on cue, the door to one of the bedrooms opened and Lena propped her shoulder against the doorjamb. She was dressed in a robe, her hair mussed from sleep, her scowl already in place.
“What do you want?” she asked, her unspoken message—you don’t belong here—just as clear as her spoken one.
“I just wanted to talk,” Ana offered. She gave Ricky a pointed look and he was smart enough to excuse himself.
“I’ll be in my room, Mamá,” he said. As if she might need him to protect her from the big, bad Ana, when the reverse was probably far closer to the truth.
Once Ricky left, Lena’s scowl deepened. “You don’t have to look at me like that. I got a job working on the cleaning crew at the factory. That’s why I’m just getting up. Not ’cause I was out all night partying.”
Ana held up her palms. “I didn’t say anything.”
“You were thinking it,” Lena accused.
“Honestly, Lena—” Then Ana forced out a sigh. No need to make things worse. “Look, I know you don’t like me. I know you think I’m spoiled.”
“And?” Lena asked with an arched brow.
Well. There she had it. It sure would have been nice if Lena had denied it. But since she hadn’t… “But I need a favor.”
“Why would I do you a favor?”
“Because the favor is I want you to accept a job at Hannah’s Hope.”
Lena’s gaze turned even more suspicious. If that was possible.
Ana could see the sneering anger ready to burst forth, so she jumped in before Lena’s indignation could overwhelm her pride.
“Just hear me out.” Lena studied her for a second before giving a little nod. “It’s come to my attention that I’m not reaching out to the community the way I need to.” She sighed, finding this harder than she expected. “Ward pointed it out actually. He thinks I’m afraid of being rejected. I don’t know. Maybe he’s right. I don’t know what it’s like to be poor. I know what it’s like to be unlucky, but I don’t know what it’s like to be down on my luck. But you do.”
Lena sneered. “So what? You want me to teach you what it’s like to be poor? Isn’t that backward?”
“No. I don’t need anyone to teach me. I just need someone who’s been there. Someone people will trust.”
Lena’s lower lip jutted out. “I’m not the kind of person people trust.”
“Well, you will be.”
For just a second, the suspicion faded from Lena’s gaze to reveal a flicker of hope. Seeing her chance, Ana started talking fast. “I can’t pay you much, but I can beat the cleaning crew at the plant. And the hours will be better. But you’ll have to work on your getting your GED in your off-hours. We’ll need to get you fully qualified within a year, I’d think.”
“What makes you so sure I’d want to work for you?”
“Because you believe