Free Deeds (Broken Deeds #1) by Esther E. Schmidt

bites down again on my neck, sucking that piece of skin back into his mouth.
    Totally spent I feel myself drift off.
     
    ******
     
    I walk into the kitchen, grateful my ankle isn’t giving me any more pains. I make myself busy with the coffee pot, filling, measuring, and flipping the switch to brew. While I wait for it to finish, I look out the window. To my surprise, there’s an old woman near the bushes by our house. Yeah, our house. I’m damn well not going to pass on Deeds, so I might as well claim it like he claimed me. Believe me, in the world I come from, if I recognize a good thing, I will grab that sucker by the balls and hold on. Even if it’s being forced down my throat. Or heart, for that matter.
    Tiptoeing into the bedroom, I open the app on Deeds’ phone to disable the alarm on the front door. Walking out of the house, I see the old woman is tearing off branches with her bare hands. Her hair is in curlers with a red scarf wrapped around it. Her white flowery PJ’s are the exact same thing my grandma used to wear.
    She’s standing in the mud in her bare feet yet she acts like she doesn’t even feel it. Her face tells me she is focused on trimming the bush. Walking up to her I smile and greet her when she notices me. “Hiya.”
    She’s a bit surprised but her voice is warm and welcoming. “Well hello there,  pumpkin.”
    My heart swells and so does my smile. Fuck, how I miss my Grams and my mom. Grams died just last year. She lived with me for over five years. I loved taking care of her, right up until the very end. My mom died when I was twelve, so my Grams stepped in as my second mom. Tuning back in, I look at the woman’s hands and see smears of blood. She must have been at it a long time to do that kind of damage. Either that or she cut herself on a few thorns.
    “Why don’t you come join me inside? I could make you some tea.”
    The old woman shakes her head. “That’s so sweet of you, pumpkin, but I need to tidy the garden.”
    “Well, why don’t I give you a hand after you’ve had some tea? All this hard work must be exhausting, so you’re going to need to rest up a bit.”
    “You know what, pumpkin?” She gives me a warm smile. “I think you’re right. I’d love a cup of tea. Do you have any milk?”
    I smile, remembering how my Grams always had milk in her tea. That and a shitload of sugar. Oh, and let’s not forget the horrible dry cookies she liked to dip into it. Yikes, just the thought of it makes me inwardly shudder.
    “Let’s go check if Deeds has some milk in his fridge, shall we?”
    Her whole face brightens. “Pumpkin! You belong to my grandson?”
    Oh, shit. How do I answer that one? Fuck it, the sucker isn’t around and spending a few minutes with this lovely old woman makes me smile, inside and out.
    “That I do.”
    She puts her arm through mine and pats my hand. Walking back to the house she smiles at me.
    “I knew he was saving himself for a sweet girl like you, pumpkin. You call me Grams, you hear?”
    “Sure, Grams. Come, let’s go check the kitchen if we can find some cookies too.”
    She quickens her pace as we both walk into the house. It’s still empty, which means Deeds must still be asleep. The house is filled with the rich aroma of freshly-brewed coffee. Walking into the kitchen, I fill up the kettle and put it on the stove. I pour a cup of coffee, but leave it set on the counter. I need my coffee to cool down a bit. I really hate when it’s all hot because I can never seem to enjoy the taste that way. I'm afraid to scald my tongue.
    Grabbing a bucket and the first aid kit I spotted in the pantry earlier, I set the kit on the table and then move to fill the bucket half way with warm water. I kneel down to roll up her PJ’s and place her cold feet in the bucket. She sighs in pleasure.
    When I look at her hands, I see that she’s indeed hurt them with all that furious pulling. After gently cleaning the wounds, I place her hands back on her lap.