“Well, changing the subject,” Zander said.
Ro shook his head at his friend, but it was certainly one way to break the tension, and it seemed to work because they all laughed, even Maddox.
“I know you said you’re not looking for your mate, but you do believe in fated mates, don’t you?“ Nix asked.
Ronin shrugged. “Yea, I guess I do... although a part of me feels like maybe we are interfering with the goddess.” Ronin took another drink, before adding, “Then again, goddess helps those that help themselves, right?"
“That’s right, shit ain’t handed to no one. You gotta work for it,” Nix replied.
Zander looked down at the note that held Robbie’s phone number. He put it into his pocket and laughed. “I hear ya. If I didn’t just happen to be in this bar, then I wouldn’t have met Robbie. Who knows… he could be the one I’m meant to be with.”
“Don’t bullshit a bullshitter,” Maddox snorted. “If he was your mate, you would have carried him out of here first chance you got.”
Ronin thought about it. Nix was right. The goddess wasn’t going to deliver his mate to his front door... although that was basically what happened to Roman. Whatever, it didn’t even matter what he thought. He was going to do what Rick asked and set up the exchanges... but after another beer, though.
“So, are you going to get together with him tonight...? Robbie, I mean?” Ronin asked.
“Fuck, yeah!” Zander said, “He may not be mine, but have you seen that ass?” He chuckled as he downed more of his beer. “I’m only human after all... Well, mostly.”
Zander chortled at his joke and the rest of them snorted. Yup, they’d heard that before.
Ronin thought about that and took another sip. They continued talking and reminiscing, and he completely lost track of time until a glance at his watch proved that he had been there nearly an hour. A phone rang, and for a minute, he went into panic mode, thinking it was Rick calling him. Instead, it was Phoenix’s phone that was ringing.
Nix picked up his phone, answering, “Hello?”
Ronin started to stand. “I’m going to have to get out of here. I’m surprised I haven’t gotten a call yet. I’m already an hour late for my meeting.”
“That sucks, man,” Maddox said. “Hopefully we can get together again soon.”
Ronin smiled. “Yeah man, hopefully. If you guys get a chance, pop into Wildwood. I’m sure Finn and Dax would love to see you too.”
“We’re on our way,” Phoenix said, then hung up the call right as Ronin was about to leave the table.
“What’s up?” Maddox said.
“Just got a tip on the bounty. We have to head out before we miss him again,” Phoenix said.
“Who are you after?” Ronin asked. He couldn’t help being intrigued. Their thing sounded so much more interesting than his.
“Drug dealer. Aaron Sharp, skipped bail. Fifty grand bounty. Easy money.” Nix shared all that while putting on his leather jacket.
“If you want to tag along, we can tell you more on the way,” Maddox suggested. He got to his feet and pulled out a wad of cash from his pocket and tossed it on the table.
Ronin looked at his watch again. Fuck, Rick would kill him, but he wanted to ride along. “I’m in,” Ronin said, not giving it much more thought. Rick would already be pissed, soo... yeah.
“Where’s the fire?” Robbie asked, coming over to their table.
Ronin glanced over at Zander to see what his friend would say.
“Sorry, cutie, but we have to run off.” He placed a kiss on Robbie’s cheek, then stepped back. "Work,” Zander sighed.
Robbie’s eyes appeared disappointed.
“If I can, I’ll call you tonight, and hopefully we can together. If not, it’s definitely my loss.”
Robbie nodded. “I’d like that. Midnight, remember.” He winked at Zander before turning away and heading towards the bar.
“Okay, guys. We have to go,” Nix said.
