“Actually, Cass, yes.” Jefe replied. “Slay does need my permission and at this moment, he doesn’t have it. I need to speak to him in private.” He put the baby in Silvia’s arms.
“You’re joking right? This is about my brother.” I narrowed my eyes at Slay, not hiding my anger. Of all people, he should help me. We have a history together. He was my friend… sort of. Maybe this was payback for avoiding him anytime we were around each other.
“Let me talk with Jefe first.” Slay left the room with his president and didn’t wait for my reply.
How rude!
“I’m sure everything is fine,” Silvia said. “Sit down with me and we’ll wait for them to return. Would you like something to drink?”
“No thanks.” I took the chair across from her. “I’m shocked. Completely shocked that he would disregard me so easily.” And it hurt a little, but I wouldn’t admit that to anyone.
“He didn’t disregard you. We aren’t members of the club, so we aren’t privy to club business.”
“I know how it works but Steve is my business, my family,” I said in an annoyed tone, which I didn’t mean to take my frustration out on her. “I’m sorry. None of this is your fault.”
“It’s okay. And until you know what’s happening, is it fair to blame Slay?”
Ouch.
Blame Slay?
She hit a nerve whether she knew it or not.
I blamed Slay for only one thing. A huge, life changing thing. But my knee-jerk reaction was to blame him for whatever was going on with Steve, whether Slay had a part in it or not. The mere fact that he’d taken my brother under his wing when I’d asked him not to had made him the enemy to me.
I exhaled a breath. “You’re right. I can’t jump to any conclusions. I’ll wait until they come back.” As long as Steve was alive, I could handle anything else.
“And while you wait, I made you a margarita.” Mama Virgie put a large glass in front of me. “It’ll help take the edge off.” She winked, kissed the top of Chance’s head, then made her way back to the kitchen.
“Thanks!” I marveled at the ginormous glass that could have been a lemonade slushie if I didn’t know better. Coffee was my go-to morning, noon and night. But feeling how I was feeling, a margarita would be great right about now.
“I would love a margarita, but Andy would flip his lid if he saw me drinking alcohol. Only the best, non-alcohol breast milk for his son.” Silvia laughed and rubbed her nose against the baby’s forehead. “I love how much he loves us.”
“He’s a keeper.” I sipped my drink slowly, so I didn’t freeze my brain.
“So is Slay.”
A gasp caught in my throat. The tart, limey liquid went down the wrong pipe, after hearing Slay was a keeper too. I coughed and patted my chest. My eyes teared up like I was about to cry.
How embarrassing. Now Silvia would know how much Slay affected me. This was why I rarely came to the clubhouse since she and I became friends. The farther away I stayed, the better for me.
“Your reaction to my statement is interesting.” Silvia eyed me with a glint of curiosity in her brown depths. “Are you okay? I’ll get you some water.”
“No.” I raised my hand, clearing my throat. “I’m fine.”
“Are you sure?”
“Mhm.” I nodded, clearing my throat and trying to compose myself. I sensed Silvia wanted to know more about me and Slay. Honestly, there wasn’t much to say about us back when we were teenagers. Decades ago.
“Ever since we met last fall, the topic of Slay has never come up. It’s like an elephant in the room that we both don’t acknowledge.”
I shook my head. “There’s nothing to talk about.”
“Sorry, hon. I don’t believe you. I see the way he looks at you and how your cheeks turn pink. Andy told me you grew up together.”
“We did.” I twisted my lips, feeling put on the spot.
Clearly, it had been a bad idea to stop by the clubhouse. But I liked Silvia. She wasn’t like the club girls, and I didn’t have alot of friends. Thought maybe she and I could hangout. And… I thought I was ready to put the past to rest with my brother, Josh.
