“You think he wants one?” Lucian asks so only I can hear.
I bark out a laugh, covering my mouth so I don’t spit food everywhere.
“No fucking way.”
Lucian laughs quietly, then digs into his own food, eating like a proper guy. Lucian isn’t one of us, he’s certainly more like one of the girls but without being a girl. Not that he’s feminine, because he’s not, but his personality is more suited for them. He does hang out with them a lot, and Anastacia has taken a liking tohim, mostly because he’s taken care of her since she was saved. I’m grateful for him. I’m not sure she would be alive if it weren’t for him and Snapper—Dorothea too.
I’m not so stupid to think Snapper doesn’t care about Dorothea or Anastacia. I’m sure he does in his own way, he just doesn’t know how to show it. Okay, maybe he’s figuring it out, because the way he’s looking at her? It’s kind of cute. Lucian is good for him. He’s bringing out the softer, more social side.
Eventually everyone is at the table eating, and we chat and get more plates of food for hours, until Spam starts consolidating the food to make space for dessert.
“That’s new,” Anastacia says, darting her eyes to Snapper who is now sitting on the couch with the baby.
“It’s fucking weird.”
“It’s sweet,” she says.
We get dessert and sit at the table again. Anastacia sits with me this time. She has her own plate of food, but I keep feeding her bites of mine because I like watching her mouth. We’re in our own world, not worried about anyone around us.
“Wow, you guys are kind of gross,” Rhino says with a laugh from across the table.
“You’re just jealous,” I say, cutting a bite of chocolate cake.
“Hm, I don’t think so,” he says with a cocky smirk. “I like being part of this club.”
“I’m still part of the club,” I say defensively. “And why are you being a dick?”
Rhino isn’t known for being the sweetest guy here, but he isn’t usually an asshole. Not unless it has to do with Coyote. He used to be funny and down to earth, but then his dad died and now he’s a dick more often.
“I’m just saying,” he says, reaching for his beer bottle to finish off the last mouthful. “You’re hardly around anymore.”
“I’m here every day.”
“Yeah, but then you’re out of here on the hour like you’re getting paid for it or some shit. You’re never at the bar with us anymore, never do anything with us after hours. You just run home to your girl.”
“You know what goes on at the bar, Rhino, and you know I’m not doing that shit anymore,” I say firmly.
He’s pissing me off now, and he needs to shut his fucking mouth.
He rolls his eyes. “Hanging out with us at the bar doesn’t mean youhaveto do that shit. You could just hang out with us. We’ve been planning all this stuff lately. Figuring out who’s taking what sorts of businesses. And you’re just at home, eating dinner and sitting around like a family man.”
“Grizz has been doing a lot for the club lately,” Anastacia adds in my defense. “He’s out late every night.”
My blood turns to ice.
Fuck.
Rhino turns to me, a slow smile forming on his face. I don’t know why he’s suddenly so pissed at me, and why he’s being such a dick. I didn’t do anything to him, so what the fuck?
“Is that so?” he asks. “Doing what, exactly? Because there ain’t no after hours business that’s taken place outside of the bar.”
Anastacia turns her attention on me, brow furrowed. I should open my mouth and tell Rhino it’s something secret, something he doesn’t know about, something that Coyote asked me to do personally,anything!But I can’t make my mouth move. I could so easily lie, make some shit up and deal with it later, but my mouth won’t work. My brain misfires, refusing to work with my mouth.
I fucked up.
I know I fucked up, I knew it from the beginning, and now I can’t fix it. I can tell by the way she’s looking at me that there’s no way to fix this.
Anastacia’s gaze turns fiery, and she turns it back to Rhino.
