That’s what you get for assuming.
“Introduce me,” the woman says to him as she tips her head toward me.
Smoke pulls back, but still holds her close.
“Kelly, this is Jane. She’s a friend of Mac’s. Jane, this is my old lady, Kelly.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Jane,” Kelly says.
“Nice to meet you too,” I tell her quietly.
“I have a couple of things to finish up before we take off. Do you have time to wait?” he asks her as he brushes his thumb along her jaw.
She smiles up at him sweetly. “Take your time. I don’t have any showings this afternoon, so I’m yours.”
“That’s what I like to hear,” he mutters before he kisses her again.
I tear my eyes away from them and close my eyes as envy rushes through me. A man has never looked at or talked to me the way that he does to her. In fact, I didn’t even know it was possible. Smoke isn’t a small man, and he’s intimidating as hell, but seeing him with his old lady—whatever the hell that means—makes him look, well, human.
“Look what the cat dragged in. Or should I say what Smoke dragged in?” Sloane teases as she steps into the lobby.
Smoke groans. “Go away, Sloane. I don’t need you rubbing off on my girl any more than you already have.”
Sloane touches her chest. “Me? I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Kelly chuckles as Smoke rolls his eyes. “Please, we all know you’re a terrible influence.”
“There’s a reason her old man calls her Trouble,” Kelly teases.
Sloane perks up at the mention of Gunner. “He does, doesn’t he?”
Kelly pats Smoke’s chest. “Go finish up so we can go get lunch. I’m hungry.”
Smoke frowns. “Do you want to go now? I could always come back and finish what I’m working on when we’re done.”
Kelly starts shaking her head before he can even finish. “I can wait a little bit. Now go finish up while I talk to the girls.”
Smoke grunts and kisses the side of her head before he walks away, back to his office.
“That man is obsessed with you,” Sloane tells her.
“I know,” Kelly says with a dreamy look on her face.
“Do you have something for me?” I ask Sloane.
“Oh, here you go,” she says as she hands over a ticket.
“I’ll get this entered right away, and I’ll call the customer,” I tell her as I scan the work ticket.
“You’re the best,” Sloane tells me before turning back to Kelly. “Is everything a go for the party?”
“Yes. I dropped off four coolers of meat at the clubhouse before I came over here. While I was there, Tank was accepting the alcohol delivery.”
As the two of them talk, my heart begins to ache. The two of them are close. You can tell they have a solid friendship. As fucked up as it is, I can’t help but be a little jealous.
I want that.
I want someone I can just talk to openly, that I can be close to. I haven’t had that in years. Hell, I used to before I married him. When Evan and I got together, it was great. He had no issues hanging out with my friends. Then slowly but surely, he convinced me to stop going out with them, that we should stay home and save money. When my friends voiced their concerns, I thought they were crazy. When I told him about it, he convinced me to cut them out completely, leaving me well and truly isolated, with him being the only person in my life.
