Maybe they’d put it back together wrong.
The blare of the landing intercom spared me from the gruesome image creeping into my brain. I shoved the hair tie in my pocket and stepped out to answer it, shutting my bedroom door as I passed so whatever or whoever it was wouldn’t wake Rubi.
It was Folk calling from the gate. “Incoming. Decoy’s ex. She’s got the girl with her and she looks wild.”
Shit. Decoy’s ex-wife was horrendous. Like, cartoon villain unpleasant. No brother had the patience for her bullshit, and Decoy wasn’t here, which meant... yup. I was up.
I took a moment to tidy myself up. Then I jogged downstairs and outside in time to meet Lauren Greene as she stormed across the yard, tugging Ivy behind her.
“Whoa.” I intercepted her. “Hey, Ivy. Your dad isn’t here.”
Lauren stepped in front of Ivy, blocking her pale, tear-stained face from me. “Where the hell is he, then? He was supposed to pick Ivy up from the childminder two hours ago.”
Lies. Decoy ran his life like a military operation. There was zero chance he’d scheduled a haulage run on a day he was supposed to have Ivy. Hell, he had Cam’s permission tocancelbusiness if Lauren fucked him around. Which she did so often it was almost boring.
Except, it wasn’t boring because it messed with Decoy’s head and traumatised Ivy every time her mum announced that her dad didn’t give a shit about her.
I hate this bitch.I forced a bland smile to my face. “He’s away working, Lauren. I’m sure it’s an honest mix-up. If you come to the office, we can call him and straighten things out.”
Lauren cast a baleful glare at the office. “Is Nash here?”
I shrugged. Orla would take Lauren’s eye if she pushed her tits at Nash again, but being caught in a lie was grief I didn’t need. “Come inside. I’ll make the call.”
For a fleeting moment, I had her. Then Nash appeared on the clubhouse steps, shirtless and holding Orla’s hand, and Lauren’s next-level bitch face reappeared.
“No. I’m not coming inside with you so you can brainwash my daughter into thinking I’m the bad guy and Seth is fucking perfect. If he gave a shit about us, he’d have been where he was supposed to be this afternoon, not gone for days at a time when we need him.”
“You knew he was away then?”
Lauren narrowed her death stare. “I know he’s chosen to be somewhere else all week, but I was expecting him to be available today.Ivywas expecting him.”
Without warning, she reached back and yanked Ivy forward. “Tell Daddy’s little friend how long you waited at Suzie’s house? How you were crying your eyes out when Mummy had to come and get you?”
Head down and trembling, Ivy said nothing. But her distress killed me, and I knew the only way out of this was to give her twatastic mother what she wanted.
Attention.
Validation.
A fucking scene.
I’m sorry, Ivy. I stepped back and wove my arms across my chest. “Look, he’s not here, okay? And he’s not going to be until tomorrow at the earliest, so you need to take yourself off club property and go home.”
“I’m not waiting until tomorrow to speak to my daughter’s father.”
“He’s got two kids, Lauren. Why aren’t you dragging Ben here for this party piece too?”
“Bring my boy here?” Lauren cackled without humour. “So he can grow up to be a bottom bitch like you? No thanks.”
Bottom bitch.Shitty words from the shittiest human. Anger clenched my fucking soul. Not for me—I didn’t give a shit what Decoy’s ex-wife assumed about my non-existent sex life—but for my friend, his innocent kids, and every questioning brother in earshot. My fury burned bright, threatening the gate that kept my deadly temper locked up.
Don’t.
My arms fell to my sides, and I took a breath, searching for calm. For the level-headed mellow my brothers relied on me for. But getting shanked and watching them go down like fuckingdominoshad depleted my armoury.
Fuck this bitch.
Fuckher—
