Zach rubbed the back of his head. “I think I’ll head home, but thanks for the invite.”
Bella sighed. “I really thought you were going to say yes this time. I know Lauren isn’t home. She would want you to stay.”
Great. He wasn’t the only one who knew Lauren was dating. Not just dating, but dating someone else. The reminder burned like a hot branding iron.
“Can we not talk about the date?” Zach asked. “Thinking about it makes me want to punch a wall.”
“That’s not saying much,” Travis said. “You wake up and choose violence one out of every three days.”
“Only one in three?” Zach asked.
Gage walked past with a drill in one hand and a box of screws in the other. “Yeah, but the other two are sarcasm and robbery, and those are decidedly less evil.”
Zach and Gage had managed not to maim each other over the last few months. No one mentioned Rome or the circles they used to run in.
Well, Zach was still heading up the Blackwater trade office. Hundreds of gun partshad passed through his organization since he claimed the throne, and every day felt like the prison walls were closing in on him again.
It was guilt. It took him months to figure out what the tightening in his chest was, and he’d finally given it a name. Lauren still had no idea he’d gone back to running guns, and the secret could destroy everything between them. The problem was, he couldn’t just step away. Leaving the business wasn’t an option. Everyone on the inside knew too much, and traitors didn’t live long.
Bella chuckled, bouncing Ariana on her hip. “Stop picking on Zach,” she said, pointing at Gage. Then she turned to Zach, still wearing a casual smile. “Stay and eat with us. Tammy made chicken enchiladas, and they’re amazing.”
Gage walked up with his hands in his coat pockets. “Yeah. You won’t be as tempted to ruin Lauren’s date if you stay.”
“I promised I wouldn’t do anything this time,” Zach said. He had made that promise, and every single bone in his body wanted to rebel against it. “Why do you even know about that?”
“Hadley.” Gage shook his head. “She just wants a normal life. She can have that if you don’t act like a toddler.”
“Gage!” Bella pinned him with a piercing stare.
“You’re right. She’s a whole lot better off if I stay out of it. I’ll take you up on that dinner offer, then I’ll try to grab a couple of overtime hours if that’s okay.”
Matt walked up and shrugged. “Fine by me. We can frame some more stalls after dinner.”
Eating with everyone at Silver Falls Ranch felt like a family affair, except he wasn’t family. They made jokes and took turns playing with Ariana. Tammy Benson hugged Zach like he was her long-lost son, and there was enough food to feed an army.
Gage left as soon as he finished eating, claiming Hadley was getting off work early and he needed to shower before they met up. Bella and Travis said their quiet goodbyes when baby Ariana started rubbing her eyes and crying.
Zach took his empty plate to the sink where Tammy was already washing dishes. “Thanks for dinner.”
Tammy winked at him with a knowing grin. “You’re welcome. Thanks for staying. I don’t get to see you as often as I’d like.”
“You’re not missing anything,” Zach said.
“How is Lauren?” Tammy asked.
“Good. I think. She’s got a date tonight.”
“I heard. Any idea who it is?”
“Some guy she met at work.”
Tammy lowered the plate she was washing and turned to Zach. “At the women’s shelter?”
“The library. She’s still working there a couple of days a week.”
Why couldn’t the guy have decided to go to the library on a day when Lauren wasn’t working? Whatwere the odds she’d find a boyfriend during the few hours she worked?
Tammy resumed her scrubbing. “Oh. That’s good. I worry about her sometimes. She just works too much, and she doesn’t ever take time for herself.”
