“Jesus fucking Christ,” she hissed. “Who let cock-a-doodle dumb shit out of the barnyard?”
“Right?” I sniffed. “He volunteered apparently.”
“How magnanimous of him.”
“And he’s all,‘You’re so beautiful, Katie, and I’m so proud of you, Katie, and if I’d come home any sooner, I would have hindered your progress, Katie.’It’s such bullshit.”
“Wait, did he actually say, ‘hindered your progress’? I’ve never heard Rooster grunt out more than a two-syllable word and one of those words was ‘be-er.’”
I let out a quiet snort. “I might have paraphrased.”
She and I both knew how smart Rooster was, even if he could be a bit monosyllabic in social settings, but it still made me laugh.
“So what’s his play here?” Cricket asked.
“Well, it’s not to take over the club with a few million once it’s done and be the power couple we were meant to be, I’ll tell you that.”
This time, it was Cricket who let out a snort, because her story with Minus was very much that. Although, Minus hadn’t had a choice when he’d been exiled to Savannah, they’d still been torn apart when they were barely in their twenties by forces against their control, brought back together again by forces out of their control.
In my case, it was all Rooster and his dumbass that made everything happen.
“Okay, so did he say what he wanted?” Cricket asked.
“No,” I breathed out. “I mean, other than helpthe club with the Spiders’ situation.”
“Yeah, it’s more than that, obviously.”
“Obviously,” I agreed. “He said he’s been keeping tabs on me.”
Cricket wrinkled her nose. “Who would be dumb enough to give him information?”
“It could be anyone,” I breathed out. “You know what he’s like. He’s a snake charmer.”
“Yeah, but you’re you.”
“What does that mean?” I asked before blowing my nose.
“There isn’t a man alive between the Dogs and the Saints who wouldn’t lay their lives down for you. You are beloved. Much like Maisie, Dani, me, all of us. You might not be someone’s old lady, but you are one of us. No one would go against you.”
I shrugged. “Yeah, but you know them. Bros before hos.”
Cricket laughed. “Girl, you are so far from a ho, I’m pretty sure your vagina has shrunk back into itself.”
I gasped. “Rude.”
“Just speakin’ the truth, my love.” She smiled gently. “What can I do to support you?”
“This helps,” I said. “Maybe Minus can break his legs for me once all of the Spiders stuff is settled.”
“I’ll mention it to him. He’s always looking for a good leg breaking session. If not him,definitely Clutch.”
“Oh, yes. Clutch loves a good fight. I’ll ask Clutch.”
Cricket laughed. “Right, I brought wine. Are we ordering in or am I cooking?”
“Ordering. Chinese?”
“Absolutely. I’ll have one of the guys pick it up,” she said.
