With that, I turn and hurry out of the house, forgetting to take the dishes down with me. And the whole time, I wonder if it was a mistake to walk away.
20
JACKAL
“Whose idea was it to get together so fucking early this morning?” Wraith asks as he stumbles in. His hair is pulled up in a wild man bun. “I got pregnancy responsibilities to live up to.”
Grudge leans back in the chair. “And please, tell me exactly what those responsibilities are? Because from where I’m sitting, you don’t look all that pregnant.”
Wraith unwraps a packet of cigarettes and tosses the wrapper at Grudge, who bats it away. “Might be news to some of you without kids, but pregnancy can sometimes make an old lady wildly horny, and that’s where I step in.”
Atom grimaces. “Please amend that sentence to you only stepping in foryourold lady, not pregnant women in general, because I don’t want your cock anywhere near Em.”
“Sooner you sit,” I say, “the sooner you can go back to whatever remedial activities you were undertaking.”
A wide grin dominates Wraith’s face as he takes a seat. “Nah. Already done my bit. Left Raven sleeping it off.”
Atom chuckles. “It’s the opposite in my place.I’mthe one who can’t keep my hands off Ember’s bump. Love everythingabout it. Jizzed on it so many times, Ember told me I need to go find Jesus. I swear she’s started hiding from me. Gonna be sad when it’s temporarily gone.”
I look at my sergeant at arms. “Temporarily?”
“I intend to keep her knocked up for at least the next decade,” he says as if I should have known.
“Didn’t realize we’re that short on ranchers in this country,” I say. “You don’t need to self-populate your own workforce.”
Wraith shrugs. “Adds a whole new meaning to keeping it in the family.”
Even though I’m feeling tense, I laugh at that.
I’m worried that I may have said too much to Isla. Garrett specifically told me we needed to go slow, and he’s usually right when it comes down to reading people. Instead, I couldn’t hold back from touching her, trusting that I was reading things right. Something in my gut was desperate to know if the three of us truly was a possibility.
Right now, I’m not sure of anything. Your kiss confused me, Kai. And I don’t know what to do with that.
I told Garrett what I’d done, and he rolled his eyes. Reminded me how I chased him down when he wasn’t ready and how he grew into his feelings about me.
I just couldn’t wait.
But what if my eagerness causes her to say no?
“Jackal,” Grudge says, tipping his head in my direction. “You asked for this. What’s going on and how’s Shade?”
“He managed to get some sleep, but he’s a grumpy bastard this morning. Isla came over and made some food while I got him settled.” Isla coming over is a lie seeing she spent the night. But I don’t feel the need to explain who is sleeping in my bed or share her business.
“You speak to her at all since she left the club?” Grudge asks.
Did I speak to her?
“Neighborly shit,” I lie again. “Helped her dig out some fence posts. She’s working at the vet’s. But her being there kinda started the problem.”
Wraith shakes his head. “No shit. Isla’s the problem. Always is.”
“Hey. Come on,” I say, without properly thinking through what I’m starting. “You were happy enough to fuck her. All the girls out there are just doing the best they can.”
“Who I fucked is none of your business,” Wraith replies.
“You’re right, it’s not. But you should keep your mean-girl assumptions about Isla to yourself.”
Wraith raises his hands. “Not sure who shit in your cornflakes this morning.”
