I wakeup to the sun streaming through the window. There’s no warm body next to me. I abruptly sit up. She’s not here. Worry takes hold of me, so I get up and hobble over to the door, still stiff from the fight. I glance down the hallway, my chest tightening. Has she left me? The thought sends my heart racing as I make my way to the spare room. When I push open the door, the sight of her makes my body sag with relief. She’s here.
Rose turns in her seat and her eyes meet mine, but her expression falters. Her gaze lingers on my face, and I see the frown that follows.
“Good morning, my sexy cougar,” I say with a grin, trying to lighten the mood.
Her lips curve into a small smile. “Hello, God.”
I laugh and walk over, give her a kiss good morning, and check out what she’s doing. She’s holding a piece of gold with a design overlaid on top in one hand and a tool in the other. It looks like she’s delicately carving it out.
“Is it a ring?”
“The wedding ring is for Milly,” Rose answers proudly. “She wanted a specially designed ring. I’m working on it now.”
My woman has skills. She’s crazy talented. I’m happy Milly asked Rose and is getting her involved in the wedding.Oh shit. I haven’t even asked Rose yet. “Will you be my date to the wedding?”
Her face softens and she gives me a beautiful smile, but it doesn’t reach her eyes. It throws me off. “Is everything all right?” I ask.
“Everything’s fine,” she reassures me. “And yes, I’ll be your date for the wedding.”
Something feels a little off, but with her ex, her best friend, the fights, and getting slapped in the face, it would be weird for her to be fine. She’s had a lot of stressful moments. Maybe she needs some time out. “Do you want to go out for lunch?”
Her eyes brighten and she nods. “Sounds great. I’ll get a start on this other ring this morning so I can mail it while we’re out.” She tilts her head and her smile fades. “Twitch was looking for you yesterday. It seemed important.”
I don’t like the sound of that. “Okay, I’ll let you be and go find him. Will you be ready to leave about one o’clock?”
“Sure, will be.”
I leave the room, close the door behind me, and go downstairs to the office. Twitch is sitting in front of the computer. “Hey, man, were you looking for me yesterday?” I ask.
He swivels on his chair, and the uneasy look on his face makes my stomach twist.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, gripped by paranoia.
“We started to get threats from the Russians.” He looks at the ground and squirms. “Phone calls demanding a rematch, saying it was rigged.”
I throw my hands up. “How was it possibly rigged? I won fair and square. No one intervened. It was just me and him. Sore loser is just pissed they lost money.”
He shrugs lazily. “They’ve been telling people that there’s going to be a rematch, so there’s a buzz about it. You should knock him out again and we can be done with it.”
Just the thought of seeing Rose upset makes me feel sick. “Did Reaper say much about it?” I ask, my voice tight.
“He doesn’t want the issue to escalate,” Twitch replies, his expression darkening. “Just with how they turned up at the clubhouse the last time... They’re unpredictable.”
My jaw tightens. “I want nothing to do with them. The guy’s girlfriend slapped Rose. They can all get fucked.” My tone is ice-cold.
Twitch winces. “Yeah, man, I get it. I think with the women and children here Reaper is being cautious. No decision has been made without you. It was just the general chat I heard while I was there.”
“I’ll go find him,” I reply, my voice clipped.
I leave the room and start my search for Reaper. He’s not in the common areas, the living room, or the kitchen. I head out back and spot him standing off to the side with Ava, both of them watching Hope play in the sandpit.
As I approach, a frown settles on his face. “So you’ve heard,” he says, cutting straight to the point.
Ava looks cautiously between us. “Should I leave you two?”
He gives her a warm smile. “Just give us ten minutes.”
“No problem,” she says and walks over to join Hope in the sandpit.
