“Does she help the club out when they need it?” I ask, because we have Crystal’s sister, Casey, who’s a paramedic and does the same for the club.
“Yep.” She pops the P. “I don’t know the full story, but Bane owed her father some debt and said he’d take care of her if anything happened to him. He had an early heart attack and poof, just like that, a goner.”
“That’s awful.”
She sets about making something as Dozer sits at her feet, wagging his tail. He’s dropped his bone, and when Ivy bends to give him some more chicken, he takes off with it like he just scored big. “He is so sweet.”
“Ugh, I know. I’m convinced Logan is gonna be a foster fail.”
“Well, if he isn’t convinced, I’ll take him. He’s adorable.”
“What about you?” I ask, feeling as if I can ask a total stranger about her love life. “Any of the guys catch your fancy?”
She snorts, side-eying me. “With my big brother as Prez? I don’t think so.”
“No? I don’t know, I thought I caught some vibes with you and Shadow.”
“We’ve been at each other’s throats for years.” Her face falls, then she shakes it off. “Before, uh, well, it’s a long story, but I… I lost touch with Bane for a few years.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s fine. But Shadow has been my brother’s best friend since they were kids, so we like ribbing each other.” Okay. Well, my spidey senses aren’t ever off, but I don’t know this woman, so I’m not going to push the issue. Then her eyes meet mine. “Not saying I haven’t pictured being under him more than once, and I’d cut a bitches eyes out before they laid a hand on him, but I’m kinda weird like that.”
I smirk. “It’s like that.”
She sighs, putting the bread under the grill. “It’s like that. Plus, because Bane thinks I’m a five year old instead of a grown ass woman, I can’t bring guys around here, and he’ll beat one of the boys to death if they tried anything.”
“How long have you been cooking here?”
She turns to grab a plate as she works. The kitchen is quite large with stainless steel benchtops, three ovens and a huge stove, with wall-to-wall fridges and a large pantry off to one side. “Well, this job kinda saved me. I’ve always loved to cook, not that anyone around here appreciates it.”
“I’m sure they do,” I say. “If their faces were anything to go by after those cinnamon rolls.”
“Oh, that? I was just snooping,” she laughs. “I like to keep the guys on their feet. Plus, I do use the ‘my brother is the club Prez’ thing as much as I can get away with. If they want to keep getting fed then they’ll be nice to me. You should’ve seen the state of things before I got here.” She shakes her head and I laugh. It seems like she kinda has all their balls in vices, especially Shadow’s.
“You remind me of Manny,” I say. “Our chef back at the Rebels’ clubhouse. Although he’s flamboyant and a little crazy, we all adore him.”
“Ooh, I’ve heard of him,” she says. “He’s the one in a three-way, right?”
I laugh. “Yeah, but they make it work.”
“See that, right there? I couldn’t do it,” she says. “I couldn’t share my man with another person, but I’m territorial like that. I guess I did get some Adler traits after all.”
“I’m sure that’s not a bad thing,” I say. “That kind of relationship wouldn’t work for most people.”
“Can you imagine me telling Bane I’m with two guys?” she laughs out loud. “No, but seriously. He’d bury them both.”
“We have the bayou,” I explain.
“We got the Mississippi River.” She shrugs. “It’s a big ass river.”
She continues to make my slider, then pushes it over to me on a plate. “Thanks.”
“It’s a turkey slider, I’m messing around with some ingredients, let me know what you think, but don’t feel obliged. I just like feeding people.”
I smile warmly. It’s how she shows she cares. “It smells delicious."
“So, how long have you been banging that sexy as fuck man in there?”
