I lifted my brows. “You saw what happened to my friend, Davinda. That shit could happen to me, too.”
Tatum waved her hand in the air dismissively. “That’s not going to happen to you. Davinda will grow old alone because she was too much of a bitch to hold her marriage together. And then when it fell apart, she was too much of a bitch to find another man who would put up with her shit. She’s childless because of her personality. You don’t have that problem. Men fall over themselves to be with you. You’re just too damn fussy.”
“I’m not fussy. I just have extremely high standards.”
It was Tatum’s turn to raise her brows. “Look, I’m all for high standards, but yours are out of this world. I mean, what woman ditches a man because she discovers he doesn’t eat meat?”
“You know why I did that. I’m not going to spend the rest of my life arguing with my husband over what we eat. I like my meat, and I refuse to give it up.”
“Did he ask you to give it up?”
I put my hand on my hip. “No, but he would have.”
She shook her head in frustration. “You don’t know that, Roe. But that’s the thing you always do—you assume to know what will happen down the track and you make rash decisions based on those assumptions. I’m beginning to think you sabotage your relationships before they can even get started.”
“I do not. I—”
I was cut off by Nitro’s booming voice from the front door. “Vegas, you got a minute?”
She moved off her stool, a look of confusion on her face. I was confused also. He’d told her he wouldn’t be home for hours. Leaving me, she headed towards the front of the house.
I listened as he said something to her and then the door closed, leaving the house in silence. Guessing they’d gone outside together, I decided to fill in the time waiting for her by making us some tea. I was rummaging through Tatum’s teas when the front door opened and boots thudded down the hallway towards the kitchen.
Turning when they stopped, I expected to find Nitro, but instead found Hyde standing in the kitchen doorway.
Good God, the man was impressively built. So much so, that I found it hard to keep my eyes on his face. All I wanted to do was let them drop so I could take a good long look at his body. But I managed to stay strong and hold his gaze.
He had the darkest eyes. They matched everything else about him—his dark hair that hung in tangled waves around his face, his dark beard, and his tanned skin. And not to forget, his dark moods. I’d only seen one of them, but I got the distinct impression they made up his personality. He seemed to be an intense man, that was for sure.
“I need your car keys,” he said after a few moments of silence.
I frowned. “Why?”
“So I can move your car.”
“You don’t think I could do that myself?” My tone got a little snarky even though I tried to keep it in check. I was acting weirdly, which annoyed even me, so who knew how he would take it. There was just something about this man—something that drew me to him when all I wanted to do was run the other way. Snapping at him would hopefully keep him at arm’s length.
His jaw clenched and he took a minute. Finally, he nodded and said, “I do. Could you move it so I can pull Nitro’s ute out of the garage?”
Well shit. I had to give him points for not losing his cool. Grabbing my keys, I made my way out to the driveway. As I brushed past him, I did my best to ignore his masculine scent and the hard muscles I grazed. The muscles that practically pleaded with me to reach out and touch them.
Stay strong, Monroe. You do not need a biker in your life. Not even for sex.
I reversed my car out onto the footpath and then joined Nitro and Tatum in the front yard. They were deep in conversation but glanced at me as I made my way to them.
Nitro raked his fingers through his hair as he lifted his chin at me. “Thanks.”
I took a good look at him. Tatum wasn’t kidding when she said he was exhausted. It was written all over him. “You doing okay, Nitro?”
Hyde interrupted us with an impatient look. “King just texted. He wants us back at the clubhouse.”
Nitro nodded and dropped a quick kiss on Tatum’s lips. “Don’t wait up, I’ll be late.”
She reached for him as he stepped away from her. “Be safe.” She spoke softly, but I heard the concern in her tone. Something was off here because it was unlike Tatum to speak like that to Nitro. She knew he was capable of looking out for himself, and while she always worried, she never felt the need to voice it to him.
He stopped and turned back to her. Taking her face in both his hands, he said, “I’ll call you as soon as I can after this is done.” For a man who wasn’t tender, Nitro had a way with Tatum that was as close to tender as I was sure he’d ever get. It seemed to do the trick. She nodded and motioned for him to go.
A few moments later, Hyde took off in Nitro’s ute while Nitro’s bike roared down the street.
Looking at Monroe, I said, “What’s going on? I’ve not seen you this worried before.”
She took a deep breath, straightening her body and pushing her shoulders back. Anyone would have thought she was the one going into battle. Some days, I figured she probably felt like it. “One of their guys was murdered. They’re looking for payback, and I know it’s not going to be pretty.”
“Shit.” No wonder she was concerned. I wasn’t sure how she managed to cope with this type of stuff. If the man I was dating went to work with the threat of murder over his head, it would be enough to make me spend my days worrying.
She nodded. “Yeah, that’s one way to put it. This isn’t going to end well for someone. I just hope that someone isn’t going to be Storm.”
Chapter 11
Hyde
Someone was banging on my front door. Loudly and fucking insistently.
“Jesus,” I muttered to myself as I left my bed, pulled my jeans on and stalked down the hallway towards the door.
What fucking time was it anyway? It couldn’t be later than eight. After only getting to bed at about three this morning, the last thing I wanted to be dealing with was some asshole wanting shit from me.
The bashing on the door quietened before a female voice called out, “Aiden, are you home?”
I slowed.
My heart rate kicked up a notch.
Charlie.
What the fuck was she doing here?
She commenced bashing on the door again. “Fuck, Aiden, open the door.”
I yanked the door open and stared at my daughter. On one hand, I wanted to welcome her with open arms. On the other, the father in me kicked in and I knew I had two things to do here—pull her up on her attitude and call her mother to make sure she knew where her daughter was.
Our eyes met. Hers swirled with emotions I wasn’t sure I was ready for. I’d imagined this moment thousands of times over the years, but I hadn’t nailed it in my mind. Not if the way my daughter glared at me was anything to go by. I’d expected anger, but not this attitude rolling off her.
Crossing my arms, I said, “Does your mother allow you to swear in her house?”