“Okay.”
With one word, she made my fucking day. The headache pounding in my head cleared, and hope stirred deep in my gut. My kid and I were finding our way back to each other.
Chapter 22
Hyde
Holding my phone to my ear, I watched Monroe in her front yard from where I’d parked my bike outside her house. Sully was on the other end, but I had trouble focusing on what he said as Monroe proved again what a distraction she’d become in my life.
“Are you listening to what I’m saying, Aiden?”
I wasn’t listening to a damn word he said because the only thing I could focus on was the fact another man had his arm around Monroe. And I didn’t fucking like it.
“No, I missed it.”
Monroe laughed as the guy standing next to her with his arm around her shoulders said something to her. The smile on his face irritated the fuck out of me. Fox was with them, laughing too.
Who was the motherfucker with Monroe?
Sully’s voice boomed from my phone. “I said I’m heading down to Melbourne today to check on Craig like you asked. He’s been in Perth but is back now. I’m not sure how long for, though. I’ll check in with you when I have more information.” I’d asked him to investigate what Craig was up to that caused him to come home beaten up.
I gripped the phone harder when the guy with Monroe squeezed her closer to him for a moment. “Sounds good.”
With that, I ended the call and gave my full attention to the asshole with Monroe. Committing his face to memory, I vowed to find out who he was. I also vowed to get Monroe on the same page as me. I was done with letting her fight this thing between us.
Her gaze turned to me as I walked towards her. She hit me with a sexy smile. At least she hadn’t given that to the motherfucker.
“Hyde,” Fox greeted me.
I nodded at him. “Fox.”
“I didn’t know you were bringing your sexy ass over today,” Monroe said, her voice all smoky and breathy, hitting me right in the dick. “I thought you were gonna call,” she added, a hint of playfulness creeping in to her voice too.
“I decided not to take a chance on you ignoring my call.”
Her head dropped to the side, eyes full of heat. “You really think I would have ignored your call?”
“Right,” Fox cut in, “That’s our cue to leave you two alone.” He indicated for the asshole with his arm still draped over Monroe’s shoulders to leave.
“Thanks for everything, Fox. I’m excited about our plans. I just hope I can find a way to pull them off,” Monroe said.
The asshole said something to her that I couldn’t hear before following Fox out of her yard. I watched silently, tracking their movements. They couldn’t leave soon enough as far as I was concerned.
Monroe slid her arm around my waist and pressed her body against mine. “It’s good to see you, but I really wish you’d called first.”
Hardly paying attention to what she said, I growled, “Who was that?” I couldn’t keep the demanding tone from my voice even if I’d tried. I needed to know who he was and what the fuck he was to her.
Her eyes narrowed. “What does that mean? If we were dating, I’d say you sounded jealous.”
“Answer my question, sugar. Who the fuck was that?”
She let me go and took a step back. “Whoa, tiger, steady on there. That was Leo, Fox’s cousin and a friend of mine. What’s going on here?”
With a determined stride, I closed the short distance between us and took hold of her by the waist. “What’s going on here is that I didn’t like his hands on you.”
Her eyes widened and she planted her palms on my chest. Trying to push out of my hold, she said, “I don’t live my life making sure to only do things you like.”
I tightened my hold, not letting her move a fucking inch. “I never said you had to, but I would like to know what that asshole means to you.”
“He’s not an asshole, Hyde. He’s a good friend. That’s all.”
“Looked like more than that to me.”
“You are jealous.”
I ignored that. “You sleep with your friends, Roe?”
She smacked my chest. Still trying to move out of my embrace. Still failing, because there was no way in hell I was letting her go. “Oh my God, you did not just say that to me! We’ve made no promises to each other, so who I sleep with is none of your business.”
“I’m making it my business. And I’m telling you now, I don’t want another man’s hands on you.”
“Well, sorry to burst your bubble, but the only man who gets to dictate that kind of shit to me is the man I’m dating. And seems as though you and I aren’t dating, you get zero say in whose hands are on me.” She hit my chest again and added, “Now let me go.” Her eyes were full of that fierce energy I loved in a woman.
“How about you and I start dating?”
She stopped trying to escape my hold. “You don’t do dating.”
“I don’t do dating because I haven’t found a woman I wanted to date.”
“Oh, but now you have? Or is this just because you got your dick in a twist when you saw me with another guy? I’m not down with a man fucking me around, Hyde. If you only want me when you think someone else has me, you can walk away right now.”
“Jesus, woman, are you always this fucking difficult?”
Her mouth fell open. “Are you always this fucking insulting?”
“I don’t date women just to keep other men from them. I can’t stop thinking about you, Monroe. You’re there when I wake up, and you’re still there when I go to bed at night. And in between, you’re every-fucking-where. Hell, I’m even thinking about you when I should be focusing on club business.” I pulled her even closer to me and growled, “I just about lost my fucking shit when I saw that asshole’s hands on you. That’s never happened in my life.”
She stared at me for a long few moments before muttering, “God damn you have a way of saying stuff that makes me wanna drop my panties and fuck you on the spot.” Slapping my chest again, she added, “Stop doing that! A woman needs some control in a relationship.”
My lips twitched. She had a way of amusing the hell out of me. “I’ll take that as a yes, then?”
She pointed a finger at me, in the way that let me know she was about to lay down some rules. “Yes, but I’m not sure about this possessiveness you’ve got going on. It’s kinda hot, but at the same time, I don’t like being told what to do.”
My lips grazed her cheek on their way to her ear. “Sugar, stop trying to boss me. I fucking boss you. And as far as that possessiveness goes, we’re good unless I turn up here again to find someone’s hands on you. That happens, all fucking bets are off. I don’t share what’s mine.”
She didn’t say anything, but I was sure I heard a moan fall from her lips.