He slid the plate in front of her. “It’s gonna be fine, babe.”
She looked up at him. “It just doesn’t make any sense.”
He sat down. “Assholes like this will never make sense, Stephanie.”
She took a bite of a hash brown patty. After she swallowed it, she asked, “But why now?”
“Fuck if I know, but part of me is glad while the rest of me says he couldn’t have worse fuckin’ timing if he tried.”
Her eyes narrowed for a moment. “What are you talking about?”
He took a deep breath to keep hold of his temper. “I don’t have time for this shit, Steph. Bad enough I got two brothers gone rogue – which makes me question my ability to lead this club – now I gotta deal with some asshole who’s fuckin’ with you.”
She sat straighter. “I’m so sorry, Har. It’s not like I asked for any of this to happen. And just to say, I’ve dealt with it before—”
He couldn’t control his tone when he spoke. “If you’d dealt with it, it wouldn’t rear its head now, would it?”
Her eyes widened with her gasp. “How is this my fault?”
“Didn’t say it was,” he grumbled.
“Your actions do,” she whispered.
He stiffened. “My actions?”
“Your emphasis on if I’d ‘dealt’ with it, I wouldn’t be dealing with it now? My inability to deal with something I didn’t think, let alone know could rear its ugly head again is my fault.”
Any other woman, he’d have told her to get out of his room, because he hated fighting with women. But he knew she was right. He’d insinuated she hadn’t dealt with it. After hearing her tell him how the police didn’t take her seriously, he should’ve been careful with his words.
But it infuriated him that this asshole was looking for her.
“I’m sorry,” he said evenly. “In no way did I intend to even hint at this being your fault. I got my shit together by a thread, baby. Tears me up to think this jackass wants to come after you again, in any fuckin’ way. But, at the same time, I wish Suzy woulda told him exactly where you are so he’d come to us.”
“What?” she gasped.
“Yeah. I want to get my hands on this fucker so bad it’s not funny.”
Her head came forward even as her chin lowered a touch. “But... why?” She shook her head. “I mean, I know why, but seriously, we’ve been together like three days. You make it sound like he, like I’m...”
“Like you’re mine?” he supplied.
Her eyes slid to the side and then her lips formed an ‘o’ shape.
“Yeah. You’re mine, we been together four days now, but bottom line, I don’t fuckin’ like this shit.”
“That makes two of us, my man.”
He liked hearing her call him ‘my man,’ but he had to focus. “Don’t get sassy, Steph.”
She shook her head. “I’m not being sassy.”
“Good to know. Thing is, I’ve always known what I want. Last time I came across a woman I wanted was close to ten years ago, and I was too damn late. Been feeling something with you I haven’t felt ever before.”
She raised a finger, drawing an arc in the air. “Can I just point something out?”
He lifted his chin.
She grinned. “You sound awful close to analyzing your feelings.”
He clenched his teeth and speared a bite of sausage. “Eat your breakfast, Combes. I got a bunch of shit to do this morning, and I’m not lookin’ forward to any of it. Especially since my original plan for this morning got shot to shit.”
Her lips tipped up a touch. “What was your original plan?”
He stared into her deep hazel eyes longer than necessary. “Eat what you brought me, eat you, then depending on my mood, shower sex or regular sex, but either way, you’d have gotten off twice.”
She smirked. “Unless I sucked you off while you had second breakfast. Then, you might’ve come twice too. Just saying.”
His dick twitched with that and he shook his head. “Woman. You cannot say shit like that to me.”
She sat back in her chair dramatically. “Really? But you can say shit like that to me?”
He shrugged. “Yeah. Because I get you hot and bothered, I’ll take care of it. You say shit like that, I have no guarantee you’ll deliver.” He grinned and added, “At least not after three days.”
Her eyes widened, and satisfaction like he’d never known coursed through his body. That expression also forced a chuckle from him, which only irritated her further, making him laugh harder.
“Do not laugh at me, Michael Walcott!”
He leaned back and let his laughter wash over him. She growled, and it forced him to double over as he tried to squelch his humor.
He hadn’t laughed like that in years.
God, he loved having her around.
That brought him up short. Did he love her? That was the very reason he wouldn’t analyze his feelings.
Someone knocked at the door. “Come in!” he hollered.
Brute poked his head inside. “With the exception of Wreck and Massive, all the brothers are here. You want me to have Layla brought in, or what? Figure Mass and Wreck could roll in any time after ten under the circumstances.”
He nodded. “Got it. Leave Layla where she is for now, but have the prospects get her ready. And she needs to be gagged coming from the shed to church.”
Brute nodded and closed the door.
Stephanie took a small bite of her hash browns, but he could tell from her expression she didn’t have an appetite.
“Don’t eat if you’re not feelin’ it, baby.”
She looked up at him. “I cook something, I eat that something, but I’ll keep your advice in mind.”
He stood up. Then he lowered his hand to brush his knuckles along her cheekbone. “You want, I’ll have a low-country boil brought to the house tonight. Make up for the roast you fed to half my brothers, love.”
She nodded once. “We’re definitely at
