Chapter Twenty-Eight Rey
“How?” I ask Cicero.
The man beams at me. “I have no idea. But this is exciting!”
Everyone chuckles as Abra points at an empty chair. “Sit and eat. Take a few deep breaths and then tell us what you’ve found.”
Murmurs of pleasure, along with the clank of utensils against dishes, are the only sounds filling the space. I can’t blame anyone for not wanting to talk as they enjoy the fantastic food Nora prepared for us.
“This is amazing,” Cicero says when Nora steps out of the kitchen to ask if everything is okay. “I’ve never had gumbo this good before.” He beams at her. She blushes under his praise.
“I’m glad you like it,” Nora says.
“You should be a chef,” Cicero says, causing everyone to laugh.
“Nora is training to be a chef,” Cleo says, when Cicero looks confused at the laughter. “She’s close to graduating, and when she does, we’re helping her open a restaurant.”
“Really? Tell me when you open so I can buy all my meals from you,” Cicero says as he spoons another portion of gumbo into his bowl.
Abra shakes his head. “That’s not a bad idea. I have a feeling you don’t eat enough when you’re working.”
Cicero nods. “You’re right. I forget to eat when I get caught up in research. I think I’ve eaten more in the past two days than I’ve eaten in the past month.”
“We’ll let you know when the restaurant is open,” Cleo tells him.
“In the meantime, I’d be happy to come over and cook for you,” Nora says. “The more practice I have, the better. It’s one of the reasons I love being here. I get to practice feeding a large group every day.”
Cicero beams at Nora. “I’ll take you up on the offer, and I’ll pay you well.”
“Or you could prospect for us,” Hex says. “We’ve asked you before, but you’ve always turned us down.”
Cicero chews on his food as he considers Hex’s comment. “I thought you were joking,” he finally admits. “Why would you want me? I don’t think I’d make a good biker.”
“You won’t know until you try,” Hex persists. “Think about it. You could come on as a Prospect and see if you like it. We could use someone with your brains and loyalty.”
Cicero nods, but doesn’t verbally agree to Hex’s offer.
I kind of hope he accepts Hex's offer. I like the man, and not just because he took care of Abra when Abra was living on the streets. Cicero is brave and very intelligent. The thought of him spending his days alone in his home with just his research to keep him company makes me sad. If he joined the Demon Dawgs, he could have both his research and a life with friends and adventure. Because from what I’ve seen of this group, they often encounter danger and face it head-on.
When we finish eating, Danny and Jack clear the dishes and take them into the kitchen while the rest of us turn to Cicero expectantly.
“Okay, what has you so excited?” Abra asks him.
Cicero stares at Abra for several moments before shaking his head. “I don’t know where to start.”
Abra chuckles. “Start with the painting. What did you find out about The Widow in Black? You came back here to check the ship manifests. What did you find? Was the painting listed on the manifest?”
“Yes. When I was searching the manifest for the Harlequin figurine, I recall seeing it listed alongside a few paintings by Jean-Baptiste Greuze. I assumed these paintings were simply property of the De Villiers family.”
“But they aren’t?” I ask.
“No. I searched the De Villiers journals. They mentioned the paintings as being gifts. They didn’t mention who gave them the gifts, but they stated how they would ‘treasure’ them. They also mentioned that the paintings needed to be protected.”
“Protected from what?” Cleo asks.
Cicero shrugs. “I don’t know. They didn’t say.”
“Do we know what happened to the other four paintings?” I ask.
Cicero shrugs. “I don’t know. I’m hoping that if we win the auction tomorrow, we’ll find out. They could still be in the house. I wish there were a way to discover if the man who stole the painting once worked for the De Villliers.”
“I don’t understand why the paintings are so important,” I muse.
Cicero shrugs. “I don’t know. Not yet. I checked the manifest, and these are the ONLY paintings the De Villiers brought with them from France.
That has to mean something. A wealthy and established family like the De Villiers would have had a vast collection of art, but they only brought these five paintings with them when they fled France.
What’s more, these paintings were gifts.
We know that the De Villiers visited with the royal family before boarding the ship.
I’m guessing they are the ones who gave them the paintings. ”
“For what purpose?” I ask.
Cicero shrugs. “I don’t know, but I have an idea. After studying the Widow in Black, I think there is more to it than just the image of an oak. I think there might be a painting under the painting. I want to have the painting X-rayed.”
“X-rayed?” Abra asks.
Cicero nods. “I have a friend at the museum who will fit me in tomorrow morning. I may be late for the auction, but I think this is important.”
“But you are coming to the auction?” Cleo asks.
Cicero nods. “I wouldn’t miss it.”
We chat about the upcoming auction for several more minutes.
The plan is for all the Demon Dawgs to attend to back up Cleo.
Hex is worried that Erickson and Miguel Costa will cause problems. I’m half-listening to the conversation as my eyes droop.
They snap back open when Abra swings me into his arms.
“Let’s go to bed. You’ve had a long day and you need to take care of the little one, little mama,” he says. “Plus, I need some alone time with you.”
“My being pregnant really doesn’t bother you, does it?” I ask as he climbs the stairs.
Abra frowns at me. “Why would it bother me? I’m in awe of you. You’re the strongest person I’ve ever met. What you’ve gone through in these past few days would have most people crumbling. But that’s not you. You’ve deflected everything these assholes have thrown at you and kept moving forward.”
I frown as I consider his words. He’s right that the past few days haven't been great. They’ve been nothing short of aggravating and exhausting.
Maybe I want to crawl under the covers and hide, but how would that fix anything?
“I can’t give in to pressure. If I fall, I’m afraid that I won’t be able to get up again. ”
Abra shuts the door before lowering me to my feet. He places his big hands on each side of my face, forcing me to stare only at him.
“I don’t believe that. I think if you crumbled, you’d find a way to stand again.
You, my dear, are one of the rare few who can make it on their own.
The good news is, you aren’t alone. That makes you even stronger.
You have your brothers. You have this club.
You have me. I’ll stand by you through everything.
Lean on me and trust me to support you in everything you do. ”
I gape at him. How can this strong, rough-around-the-edges biker say something so profound and so lovely? “I don’t understand,” I finally admit. “What are you saying?”
His grey eyes soften as he stares into mine.
“I’m saying that since the minute I found you locked in Erickson’s house, ready to battle with your hand-made weapons, I’ve been hooked.
You’re everything I didn’t know I wanted or needed.
Not only do I want to go to bed every night with you in my arms, but I want to wake up looking forward to hearing what you have to say and listening to you laugh.
I can’t wait to see you grow round with this baby and then discover how amazing you’ll be as a mother. ”
I open and close my mouth as I try to think of how to respond.
Abra has blown my mind, and I’m speechless.
He chuckles at my stunned expression. “I’ll probably get in trouble for this, but when I first saw you giving shit to Hex in that garage after we rescued you, I couldn’t imagine how any man could put up with your mouth and your attitude.
But now I’m missing both. Tell me what you’re thinking. ”
I scrunch my nose at his words, but then can’t stop the chuckle from escaping. “You thought I was a mouthy bitch?” He nods, which makes me laugh harder. “Wow, you are very romantic.”
He grins. “I can be.” He leans closer to rub his nose along my chin and over my cheek, where he plants soft kisses.
“I love your wicked mouth,” he says, kissing each corner of my mouth.
“I love your sparkling eyes,” he says, kissing each of them.
“And I really love your spicy tongue,” he finishes as he plunders my mouth with a deep kiss.
He pulls me taut against his hard body as his hands roam over my back, hips, and ass.
I feel his desire growing as it hardens against my stomach.
Desire pools in my core as I wrap my arms around him.
When he finally breaks the kiss, I stare into his eyes and realize how much I want what he said.
I want to go to bed with this man every night and wake up the next morning ready to spend all my time with him.
Even being pregnant with Dontel’s baby feels more like a gift than it did before.
Dontel may have gotten me pregnant, but a father is more than their DNA contribution.
A father is someone who is there for the child.
I can see Abra as that man. I wasn’t looking for a man, but I ended up finding the best one.