39. Chase
39
CHASE
“ H ey, y’all.” Maddie waved from her nest on the tufted semicircle couch. I lifted my hand and motioned for her to stay seated. She was a few days past her due date and, according to Luca, was very ready to not be pregnant anymore.
Her Mister, I’ll Take Your Roses If You Cut Off The Thorns tank top was stretched tight across her baby bump. I didn’t know if those tank tops came in maternity sizes or if Maddie had a slew of them custom-made. I was leaning toward the latter.
Six months had passed since Kyle reared his ugly head for the last time. Since then, we made it through the arraignment. Made it through the short-lived trial. His sentence—life without parole—was finally handed down last week.
In an attempt to get a reduced sentence, Kyle dropped the names of the two scumbags he paid to stalk Kristin and Melissa. They now faced charges and were being held until their court dates.
Bridget sat bravely through each court proceeding. I was honored to sit beside her and hold her hand. Twelve people sat behind us for each court session: ten members of the poker club and my parents.
It still blew my mind that the poker club was double the size it had been a few years ago. Everyone had someone. On top of that, we all had each other.
Thanks to the poker club, we were able to keep the door to the room where everything went down closed. The new main bedroom was even better than the old one. It had a few new feminine touches, compliments of the ladies. No longer just a bachelor’s house.
It was a home. A place to live and love.
There were still ghosts. Scars from the hell she walked through. But they were fewer now and less frequent.
On top of all that, Bridget and I had finally gone on our first official date: dinner and a movie where I definitely didn’t keep my hands to myself.
I kept Bridget’s hand in mine as we wound through the poker night crowd. Luna trotted beside us.
“How ya feeling, Mama?” Bridget asked as she squeezed in beside Maddie.
Maddie groaned and leaned her head back against the couch. “Like I’m signing Luca up for a vasectomy the first chance I get.”
“You’re only saying that because you’re past your due date,” Erica said as she dropped a mocktail in Maddie’s hand. “As soon as you hold your baby boy in your arms, you’ll want another one.”
“Fat chance,” Maddie muttered, glaring at Luca. He just stared at her with lovesick puppy eyes.
“You’ll never believe what I overheard when I was at the bar yesterday,” Hannah Jane said.
The girls were all ears.
“So, get this—I was hanging out at the bar waiting for Isaac’s plane to land, and the book club was meeting! They’re reading this why choose series right now, and some of the things they were talking about made me blush!” Hannah Jane squealed.
I wrinkled my nose. “What’s a ‘why choose’?”
“One girl, buncha guys,” Erica chimed in. “You know—why have one when you can choose them all? Teamwork makes the dream work!”
Kristin mentally weighed the pros and cons. “Seems like a lot of work.”
Maddie groaned and rested her hands on top of her belly. “Send me the title. I’m too tired for real sex. I need to live vicariously.”
Bridget busted out laughing. “You think if I bribe the book club with free drinks, they’ll let us join?”
“Hey, guys!” Mel said, breathless, as she and Jason barreled in. “Sorry we’re late.”
The sheen of sweat they were both sporting told me that they weren’t at all sorry. It wasn’t the newlywed glow—it was orgasms. Jason’s shirt was inside out, and Mel’s shorts were still unbuttoned.
“You gonna tell them, or should I?” I whispered to Bridget.
She covered her mouth with her hand to hide her laughter. “Eh, let them think they got away with it.”
Melissa and Jason had tied the knot a few weeks ago. Their house at the airfield was finished, and they had recently returned from their honeymoon to Argentina. The two of them grabbed seats beside Kristin and Will.
Kris was now the assistant manager of the Taylor Creek Inn. In a few months, we’d be throwing a big ass party to celebrate her graduating from college. I knew she was excited to get that degree in her hands. She had worked damn hard for it, especially after all she had been through. Her graduation also meant that she and Will were finally getting married .
“I’m gonna get something to drink,” Bridget said. “You want anything?”
“Relax,” I said, pressing a kiss to her temple. “I’ll get it for you. Wine?”
She smiled. “Please?”
“You got it, darlin’.” I pecked her lips and made my way toward the bar.
Bridget had been working her fine little ass off at the bar since Wanda made her—us—the owner. I was still full-time with the police department, so there wasn’t much I could do to help out on a daily basis. But Bridget had hired a posse of bartenders to staff the place. She still worked the occasional shift, walking the well and mixing drinks, but she mostly filled her days with managing the place and fixing it up.
The fire marshal still had choice words for the state of the building but, for the first time in Jokers history, they had passed a health inspection.
Miracles did happen.
“Wine for Bee?” Luca asked as he worked on a ridiculously fancy cocktail for Kristin.
“Yeah.” I drummed my knuckles on the slick lacquered top. “You got any more of that pinot noir from last week?”
He sprinkled pomegranate seeds on top of a dark cocktail and slid it to Kristin before grabbing the pinot.
Kristin eyed the cocktail critically. “What am I drinking tonight, DeRossi?”
He cracked a grin as he poured Bee’s wine. “I’m calling it the Carolina Girl. Amaretto, William Wolf Pecan Bourbon, Cheerwine, and grenadine. Pomegranate seeds and maraschinos for some flair.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Sounds fancy.”
“Just drink it,” he clipped. “It’s gonna knock your socks off. ”
It did sound pretty good, but I planned on sticking with a beer. I was easy to please.
Kristin took a wary sip. Luca and I watched as her eyes rolled back in her head. “Oh my God.”
“Good?”
“Will!” she yelled. “Drink this.”
Will walked over and gave the glass a sniff. “What is it?”
“Liquid heaven.”
Will shrugged and took a sip. “Damn. Pretty good.”
Kristin rolled her eyes and turned back to Luca. “Can I beg you to make a big batch of these for the wedding? It’s just the poker club and the kids. I’ll clean your house for a month.”
Luca laughed. “Already on the menu, Kris.”
Kristin and Will were tying the knot on the land between their house and Maddie and Luca’s. Maddie and Luca were catering the affair. My stomach growled at the possibilities.
Not a day had gone by that I hadn’t proposed to Bridget. Hair ties were used most frequently since they were all over the damn house . Sometimes I’d make a ring out of a straw wrapper or a bread tie. Occasionally it would be a piece of string I tied around her finger.
Once, I’d popped a quarter in the machine outside the gas station and got her a Ring Pop. Like always, she said, “every day,” when I asked her to marry me. Then she ate the ring.
I walked the glass of wine over to Bridget and settled back in my seat. The rest of the crowd followed. Given Maddie’s overdue state, it would be one of the poker nights where we didn’t actually play poker.
“Kris, how’s Logan doing?” Isaac asked.
“He’ll be done with finals soon. I can’t believe he’s about to finish his first year of college,” Kristin said.
“And he’s counting down the days until he turns twenty-one,” Will chimed in. “I think he’s more excited about coming to poker night than he is to be able to drink. Last time I checked, it was at seven-hundred-some days.”
“He’s a good kid,” I said, tipping my beer toward the soon-to-be Solomons. I draped my arm around Bridget’s shoulders and stroked her arm. The edge of her tattoo peeked out from the neckline of her flowery blouse. Later tonight, I’d start there when I kissed up and down her body, worshiping her the way she deserved.
Bridget cuddled into my side, not at all shy about showing affection in front of everyone. I looked down at our hands and hoped she wouldn’t ask questions about the dirt under my nails.
I got off work a little early today and did some planting. The guy at the garden center thought I was out of my mind with my gargantuan order of tulip bulbs. The ones from last year would be blooming again soon, but I wanted twice as many. Neighborhood rules be damned. The homeowners association could kiss my ass.
I wanted to fill Bridget’s life with so much color that she couldn’t help but smile every damn day.
Maddie shifted uncomfortably on the couch, her brows knitting together as she smoothed her hands over her belly.
Mel and her sixth sense frowned. “You okay?”
“Yeah,” Maddie said. “The baby’s been sitting real low today. My back has been killing me.”
Curious, Luna sniffed around Maddie’s enormous baby belly and rested her head on Maddie’s thigh. She let out a pitiful whine like she was trying to communicate with Maddie.
Erica raised her eyebrows. “Have you been having any contractions?”
“Just Braxton Hicks.” As she said the words, she gritted her teeth and cringed, clearly in pain .
“I don’t know much about pregnancy, but that doesn’t look like Braxton Hicks,” Hannah Jane said.
“I’m fine, I’m fine,” Maddie said, waving it off. “Are we playing poker or what?”
Another pang of pain must have hit because she nearly doubled over.
“DeRossi!” Steve barked. “Get the fuck over here!”
Luca whirled around from his station behind the bar. “What?”
Maddie panted, her eyes squeezed shut. “We are never having sex again!”
“Holy shit.” The glass Luca was holding fell from his hand and shattered on the ground. “Are you?—”
Steve was dragging him over by his shirt collar. “Your woman’s in fuckin’ labor. Get your game face on. This is it. Man up.”
I was waiting for him to smack Luca across the face to pump him up.
“Mad’s about to do work for you. She wants to crush your hand while she pushes? You let her. She wants ice chips? That’s on you. And when she’s sweaty and screaming at you, you tell her she’s the most beautiful goddamn woman you’ve ever seen. You will not pass out. You will not sit on the sidelines. She’s quarterbacking this game. You give her every damn thing she needs. Got it?”
I couldn’t decide whether Luca was more terrified at his impending fatherhood or of disappointing Steve.
Bridget was holding Maddie’s hand and gently rubbing her back.
“Everyone, just take a breath,” Mel said, standing up and trying to calm the tension. “Labor can take a while, especially with the first pregnancy. The last thing you want is to freak out and go to the hospital too early and then get sent home.”
Maddie looked up at Luca in a panic. “I think I peed myself again. ”
“ What the fuck are you doing, woman? ” Mel shrieked, her tone doing a one-eighty. “Your water broke! Get the fuck out of here!”
Luca leaped up the stairs to grab their go bags.
Isaac raised his eyebrows. “Are you that manic with all your patients in labor?”
Mel shrieked as she jumped away, as if pregnancy was contagious. “I don’t evacuate tiny humans from vaginas. If someone’s in labor in my emergency department, we put ’em in a wheelchair and roll ’em straight to labor and delivery.”
Jason was nearly in tears from laughing so hard.
Erica beamed as she brushed Maddie’s long hair away from her neck. “You’ve got this, Mama.” She was the picture of calm, cool, and collected. “Try to breathe through it.”
Luca careened down the stairs, his arms and shoulders loaded like a pack mule. “I think I got everything.”
“Come on,” Steve said, grabbing his keys. “Get in my car.” There wasn’t a doubt in my mind that he planned on using the lights and sirens to his advantage.
Isaac, Will, and Jason unloaded Luca’s arms and carried the haul out to Steve’s car. Mel announced that Erica could ride with her and Jason. Luca scooped Maddie up in his arms, ignoring her protests that she could walk herself to the car.
“Bee and I will clean up here and lock up,” I said as the crew moved like an amoeba through the French doors.
Luca tossed me his keys, and I caught them in mid-air.
“Good luck, DeRossis!” Bridget called as they disappeared into the night.
When all was quiet, Bridget and I made quick work of disposing pizza boxes, sweeping up broken glass, and cleaning the amniotic fluid off of the couch.
While Bridget checked upstairs to make sure the lights were off and the doors were locked, I wandered out to the strip of sand that edged the water behind Maddie and Luca’s house. Luna obediently walked beside me before spotting a stick and bouncing off to chew on it.
The sky was clear, and the moon shone brightly. Sparks of light danced on the onyx water.
“Hey,” Bridget said as she walked out onto the beach. “Everything’s good to go upstairs.”
Goddamn—I was a lucky son of a bitch. She was so beautiful. Her heart. Her body. Her spirit.
I had loved that girl for as long as I could remember. There would never be a day that went by that I didn’t love her more than the one before.
Sand squashed underfoot as she made her way over and stood beside me.
“Remember the last time we were out here like this?” I asked.
Bridget nodded as she rested her head on my bicep and laced our fingers together. “It seems like it was a lifetime ago.” Her voice softened. “That night…”
She didn’t have to say it. The night I had followed her out when she slipped away from poker nearly broke me. It was the first time we had talked since I found out she was engaged to Kyle Kingsley.
For years, I had fought my attraction to my best friend. I didn’t want to ruin what we had. Didn’t want to ruin us .
But the night I saw his engagement ring on her finger changed everything.
I wasn’t going to fight my attraction to her. I was going to fight for her.
Bridget McGrath was meant to be mine. Always had been.
“I never got to say my piece to you that night,” I said. “Kristin interrupted us.”
She stared out at the water, the sad memory playing out across her features. “You were so hurt,” she said quietly. “I’ll never forget the look in your eyes when you said you wanted a chance, and I wasn’t giving you one.”
My heart clenched, hearing her tell it back. I had been angry that night, but not at her. I was angry that I had waited too long to tell her how I felt.
Life was too short not to tell someone you loved them.
I looked down, scuffing the toe of my boot into the sand. “Do you remember what else I said that night?”
She closed her eyes and sniffed back a tear. “You said that you weren’t okay with losing your best friend.” She sucked in a shallow breath. “And that you would be good to me.”
I smiled, though the memory was a painful one. Cupping her cheeks, I wiped away her tears, leaving a glimmering path of damp skin. “But like you said, Kristin interrupted us.”
Her eyes opened, a flash of green stealing my breath.
My hand dropped from her cheek as I reached in my pocket. “There was one more thing I was going to ask you that night.”
The diamond ring glimmered in the moonlight as I pinched it between my fingers. “I had never taken you on a date. Never kissed you. Never held your hand for more than a few seconds. But I knew that there was beauty in your soul that deserved to be cherished.”
Tears welled up in her eyes as she cupped her hands over her mouth. “Chase…”
“I told you I got you a ring a long time ago. I did. I was ready to propose to you the night I found you out here because I have always loved you with everything that I am. And I know that you have always loved me, too. And that’s what this is gonna be. Walking through the good times and the bad. Fighting for each other. Loving each other. Protecting each other. This isn’t just equal ground—this is holy ground. What we have is sacred, and I will do everything in my power to keep it so.”
I took her hand in mine as I got down on one knee and held the ring between us. “If I lived a thousand lives, I would fight for you every time. I would choose you every time.”
“Yes!” she cried.
My shoulders shook as I laughed. “Darlin’, I haven’t asked you anything yet.”
She waved her hands as she tried to fan away the tears. “Right. Right—sorry. Okay. Go ahead.”
I grinned and shook my head. “I love you, darlin’.” Gently, I drew her hand to my lips and kissed it. “Marry me?”
“Every day,” she whispered through streams of tears as I slid the ring onto her trembling hand. “I’ll marry you every day. Over and over again.” Bridget grabbed my collar and hauled me up for a kiss. “Don’t ever doubt it.”