CHAPTER 32
Billie
“They scheduled the battle.” Joanie blew out a big breath as she sank into the couch across from me. “We’ve got just a few days until the big event.”
She looked about as excited about it as I felt. I curled my feet under me and nodded. “If Margaret could see us now, she wouldn’t want us on her team.”
“If Margaret could see us now, she’d probably slap us in the face with a rubber penis and tell us to woman up.” Joanie snorted.
I let out a single laugh and then it bubbled over into both of us cackling at the image. We were both red faced and crying by the time we could control the giggles. I held my stomach and wheezed. “I needed that.”
“You and me both.” She leaned down to pick up Turtle and held him to her chest as she sobered. “I saw them. I gave Chase a bloody nose, but it wasn’t on purpose.”
I thought about the black eyes Gray had walked around with for weeks. “Either way.”
She smiled but it was short-lived. “It hurt. I don’t know how you got up this morning and still went out to work with your guys. I heard you crying last night, Billie.”
I shrugged. “They’re not my guys.”
“What are you going to do?”
My eyes burned but I blinked to dry them before anymore tears could fall. “I’m going to leave.”
“Billie…is that what you really want?” Joanie eased Turtle down and leaned forward. “Don’t let them run you off. If you want to stay, stay. Or, you can move in with me. We’ll need to find a house that isn’t next door to Chase, Bear, or Smith, but I think we can do it.”
It was useless. The tears weren’t going to be stopped. I sniffed. “Bear’s a really great name.”
She laughed and moved over so she could squeeze into the chair with me. “We’re going to be okay. We’re tough Doll’s Club women. We have the power of Coco behind us.”
I leaned my head on her shoulder. “Coco’s a nut.”
“Yeah, but she shot Bear with a tranquilizer gun so I’m feeling warm towards her right now.”
“Yeah, if she shot one of my bosses, I’d be pretty happy with her, too.” I sniffed again. “With a tranquilizer, of course.”
“Of course.” Joanie laughed and rubbed my back. “Whatever you want to do, I’ll support you. If you leave, I may come with you, though. Violet is deliriously happy, as she should be, but I can’t handle being the only sad friend.”
I sighed. “I think Eve is sad, too. Maybe there’s something in the air.”
A knock on our broken door made me freeze and Joanie patted my arm before squeezing her way out of the chair. “I’ll handle it.”
“I can’t face them right now, Joanie. Please don’t let them in here.” I hesitated. “If it even is them. It’s probably not.”
I sank down in my chair and picked up Turtle so he wouldn’t run out the door. Straining my ears, I listened as Joanie spoke to someone.
“If you can fix the door without coming inside, you can fix it. If not, it’s fine. We’re ready for someone to try to come in and fuck with us. Ever faced down two scorned women before?” I couldn’t hear whoever was on the other side of the door but whatever they said didn’t faze Joanie. “You’ll have to come through me to get into this house. I don’t give a damn if it’s your property. She’s my friend.”
A few seconds later, Joanie came back in the living room and motioned for me to get up. I stood up, still holding Turtle, and turned in a tight circle as I panicked. “What do I do?”
She giggled and then straightened her face when I shot a glare at her. “We’re going to take a drive. I bought you maybe five minutes. The big one is going to get the other two.”
“Which big one? They’re all big ones!” I shook my head. “It doesn’t matter. What am I doing?”
“You’re coming with me and we’re going to drop in on Eve and we’re all going to get hammered. How’s that sound?” Joanie grabbed her car keys and motioned towards the door. “Come on, come on! I’m pretty sure he’s coming back to murder me. He was not happy I wouldn’t let him see you.”
I scrambled to shove my feet into my boots and then rushed out of the house without my phone, purse, or any sense of which way was up or down in my life. We’d barely reached Joanie’s car when I heard a deep shout.
“Oh, my god. Oh, my god. I feel like Bonnie and Clyde.” I slid into the passenger seat and ducked my head. Turtle licked my face happily and barked his own excitement at us. “Go, go, go!”
Joanie started the car and stepped on the gas pedal to get us out of there. She sped down the driveway and under the ranch sign like a bat out of hell, cackling the whole way. “I think I missed my calling as a getaway driver!”
I rushed to put my seatbelt on and held Turtle tight. “Did you see them?”
“Oh, yeah.” Joanie glanced over at me and winced. “They looked really mad.”
I groaned. “I don’t care.”
After a few seconds, Joanie burst into a fit of laughter. “Did you say you felt like Bonnie and Clyde?!”
“I was panicking! It was the first thing that came to my mind.” I rolled down the car window and leaned my head out. “We don’t have to talk about every dumb thing I say or do.”
She reached over and squeezed my hand. “Sure we do. But we can talk about all of my dumb shit, too.”
“Eve better be home. I can’t go back to that house tonight.” I held Turtle’s collar as he stuck his head out the window, too. “I don’t know how I’m going to face them every day for another two weeks, Joanie.”
“Quit now. You can go live at my house if you need. Bear’s twin daughters might break in and scare you half to death, but your bosses wouldn’t.”
I coughed as a bug flew into my mouth. Gagging and struggling to spit it out, I ended up swallowing it and turned to Joanie with a wide-eyed look of horror. “I just ate a bug. Is that a sign? What does it mean?”
She winced. “It means we need to get drunk as fast as possible.”