Chapter 23 Rachel #2
Quickly clearing my throat, I replied, “Yeah, I’m here. Sorry. Just… my mind wandered. Not your fault. Mine.”
He snickered. “I’d ask if it was a personal thing, but I doubt it seeing as you don’t have a life outside of work.”
“Fuck off,” I grumbled.
“Where would I fuck off to? You phoned me,” he pointed out.
“I’m pregnant, Hunter,” I blurted into dead silence.
He was quiet a second, then he laughed. “Congratulations, Rach! God, you’re going to make an awesome mom. They’ll all be terrified of you, but when they get into trouble, you’ll have the teachers petrified.”
Despite myself, I knew I wore a dopy smile. “You know how to give a compliment, Hunter.”
He chuckled. “Am I wrong?”
“No,” I retorted with a snort.
“How’s King feeling about it?”
I blew out a breath, touched that, even though we were out of regular contact, he and Rory knew the only baby daddy I’d ever have would be King.
“King doesn’t know yet.”
“Why not?”
“His dad just died.”
“Oh, shit. I’m so sorry, Rach. I know you loved King’s father. Bear, wasn’t it?”
“Thanks, Hunter,” I said, my tone wobbly. Hunter always remembered the little things. “It’s been hard.”
“Of course it has. You should have told me,” he chided.
“What would you have done? Sent flowers?”
“Well, that or ice cream. I think you’d have preferred that…”
“You still could send ice cream,” I pointed out.
“Consider it done. Anyway, you were saying about King? Why you haven’t told him about the baby?"
“What with Bear and everything, I didn’t want to burden him.”
“Maybe it’d cheer him up.”
I blinked. “Maybe it would. I-I can’t tell him yet though. He…”
“He…?” Hunter prompted when I hesitated.
“I had one of my nightmares.”
Hunter knew all about those. After, we’d continued sharing the same flat. Sometimes, I’d pitied our neighbors. I wasn’t the only one screaming at night. Rory was just as bad as me back then.
Not now though.
A part of me wondered if I was defective or something.
She was over it—why wasn’t I?
Rubbing my eyes, I muttered, “I had one of my dreams. I told him to get out, and he took me literally.”
“Huh. He’s never listened before, has he?”
“No,” I whispered miserably, hating that Hunter was right.
This wasn’t the first time I’d looked at him as if he were Grizzly.
Why did they have to look so much alike?
Why?
Hating genetics, I gnawed on the inside of my cheek as Hunter asked, “What changed?”
“It was the day his dad died.”
“Oh. Ouch.”
“Yeah.” A breath whistled from between my teeth. “I suck.”
“Hardly, Rach. You love the man. You can’t be with him because of your past. I think that sucks more for both of you. It isn’t your fault he looks just like his uncle. Neither is it his fault, in all fairness.”
“You don’t have to tell me that,” I said bitterly.
“You still love him, right?”
“Of course. There’s no one else. Never has been.”
He sighed. “That’s the saddest thing I’ve ever heard.”
I closed my eyes. Rex's wounded expression flashed before them. “Tell me about it. Anyway, I didn’t call you to whine.”
“You’re not whining. But why did you call?”
“I got off the phone with Rory, and she said she hadn’t talked to you recently and I realized I hadn’t either. I wanted to check in.”
“Rory’s ignoring me,” he said flatly. “She deals with things like you do.”
“She doesn’t,” I scoffed. “She’s strong. I’m weak.”
He scoffed back, “You’re one of the strongest women I know. Definitely one of the smartest. I’d say you were the smartest, but you and Rory are too competitive for me to declare one of you ahead of the other.
"You’re brilliant, Rachel. Absolutely brilliant. You regularly astound me—”
While his defense touched me, I mumbled, “How can I regularly do anything when we haven’t spoken in ages?”
“You think I don’t keep tabs on both of you? I actually watched the Long Beach Butcher trial.”
“You did?” My eyes widened. “Why didn’t you tell me you were there?”
He laughed. “I didn’t watch it in a way that would be considered strictly legal.”
“Of course not,” I said drolly.
“You were a genius in that court. How you twisted the jury around your finger? How you got the DA so tied into knots and pushed so deeply into a corner that he was fucked?” He chuckled. “Sheer poetry of the courtroom kind.”
I grinned at nothing. “Thanks, Hunter. You’re always good for my ego.”
“You gonna ask me to be kiddo’s godfather?”
Laughing, I told him, “You really want that?”
“Of course!”
I wondered if Rex would want one of the brothers to be a godfather, and then I thought, ‘Fuck it.’ Why shouldn’t one of my best friends be there for our kid?
Hell, why shouldn’t both of them, the people who’d gotten me through school, who’d helped me get out of bed every goddamn day after I gave up Wynter, be the ones who were there for me now?
“Okay then. You’re sure?”
“Wouldn’t have said I was if I wasn’t.” He barked out another laugh and I could hear his chair squeak in the background. “You better make Rory the godmother too. I have plans this year.”
I arched a brow. “What kind of plans?”
“To make her mine, of course.”
He said it so pleasantly that I had to smile. “Just like that, huh?”
“Well, it’s been long enough, wouldn’t you say?”
“Definitely.” Still, I pursed my lips. “She’s going to be difficult to win over.”
"I’m sick of settling for second best, Rach. I want her.”
I didn’t know what to tell him.
I appreciated his Golden Retriever nature more than anyone could possibly understand, but I, more than anyone, knew this Golden Retriever wasn’t afraid to go for the throat.
I didn’t want to hurt him, neither did I want to discourage him.
He and Rory had been dancing around each other for far too long.
“You might want her, Hunter, but I don’t know if she wants you.”
“Like I said, I have a plan.”
I smiled. “You do?”
“I do. Will you be my best man, Rach?”
I had to laugh. “How can I be that when I’ll be Aurora’s maid of honor?”
“You can be both. We’re non-traditional.”
I thought about Rory’s very traditional background and cleared my throat. “I guess if anyone would make waves, it’s her.”
He hummed. “Exactly. Wish me luck?”
Sighing, I told him, “Always.”
And I meant it too.
I wanted my best friends to be happy, and if I could also have some of that, I wouldn’t say no.
“Got a question for you.”
“Ask away,” was my instant reply. “I’ll do anything for you, you know that.”
“Apart from adjudicate between Rory and me.”
My lips curved. “She’s more frightening than a serial killer.”
He pshawed but questioned, “You heard of a hacker called Lodestar.”
Whatever the fuck I’d expected him to ask me, it wasn’t that.
Loyalties warring, I queried, “Why?”
“I’ll take that as a yes.”
I didn’t answer.
“It’s okay. I mean her no harm.” I heard his chair squeaking. “The Valentinis have been sending a lot of work my way recently, and it’s starting to clash with my duties here.”
“You want to hire her?” I thought about Lodestar, who was already strung out from a heavy workload, and found myself at a loss.
“Well, not me. I was going to recommend her to them. What do you think?”
“Do you know she’s working with the Sinners?” I queried, my tone cautious.
“I know all, see all—”
“Shut up,” I grumbled, which made him snicker.
Rubbing my temple, I contemplated our conversation.
The Valentinis were on my client list. Luciu Valentini had just ascended to the head of the Italian collective—the Famiglia.
If Lodestar worked for them too, I could call on her for information when I needed it… It would be easier than now.
I loved speaking with Hunter, but his work process was a lot more manic than I could handle.
Lodestar was like me—cold as ice, ruthless, analytical, and unafraid to do what needed to be done to achieve whatever result she was seeking.
“Rach?” Hunter prompted.
“Yeah,” I said eventually. “I can recommend her.”
“You wanna tell Custanzu—”
“He’s the one who approaches you?” I queried, curious as to the inner workings of the Sicilians.
Though Luciu would probably have told me, I found it wasn’t in my best interests to be overly curious about my clients’ working habits.
Hunter hummed. “Stan’s on the front, you know that. Luc only gets his hands dirty at the end.”
‘The end.’
I rolled my eyes.
Luciu had a passion for the dramatic. How he went around slicing up men and women’s faces like his knife was a paintbrush was all the more disturbing for his intelligence.
Luciu did nothing without a purpose.
Not unlike some people I knew…
“You tell them. I don’t like getting involved.”
“I know. I wouldn’t have asked, but I didn’t want to pass along a name that you wouldn’t want to liaise with.”
Warmth unfurled inside me. “You’re a sweetheart, Hunter.”
He laughed. “You keep on telling Rory that.”
“I’ll put in a good word for you.” My lips twitched. “Not sure if it’ll be much use. You know what she’s like.”
A sigh came down the line. “Perfection?”
I snorted. “Yeah, you keep on telling yourself that.”