Chapter 25 Rachel #2
“You do now.” She grunted as she got to her feet. “Maybe with some help, you’ll get into bed before nine and will see the doctor.”
“Are you mothering me?”
She smirked again before she wandered out of the office. “Figured I’d get some practice in before mine comes along.”
Giulia was going to be a mother.
How fucking terrifying a prospect was that?
Shaking my head as she departed, I reached for my cellphone and called Link, and when there was no answer, I called Sin instead.
“‘Sup, Rach?”
“I need Lily’s number.”
“You don’t have it already?” Sin asked, his tone absentminded.
“No.”
“You got a pen handy?”
“Yeah.”
As he reeled off her number, I took note of it in my diary then started to transfer it to my computer contacts.
“What’s Link done?”
“Nothing as far as I know.”
His tone turned suspicious as he questioned, “What do you know?”
“Nothing,” I retorted sweetly.
“Rach, what’s going on—”
Letting him fester, I grinned to myself as I ended the call. He immediately rang back, but the second he cut off, I phoned Lily.
“Hello?”
“Hi, Lily. This is Rachel Laker. You may not know me—”
A laugh sounded down the line. “Of course I know you.”
“I didn’t know if you would over the phone,” I said, a tad sheepishly.
“Well, I do. Is everything okay?”
“Yeah. Everything’s fine. I was wondering if you were free to help out with some MC business.” The FAST gala was approaching too… Could I dump some of that on her lap?
“MC business?” She sounded wary. “What kind of MC business?”
“The legal side of things, not the illegal,” I drawled.
“Oh. Sure, I’d love to help out. You’d be saving me actually. Tiffany’s mother is driving me crazy.”
I arched a brow. “Is she still living with you?”
Christ, I really was out of the loop.
Guilt and unease went to war inside me at the realization. The MC was the closest thing I had to family, but I hadn’t just locked Rex out in my bid for independence as I sought to escape the ties of my past. I’d also shut the door in the MC’s face as a whole.
In a sense, it was understandable.
Two of the MC brothers were the reason I was broken, after all.
But two small cogs didn’t make up the whole machine.
“Yeah,” Lily confirmed grimly. “She’s still living with me. Tiff and Sin’s place is far too small for a houseguest. And trust me, even my place is too small for a houseguest like her.
“I didn’t mind at first because she just used to shop like mad on . Now, she’s—” She huffed. “Sorry, Rachel. This is very unprofessional of me. You didn’t call to gossip. You called about business. How can I help?”
A part of me was relieved for the change of subject.
Work was all I had, and personal information was something I tended to avoid at all costs.
But… this was Link’s woman.
I cared for him. He loved her.
I swallowed. “No, it’s okay. It’s clear that she’s been annoying you.”
“She has. She stuck to her room for the most part, but now she’s started eating dinner with us. She’s behaving better ever since Link told her he’d throw her out if she kept on with the insults, but she’s so damn snide it’s wearisome.”
“I can imagine.” I cleared my throat. “Why don’t you find her somewhere else to stay?”
“That would make Tiffany feel guilty.”
I didn’t know Tiffany well enough to give her an opinion.
God, I didn’t know any of the Old Ladies well apart from Stone and Indy, and I didn’t even really know who they were aside from the fact they’d been a part of the life longer than I had and had always been around.
From the very start, I’d kept things superficial with the MC. I’d been so certain that when Axel took us in, it wouldn’t be for long. The only way to diminish future hurt was to invest very little of myself from the beginning.
How had I only just realized I’d never changed how I interacted with people I genuinely considered kin?
Horror washed through me as I choked out, “Why would she feel guilty?”
“Are you okay?”
“Sorry, frog in my throat. Why would Tiffany feel guilty?”
Lily hesitated. “It doesn’t matter. I’m sorry for bringing this up.” Her tone changed, brightened. “I’d love to help, Rachel. Anything to get me out of this damned house right now.”
“Do you know where I live?”
She snorted. “Yes, Rachel. I do.”
It sounded obvious to her, but I didn’t know where she lived.
More guilt assailing me, I muttered, “The MC is currently working on several projects—”
“Yes. I know. Maverick mostly passed on the basic bookkeeping. But I was aware of which plans were in place.”
“Oh. With Rex not here, I could use some help.”
“I’ll be there in under an hour. Do you want me to bring coffee or snacks?”
“No. That’s okay. I have coffee here.”
“Great,” she chirped. “See you in a short while.”
Mouth rounding as she hung up, I stared down at the phone then slowly placed it on the desk.
That was… unexpected.
But not necessarily a bad thing.
I did need help. Rex was as much of a workaholic as I was. With him away, I hadn’t realized how much there’d be to do, even with Parker working more hours than usual and Susanne working flat out too, and my intention, my method of apology, was to make it easier on him upon his return.
Keeping his family ticking over in his absence… I didn’t think it would be enough, but I had to try.