Chapter 14
CHAPTER
FOURTEEN
Rain
It’s been two days since Ridge had the talk with me. I still feel like I am in an alternate reality. I am rethinking everything I thought about him in the past.
He has made dinner every night after he gets home from work. I have even noticed that he has made sure not to be home too late, like in the first bit of our marriage. He is making the effort to be here with me. It’s jarring.
Not only that, but when we sit down to watch TV, he refuses to take control of the remote. He lets me watch whatever I want and happily sits next to me as we do.
We haven’t even crossed any lines. He sits next to me, but never touches me. And me? I think I am starting to want him to touch me.
It’s like he flipped a switch in my brain, giving me permission to access those feelings I once harbored for him in my teens.
It’s why I needed girl time. I need their advice, even if I don’t know how to ask for it.
We’ve already placed our orders and exchanged pleasantries, yet I still have no idea how to start.
Maggie is in the middle of telling us about something that I haven’t even focused on when I finally blurt it out.
“My husband wants to date me.”
Aspen and Maggie both stop talking and look at me.
“Excuse me?” Maggie asks.
“Two days ago, after he claimed me and all that, he asked if we could date. Or really, he said we could start as friends and then date, but all I heard was the word date, and now things are weird, and I don’t know what to do.
I am freaking out. I thought I hated him, but now that I know that he doesn’t hate me and kind of wants to maybe see if this marriage can be more.
I am thinking that maybe it could be more.
Like last night, his knee brushed mine, and I wanted it to do it again.
I wanted him to press against me. I think I am losing my mind. Like seriously losing it.”
I gasp for breath when I am finally done word vomiting on them. Holy shit, I didn’t realize how much I needed to get that off my chest.
“Breathe, Rain. Is it really so bad to date the man you married? I mean, what do you really even know about him? Why did you hate him anyway?” Maggie asks.
“Oh, she hated him because when she was seventeen, I think it was? She flirted with him. She was underage, though, and Ridge is a gentleman. He never looked her way. He brushed her off until he finally told her to back off,” Aspen answers for me.
“He didn’t tell me to back off. He said I was a kid and that he doesn’t look at children in that way. It was embarrassing,” I admit.
“You’re what? Eight or nine years apart?” Maggie asks.
“About that. I’m twenty-four, and I think he’s thirty-three, but he was also mentoring with my dad, and well, I guess now I can see why flirting with a seventeen-year-old would have been a creepy thing.”
Aspen laughs. “Yeah, because he is a good guy. It seems like he doesn’t still think you are a kid, though.”
“No. I guess he doesn’t. I have just told myself I hated him for so long that now I am looking at him differently, I realize that maybe I was keeping the hate to hide my embarrassment?” I leave it as a question, unsure if it’s the truth.
“That and being rejected sucks, especially as a teen. Your feelings were hurt, so you manifested them into something you could wield as a weapon. It didn’t help that your dad was mentoring him, so you had to see him.
If he had been any other brother, you would have seen him maybe twice a year, and the feelings could have dissipated, but with Ridge, he was always there. ” Aspen shrugs.
“I don’t know how to act around him anymore. I still want to lash out sometimes, but I’m biting my tongue. I don’t even know who I am right now.” I groan, letting my head fall onto the table.
Aspen snorts. “So stop biting your tongue. Be who you are. If you say something mean, apologize. He isn’t asking you to change who you are.
It seems he likes you the way you have always been.
So throw those Rain zingers that I know you have.
Maybe instead of causing pain like you always attempted in the past, it can be a source of entertainment for you both.
Some couples use bickering as foreplay.”
“I could totally see that working for you two,” Maggie adds.
“You guys make it look so easy,” I mumble.
“Easy? Panther hated me when he met me. He blamed me for everything that happened. It wasn’t until he realized that I was going through my own trauma and that I truly cared for Aspen that he finally opened his eyes and saw that maybe I wasn’t the bad guy,” Maggie reminds me.
Aspen jumps in. “Asher was a memory of the abuse I had to suffer through. He was both the last person I wanted to see and the only person who could make me feel anything but the soul-crushing guilt I had inside of me. Trust me, it was not easy for us to get to where we are. We are still working through shit.”
“Of course. Sorry. That was insensitive of me,” I say softly.
“No. No way. We didn’t say that for your guilt.
We say that because every single relationship has its issues.
It isn’t going to be all roses and sunshine.
You will fight. You will want to throttle him.
At the end of the day, it will be the love you have for him that keeps you off a true crime documentary. ” Aspen gives me a knowing look.
“So you are saying be myself, but go on these dates with him?” I ask for clarification.
“You don’t need us to tell you what to do, Rain.” Maggie reaches out and touches my hand. “You already know what you want to do. You are coming to us to validate that it is the right decision, but we can’t tell you that. You have to trust yourself.”
“Ugh. You guys are the worst friends ever. No help at all.” I jest.
“Totally,” Aspen chimes in.
“Absolute worst,” Maggie deadpans.
Then we all laugh because the truth is, these women are the best friends I have ever had.
I don’t know what I would do without them.
Ridge
It’s another long day at work, not that I mind it. I enjoy working in construction. It’s a good workout for my body while also giving my mind a chance to rest. When I am here, I don’t think about everything that can go wrong or has gone wrong. I only think about the task in front of me.
Lately, though, she has been invading my thoughts. Sure, I am still thinking about my task, but my mind wanders to when I will see her again next. It can be dangerous.
“Hey, Ridge, can I talk to you for a second?” Panther calls out to me.
I startle, my mind having drifted to my favorite girl. I turn and see Panther standing there, waiting.
I set my hammer down before making my way over to where he stands. He gestures to head outside, so I follow.
“What’s going on?” I ask him.
“Got a call from the Devil’s Den. They are wondering if we could offer some backup on a run they are making.
It’s dangerous. They work with the Medina Cartel, but they are offering a lot of money and a future favor for us.
I know we still got heat on us, but I already talked to the others.
They have all voted. I only need yours,” he tells me.
“If you think it’s a good move for the club, then I vote with you. Always.”
He nods. “Good. They need someone in two hours. I think you, Wolf, and Yak are the best for the job.”
“And one of the new prospects.”
He hesitates. “You sure?”
I nod. “They need to know what this life is really like. If they can handle it, then they stay. If they leave, then we know. It’s not like they will see anything that can incriminate us. We are just some guys going on a ride with our friends from the south.”
He nods. “All right. Pick one to take with you. They want to meet in Cripple Creek. You will escort them up to Cheyenne.”
“Done. I’ll go get ready to head out.”
He nods, heading over to his bike. I wait until he is out of the parking lot before I call Rain.
“Hey.” Her voice comes through the phone.
I can’t help the smile on my face.
“Hey. I’m going to be late for dinner tonight. I can have something delivered to the house for you.”
“Ridge, I can cook for myself. I did live with a single man for most of my life,” she reminds me.
“Of course, but I like taking care of you. So do you want Chinese food from that place you like? Maybe Italian from that little bistro we are always saying we are going to try?” I push.
She giggles, which makes me feel like a damn king. “How about pizza? I have been craving a ham and cheese pizza for days. Ooh, and cheesy bread. Do not forget my cheesy bread.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it. I do tend to like my balls right where they are,” I joke with her.
“Well then, you better be careful. You know I am quick to go for them when the situation calls for it.”
My dick starts to stir in my pants at her words. It’s fucked up. I shouldn’t be turned on, but fuck, I like this flirting we have going on.
“Who knows, my little Viper, maybe my balls wouldn’t mind it so much if it was you doing the chopping,” I say, deciding then and there that will be her nickname.
She’s a viper through and through. If you aren’t careful, her poison will kill you. Thankfully, she seems to like me.
“Ridge,” she hisses.
“Rain,” I mock her tone back to her.
“I swear,” she mutters. “I have to get back to work. Be safe with whatever you are doing. I’ll see you when you get home.”
“I will. Don’t you watch that show without me,” I warn her.
“But vampires are stupid.” She snorts. “I won’t. Now go before you get me fired.”
“Bye, Viper.”
I hear her groan. “Bye, Ridge.”
After she hangs up, I call Yak.
“What’s up?”
I can hear the sounds of the mechanic shop he works in behind him.
“I need you to grab a prospect. Whichever one you think would be best on a ride up to Cheyenne with some friends. Is Wolf there today?”
Wolf splits his time between the shop and working with Meek. With his law enforcement background, he is ideal for helping Meek investigate shit. Only Meek doesn’t want him there full-time, hence the shop. Meek is antisocial as fuck when he wants to be.
“No, he is with Meek today,” Yak tells me.
“Great. I’ll give him a call. Meet me at the clubhouse in ten minutes.”
After calling Wolf and telling him to meet me, I make my way toward the clubhouse. When I get there, I see Wolf, Yak, and our newest prospect, Jimmy, hanging around their bikes.
I pull up beside them, turning my bike off, but I don’t get off.
“This is a protection detail for the Devil’s Den. That means that this might get dangerous. If any of you want to back out, now would be the time to do so. Once we are on the streets, there is no turning back. If we run into trouble, your mouth is shut until death. Understood?”
I look at each of them, but really, the speech is for Jimmy. His face looks grim, but he nods.
“Great. Let’s get going then.”
As we pull out of the parking lot, ready to head toward our destination, I get this feeling in the pit of my stomach. Something is going to go wrong. I don’t know how I know, but I do know it.
I won’t let my club down, though. We can handle anything that comes our way. I only hope I didn’t lie to Rain when I told her I would come home safe.