Chapter 6
ROSIE
“Donovan is probably one of the best-looking men I’ve ever laid eyes on,” Layla said from behind the reception desk in a matter-of-fact tone.
Every eye in the room slashed toward her.
“Doe?” Tristan breathed, like he didn’t know her at all.
“What?” she cried. “I love Bowie, but I can still appreciate a handsome guy. I may be happily married to the biker of my dreams, but I’m not dead from the waist down.”
“He doesn’t date anyone,” Kennedy cut in from the couch underneath the window, flicking aimlessly through a magazine.
“I asked around. He’ll hook up, but not one girl has ever actually gone out with him.
Also, apart from the Lucy Bloom thing that Cara saw, nobody’s reported any action with him lately.
It seems Donovan’s either had a slow year, or he’s losing his touch. ”
Sophie let out a disbelieving snort from her seat beside Ned on the couch. “Losing his touch? Yeah right. He’s either been getting some from out of town, or he’s not bothering with the skanks these days. Maybe Maureen’s right and he is growing up.”
Tristan smiled knowingly, making a show of switching on the curling iron.
My eyes narrowed on him. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing,” he replied, much too innocently.
“Triiiis,” I said warningly, dragging out his name. “What do you know that we don’t?”
He must have seen that I meant business because he stared at me for a beat and then let out a resigned sigh.
“Nothing for sure. It’s just that Maureen seems to think our Donny boy has quite a thing for you.
She said that when he saw you walking past the bar, he got a look on his face that she’d never seen before.
Mother Maureen also mentioned that he seems to have matured since he left the Army, and since Lorcan died, he’s hardly indulged in the horizontal mambo at all. ”
“It happens to the best of them,” Soph pointed out. “It happened to ours.”
“But Donovan O’Shea?” Layla questioned.
“I hate to point this out, Doe, but it happened to Bowie Stone,” Tris clapped back. “Your honeybee used to be as bad as Donny baby—worse in fact. If you remember rightly, we all had our reservations back then, even you.”
“Bowie proved himself, though,” Layla said defensively.
Tristan’s eyes met mine in the mirror again.
“And who says Donovan won’t. How ‘bout we stop being so judgy until there’s something to be judgy about?
I’m not saying we shouldn’t look out for our girl here; she’s one of ours, so that goes without saying, but Donovan’s a great guy with a big heart. He deserves a chance.”
“You’re right,” Layla acquiesced. “Sorry, Rosie. I just worry about you.”
I twisted my neck to shoot her a reassuring smile.
“Right,” Tristan murmured, running his fingers through my hair. “What are you wearing?”
I twisted my mouth, thinking on my feet. “Short black leather skirt, black satin shirt with a few strategic buttons undone, and black leather thigh-high boots.”
“Hair up, sexy messy bun, with a few face-framing tendrils?” he suggested.
“Perfect,” I agreed.
Tristan picked up the curling iron and got to work. “Wonder where Donny baby was off to in such a hurry.”
“Maybe it hit him like a ton of bricks that he’s actually committed to a date, and he left town,” Kennedy replied, her gaze jerking to meet mine in the mirror before adding, “Only joking.”
I shrugged one shoulder. “Stranger things have happened; though I hope not, since I’ve made the effort to come and get my hair done. There’s nothing worse than being all dressed up with nowhere to go.”
“He’ll be there,” Sophie assured me. “We all saw the way he was looking at you last night.”
“It was hot,” Kennedy agreed.
Tristan nodded sagely. “It was smoking hot.” He held my hair in one hand and ran a brush through to smooth it. “How do you feel about him?”
“I like him,” I admitted. “I mean, he’s gorgeous and he’s funny. I love his banter and he’s good with DJ and Gabby, which is great, but it’s also a worry.”
“Why?” Sophie asked.
Layla leaned forward. “Because when you start seeing a notorious heartbreaker, who’s to say they won't break your kids’ hearts too.”
I gave a small nod of agreement. “Exactly. DJ’s already got a big ol’ case of hero worship going on.
Gabby’s more reserved, but Donovan already puts her at ease, so it wouldn’t take long until she became invested too.
If it were just me, I’d take the risk, and if things between us got screwed up, I’d move on, but it’s not.
You also forget, we had a thing before, and even after one night, he had a pretty big impact on me, not all of it positive. ”
“Are you a scaredy cat?” Kennedy scoffed.
“No,” I retorted. “I’m a thirty-three-year-old divorcee with two kids, which means it’s not all about my wants and needs.
I’m not a kid, and as much as I’m easy-going and like to have fun, I also have responsibilities.
You of all people should know that, especially when in the ten years you thought Breaker was dead, you didn’t remarry. ”
“No need to get snippy,” Kennedy muttered.
“There’s no need to get judgy either.” I shot back. “People in glass houses and all that.”
“Ooooweee,” Tristan exclaimed quietly. “Farrah’s just seen our Posy’s claws for the first time.” He glanced back at her and winked. “You want a Band-Aid for those scratches, girl?”
Kennedy laughed. “I can handle it. I just want Rosie to be happy, and despite my sarcasm, I think our girl and Donovan are a good match.” Her gaze rested on mine through the mirror.
“She knows whatever happens, I’ll have her back, but she also knows that I wouldn’t be a good friend if I didn’t challenge her. ”
“I do know that,” I agreed.
“And on that note, I have to get back to work,” she declared, getting to her feet. She slung her bag over her shoulder and blew air kisses to us all before strutting out the door.
Silence reigned for a minute before Sophie murmured, “She’s bitchy because she’s been awake most of the night. Kit had an episode.”
“Episode?” Layla asked.
“He had a couple of beers at the wedding yesterday, then overnight, he suffered pretty bad night terrors and a couple of flashbacks. It doesn’t happen often, and when it does, it’s usually triggered by something.
He’s gone to Rock Springs for a counseling session at the VA, so she’s gone to work to keep her mind occupied.
But she’s quite rightly worried about him, hence her lack of patience. ”
“Did he get physical with her?” Tristan asked, his tone laced with concern.
“No, not at all,” Sophie assured him. “Luckily, she woke up when it first started and got out of the way in time, but it shook her up. Kit’s so well-adjusted these days that it’s easy for everyone to forget he’s sick.
His PTSD is managed really well, and it doesn’t affect him ninety-five percent of the time, but his condition comes with relapses and mental health issues.
Kit deals with it so well that people forget and think he’s cured when, in fact, PTSD is a lifelong struggle. ”
“Poor Kennedy,” Layla murmured.
“And poor B-Boy,” Tris added.
“Maybe give her a pass today,” Sophie suggested.
“She’s hardly had any sleep, and her mind’s occupied with Kit.
She wanted to go with him, but he hates her being close when he’s feeling overwhelmed, so Atlas drove him up there instead.
I brought her here to take her mind off everything, but maybe it was a bad idea. ”
I twisted in my seat. “There’s no right or wrong answer, Soph.
You did what you thought was best, and getting out probably did help her.
I wanted to talk to her anyway; my ex-husband’s being a dick, so the kids want a break from him, and it’s resulted in him threatening to sic his lawyer on me.
I never needed legal representation after the divorce, so I didn’t retain the guy Atlas hired at the time, and I wondered if she’d take a meeting with me. ”
“Go see her,” Sophie ordered.
“It seems inappropriate with what she’s going through,” I argued gently. “I’ll wait a few days.”
“She needs it, Rosie,” Soph told me earnestly. “Give her something she can get her teeth into. Kennedy’s in her element when she’s fighting, especially when she's fighting for something.”
“Really?” I asked, my voice unsure.
“Kennedy gets off on having a cause,” Soph explained.
“I know she can be prickly, bitchy even, but she’s the most loyal friend you’ll ever have.
Once she knows what’s going on, she’ll fight tooth and nail for you, and in the process, it will get her mind off what’s going on with Kit.
Believe me, you’ll be doing her a favor. ”
I decided it was best not to argue, so I nodded instead. “I’ll make my way over to her office when Tristan’s done with me.”
“She’ll sort you out,” Sophie told me, smiling softly. “Your ex will be toast by the time Kennedy’s finished with him.”
Turning back to face the mirror, I grimaced slightly. “I really fucking hope so. Evan can be a dick when he doesn’t get his own way. I need someone who can out-dick him at every turn.”
“He’ll meet his match in Kennedy,” she said, smirking.
It was weird because out of all the ol’ ladies, Kennedy was the one I knew the least well.
I wasn’t really around much when she was going through her drama with Breaker.
I even knew Elise better than her because she’d been the mayor’s wife, and there were many times we’d gotten talking in town, even before she left her husband and got back together with Dagger.
But our sisterhood was so tight, and I knew I could trust her. Everyone had told me what a shark she could be when she was in lawyer mode, and that she was quick and smart and not a woman to underestimate. I mean, even my brother called her ‘The Pitbull.’
I’d seen how she was around Breaker and noticed the vast improvement in his health since I’d been gone. I could only attribute that to Kennedy and their kids.