Chapter 19 #4
“Don’t ever do that to me again. Promise me, River. Never again.”
I stared, confused at the shudder in his tone, but I nodded.
“I promise.”
He straightened and without a look back, he was gone, out of my space. I heard him on the stairs and then the front door slammed shut.
I eventually fell asleep curled around Max, and when I woke up Wes was gone and the remnants of the broken door had been cleaned up. The memory of his kiss played through my mind, making me trace my lips with the tip of my finger.
His kiss was just as memorable as it had ever been.
It was moonlit paths at night, starlit skies and first kisses in the dark.
He was still just as overwhelming as ever, and my lips seemed to remember how his kisses used to linger.
I remembered when I was seventeen, daydreaming at work while tracing my lips because of how he’d kiss me.
Now, I was in his bed, hiding from having to face the consequences of my actions.
Giving out a dramatic sigh, I got out of bed and went searching for Wes.
I scaled the stairs, seeing that sunset was bleeding through the blinds along the back wall, casting a glow over the hardwood floors.
Rubbing at my cheek, I pulled on the freezer to see if I could find any food.
A knock at the door had me shutting the appliance door while I looked around, as if Wes would materialize.
Seeing there was a small security camera feed set up next to his landline, I was able to see who was on the stoop. Curiosity and insecurity bled through my actions as I tugged on the door.
“Oh hey.” Natty, the girl from earlier, smiled at me, holding onto her foil-covered dish.
I slid out of the door a bit more and gave another look around, “Uh, hi. Wes isn’t here, if you were looking for him.”
Had Wes lied to me?
Maybe he hadn’t had sex with anyone, but did he have dinner with Natty, or other women from the club? Maybe he had companionship, which in my book, was a thousand times worse than a hookup.
Natty ducked her head, laughing. “No, I was looking for you.”
Oh.
“Well, come inside.” I moved so she could walk in.
“Sorry…I know this is awkward, but I felt bad for you after today. I know the stories about you and the president, but you seemed frustrated.”
Right, because I had made a complete fool of myself running from a man I was still in love with and knew would never hurt me.
Trying to brush it off, I took the casserole dish from her and set it on the counter.
“Wes would never hurt me, but I hate when he gets his way. That was just my way of fighting back…it was sort of stupid.”
Natty slipped onto one of the stools, “I didn’t think so. I thought it was sort of cute. If my love story doesn’t have flirtatious evasive maneuvers in it to avoid conversations, then I don’t want it.”
That had me laughing, while turning to grab a serving spoon.
“Well, I appreciate that, and this…did you make me spaghetti?”
Natty perked up. “Sort of…it’s called million-dollar spaghetti…I hope you don’t have a dairy allergy. Nowadays most people do, I should have asked.”
I shook my head, “I don’t…and this smells delicious. Do you want to join me? I think Wes has some beer. Probably not any wine around here, though.”
“There’s not. I tried to get Red to buy some, but she said—”
“Wine creates whiners,” we both said in unison.
I broke into a laugh, so did Natty.
“So you've been here for a while then?” I asked, grabbing two plates and dishing a portion on to each one.
Natty accepted hers and answered while I took a bite.
“Two years…Simon made a deal for me during a weapons run. Dirk had been abusing me… Uh, he—” Natty trailed off, pulling her sleeves down to cover her wrists.
“You don’t have to tell me,” I rushed to assure her.
She shook her head, blinking. “You know this life…you know there are good clubs, and bad ones. Death Raiders, well, they’re one of the bad ones, but there are some good people inside it.
You met Sasha—she talked to Simon on my behalf, and he traded a bunch of weapons for me.
It was the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me. ”
Emotion clogged my throat at thinking over my dad doing something so sweet. He had his good moments, that was for sure. And at his core he was a good man. This world was a lesser place without him.
“I was sorry when he passed, but the other men in this club are good like him. Wes and Killian, Giles and Rune…they’re all good guys.
I’m happy I’m here, and well, I don’t know if you’re sticking around, but I wanted to introduce myself and hopefully make you feel welcome.
I heard you grew up here, but it can be tricky finding your place again. ”
I was so moved by her thoughtful gesture that I skirted the counter and pulled her into a hug.
“Thank you, Natty. That is so sweet.”
She patted my shoulder, and then Max made his way downstairs, barking at the new person in the house.
“I better get back. Red usually asks me to help with the extra members on game nights.”
“Do you know if Wes usually plays poker with the guys?”
Natty stood but scrunched her nose.
“Not usually. He used to back when I got here, but for the past few months he hasn’t. If I had to take a guess at where he was, I’d say out on a run, or meeting with someone from another club, but I’m not technically supposed to know anything.”
I walked her to the door and hugged her again. “Well, thank you, and don’t be a stranger.”
Giving me a little wave, she ran down the steps and darted back over to the club. I locked up again and decided to have a relaxing night. It wasn’t very often I had such luxury at my fingertips.
I was on the hunt for a candle, which led me to snooping through the boxes in the top of Wesley’s closet.
I had already checked all the obvious places, but surely, he had an emergency kit in his closet or something.
I tugged one down, finding his childhood memorabilia inside.
I remembered it from back when we’d lived together.
Sliding it to the side, I started on the secondary box, prying it open. My fingers froze and my breathing tightened in my chest.
It was my box.
Everything I left behind, including…I gently touched the leather and traced the words as my eyes misted.
Candles, nail polish, books…everything was here, and he’d kept them for nearly a decade.
Suddenly, I couldn’t breathe around the tightness in my throat.
I couldn’t think of the implications around him keeping it all, so I closed the box and shoved it back where I found it.
A soak without candlelight would be fine because suddenly the desire to relax, or even be alone, was gone.