Chapter 27
I had a bodyguard.
I wasn’t sure how I felt about this.
Rhode called Reese being at the house while he was working ‘a precaution.’
I called it a reminder I wasn’t safe.
Letty called it entertainment and told me to shut up and not complain in fear Reese would leave.
But she also called Reese eye candy and she wasn’t wrong—the guy was good-looking.
I just didn’t want entertainment or a bodyguard even if it came in the form of eye candy.
I wanted one day—just one—where I didn’t have to think about Kiki, money, Desi, the Horsemen, or any of the emotional fallout.
Just one.
And so far we’d been in the safehouse for three days and every day there’d been a reminder.
Some small, some bigger. Today being the biggest. Reese was here to babysit…
er…bodyguard because Rhode was meeting with Davis, Wilson, and a local detective, then they were going to the Horsemen’s clubhouse to have a chat.
A chat.
Like Rhode, Davis, Wilson, and a detective were going to meet a bud at a bar and chew the fat—or was it cut the fat? Have a gab, shoot the breeze, whatever men did when they communed.
I was nervous. Not because I might or might not be in danger. I was nervous because Rhode was walking into danger. The Horsemen were bad guys, not your everyday, run-of-the-mill bad, really bad. Everyone knew to stay away from them. I didn’t want Rhode anywhere near the clubhouse.
“Brook, if you’re gonna pace at least do it in the other room,” Letty complained from her spot on the couch.
“How are you calm?” I asked.
“Who says I am?”
“You’re scrolling on your laptop,” I reminded her.
“Ordering new bookshelves. You know, to replace the ones I had to throw away because there were bullet holes in them is hardly scrolling.”
Damn.
Properly chastised, I grumbled, “Sorry.”
“I hate this for you,” Letty whispered.
Was she nuts?
“For me? I’m not the one—”
“This should be a happy time for you and Remy.”
What was she talking about?
I didn’t ask but Letty being my best friend didn’t need me to verbalize my question.
“Rhode coming back. He and Remy bonding. You and him reconnecting.”
Oh, that.
“You know what’s strange? It feels like he’s always been here. That’s weird, right? He just so naturally fits into our lives that I forget last month I was wondering where he was and what he was doing.”
“Yeah, Brook, that’s weird. It should be exciting and new and the sex—”
“Shh,” I cut her off and jerked my head in the direction of the kitchen.
“And the sex should be what?” Reese asked, sauntering into the living room with a huge sandwich in his hand. “Please don’t tell me my boy’s falling down on the job.”
Someone kill me now.
“No, he’s not falling down on the job,” I snapped.
“I hope he’s at least going down on the—”
“Letty!”
“Jeez, lighten up. The five-year dry spell’s over, I figured you’d be in a good mood.”
My face blazed hot and I knew my damn cheeks were turning red.
Damn Letty.
“No shit? Five years?” Reese asked around a bite of roast beef so his words came out mumbled.
“She was into Rhode,” Letty helpfully supplied.
“Rare.”
Rare?
“What’s rare?”
“You,” he said after he swallowed.
“Why am I rare?”
“Hard to find a woman who’s loyal. A beautiful woman who’s loyal, harder. A woman who’s got it going on the way you do, and is so into her man that she doesn’t see him for five years but stays true to her heart, rarest of the rare.”
I didn’t bother explaining to Reese there were extenuating circumstances, like I was pregnant for nine months and having sex with a man who was not the father of the baby growing in my belly was icky.
And after the pregnancy came a baby and I’d been busy learning how to be a new mom.
And after that I was busy raising the baby, working, and I’d been exhausted.
But even if all of that had been absent, I wasn’t sure if I would’ve gone in search of another man when my heart belonged to Rhode.
“Someone cheat on you, big guy?”
“Letty! Jesus.”
“Yep. First deployment. My bitch wife found herself a play toy.”
Letty gave me big eyes and I gave her a narrowed look that I hoped conveyed my reprimand.
“You two are too much.” Reese chuckled. “You do remember I’m standing here so I can see the conversation.”
I was sure he could.
“I’m sorry your wife cheated on you,” I told him.
“I’m not. Better to learn the bitch was a cheat out the gate rather than wasting more years on her lying ass.”
He was right, but still.
“Letty shouldn’t have asked.”
“Why not? Friends ask questions,” Reese countered. “And besides, I don’t give a shit who knows. I wasn’t the one fucking someone outside my marriage, the bitch was.”
It was safe to say I was really happy Remington was taking a nap.
Letty’s phone chimed, she picked it up off the couch, and her face lit when she looked at the screen.
Interesting.
“Who’s that?” Reese inquired.
Obviously he, too, saw the way Letty’s mouth had curved into a smile.
“Nosy much?”
“Woman, you just asked me a personal question. I answered. And was clear I didn’t mind you asked.”
Letty went into a staredown. This didn’t bode well for Reese. Letty was stubborn with a capital S. And she had the patience of a saint. It was annoying as hell.
“This is when you say, touché,” I told her.
“Touché,” she parroted but didn’t answer.
“Davis know you have a man?”
Whoa. Whoa. Whoa.
“Davis?” I squeaked.
“I don’t have a man. And trust me, if I did, Davis wouldn’t care.”
I wasn’t sure if she was right. Davis had been flirting with her all night. And she’d flirted back. They were actually fun to watch.
Letty’s head bent and she went back to her phone. Another thing Letty was good at was ignoring you if she was done with a conversation.
Reese looked mildly irritated and I didn’t need a best friend/bodyguard throwdown so I started babbling.
“Thank you for coming over today. I hope you didn’t have plans that needed to be canceled.”
Reese's gaze came to mine and male beauty hit me full on.
Rhode was the sexiest man I’d ever clapped eyes on. There was something about him that exuded confidence and coupled with his good looks, his appeal was off the charts.
But Reese was classically beautiful. I doubted he’d appreciate it if I told him so out loud and I doubted he’d take it as a compliment.
But he was a magazine-cover pretty boy. Complete with green eyes that had striations of brown.
They weren’t hazel, they weren’t completely green.
What they were was cool. His ex-wife was an idiot.
God, I hoped she was his ex, though he called her his wife.
Was he still married to her? No way, he called her a bitch.
No man calls his wife a bitch. At least not a good man, and Reese struck me as a good guy.
“Are you married?”
“No.”
Phew. He’d divorced her. That was good.
“Girlfriend?”
“No.”
“Seeing someone?”
Reese’s head tilted to the side and his lips twitched.
“Nosy much?” he quipped.
“Friends ask questions.”
“Right.” He chuckled. “No. And so we’re clear, that’s a no to any and all questions about me dating or shacking up. Though I’m not lonely if that’s what you’re worried about.”
Actually, I wasn’t worried if he was lonely.
“Happy to hear that.”
“But if you’ve got any girlfriends that need company for a night I’d be happy to provide entertainment.”
There was that word—entertainment.
Eek.
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
Not that I had any real friends besides Letty.
“Remy’s a cool kid.”
“Yeah, he is.”
My heart soared thinking about my boy.
“Lots of shit changing. He adjusting okay?”
“Kind of you to ask, Reese. Remington’s happy his dad’s here. He and Rhode are good together.”
Reese looked like he wanted to say something but was interrupted by his phone ringing.
“Gotta take this,” he said before he even pulled the phone out and walked out of the room.
As soon as Reese was out of sight I turned back to Letty.
“Who texted you?”
“Pen Pal.”
Pen Pal was Letty’s texting buddy and had been for years.
“He’s back?”
“Yeah, he texted me last night.”
Some might think Letty having a texting buddy for fourteen years was strange.
Some might think it stranger they’d promised never to look the other person up on the internet or social media.
Which Letty had never done and she’d never let me look him up either.
Something I wanted to do really, really badly.
But I respected the boundaries they’d set on their friendship.
“I told him about Kiki. He was pissed.”
“Pissed?”
“Yeah, he said I should’ve called him.”
“Called him? He told you he was unavailable.”
This was something that happened from time to time. Pen Pal would go radio silent. This would’ve been a red flag if he was say, a boyfriend. But Pen Pal was just that, a pal. Letty had dated, he’d dated, and they shared their dating mishaps.
She was my best friend, I wanted good things for her, and part of that was having good friends.
But in the last couple of years, I was beginning to think she was in love with Pen Pal.
When I broached the subject she’d shut me down then go on a date.
But the guys she dated were duds, like she picked them on purpose because she knew they were boring.
“He said I should’ve known that he would’ve become available for me.”
“Obviously, he’s not mad anymore. You’re smiling,” I noted.
“Oh, no, he’s pissed. Super pissed. I was smiling because apparently his sister got engaged while he was away so he’s busy giving her shit. But he texted to let me know he hasn’t forgotten he’s pissed at me, too.”
“You’re a strange bird, Letty. Only you would smile because someone’s pissed at you.”
She shrugged. “He’s a good friend.”
My eyes got squinty when I reminded her for the five millionth time, “I’m the BFF.”
“That you are.” She patted the cushion next to her. “Now help me pick out the new bookshelves. The insurance company’s paying through the nose so we’re getting the good stuff. And the new windows were put in yesterday so we can reopen Smutties next week.”
“I’m a shit friend, Letty. I should’ve asked you earlier but are you doing—”
“I’m so fucking angry with my sister I can’t see straight.
Dad is livid. And Mom is madder than I’ve ever seen her.
I mean, we knew Kiki could be a pain in the ass.
But this is beyond the beyond. There are no words for the shit she’s pulled.
And I don’t want to talk about the drive-by.
I’m grateful I wasn’t at the store when it happened but you and Remy were home.
I mean, what the fuck? Why the fuck would someone shoot at you?
Or me for that matter? And Desi? I should’ve throat punched that chick when I caught her with the phone.
I knew something wasn’t right. Knew it. Then when she happily hightailed her ass back to Seattle I knew that wasn’t right.
She hates her parents. Then when her friend Peaches came around the store asking how Desi was and if I had a number for her I should’ve kicked that chick in the ass just for being friends with Desi. ”
“Wait. What? Peaches came to the store asking about Desi?”
Incidentally Peaches was a nickname Letty gave a girl named Marsha because the chick always wore way too much body spray. She was friends with both Desi and Kiki.
“Yeah, I didn’t tell you? Right after you left to pick up Remy. Peaches and Flavor of the Week came in. She said she heard what happened and Desi was staying with Mom and Dad and she was worried…oh, fuck.”
Oh, fuck was right.
“How’d she know Desi was staying at your parents?”
“The phone?”
“Did you tell one of the guys Peaches came by?”
Letty slowly shook her head. “I didn’t think anything of it but—”
“But your store and my house got riddled with bullets a few hours later…”
“Oh, fuck.”
Again, oh fuck, was right.