KAT
Bebe’s kitchen was full of women who introduced themselves too quickly and left me confused. After we checked on the boys, Bebe insisted Maria, Rowdy, and I go have fun.
Somehow, as I was leaving the packed house, I got separated from Maria and Rowdy. My sister was swept away by Farley’s family. Meanwhile, Rowdy was pinned in a corner by two middle-aged women who wanted to know more about his mystery babies and if he had gotten blood tests.
I found myself in the backyard in search of someone to talk to while I waited for Rowdy to free himself. Sabrina immediately grabbed hold of me and introduced sisters, Dalisay and Jaslene Tooker.
“How did you meet Rowdy?” Jaslene asked and narrowed her pretty, brown eyes.
“In high school.”
Dalisay frowned. “Wait, what?”
“I already explained this shit to you,” Sabrina grumbled at the sisters. “I didn’t call you over to interrogate my unofficial sister-in-law.”
“Then why did you call us over?”
“To introduce you to Kat before asking her a question in front of my lovely friends.”
Jaslene scowled hard. “Wait, so you’re the one who will interrogate her?”
“No. Be silent. I’m doing something.”
Jaslene and Dalisay shared an eye roll. Goldie, Elle, and Xandy eyed me as Sabrina wrapped an arm around my shoulders.
“Let me ask you something,” Sabrina said to me. “When you were sneaking around with my brother and riding his dick in secret, did you tell your sister Maria what was going on?”
“Yes.”
“Because you love and trust her, right?”
Feeling like Sabrina was building up to something, I reluctantly said, “Yes.”
Sabrina nodded and pointed at Goldie. “I only ask because I suspect our friend is in a clandestine relationship with a gross loser. However, she refuses to fess up to her friends and family.”
“Calling the guy a gross loser probably doesn’t help,” Elle said and shoved Sabrina. “Stop hassling people.”
Sabrina snarled at her cousin. “Before you lost your balls to a rude biker, you would help me hassle people. Now, you’re soft and stupid.”
“How dare you call me soft?” Elle snapped back.
“But you agree you’re stupid?”
“I suffer from a temporary case of momnesia,” Elle said and smiled at me as if I understood. “The same thing happened with Sutter Cane, but I got over it. A little stupidity is a small price to pay to have Trent.”
As I shared Elle’s smile, Sabrina demanded, “Sharpen up, cousin!”
Goldie tried sneaking away, but Jaslene blocked her exit. “Fess up, lady.”
“There’s nothing to fess up.”
“Who is he?”
Shaking out her brown hair, Goldie asked, “Why do you assume I’m riding one guy when I could be hooking up with a long list of men?”
Sabrina narrowed her dark-eyed gaze. “Though you might be a lying slut, I know you’re a romantic lying slut. It’s one guy. Now name and shame him.”
Goldie walked around Sabrina and slid off her jacket. “If you want to fight, let’s do this thing.”
“I have no doubt you’ll confess your every secret once we have you pinned to the ground.”
Dalisay, Jaslene, and Xandy looked ready to help Sabrina while I inched backward in case this fight scenario was real.
“I don’t normally do this,” Elle told me before looking toward her brother in the next yard. “Clint! These bitches be crazy and need a man’s brain to fix them!”
While Sabrina and Jaslene threatened to tackle “tattletale” Elle, Goldie tried to run into the house. Her escape was blocked by Xandy.
“Sometimes, keeping things private makes sense,” I told Goldie, who stopped frowning and focused on me. “Sometimes, you have something special that you fear won’t be special once everyone knows. Like your family and friends will shine a light on something best kept in the dark.”
Goldie studied me. “Rowdy’s a good man, but you hid your relationship.”
“Because I lied about who I was, and I didn’t know how to tell him the truth without ruining things. I figured it was better to keep lying to him than to lose him.”
Goldie looked around and exhaled. “You see how these idiots are.”
“Hey, I’m trying to help you,” Elle said from the ground where Sabrina pinned her.
Ignoring their drama, Goldie continued, “I just want a little fun in the dark without everyone forcing their own expectations.”
“But your friends know you too well and spotted your lies. So, maybe, you should explain that you and this guy want to keep things simple. So, they need to back off, or they’ll ruin this special little moment in your life.”
“Rowdy’s right,” Elle said as Clint arrived to force Sabrina off his sister. “Kat is smart. We should all be reasonable like her.”
I smiled at her praise, even if I sensed she was mostly messing with Sabrina.
“Explain what’s got you wrestling,” Clint told the women.
“Goldie’s got a secret lover,” Dalisay said. “We thought to beat the information out of her, but Kat helped us realize that the truth will only ruin Goldie’s horny fun.”
“I’m not so sure I agree with that assessment,” Sabrina muttered.
Elle shook her head. “You have an excessive amount of love in your life. It’s made you insensitive to other people’s needs. What an asshole.”
Sabrina looked to Xandy. “Am I insensitive to other people’s needs?”
“Yes.”
Unhappy with her girlfriend’s answer, she looked around. “Where’s Moe? I feel like she’d lie to protect my feelings.”
As Sabrina and Xandy searched for Moe, Goldie thanked me for the kind words.
“Let’s get food,” Elle said and gestured at the remaining women. “Tooker sisters, you’ve been forgiven. Let’s try out a bunch of catered foods.”
Clint studied us as we walked as a group into the house. When I glanced back, he smiled as if he knew I was curious about Rowdy’s location.
Inside, I joined the women around the kitchen island, where we sampled food. Ivy and Nova soon joined us. Finally, Maria found her way back to me. Despite sticking close together, my sister and I had clearly found our footing with these new people.