Chapter 9
Thursday night at Punishers’ Eden was the start of the wind-up for the weekend. I spent part of the day at the brewery while Aubrielle went to college for her final exam of the semester. She was smiling when I picked her up.
We were both hungry when I did, so rather than head straight to her apartment, we detoured to get lunch.
I suggested we go to Annie’s Diner. There were two reasons for the suggestion.
First, Annie’s food was amazing home-cooking.
And since she married Gareth, who was a chef, it had only gotten better.
The menu had changed a little as well, adding options that hadn’t been available before.
The second reason was to let Annie know that Aubrielle was my old lady.
I wasn’t sure whether anyone had mentioned it to her and Gareth.
Annie has been a friend of the club for a long time before I joined.
She was the younger sister of Lonnie, Reaper’s mom’s best friend, who died five years after his mom.
Annie was like an older sister to Reaper and the rest of the club.
Her niece by marriage, Haven, is Tinker’s old lady.
Annie hadn’t been to the club since I made the official claim, so I wanted to make sure I let her know.
If I didn’t, I’d get hell the next time I saw her.
It was two-thirty in the afternoon, so past the noonday rush, yet before the start of the dinner crowd.
The air was filled with delicious aromas.
I found a table and led her to it. Here, you found a seat on your own.
There were menus at the end of the table.
I handed one to Aubrielle and took another for myself.
I knew it by heart, but I still looked. We studied it for a couple of minutes before I had to say it.
“I can’t believe you’ve never been here,” I told my woman.
“I know, I’m terrible. I met Annie and Gareth at the compound, and she told me she owned this place, but I never go out to eat. It’s expensive, and I save every nickel I make,” she defended herself.
I squeezed her hand. “Dazzler, I’m not judging you. I understand you had to make sacrifices to obtain your goal. But now that you’re with me, we’ll eat out sometimes. Several places around the area have really good food, though Annie’s is always at the top of the list.”
“That remark will save you from a beating, Shadow, maybe. It’s about damn time you brought her here to see me,” Annie’s voice said dryly from behind us.
Aubrielle and I were seated on the same side of the table, facing toward the door.
The only thing behind us was the kitchen entrance.
Glancing up and slightly behind, I watched Annie finish her traipse to our table.
She carried two glasses of ice water and set them down before us.
Then, she sank into a chair across from us.
“Annie, I’m sorry. We’ve been a bit occupied and busy. Plus, I kept hoping you’d stop by the compound. I take it you know Aubrielle is my old lady.” I phrased it as a statement rather than a question.
“Of course I know. When will you and the rest of the club remember I see and hear all? You can’t hide from me, especially anything this important,” Annie huffed.
A waitress coming our way was waved off by her boss. That meant Annie would wait on us herself, unless I angered her too much. I wasn’t about to do that.
“I wasn’t hiding her,” I denied.
“Behave before you scare her off,” Gareth’s amused voice said from behind me.
He grinned as he came to stand at the end of the table, shaking his head. He gave his wife an amused yet loving smile. His comment was directed at his wife.
“Annie, if you don’t stop, we won’t be allowed back at the compound. If that happens, you’ll get less time with Ryan. You don’t want that, do you? And what about all the other kids?” Gareth asked.
The look of horror on her face said enough.
Annie might love the adults at the compound, but they didn’t matter as much as her great-nephew and the other Punisher children.
Annie hadn’t been able to have kids of her own.
She and Gareth, at fifty-four and fifty, were old enough to be the kids' older aunt and uncle. And they spent time with all of them.
“Fine. It’s wonderful to see you again, Aubrielle. I’m glad you finally came in. Later, we’ll talk about what this one did to trick you into saying yes,” Annie said conspiratorially.
“Hey,” I cried out as Annie smirked, Aubrielle giggled, and Gareth shrugged and shook his head.
“Congratulations, you two. Tinker and Haven told us the good news the other night. I swear, Annie was headed to the compound this weekend to corner you. This stop by might keep her calm for a day or two. Do you have any idea what you two want? If you do, I’ll take your order.
If I don’t, you may starve,” Gareth said, rolling his eyes at his wife.
She glared at him as she said, “You’re so lucky I love you so much.”
“I know.” He smirked.
“Everything looks incredible. I don’t know what to order. Would it be too much to ask you to surprise me?” Aubrielle asked.
“I’d love to do that. Shadow?” Gareth asked.
“Make that two surprises,” I said.
“I’ll see you in a few. If my wife becomes too much, send her back to me. I’ll spank her,” he said, chuckling.
“Don’t threaten me with a good time,” Annie wisecracked, making her husband laugh all the way back to the kitchen.
“I swear, that man. Alright, tell me. Where’s your property cut? Have you moved into that beautiful house of his? What do you think of it? I want to hear everything,” Annie word-vomited.
And that was how we had a great meal and conversation. And we weren’t disappointed at all by what Gareth threw together for us. We were stuffed by the time we left. We hugged both of them, promising to see them soon, before we went to Aubrielle’s apartment to get her ready for work.
???
I’d been in Eden more since claiming Aubrielle than in all the years before it.
Mayhem told me that if I kept it up, he’d give me a job.
I told him thanks, but I was only there to protect my dancer.
He chuckled when I said it. I warned him that as soon as I could talk Aubrielle out of dancing there, she’d quit.
I wanted him to be aware of my intention.
He wasn’t surprised, assuring me he was looking for new dancers, though he doubted he’d find anyone to pack in the crowd like she did, at least not out of the gate.
She had been busy talking to Dusty at the time.
It was ten o’clock. The place was about three-fourths full. Aubrielle was due to go on at midnight. She’d already danced at nine. Since it wasn’t as busy as some nights, we were seated out at the bar. She was chatting with Kelli. I was talking to Ratchet.
Everything was going smoothly until the door opened and a woman walked in.
She was carrying a large bouquet in a vase.
I was immediately reminded of the bouquet Aubrielle received three weeks ago.
I pushed that thought away. Dancers received gifts from admirers regularly.
It was hardly the first bouquet sent to the strip club.
The woman seemed to be hesitant. Leading her inside was Joaquin. I thought nothing of the fact that they were headed our way because you had to pass the bar to get down the hallway to the dressing room. However, that changed when Joaquin paused next to us.
“Shadow, this lady has a delivery for Parvati. She was told that she had to hand-deliver it herself and to pass on a message,” he said.
Those nearby grew quiet. Ratchet and I exchanged looks. Aubrielle paused her conversation with Kelli. My woman’s gaze landed on the flowers. I noted the apprehensive expression on her face. She glanced up at me, then back at them as if she expected the flowers to turn into a snake or something.
“Who sent them?” I asked with a snarl.
“I-I don’t know. All I was told was to deliver the flowers to Parvati at Eden and to give her a message,” the woman said apprehensively.
I reined myself in. I gave the delivery woman a faint smile. “I’m sorry. I’m not upset with you. I dislike it when others send my woman flowers, that’s all. Go ahead. This lady is Parvati. Tell her,” I directed.
The delivery lady hesitated, then set the vase on the bar next to Aubrielle. She removed a piece of paper from her pocket. She cleared her throat, gave me another apprehensive glance, before she started to speak.
“Parvati, your smile lights up the sky. There’s no other goddess to compare to you. Leave those mere mortals behind. You belong with me. You’ll soon see. The time to leave is coming. Love, Nataraja.”
I clenched my fists. I knew I had to hold back the growl I wanted to let fly.
“Thank you,” Aubrielle told her.
“Yeah, thank you. Here, for your trouble. Let me walk you to the door,” Ratchet said to the delivery woman.
After one more apprehensive glance at me, she placed the card she had read next to the flowers, took the money Ratchet handed her, and allowed him to walk her to the door. Joaquin trailed them. Aubrielle got off her stool and came over to stand by me. Her hand rested on my arm. She stared up at me.
“Shadow, honey, say something.”
“Is there a note in the flowers?” I asked.
Though I hated to touch them, which was ridiculous, it wasn’t as if the person who bought them had touched the actual blossoms. A quick rummage only revealed the flower shop’s name card, but no other message.
I pocketed it along with the message the lady left on the bar.
I’d have Spawn check whether anyone had placed the order in person or if he could get the sender’s information.
That would be more difficult, but not impossible.
He’d have to be sneaky about it. Though something told me the person wouldn’t have paid with a credit card.
It left Spawn getting his hands on a name in a different way.
“Kelli, dispose of these,” I told her abruptly.
“Sure thing, Shadow,” the bartender replied.