Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 74078 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 370(@200wpm)___ 296(@250wpm)___ 247(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74078 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 370(@200wpm)___ 296(@250wpm)___ 247(@300wpm)
I worried at first that it might feel awkward. I’d never been in the position to be around a guy I was banging’s inner circle, to get to know them, and sit across from them and share meals.
The thing was, it was surprisingly easy. Effortless, even. Like they saw nothing off about a steady woman around. But then again, the club girls were around a lot too. And the old ladies of the older members, though I hadn’t really met any of them.
Cato was completely comfortable with it, too. He would often even press a hand to my hip or the small of my back, little gestures that felt oddly—yet sweetly—possessive. Like I was his.
The crazy thing was, as the days stretched on, that was what I was starting to feel, too.
Like his.
And, in turn, like he was mine.
I would have thought I’d feel anxious or uncomfortable with that information.
Instead, all I felt was a sort of… ease. A rightness.
We didn’t talk about it, of course. About titles or futures or anything like that. Neither of us seemed particularly versed in the area of relationships. But that definitely seemed like what this was starting to become. A relationship.
As big and scary and foreign as that was.
The thing was, though, as much as we had started to share, there was a lot that I knew I hadn’t given him yet.
Like my address.
Like my profession.
I think, typically, that was something you discussed very early on in knowing someone, but because of the unconventional way we’d ended up starting things, that had fallen through the cracks.
And now it felt awkward to bring it up.
I couldn’t tell you why. It’s not like he would judge me for it. Not when he was an arms-dealing outlaw biker, for God’s sake.
It just felt weird to bring it up now.
I would figure it out eventually.
Until then, I had some work to do.
The day was quickly approaching to put my plans into action, and I needed to keep my head in the game, so shit didn’t go sideways…
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Cato
She was coming around.
It had become clear to me pretty quickly that I, a lifelong single man, was somehow more comfortable with the progression of our relationship than she was. Which led me to believe that she hadn’t exactly been through this before either.
Rynn struck me as someone who liked to keep shit casual. Who was then in control. Of the situation. Of her feelings. Everything.
More so than that, she also didn’t have any sort of social circle. She was a loner by nature, with only Josie as a friend. And I had a feeling that was more to do with Josie slowly but surely forcing her way in until Rynn just finally accepted her as part of her life.
So it was all new to her. Maybe even a bit overwhelming. You’d never know it from her outward demeanor. She was her usual sarcastic self around all the guys, but it was clear to me that she was letting everyone else do most of the talking, while she just took things in.
Still, she was getting along with everyone. Especially Eddie and Levee. The former, because of her impressive appetite and love of his food. The latter, because she had a quick wit and was good at trading barbs with Levee.
I liked having her around, too.
More than I could have anticipated.
“I’m happy for you, man,” Seeley said, coming to sit on the edge of the chaise next to me, looking off at the pool where Levee and Coast were playing pool beer pong with Ceerie and a newer club girl whose name I didn’t know yet.
York and Velle were off doing chores, but no one seemed to give a shit that Coast was slacking.
“Hm?” I asked, looking over.
“You and Rynn. I’m happy for you,” he said. “She suits your crazy ass,” he said.
He’d been around the other night when she’d admitted to a rebellious stage in her late teens when she would jack expensive-ass cars for joy rides, fill the tanks, then return them back to the lots she’d swiped them from.
And then that she’d once done a vacation where she visited all of the tallest rollercoasters on the East Coast.
She did seem to be an adrenaline junkie like me. She just had a hard limit about anything that was near alligators, it seemed.
“I’m not too fond of stingrays, either,” she’d admitted. “In solidarity with Steve,” she said, doing a little cross and kissing her fingers to the heavens.
I had to admit that he was right.
I couldn’t have imagined, before her, what kind of woman I could see myself settling down with. But Rynn was it. A little crazy, but just as happy to hang out and watch scary movies and eat food in bed.
“Yeah,” I agreed, not bothering to try to deny it. This was Seeley. One of my oldest friends. There was no reason to feel weird talking about this shit with him.