Total pages in book: 124
Estimated words: 121578 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 608(@200wpm)___ 486(@250wpm)___ 405(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121578 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 608(@200wpm)___ 486(@250wpm)___ 405(@300wpm)
“Grace,” Hope says. “Say excuse me to Margot.”
“Or even a hello would be nice,” Rock adds.
Grace turns, peering up at me with wide eyes and a sheepish smile. “Hi, Maw-go. Dis my cousin.” She proudly points to Ivy.
“I bet you guys are going to have a lot of fun together when she’s bigger.”
She bobs her head up and down enthusiastically.
I lift my gaze, expecting to find Jigsaw.
But he’s gone.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Jigsaw
Nope, nope, nope.
Why the fuck did Charlotte ask Margot about having kids now?
Seriously?
Fuck.
I stab my fingers through my hair as I walk down the hall into the dining room. Coffee. I’ll say I just left to get some coffee.
Although, it would’ve been nice if I’d asked Margot if she wanted something before I ran away like a—
Like a coward.
Like a man who just got hit with a question he’s got no fucking answer for.
I grab the coffeepot, pouring a cup I don’t even really want, scowling into the dark liquid.
I didn’t just run away from the conversation.
I ran away from her answer.
Wrath’s at a table in the dining room by himself—for now. I take a quick look around. I won’t get a better opportunity to talk to him than this.
Am I really going to Wrath for advice? Christ, I’ll never live this down. I’d ask Rooster but he and Shelby seem to be in the “not right now” stage of the kids discussion. Wrath and Trinity seem to firmly be in the “no fucking thank you” stage.
“Hey, I thought you went to work today?” I ask as I approach. Casual. Just having a casual conversation with my brother. Not at all freaking out.
“I made Murphy go open for me.” He grins and takes a sip of coffee. “Heading out in a bit.”
“Can I talk to you for a second?”
He sets his coffee down and turns his cell phone over. “What’s on your mind, brother?”
Christ, I must look really rattled.
Fuck it.
I pull out the chair next to him and sit down.
“You and Trin are pretty firm on the ‘no kids’ thing, right?” I ask, deciding to just go for it. Circling the question will just piss Wrath off.
“Yeah,” he answers slowly, his sharp gaze searching mine.
“You both don’t want them, right?”
Wrath’s head tilts slightly. Only this big fucker can express sarcasm with a head tilt.
“What?” He lifts both blond eyebrows, his slow question edged with dry amusement. “Trinity’s a woman, so she must want babies?”
I scrub my hand over my jaw. “That’s not quite what I meant.”
“Neither of us want them,” he says. “We talked about it before we got married. I think we were both relieved.” He lifts his massive shoulders. “Every now and then we check in with each other.” His face breaks into a wide grin. “Or we see what the others are going through.” He lifts his chin toward the living room. “And we look at each other and say, ‘thank fuck we’re not doing that’.”
I snort with laughter, thinking of the few times I’ve caught them exchanging that exact look.
“What’s wrong?” He nods toward the living room again. “Did Margot stop to see the twins and it freaked you out?”
“Yeah, kinda,” I admit. Why the fuck else would I be asking?
“Did you bother to talk to Margot about what she wants?”
“Didn’t occur to me until, well, this weekend.”
“You don’t want any?”
I open my mouth, then stop. “I grew up in a really fucked-up household.”
He hums with a sound of commiseration.
“My father was a religious nut,” I continue, “and since I don’t believe there’s a magical sky daddy watching my every move, I’m not worried I’ll whip them raw to save their souls or anything but…” I can’t believe I put my feelings into such visceral words.
Wrath nods, like he understands exactly what I mean. “You don’t want to risk taking out that anger on your kid?”
“Yeah.”
He’s shaking his head before I finish. “I’ve seen you in some stressful situations. Fucked-up shit that would test a lot of people. You’re a sick, bloodthirsty fucker for sure, but only to people who deserve it. Otherwise, I suspect Ravage and Eazy would be missing a few fingers by now.”
“Appreciate you acknowledging my bloodthirsty side.”
“We all have one.” He rolls his eyes. “Obviously. But some people can’t turn that shit off at home. I think you’re very aware of the difference.” He cocks his head, studying me with the same kind of scrutiny as a researcher in a lab full of rats. “I’ve seen you on the road. On tour, the way you looked after Shelby. Hell, the way you’re so protective of her here. And I’ve always watched you treat club girls with respect.”
My lip curls. “I’m not getting the comparison.”
He blows out an annoyed breath. “You’re not a shitty human that takes advantage of people weaker than them. Hell, the fact that you haven’t run Remy over yet tells me you have a metric fuck ton of patience.”