Page 9

EMBER

“Hey, Cerberus.” The hostess all but throws herself at Cerberus the moment we step into Mad Pigs.

The name doesn’t do justice to the restaurant. It’s one of the best places to eat since it opened, from what I’ve heard. Since I’ve been in town, I’ve had dinner here several times. I do know that it’s locally owned.

“Hey, Riss,” Cerberus greets the woman. She can’t be more than nineteen. I mean, Cerberus and I aren’t much older than that. Okay, so he’s older than me by a year and a half. I started seeing him when I was seventeen. We broke up right after I turned eighteen.

“Your table’s already available,” Riss remarks, smiling brightly .

“Good.” Cerberus smiles and guides me past the woman, who finally looks at me and loses her smile.

Cerberus stops us at a table near the back. It was a round booth. Only a few of those were in the restaurant. Mostly, they were booths that were seated across from each other, and then tables and chairs. He motions for me to sit and follows, sitting close to me.

“How is it you have a table here?” I blurt out without thinking.

“I own the place. This table is never to be used unless it’s a packed night and they absolutely need it. The only other ones allowed to sit here without waiting belong to the club.”

“Wait a minute,” I balk. “You own Mad Pigs?”

“Yep.” He nods and leans back.

A waitress rushes over and asks what we’d both like to drink and sets down a plate of freshly baked cheddar rolls. The bread here alone was amazing.

“I don’t understand,” I ask as soon as the waitress has our drink orders. How was he able to open a restaurant and be a part of the club?

“Took everything I had saved up.” He shrugs. “Mom was diagnosed with ovarian cancer after you left. She went through the treatment. In remission now, but I wanted to give her something that she always wanted. The restaurant is mine, but it’s also hers. Her legacy, I guess you can say.”

I didn’t like that his mom had gone through all that. She’s a sweet woman. What Cerberus did, opening a restaurant for her, doesn’t surprise me. He loves his mom.

“How is your mom doing?” I ask, earning a heated, smoldering look from him.

Our drinks are served, and our orders are placed before he answers.

“She’s good. Loves being here when she can. She’s out of town right now, though. Went on a cruise with the old man.”

I knew both his parents were together. I used to love being around his family. As much as I love my uncles and appreciate them being there to raise me growing up, I miss having that family dynamic of parents.

My mom and dad were awesome. I loved them more than anything in the world. They were my world until that world came crashing down on me. I lost them both in one single night. It destroyed a part of me I don’t know how to get back. I don’t think I ever could if I wanted to.

“That’s good. I’m happy for them,” I tell him, and reach for one of the biscuits.

I break off a piece and pop it in my mouth while watching Cerberus. My mind whirling with this new information.

Suddenly, Cerberus reaches out, curls his fingers along my neck, and sinks them into my hair. He leans in and far too gently, whispers, “Back then, you didn’t give me the chance to explain things.”

“I think hearing you and Azrael talking about how you were only with me to get in with the club explained everything quite well.”

Cerberus’s eyes flash with annoyance, and his grip tightens in my hair. “If you remember correctly, I tried talking to you after that. You didn’t give me the chance to explain myself. You should’ve, because you didn’t get the full story.”

“Were you with me to use me?” I ask without thinking.

The look in Cerberus’s eyes doesn’t change, but he does answer my question with gritted teeth, “Yeah, it started out that way, Ember.”

I slowly nod, knowing it was the truth.

Cerberus tugs me in closer and dips his head until we’re nose to nose. “Those reasons lasted all of an hour while we were on our first date. After cones and you blathering on about the movie Pride and Prejudice , it wasn’t.”

The fact he remembers exactly what I’d been talking to him about on our first date hits a part of me I didn’t expect.

“How could it change that quickly for you?” I didn’t understand him.

“Because I found I liked sitting there watching you talk about some fuckin’ movie that I had no desire to watch.

What I did want to do was to sit there and eat a cone with you,” he says, drawing away marginally.

“And so, you know, after you left, I didn’t go for the club.

As much as I wanted, I didn’t. I wasn’t going to do that to you.

Reaper approached me. He’s the one who had me prospect and join. ”

I jerk back at this tidbit. I didn’t know this, and it doesn’t just surprise me, it shocks the hell out of me.

Though Cerberus was a year and a half older than me, with his birthday being when it was and his parents holding him back a year, he was in the same year as me for school.

My uncle had a stipulation when it came to joining the club.

You couldn’t join while in school, nor directly after.

You had to wait six months. Hang around, let the club get to know you.

“If your uncle hadn’t come to me, I wouldn’t have gone in. Wasn’t gonna hurt you.”

My heart flutters and skips. Butterflies swarm in my stomach. Do I dare to hope for anything with this man? Could I? After everything that happened to me ?

Cerberus lets me go and straightens. The arm closest to me stretches along the back of the booth. I’m well aware of his arm as I take a sip of my drink and go for another bite of my roll. My mind racing the entire time.

It’s not long before our plates are set in front of us.

I’d ordered the pig on mac. It was diced-up pork belly burnt ends sauced to perfection like candy.

It tops the best mac and cheese I’ve ever had.

All gooey and cheesy. I love it. It’s served with a side of crispy garlic green beans.

One thing I love about the dinners here is nothing is small.

Customers aren’t cheated in portions. For the price you pay for a meal here, it’s awesome.

Cerberus went in another direction with his dinner. He ordered a pork chop that I was sure was seasoned to perfection. Fried and juicy. He’d gotten mash garlicy potatoes, gravy, and crispy green beans. It looks good. Considering I’ve had it twice before, I knew it was good.

I knew they also had everything you could imagine regarding pork, but they also had some chicken dishes, a couple beef dishes, and even vegan ones. They cater to all, but it was definitely a BBQ joint. The best in town, maybe in all of East Texas.

What makes it even better is the sauce. Now that I know the menu was done up by Cerberus’s mom, it makes sense. She’s from North Carolina and the queen of making her own BBQ sauces.

Literally. Her sauces won awards, according to what I remember from my and Cerberus’s time together dating. His dad would brag more than she did about how good it was.

Cerberus switches the conversation to something light, asking me about the dispatch center and my cousin Bethany in Virginia. We talked. Even laughed. I was starting to feel comfortable, not thinking of anything heavy while we talked.

By the time he finished his dinner, I’d already given up on mine. I was stuffed, not able to eat anymore. Means I’ll have lunch for tomorrow, so long as no one eats it at the clubhouse before then. Sometimes, even if you label something off limits, it still gets eaten.

Cerberus sets his fork down and slides the plate away, eyes on me. “You good?”

“Yeah, just need a box and a prayer,” I quip, nodding to my food.

He glances at my plate, a smirk playing on his lips. “We’ll store your food in my room. I’ve got a mini fridge in there. It’ll be safe from the scavengers.”

“I appreciate it,” I tell him as he waves toward the waitress. Within minutes, I have my food boxed up, and he’s paying the tab, which I don’t understand. “Why are you paying when you own the place?”

“Might own it, but still gonna pay to keep the books straight and the staff gets their tip. I don’t keep cash on me, and it’s only fair to them.”

That is a nice thing for him to do.

The two of us step out of the booth. Cerberus goes first, his hand coming out to take my hand. Didn’t wait for me to give it to him. Just took it and helped me the rest of the way.

We make our way out of the restaurant, him speaking to the staff as we go. Outside at his bike, we do as we did earlier, him getting on, me following. I wrap my arms around his waist and hold tight while he takes us back to the clubhouse.

The ride was nice. The air is cool and crisp, but not cold. It’ll soon be cold, and I’ll have to dig out my coat. Thankfully, though, winter here is nothing like winter in Montana. I don’t have to worry about the freezing temps here as I did there.

By the time we get to the clubhouse, I’m back to overthinking and not sure of what I should do about any of what he shared.

He did tell me the other night, after I woke up from my nightmare, that he was there to listen if I wanted to talk about it.

Not that I want to talk about it. But Reaper told me I needed to find someone to talk to.

Maybe if I tell Cerberus about what happened to me, he’ll understand me a little better.

Only do I really want him to understand me at all?

If I share, it means I’m letting him in. Does the fact of what he shared during dinner change things? It shouldn’t, but he is the first man I’ve ever loved.

Say I do share, what happens when he finds out just how damaged I truly am?

All the questions swirl around in my head. After we are both off his bike and I’m able to tilt my head back to look at him, I find myself blurting out to Cerberus what happened.

“I was raped Halloween night while I was at school. You wanted to know what my nightmare was about. That’s what it was about.

It’s always about that night. It was horrible and one I’ll never forget.

My scars marking my body, they’re a daily reminder that the bastard who attacked me got what he wanted. ”

Spinning on my heels, I rush away from Cerberus, not realizing he is right behind me. But where I was running, like my life depended on it, he was walking, following me.

For what, I don’t know.