"Hey, do you and Cayden want to run and grab breakfast for us?" Ayden stopped at the other edge of the kitchen island. He grabbed the coffee pot and poured himself a mug.
"Sure," I said, giving him a nod as I set my mug down.
"Why are we grabbing breakfast, though?" Cayden asked mid-yawn.
"I promised the guys I would have some when they arrived, and I forgot to grab something. The kids are a handful this morning, so I ran out of time."
"Ha," Cayden laughed as he pointed at me. "You have to run an errand."
"And because you laughed, you get to go with him."
I smirked smugly at Cayden. "Ha."
We headed outside and started down the street. Cayden sighed, rubbing at his neck.
"You look tired," I said as we stopped at the crosswalk. "You not getting enough sleep? Or have you been busy pleasing your woman?" I asked, elbowing him.
He snorted, rolling his eyes. "Oh, shut up. I just didn't sleep well last night. Riley worked late, and her feet bothered her. She was tossing most of the night and kept me up. Not to mention everything with April."
"You could have slept in the spare bedroom. You guys haven't changed it, have you?"
He shook his head. "If I did that, she would have felt worse than she already did. I didn't want her to feel worse. Besides, I would rather get no sleep lying with her than sleep without her. She helps calm my nerves."
I shook my head as the light turned green, and we started walking across the road. "So, you two are still happy as ever?" I asked.
Cayden nodded. "I love her. I don't think I've ever stopped loving her this way. She makes me happy and accepts me for me."
I wondered if I would ever have that. I couldn't remember the last time I felt like I wanted someone that badly. Any relationship I had was nothing special, and I didn't want to waste my time if the person wasn't right for me. I never really wanted anything serious besides when I was with April all those years ago and now that Cayden was married.
We headed down the sidewalk, turning to the left. A shiver ran down me from the wind, and I tightened my jacket. Winter was coming to an end, but man, was it still bitter out.
"We could have driven, you know," I muttered.
"Buck up, it's not that bad outside. It was just one block, and I didn't want to waste the gas."
I rolled my eyes, glancing around the street. My eyes froze as I spotted April at a table in the cafe across the street. She was wearing a pair of jeans and a deep red blouse. Her jacket was thrown over the chair, and her hair was half up in a bun.
Riley was sitting next to her in a light pink dress. Her belly was a little larger now with the pregnancy. The rest of the girls were sitting around them. Wendy was sitting next to Laura, and they were looking at one of their phones. Gina and Ashley were nodding their heads at something Riley was saying. All of them were clutching mugs, and I figured they were waiting for their food.
"She did end up joining them for breakfast," Cayden said, breaking the silence. "I'm glad. I was worried she was going to bow out and stay home."
I looked away, glancing at him. I could see the worry in his eyes, and I couldn't imagine what he was thinking. Not only did he have a hard time protecting his wife, but then something happened with his sister. It was a lot to handle.
"How is she doing?" I glanced back at the girls, and I could see April was engaged in the conversation, but she was tense. I could see the way she was sitting and the way she was tapping her fingers on her knee. She was waiting for something to happen.
I ground my teeth together, wondering what exactly had happened in their relationship. What had Ivan done to her? I wanted all the details, and I knew I wasn't going to get them. I doubted even Cayden knew.
"She's doing okay, but she's not telling me much. She's even starting to hold things back from Riley, which has really rubbed her the wrong way. Riley is extremely worried about her."
I looked at him, a little surprised by that. Riley and April were closer than I'd ever seen people be.
"Why is that? I mean, why do you think she's keeping things from Riley?" I was trying not to sound too interested, but I wanted to know.
He shrugged, shaking his head. "I think she's afraid Riley will tell me. I mean, she would if it was serious. And this is. She's acting like this is nothing. Her ex is just showing up here. I don't want a repeat of what happened with Brad."
I knew why it bothered him. Everything that happened with Brad was a lot to deal with. He had to restrain his wood floors to get the blood out, but even then, Riley made him get new furniture and a big ass rug. She said the space couldn't look the same.
"I just want her to be safe. I want her to have a comfortable life." He ran a hand over his face. "I even brought up her marrying you, and that was quickly stomped over again. She doesn't even want to consider it."
I snorted. "You think I'm just that good marriage material?"
Cayden rolled his eyes. "No. I just don't like the idea of him knowing where she's living. You weren't wrong when you said she would be safer."
My stomach twisted up slightly, but I held it down. "And what did she say?"
He sighed. "The same thing as last night. I'm fine. I'm not in danger. You need to just let it go."
We stopped in front of the bakery and stepped inside. The sudden smell of fresh bread was wonderful, and my mouth watered.
"And you don't think she can handle him?" I asked as we stopped in front of the counter.
"It's not about whether or not she can handle him. Riley said the same thing about her ex, and I had to restain the wood in my apartment after that. Even if he isn't dangerous, I don't want to find out."
I wanted to say maybe he was a little paranoid, which was understandable considering everything, but I didn't know if that was fair.
"Morning, guys," a young man stopped at the counter, smiling at us. "You guys here to pick up the order that Ayden placed?"
Cayden nodded.
"Let me go grab it. It's in the back."
The guy walked away, and Cayden turned to me. "We both know how the pack is. Just because she divorced my brother doesn't mean shit. They are going to want her to come back just as much as Ivan does. She needs something to ground her here. She doesn't have a job. She doesn't even have a bank account here yet. She is legally not part of this pack. I'm concerned because they could formally request her return, and really, we couldn't refuse without it causing a major fallout.
"What about her apartment? Doesn't that count for something?"
"I had to cosign with her," he said, rubbing his eyes again. "They were worried she might just up and leave one day and lose money on renting her the apartment. Really, it's in my name."
I didn't know that.
"Has she thought of working? Has she applied anywhere?"
He shrugged. "I don't think she feels like this is her home. Anytime I ask, she says she's looking, but I don't know. I just don't know what to do at this point."
"Well, is there anything I can do to help?"
Cayden smirked. "Yeah, convince her to marry you."
Over the next couple of days, I tried to think of a way to convince April. But everything I thought of, I knew that Cayden had already mentioned to her. It was up to her to decide what she wanted to do.
I grabbed my jacket and threw it on, planning to go home and relax after a long day. But Cayden stopped me before I got outside.
"Hey, Weslie. Could you do me a favor? Miles is stuck at home for the next few hours before getting in. Can you stop and make sure Riley is doing okay? She wasn't feeling great this afternoon, and I just wanted someone to stop by."
"Sure." I nodded and headed out. I drove across town and headed up to their apartment. I knocked, wondering if April was downstairs in her apartment.
"Come in."
I opened the door and found April standing in the living room. I looked around, confused, not spotting Riley. "Is Riley not here?"
April nodded. "She's throwing up in the bathroom."
I frowned. "Did you guys need anything? Cayden said he was going to be working a little late."
April shook her head and rubbed her eyes. I stared, taking in her rather pale complexion. She had looked pale in general, but since I last saw her, she seemed sicker. She had dark circles under her eyes, and her hair was slightly messy. She was wearing sweatpants and an oversized sweater like she had the other day.
I wanted to ask if she was sick, but I knew she would only feel insulted.
"Do you know if she needs anything? I can go out and grab soup for her."
April shook her head. "No, she's got the flu. I don't think she's planning to eat. She said she just wanted to go to bed."
I looked past Riley to the kitchen, seeing a pile of dishes and a laundry basket on one of the stools. I knew Riley and Cayden were working a lot, and neither was home, so I'm sure they were falling behind on chores.
"Was she cleaning?"
Riley nodded, taking a few steps down the hallway toward the bathroom. "Yeah, we've got it under control. You can leave." She knocked on the bathroom door and pulled it open, stepping inside.
I frowned. I didn't want to leave. I knew that Cayden was going to get home late, and I had nothing better to do with my time. Besides, this was the perfect time to talk with April.
I slipped my shoes off and walked over toward the kitchen. I turned the water on and plugged the sink. As I poured the soap in, I heard footsteps coming back into the kitchen.
"What are you doing?"
"Cleaning dishes," I said, glancing back at April. She looked exhausted like she hadn't slept in a while. "Unless you want to switch, I'll hold Riley's hair back while she throws up."
She sighed, walking closer. "She's in bed now."
I turned the water off, tossing a few plates into the water. "You look tired. And the least I could do is help with some cleaning so Weslie doesn't have to when he gets home."
"Aren't you a good friend?"
I smirked, glancing over at her. "I'm trying to be as good as you are."
April sat down on one of the stools and sighed. "You don't have to stay if you have things to get to. I can do this. I have the time. I don't have a job after all."
I started at the first plate, scrubbing away the food. "I imagine you've been here most of the day helping her." I pulled the plate out and let it dry on the rack.
"Well, as you said, someone needs to hold her hair back."
I laughed, starting on the next plate. "Well, besides that, how was your day?"
"It was good. I walked around. Did some laundry. Watch some TV with Riley. I missed a lot of it because of all the trips to the bathroom, but all in all, it was a decent day."
"Sounds like you did a lot. Cayden and I spotted you guys out with the ladies having breakfast the other day. You seem to be settling well."
She shrugged. "I'm trying."
"Found any work yet?"
She shook her head. "No. Nothing has caught my attention."
"And have you thought about the fake marriage?"
April scowled. "No."
I pulled my hands up. "Really? Not even after seeing me clean these dishes?" I set another dish aside, starting on a pan. "I'm a catch, you know. I'm not just something pretty to look at."
She rolled her eyes. "It would be fake whether you were a catch or not. It wouldn't matter."
"True," I said, cleaning the pan and setting it aside. Shall I give you more good reasons to marry me? I keep a clean house. I like my space—I love my space, actually. I know how to cook and do laundry."
She smirked. "As much as that is all tempting, it isn't giving me any new reasons."
"You'd be safe," I said, starting on some silverware. "You wouldn't need to be worried about Ivan."
"While that may all be true, I'd be glued to you. Legally. I don't want that."
"But I'm a catch, ask anyone. It would be worth all of that."
She laughed and shook her head. But after a moment, she leaned back. "Fine, I'll think about it. But only because I don't want to hear more about why you're so great."
"Good call because I could go on for a while."
She snorted. I pulled another dish out, unplugging the water. "Did I also add that my apartment has an amazing view."