Page 84 of Remiss

Hysterical laughter bubbled up in Kendall. Only his uncertainty matched the insanity of his offer.

“It…” She swallowed, completely off her game. She shouldn’t have accepted his call when she felt so vulnerable. Maybe, she shouldn’t have called him at all and left with Georgie to make tomorrow’s appointment. She sniffled, hurt, confused, and angry.

“Fuck, Kendall,” Bash roared. “Who the fuck has you so upset? Talknow,” he demanded as if he had a right. As Johnnie once would have. “If you don’t tell me what the fuck is wrong, I’m going to start picking off fuckheads.”

“I’m fine,” she gritted. “I just want…”Johnnie. She wanted Johnnie, but her Johnnie, not the man he’d become. “It doesn’t matter.”

“It does to me.” He sighed. “And as much as I hate to admit it, it matters to Johnnie.”

“Ha!” she blurted. “If only it did.” Cursing under her breath, Kendall winced. “Forget I said that. Are you open to rescheduling?” she asked briskly. “A personal matter took me out of town and–”

“Does it have anything to do with the brainless blond?”

“You call Johnnie a brainless blond?” she asked dubiously.

Bash snickered. “Ah, princess, that question speaks volumes.”

“It certainly does! It shows how little you know my husband.”

“Nope,” he countered. “It shows just what a stupid motherfucker he is.”

Kendall’s mind whirled but came up with no answers. “How so?”

“Meggie is a blonde.”

“And?”

“And, baby, she didn’t enter your mind when you heard ‘brainless blond’. You immediately thought of Johnnie.”

“A faux pas. You shouldn’t read too much into it.”

“You’re loyal. I like that, but I assume Johnnie is pitching a man baby bitch because he feels as if you’re being disloyal to him.”

Kendall refused to respond.

“You don’t have to answer, sweetheart,” he said gruffly. “I know my little brother. If you’re meeting with me, it’s likely on behalf of Christopher.”

“Not entirely,” she said morosely. “I have my own questions for you.”

“I’m almost certain if you’re helping Christopher, Johnnie is having fits. Too used to getting his own fucking way.”

“Perhaps.”

“I want to ask you out on a date now that I’ve found out why you had me all geared up to ride to Hortensia and then you fucking canceled.”

“A date? I know I’ve had a bottle of wine but do you mean like, uh–”

“A romantic date,” he supplied. “That might lead to fucking. Nothing I’d like better than to fuck you.”

Kendall drew herself up. “This conversation is over!”

“Wait! That came up wrong. You’re a high-class bitch, huh? Will you really make me say I want to make love to you?”

“You don’t even know me,” Kendall said, too shocked not to respond. “Besides, even if I was single, which I’m not, you want to hurt people I love. My baby girl. My sister-in-law. My niece.”

“What if I told you I’d back off if you give me a chance?”

“My answer is still no. Ilove Johnnie. I have made so many mistakes and I’m paying for them now.” Kendall felt as if she was losing her mind and the only two people with the capacity to focus onherwere unacceptable. If Axel wasn’t a child, her nephew would’ve been perfect. Bash, meanwhile, was an enemy to Mattie, Rebel, and Meggie. Not to mention the club. “You can’t pretend fucking me would change your murderous path.”