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RAVEN

“ Y ou’re still married?” Quinn asks. There’s no judgement in her tone.

“I am. But I’m in the process of trying to serve him with divorce papers.”

Tonight was my first book club, and it’s been a lot of fun. I got to meet Dawn, a teacher at the high school who had grown up with Quinn, and Sam, a new mom who’s a regular at Quinn’s bakery.

We read a romance book called Love You Like That about a hero rock star and a heroine percussionist who was deaf, and I’d learned so much. Like the difference between lowercase deaf and uppercase Deaf , and how easy it is to increase accessibility with a little extra effort and knowledge. And that you can be deaf and a percussionist because you can feel sound through the floor and through instruments.

Plus, there was a particularly hot wax-and-rope scene that made me think of Wraith and what we did on Wednesday. While I shared lots of feelings with the girls about the book, I kept that little nugget of information to myself.

Sam and Dawn left, and I stayed to help Quinn clean up the handful of glasses and dishes we used.

I take the cloth and pick up a glass from the rack. “It’s been a journey to get here.”

The admission is hard, and I debated sharing what happened with Marco because I don’t want to be judged by his actions, but it feels nice to have a friend.

Quinn rinses another glass. “You know, when you came into the bakery that day, I thought to myself that you looked like a woman who had seen some shit and was quite possibly hanging on by her final thread.”

I laugh. “Is that why you took pity on me and invited me to your book club?”

“Pretty much. But I also know that friends can make all the difference when you’re pushed to the edge. And book friends are a safe space.”

“Well, I appreciate it. And it was great of your cousin to babysit Fen for me. Are you sure I don’t need to pay her?”

Quinn shakes her head. “Wasn’t a big deal. Lacey asked if I could make cupcakes for her sweet sixteen next week, so I said I would if she did it, though I was already planning to do it anyway. Just killed two birds with one stone.”

My phone rings, and I see Wraith’s name appear on my screen. “Hey, sweetie,” I say.

The affectionate nickname slips out of my mouth by accident.

“Like…that greeting,” he says. His words sound weird though. “You home?”

“In about five minutes. Why?”

“See you there.” The call ends, and I look at my phone.

“Everything okay?” Quinn asks.

“Not sure. Wraith just said he wants to come over.”

Quinn chuckles. “We call that a booty call.”

“Are people still using that ridiculous phrase?”

“Message me tomorrow and tell me whether he just came over to hit it,” she says. “I’ll call her mom to come drive her home.”

I see myself out and hustle the short walk down Main Street. It’s mild out this evening, and I can hear live music from Whiskey Fever all the way on the other end of town.

“Hey, Lacey,” I say after I’ve let myself in and climbed the stairs. “How was he?”

Lacey looks towards the bedroom door. “Good as gold. We spent most of the time looking at videos about antelope. Then he drew one for you.” She tips her chin towards the paper on the table.

“I so appreciate it. It was nice to be able to spend time with your Aunt Quinn. She called your mom to let her know to come get you.”

“You’re welcome.” She lifts her sweater off the back of the recliner.

We make small talk as we wait for her mom, and I thank both of them again for making this work when she arrives.

Fen’s door is slightly open, and with the low lighting in the apartment, I can see enough to know my little boy is fast asleep. I pull the door closed, then slip into the bathroom. If this is a booty call, I want to look as good as I possibly can with only four minutes notice.

I strip and pull on my robe. It’s not fancy, a simple short silk thing that I got on sale about five years ago but folds up really small in the suitcase. Next, I whip my hair out of my ponytail and rush a brush through it, making myself wince when I hit tangles that tug on my scalp.

I wore a hint of makeup to go to the book club, so I quickly slick another coat of lip gloss on.

When there’s a hammering at the door, my initial reaction is annoyance. If he wakes Fen, then the only thing we’re going to be doing in my bed is sleeping.

I quickly run down the stairs and open the door to Atom holding Wraith up. “Your boy got stabbed in his arm.”

I don’t know what to take in first. The fact Wraith is standing in loose black track pants and a hoodie, his wet hair hanging around his face, or that Atom has blood all over his shirt and up the side of his face.

A gasp escapes me. “Oh my God, what happened?”

Wraith looks at me, his skin gray. “It’s not as bad as it sounds,” he says breathily. His smile is slightly goofy.

“Come in. Please. Help him upstairs.” I let Atom and Wraith go by me, then close the door, but not before I notice a van being driven by Catfish.

“They gave him nitrous oxide to stitch him up,” Atom says when Wraith lumbers to my bed and flops down on it. “All our doc had on hand.”

“You look really fucking pretty, Blue,” Wraith says a little too loudly.

Atom chuckles. “He’s shit with nitrous oxide. Works a little too well on chilling him the fuck out. In case he forgets details, his dressing will need changing, he can’t get it wet, and the stitches will need to be taken out toward the end of the week.”

“How was he injured? Is that his blood?”

Atom looks down at his shirt, then back to me. “There are some things you’re better not knowing.”

Marco always said I didn’t need to worry about what was going on at work, that he didn’t want me to become anxious. I don’t know that I can live like that again. But that feels like something I need to discuss with Wraith, not Atom.

“Thanks for bringing him home.”

“Normally, we’d just take him to the clubhouse, but he wanted to come straight here. He showered, so he just needs to sleep it off. They gave him an antibiotic shot and some other shit. Should probably still be in the hospital, so make sure he lies still.”

In spite of all the turmoil, it warms me that he wanted me when he was hurt, even though he had other choices.

“I’ll look after him, I promise.”

Atom studies me for a moment. “You know, some men are meant to be single forever. Doesn’t stop ‘em trying to find a wife. That’s how they end up with three or four divorces under their belt. And some men are put on this earth to be a good fucking husband.” He tips his chin towards the bed. “That man’s one of ‘em. Glad you came to our town, Raven. He was waiting for you.”

And with that, Atom disappears down the stairs.

I put my hand over my heart as it races because of Atom’s words.

When I get to my bed, Wraith is wincing as he tries to wrestle the hoodie over his head. I reach for the hem and do much of the heavy lifting, and together, we manage to remove it. There’s a large dressing on his forearm.

Wraith grips my hips and pulls me between his legs before resting his forehead against my abdomen. “I’m gonna claw Atom’s eyes out for looking at you in this,” he says.

I stroke the back of his head. “He wasn’t looking. He was too concerned about you. Should we get your pants off?”

Wraith lifts his head with a lascivious look on his face. “Is that you hitting on me, Blue?”

I laugh. “Absolutely not. My only thought is about what you’ll be most comfortable sleeping in.”

He bites the tied knot of the robe. “I’d be more comfortable sleeping in you. Well, with my cock in you. Not ‘in you’ like I cut you open and crawl inside and turn you into a skin suit like that horror film.”

A burst of laughter escapes me. “I understand you.”

“My arm hurts,” he says, offering it to me with a pout.

I kiss the top of the bandage. “There, a magic kiss to make it all better.”

“Fuck, I’m tired,” he says, then flops back into bed. I lift his legs onto the mattress.

It takes a bit of effort to get him beneath the covers, but once he’s settled, he starts to get some color back in his cheeks.

I turn off the lights and then climb in next to him.

“Sorry if I worried you,” he says in the darkness. His voice is starting to sound more normal.

“It’s okay, but we need to talk in the morning.”

“Why?”

I tuck my hand beneath my pillow. “It can wait.”

“No. It can’t. What’s up?”

“I need to know…things. I was married to a man who kept a huge, painful secret from me. I don’t think I want to do that again.”

Wraith nudges closer to me and brushes his lips over my forehead. “You want to know how this happened?” he asks.

“I do,” I say. “But not tonight when you’re under the influence of medication. I want you to tell me in the morning.”

“Then, I promise you, that’s what I’ll do.”

I wake seven hours later to the scent and hissing sound of bacon frying, and it takes me a moment to realize where I am. I glance at my phone and see it’s fifteen minutes before my alarm would usually go off to get Fen ready for school and myself off to the diner.

When I step out from my little bedroom corner, I see Wraith wearing only the trackpants he’d arrived in last night, making breakfast.

“Hey,” he says quietly when he sees me. He tips his head in the direction of Fen’s room. “He’s still fast asleep.”

I yawn as I walk over to him, and he gently wraps me up in his arms. “How are you feeling?” I ask.

His hair is wild, a function of going to sleep with it wet, I guess. “Bit like I got thrown off a horse.”

“You ride?” I ask.

“I ride everything. Motorcycles. Horses. You.” He chuckles as he nibbles my neck.

I tilt my head so he can reach more of me. “We don’t have time for any kind of riding right now, as fun as it would be. I need to get Fen to kindergarten soon.”

“That’s a shame.” He plants one last kiss on my collarbone. “But we need to talk so you know exactly what you’re signing up for?”

I step back. “I’m glad you haven’t forgotten.”

Wraith pours us coffee and then hands me a mug. “I haven’t. Take a seat.”

We move to the small table and he sits next to me, so close our shoulders touch. “Marco kept big secrets from me,” I say, repeating what I said last night. I’m unsure how much he remembers. “I can’t go through life like that again.”

Wraith sips his coffee. “A motorcycle club is the most influential club you can be a part of. People think it’s those Ivy League schools, or the Navy SEALs. But it’s different. You can’t buy or train your way into it. You need to fit, be willing to take a bullet for a brother, but also dance outside the fucking law. Not everything I do is legal, Blue. And some of it you shouldn’t ever know because there are images I don’t want in your head.”

“Do you hurt innocent people?”

He shakes his head. “No.”

“But somewhere between knowing nothing and having those images in my head…isn’t there a middle ground?” I hug my coffee cup in my hands.

Wraith looks at me, but I don’t see anger. I see compassion and understanding. “There is. We just got to find it. And I’m sure there are going to be days when you think it’s not enough and I think it’s too much, but I hope we can always find our way through it. So, let’s try it. We found out that another organization had taken something belonging to us and we went to retrieve it. They were reluctant to hand it back, so I got hurt in the fight. Is that enough for you?”

I think about his words. It was more than I was expecting, if I’m honest with myself. “Was your life in danger?”

He strokes my cheek softly. “You might think so, but I say no because I have full faith in my brothers to have my back.”

I hold his wrist and lean into his palm when he opens it to me. “I already had one man leave in the middle of the night and never come back. If we do this, you can’t ever put me in that position.”

Wraith kisses me softly. “I promise you, I’ll never do that. If for any reason I can’t get home, I’ll make sure you know, Blue. You’re never going to be alone again.”