she said, “How’s Bree these days?”
Bree had been a handful for the past three years, but was beginning to mature into the kind of daughter any mother would want. “Let’s just say that I think they’ve turned a corner with her. Robyn’s not reporting half as many arguments as she used to.”
“So you and Bree are still getting on okay?”
My face spread out into a smile. Bree was like the daughter I’d never had. I loved Robyn’s son, too, but I’d always wanted a little girl, so I felt a special bond with Bree. “We have our moments, but I never let her walk away angry with me. I always make sure we resolve any issues before they can become a problem.”
“You’ll make a good mum one day, Roe.” Tatum wasn’t really a kid person, but she always supported my dream of having a large family.
“That’s if I ever manage to have one before my eggs shrivel up.”
“Oh God, sometimes you are overly dramatic. You’ve still got years to go before that’s a concern.”
I lifted my brows. “You saw what happened to my friend, Davinda. That shit could happen to me, too.”
Tatum waved her hand in the air dismissively. “That’s not going to happen to you. Davinda will grow old alone because she was too much of a bitch to hold her marriage together. And then when it fell apart, she was too much of a bitch to find another man who would put up with her shit. She’s childless because of her personality. You don’t have that problem. Men fall over themselves to be with you. You’re just too damn fussy.”
“I’m not fussy. I just have extremely high standards.”
It was Tatum’s turn to raise her brows. “Look, I’m all for high standards, but yours are out of this world. I mean, what woman ditches a man because she discovers he doesn’t eat meat?”
“You know why I did that. I’m not going to spend the rest of my life arguing with my husband over what we eat. I like my meat, and I refuse to give it up.”
“Did he ask you to give it up?”
I put my hand on my hip. “No, but he would have.”
She shook her head in frustration. “You don’t know that, Roe. But that’s the thing you always do—you assume to know what will happen down the track and you make rash decisions based on those assumptions. I’m beginning to think you sabotage your relationships before they can even get started.”
“I do not. I—”
I was cut off by Nitro’s booming voice from the front door. “Vegas, you got a minute?”
She moved off her stool, a look of confusion on her face. I was confused also. He’d told her he wouldn’t be home for hours. Leaving me, she headed towards the front of the house.
I listened as he said something to her and then the door closed, leaving the house in silence. Guessing they’d gone outside together, I decided to fill in the time waiting for her by making us some tea. I was rummaging through Tatum’s teas when the front door opened and boots thudded down the hallway towards the kitchen.
Turning when they stopped, I expected to find Nitro, but instead found Hyde standing in the kitchen doorway.
Good God, the man was impressively built. So much so, that I found it hard to keep my eyes on his face. All I wanted to do was let them drop so I could take a good long look at his body. But I managed to stay strong and hold his gaze.
He had the darkest eyes. They matched everything else about him—his dark hair that hung in tangled waves around his face, his dark beard, and his tanned skin. And not to forget, his dark moods. I’d only seen one of them, but I got the distinct impression they made up his personality. He seemed to be an intense man, that was for sure.
“I need your car keys,” he said after a few moments of silence.
I frowned. “Why?”
“So I can move your car.”
“You don’t think I could do that myself?” My tone got a little snarky even though I tried to keep it in check. I was acting weirdly, which annoyed even me, so who knew how he would take it. There was just something about this man—something that drew me to him when all I wanted to do was run the other way. Snapping at him would hopefully keep him at arm’s length.
His jaw clenched and he took a minute. Finally, he nodded and said, “I do. Could you move it so I can pull Nitro’s ute out of the garage?”
Well shit. I had to give him points for not losing his cool. Grabbing my keys, I made my way out to the driveway. As I brushed past him, I did my best to ignore his masculine scent and the hard muscles I grazed. The muscles that practically pleaded with me to reach out and touch them.
Stay strong, Monroe. You do not need a biker in your life. Not even for sex.
I reversed my car out onto the footpath and then joined Nitro and Tatum in the front yard. They were deep in conversation but glanced at me as I made my way to them.