“You always know how to make me feel good, Roe. I didn’t get my hair done, but I did spend some time on it this morning. I’m surprised it’s lasted all day.”
“Oh, it’s lasted, sister. Keep that shit up. Now,” she says, glancing around us, “do you mind helping Tatum finish up?”
“Absolutely.”
Tatum’s working on the balloon decorations that have been set up around the tables they’ve readied for food and gifts. “Hey, Zara,” she says as I approach. “You can blow balloons.”
I spend the next half hour helping them finish with the decorations. Holly arrives with food and we set it all up. By the time everything’s done, more club members have arrived with their families, and the present table is full with gifts for Texas and Mindy.
Leaving the girls to it, I head inside to the bar so I can chat with everyone like Mum wants me to. Fifteen minutes pass, in which I chat and laugh and catch up with everyone.
I’ve missed this, and happiness settles deep inside that I’ve come home to Sydney. The first couple of years in Melbourne were hard, but I knew I was in exactly the right place. Away from the source of my heartbreak. It would have been too hard watching him with Lynette. When I broke up with Angus, I was already feeling a sense of wanting to come home; the break-up was the perfect time to make plans to do that.
“Zara,” Holly says from behind me. “Mum wants you to come and help her with the cakes.”
I spin to face her, catching sight of Fury as I do so. He’s sitting at a table with Devil, his eyes trained on me while Devil tells him something.
“Zara,” Holly says again, pulling my attention to her. “Shit,” she says, noticing Fury. “What’s going on with you two?”
I don’t look at him again. He’s been on my mind constantly since he came to my place on Wednesday and I’m exhausted thinking about him. “I don’t know.”
“You haven’t heard from him again this week, have you?”
“No. And I’m not going to talk to him tonight. I need to keep my distance.”
“Good idea.” Holly is super protective after everything that happened between Fury and me years ago, and while she likes him, she isn’t keen to see me go down that path with him again.
“I’ll go and help Mum and then I might get out of here,” I say, leaving her.
King is with Mum when I get to the kitchen. They’re discussing something quietly, and I’m happy to see her smiling.
When he sees me, he reaches for her waist and drops a kiss to her lips. “Don’t wait up for me,” he says. “I don’t know what time I’ll be home.”
She nods. “Cade has soccer in the morning. I can organise Mum to look after the kids while I take him if you’ve got stuff to do.”
“I’m aiming not to have shit to do in the morning. I want to take him,” he says.
“I can help out if you need,” I say.
King nods at me. “I appreciate that.” Then, with one last kiss for Mum, he says, “I’ve gotta go.”
She watches him walk out, worry in her eyes. “If I don’t take smoking back up, it’ll be a bloody miracle.”
“Has King taken it back up?” King finally quit the smokes three years ago.
“No, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he does.” She looks at the cakes. “Okay, let’s get this done. Mindy is hanging out for your cake. She was so excited when I told her you were making it for her.”
Together, we get the cakes ready. I made three: a white velvet buttermilk cake, a chocolate Oreo cake, and a mocha toffee crunch cake. I remembered that Mindy used to love Oreos, so I hope she still does.
I’m halfway down the hallway with one of the cakes when I run into Fury.
“Here,” he says. “Let me carry that.”
“Thank you.” I pass the cake. “Can you just put it on that main table outside? The one with the balloons on it.”
He nods, and I turn to go back to the kitchen to grab another cake, but he stops me when he says, “This is some cake, princess. You made it?”
“Yeah.”