10
Bunny
“Should we call you Charlotte now?” Pink asks as she sets a drink down in front of me that she made.
She’s not working behind the bar tonight, but she did go get our drinks herself. She made me some green martini while she, Vee, and Ollie had Cokes with a bunch of cherries piled into them.
“If you want.” I shrug. “I kind of like Snow, though.” I’ve grown used to everyone calling me that. I also really love the new life I have here.
I’m sure some therapist would tell me it’s not okay to forget everything from my old life and jump into another, but I don’t care. All I can go on is how I feel. I’m pretty sure that they’d frown on my obsession and attachment to Ben as well. I’m sure they’d consider it all kinds of unhealthy.
Ben doesn’t seem to mind. He’s packing up all my crap for me so I don’t have to go back. The more I remember about my old life, the more I feel good about my decision to stay here. There is nothing or no one waiting for me back there. All I had was my job, which I didn’t enjoy much.
I only kept it because it paid well, considering I only have a high school diploma and some extra courses I’d taken at the suggestion of the law firm. I hated those classes too, but again, whenever I completed them, I’d always get a small raise of some kind, so I did it to help make ends meet. My old life was all about going through the motions. Nothing more. I was lonely. It’s sad really.
“Snow it is,” Vee says. She’s as sweet as Pink and Ollie said she would be. It’s nice how easily I fit in with all of them. Each of us seem to have our own little quirks. “We all have nicknames too, so it works.”
True. Pink’s real name is Addilyn, Vee is short for Savannah, and then you have Ollie, whose real name is Olivia. She told me her brothers called her Ollie because they never wanted to admit she had a vagina.
While I adore all the girls, I gravitate toward Pink. We’ve spent a lot of time together at Hart Bonds, but it’s more than that. We offset each other well.
I tentatively lift the martini and take a sip. It’s sweet and tangy but also strong. “You like?” Pink asks.
“I do.” I take another sip and end up downing the whole thing.
“Oh!” Pink grabs the empty glass, and they all burst into laughter. “You’re supposed to sip it,” she says through laughter. The back of my throat burns, but it was good. My face starts to grow warm but not from a blush this time. “Have some of this for a bit.” She places a glass of water in front of me.
“It was good, but it was tiny. I can’t help that I drank it so fast,” I respond, only making them all laugh harder.
“After we have these babies, we are having a girls’ night, and Pink is making me one of those apple martinis,” Ollie declares.
Vee, who is the quietest, nods along with her. I sense Vee and I might actually be the most alike and probably why we connect with stronger personalities like Pink and Ollie.
“I adore seeing my brothers so happy with you guys, but I do not want to think about them having sex.” Ollie cringes.
“Ben won’t have sex with me,” I blurt out. My eyes widen right along with everyone else's in surprise that I just said that to them. “I mean, we do other things but I’m still a virgin.” I sigh, not wanting to be one anymore. “I feel a little tingly,” I admit. “Not the same kind of tingly I get when Ben is touching me, but a different kind.” A hum has fallen over my body. Does alcohol kick in that quickly?
“Ahh! I’m dying!” Pink laughs harder.
“I’m sure there’s a reason Ben hasn’t gone all the way with you. I mean, you share a bed and act like a married couple.” Ollie tries to reassure me even though she hates talking about her brother and sex. Her need to make me feel better comes first. I've noticed that with Ollie. She always wants to take care of everyone around her. She’s a mother hen.
“A married couple?” I repeat, latching on to those words.
Ollie responds, but I miss what she says because I’m peeking over my shoulder to where all the men are playing pool across the warehouse. I duck my head and turn back to the girls when I see Ben staring right at me. He looks so damn handsome, standing with a pool stick in his hand. I don’t think he’s paying much attention to his game, though, since all of his attention is on me. The same way it always is.
When we arrived earlier, the girls actually had to shoo him and the other men off. Jason, the president of the MC club, told Ben we’d be fine. That no one was going to mess with us. Which is true. I’ve noticed most of the other men here are giving our table a wide berth. I’m guessing they already know better than to mess with us. Well, at least with Ollie, Vee, and Pink, that is. I’m not sure what they think when it comes to me.
“Would you want a big wedding?” Pink asks, pulling me back into the conversation.
“I don’t think so.”
“What do you mean you don’t think?” Both Ollie and Pink speak at the same time.
“A wedding sounds nice, but I wouldn’t have anyone to come,” I admit. Sure, I’ve dreamed of the whole princess dress and all the things that come along with a wedding. Don’t most girls?
“We’d come, but none of that matters,” Pink says. “Even if it’s only going to be Ben and you there, you should have the wedding you want.”
“Really? Cause I think I’d want that. All of it. I don’t have a family, and this would be a celebration to not only get my husband but a family too.”
“You’re about to have more family than you can handle.” Ollie's smile lights up her whole face.
“Three sisters.” Vee holds up three fingers and wiggles them.
“Which means three bridesmaids,” Ollie adds.
“I think we’re getting ahead of ourselves.” I glance back over my shoulder again. My stomach drops when I don’t see Ben at the pool table with the other men. Where did he go?
“No, we’re not getting ahead. As soon as you agree to marry one of these men, they want it done like yesterday. If anything, we’re behind. Trust us on this,” Ollie says, pulling my attention back to the table, but my mind is still on Ben missing. My mind starts to race with where he might have gone.
Did some girl steal his attention? Did he get a call about something? One possibility after another flashes through my mind. Panic starts to rise inside of me.
“She’s right. We can start making an outline of some small details so we’re ahead.” Vee hops in, ready to help.
I shake my head no. “Snow.” Pink grabs my hand under the table. “Look at me.” I turn my head to meet her eyes. “That man isn’t going to ever leave you. He’s at the bar.” I jerk around to see Ben at the bar talking to Nelly, the pretty bartender.
I met her when we first got here. She was sweet—or so I thought. She has a big personality and a Southern accent that draws a lot of male attention. I noticed a lot of men would wait just for her to take their order. I know for a fact I told her Ben and I were together. Now she’s over there laughing and shooting him smiles.
“He’s not interested in Nelly.” Pink breaks me from my thoughts. “He’s just being nice.”
“I don’t like it,” I mutter as one of those green martinis is set on the table in front of me. I’d recognize Ben’s hand from anywhere.
“Don’t like what, Bunny?” He brushes my hair back off my shoulder so that he can kiss my neck. I tilt my head to the side, making sure he has all the room he needs to kiss me wherever he wants.
“That girl was flirting with you,” I admit. That drink really lets me say whatever I want. I swear it’s some sort of truth serum or something.
“What girl?” His mouth continues to travel up my neck to my ear, where he nibbles on me, making me giggle.
“Good answer,” Pink says.
“I really don’t know what you all are talking about.” Ben lifts his head, his hand going to my chin to tilt my face in his direction. “Bunny should know she’s the only woman I see.”
“I know.” I sigh. He’s always trying to reassure me. “I can’t help that my emotions get the best of me.” Ben has been so good to me. It’s rude. I keep getting worked up over nothing. I should trust him. He’s given me no reason not to.
“You’re scared. I get it. With time, you’ll see it’s only you for me.”
“It’s true. I’ve never seen him this way,” Ollie chimes in.
“Have fun, Bunny. I’ll be close. Always.” He drops a kiss on my mouth before he turns to go.
“So as I was saying. This wedding.” Pink smirks. I pick up my new drink and take a sip.
“I want Buttons and Dino to be in the wedding,” I say even if this is all pretend. Maybe it won’t be pretend much longer.