“I do.”
“Well, then you’re at least going to need to come in and eat with us.”
“Nah, you just visit with your mom. I’m good.”
We’d reached my car and he waited for me to climb in, closing my door with a grin. I pulled out of my parking space and then headed to my mom’s with Dylan following in his truck.
I asked him one more time if he would come in, but he refused, so I walked into the house, and closed the door behind me.
“I’m here!” I called out, setting my bag on the bench in the foyer.
“Kitchen,” Mom called back, and I walked in to find her pulling a lasagna out of the oven.
“I didn’t have time to stop for wine,” I said, pulling her in for a hug. “Sorry.”
“It’s alright, sweetie, I have plenty.”
“What can I do to help?”
“Open a bottle of red,” she said.
“Merlot?”
“Please.” She grinned and I grabbed the wine opener. “So, tell me all about this new man.”
“He’s pretty spectacular,” I said. “Of course, I’m still worried he’s too good to be true.”
“Just don’t give too much of yourself away, honey.”
I didn’t admit that I’d already given him all of me. I was falling in love and I was falling hard.
Mom slid the lasagna back in the oven and grabbed wine glasses. I poured and we sat in the family room while we waited for the lasagna to cook the rest of the way.
“What’s happening with the studio?” she asked. “Are you going to renew the lease?”
I shrugged. “He wants to raise the rent over five-hundred dollars. I’m not sure I can afford to renew the lease.”
“What will you do?”
I sighed. “No idea. I have savings, but it won’t last forever.”
“You’ll figure it out.”
“Yeah. You might not have been able to teach me to cook, but you did teach me to pivot when I had to.”
She grinned. “This is very true.”
The timer dinged, so my mom headed back to the kitchen, just as her doorbell rang.
“Are you expecting someone else?” I asked.
“No. It’s probably a delivery.”
“I’ll get it.” I walked into the foyer and pulled open the door, finding myself lifted off my feet and kissed for all I was worth. “Oh my god, what are you doing here?”
Shadow grinned down at me as he set me back on the ground. “Shift ended an hour ago.”
“I know, but you were going back to the club to sleep.”
“I can sleep when I’m dead. Wanted to meet the woman who made you.” He cocked his head. “You good with that.”
“Yes, absolutely. Come in.” I kissed him again. “Where’s Dylan.”
“Sent him home,” he said. “I brought beer and wine. Wasn’t sure which would work better.”
“She’s going to love you, you know,” I promised as I closed the door behind him.
“Posey, do you need help?” Mom called.
“Well, it’s a rather large delivery,” I called back, taking Shadow’s hand, and leading him into the kitchen.
Mom was washing her hands at the sink, and craned her head, then grinned wide.
“Shadow got done early,” I said.
“Oh, that’s fantastic. Welcome.” She dried her hands and gave him a big hug.
For the rest of the evening, Shadow was introduced to one of the dozen things my mother cooked really well, and Mom was introduced to one of the best humans on the planet.
It was a perfect night.
* * *
Two weeks later, Jane had found a gorgeous little bungalow just outside Savannah and put an offer in on it. It was accepted. She was still staying with me but would be moving into her new place in a few weeks.
Shadow wasn’t a big fan of having Jane around all the time. Not because he didn’t like her, but because we had to be quiet when enjoying each other. I had to give him props, though. He only complained occasionally. And he was good with distraction in the form of whisking me away to his room at the club whenever he wanted to fuck me in a particularly dirty way.
Which was often.
This was probably why I was a little more sore than usual today. I used to worry about how much cardio I was getting, but not so much anymore. Shadow was a workout and a half.
Jane had an errand to run, so she’d dropped me off and I opened up the studio alone. I had a class starting online in twenty minutes, and she was teaching as well, but not until noon. As I got everything set up in my office, my phone buzzed on the desk.
Shadow: Where the hell are you?
Me: At the studio. I told you I was going in with Jane.
Shadow: You were supposed to wait for Dylan.
Me: Jane and I were together. I didn’t need to wait.
Shadow: What do you mean were?
Me: She’s running errands. It’s fine. Watch the class.
Shadow: Lock up until Dylan gets there.
Me: Yes, my liege.
He sent me a crown emoji and I chuckled, setting my phone back on my desk. I grabbed my laptop and got it positioned where I needed it, then started the live feed.
* * *
Shadow
I forced down my concern, telling myself Dylan would be there within minutes, and Posey would be fine. I was currently at the club waiting for Doom and Doc to arrive so we could converse about the information I’d discovered on the fires relating to the club.
I’d had a shift at the firehouse yesterday and came straight from there to the club since Posey was working early. It looked like Doom and Doc were running late, so I decided to log on to Posey’s live feed. If I couldn’t touch her this morning, at least I’d be able to see her.
I took a seat in the great room, turning my phone sideways to watch and smiled as Posey started the class. Jesus, she was beautiful.
“Good morning, everyone,” she said, then winked. “And Shadow if you’re watching.”
I chuckled, and she began a stretching routine.
I glanced away briefly to grab my coffee mug when I heard her say, “What are you doing here?”
I turned back to the screen just to see her grab her neck and fall to the ground, then the camera shut off and I lost the feed. I dropped scalding hot coffee on my lap as I knifed up off the sofa but ignored the pain as I made a run for my bike.
“What the fuck, brother?” Shutter called. “I thought you were meetin’ Doc.”
“Something’s happened to Posey,” I bellowed. “Call Dylan and tell him I’m on my way.”
I climbed on my bike and raced over to Posey’s studio, arriving to find Jane in a panic while Dylan was on the phone with Rabbit attempting to get information about the feed.
“What happened?” I demanded from Jane.
“I don’t know.” She threw her hands in the air. “I came in, everything was unlocked, and Posey’s office is trashed.”
“Did you see her live feed?”
“Yes, that’s why I’m freaked.”
“What was her schedule?” I asked. “Did she have a client after her class? Do you have cameras?”
“Yes, we have a doorbell cam thingy, but I already checked it. There was nothing on it.”