All the stalls are empty, so I take a seat on the closed toilet lid, glad to be free of my shadows for a few minutes.
I’ve been waiting for this day, for Verek to come back, for so long that I think I had started to give up on it actually happening.
The bathroom door opens, and for a second I think my guards have followed me into the ladies’ room.
“Tessa? Are you in here?” Charlotte’s voice calls out from the other side of the door.
I’m a little dizzy either from the drinks or Verek, so I stick my foot out and kick the unlocked door open. “In here.”
“Oh. What are you doing?”
“I needed a minute.”
“Are you okay? Verek’s here!”
“No kidding,” I reply. “You didn’t know he was coming?”
“No, of course not,” Charlotte answers. “Roman didn’t either.”
“Is Roman mad? How is he taking Verek’s return?”
“I don’t think he minds,” she says with a grin. “He’s in a good mood.”
“Yeah, I bet he is. You two were in his office for over an hour!”
“I guess it’s probably good that you insisted on moving out. He’s insatiable and can’t get enough of his wife. His words, not mine.”
“I’m happy for you,” I tell her honestly. “Just a little jealous.”
“I know and I’m sorry,” Charlotte says with a sigh, leaning her shoulder against the side of the stall. “Don’t give up on this happening for you just yet. Who knows what could happen tomorrow?” she says as if she’s somehow suddenly psychic.
“I’m too pissed at Verek to speak to him,” I say, even though my anger at him and enthusiasm for his return is waging a war inside of my head and heart. There’s another body part that still hasn’t forgotten about touching every inch of his sexiness and how much I want to do it again. That part is a traitor and should give up once and for all.
“I wasn’t talking about Verek,” Charlotte says just as I hear the bathroom door open again and Zoe says, “Charlotte, your husband sent me in here to find you! He’s ready to go. You’ve got a flight to catch.”
“Ugh,” she groans. “He’s so bossy, sending a pregnant lady on a search mission,” she says with a grin before turning somber. “Are you sure you’ll be okay here without me?”
“I’m a grown woman,” I remind her, just as Jake said earlier. “I’ll be fine. I have Lola and Frick and Frack to keep me company.”
“But they’re not me,” she says with a pout. “I’ll worry about you.”
“Don’t,” I tell her. “I’ll miss you, but it’s high time you and Roman get some alone time, don’t you think? It’s just for a few days. Enjoy your honeymoon and stop worrying about me.”
“I’ll be around if you need anything, Tessa,” Zoe says when her bump appears beside Charlotte before the rest of her squeezes into the doorway.
“Thanks, Zoe,” I tell her with a smile. “See, I’ll be fine,” I say to Charlotte.
“Okay, well, I’ll be checking in once a day,” she assures me.
“That’s not necessary,” I reply as Verek’s face comes to mind. Dammit. I hate to admit that I am a little less anxious about Charlotte and Roman leaving knowing he’s in town. Although, I’m still pissed at him for not calling, and I have no idea how long he’ll be here. Is he back for good or just stopping by for a few days because Roman got married? Where the hell has he been? I have so many questions that only he can answer even though I don’t want to talk to him face-to-face. I’m not sure if I can keep my hands or mouth off his sexy body.
“All right, if you’re sure,” Charlotte says. “Guess I’ll see you in a few days.”
“I’ll still be here and in one piece, I promise. Lucas and Jake would take a bullet to get their patch.”
“I know they would,” Charlotte laughs in agreement. She gives Zoe a hug and then me a last wave before she leaves the bathroom.
Cheers go up so loudly in the other room that I assume it’s her and Roman leaving.
“Ready to get back out there, or would you rather hide in here all night?” Zoe asks. “Don’t you want to see Verek? You seemed pretty fond of him that night at the safe house.”
“I was fond of him before he up and left without a word for all these months,” I grumble.
“From what Winston’s told me, he didn’t really have a choice in leaving. Maybe Roman told him not to call you too.”
“Even if he did, that’s a rule he could’ve broken and Roman wouldn’t have found out,” I remark.
“You lived with Roman until recently. He could have easily seen his name on your phone or heard you talking to him,” Zoe points out. “Verek gave up his patch for you. That’s already a lot to sacrifice…”
“Gave up his patch? No he didn’t. Roman threatened to, but Verek said he was just giving him space. Even Verek just said he was on vacation.”
“Oh,” Zoe says, pursing her lips.
“You heard something different?”
“Winston said Verek had to turn in his cut, and Roman voted to try and remove him from the table but didn’t get a majority vote. So they suspended him temporarily instead.”
“Roman actually took his cut from him and suspended him from the club?”
“Yep. He’s definitely not wearing any leather tonight, and the MC has a rule about always having it on in the clubhouse.”
“But…how…that…why didn’t either of them tell me?” I say as I get to my feet. I have to throw my hand out to hold on to the wall when the room starts to spin. Lucas was right. I shouldn’t have had that last gin and tonic. Now I can’t think straight when it comes to Verek!
“Talk to Verek, honey,” Zoe says. “You know you want to, or you wouldn’t be in here hiding out, right?”
“Right,” I agree as I go wash my hands in the sink and splash some cold water on my face. “I’m ready,” I say.
“After you,” Zoe replies when she holds open the door.
Chapter Nineteen
Verek
* * *
I missed my brothers, honestly, I did. But I wish they would back up and give me a fucking minute to look for Tessa.
Once Roman and Charlotte leave, things begin to settle down. Several other guys head out, but most stay, going back to their games of pool or beer bottles, whatever they were doing before I came in and the happy couple went out.
My eyes continue to search the room for Tessa with no luck. I’m beginning to think she didn’t come or left before I got here when the bathroom opens and she walks out, heading straight to the bar where two young guys I don’t know – prospects based on the lack of patches on the front of their buttoned-up leather cuts – jump to attention. It only takes about two seconds for me to notice that the way their eyes follow her and drink her in it’s obvious that they’re crushing on her hard. They both want her. Roman may have posted them to be her bodyguards, but the two kids have got it bad. It’s no chore to have to keep an eye on a beautiful woman twenty-four seven, especially compared to some of the bullshit jobs I had to do as a prospect. I damn near died from dehydration when they made me spit shine all the bikes in the lot, and these chumps get guard duty. From the way they’re staring, it’s only a matter of time before one of them crosses a line and touches her.