“Unless you don’t want to?” She frowns, looking a little hurt.
I smile, reaching out to squeeze her arm, wincing again as it pulls on my stomach. “No, I’m happy about it. Just… it’s weird.”
She nods, completely understanding. “I know, girl. But trust me when I tell you, this is the best family you could ever ask for.”
I wonder what my mom’s doing, sitting at home by herself. Is she still covered in blood? Have the cops come? What did she tell them? Is she happy with her decision?
“Quit thinking about it, Iris. Quit wondering and hoping and contemplating. You’ve been dealt your shitty hand, and now you finally received your royal flush. Fucking take it.”
My eyes shift to hers. I feel so broken, and I’m in pain, but I do know one thing… I have to listen to her.
I nod. “Okay, I’m in.”
She smiles. “Perfect.”
Chapter 14
After lying down and talking to Violet for a bit, there’s a knock at the door.
“Hey, how’re you feeling, Iris?” Haley’s head pops inside.
I wince. “Pretty sore.”
She nods. “Understandable. Do you think you’re up for getting some breakfast downstairs?”
I glance over at Violet and watch as a smile breaks out across her face. “Haley makes a badass Christmas breakfast.”
Christmas breakfast? Never heard of it.
I can’t remember the last time I actually ate a real warm meal that wasn’t half-cooked in the microwave.
I nod, and Violet helps me out of bed. It takes minutes longer than it should, and Haley grabs a hoodie off the nearby chair, handing it off to me.
It’s suddenly quiet, so damn quiet my body tenses as I glance at them. They’re both staring at my chest, and looking down, I see bite marks all around my chest and neck. I blink, my palm rubbing over them, trying to cover them, even though it’s useless.
I’m already caught.
“It’s nothing,” I mumble.
“Doesn’t look like nothing,” Haley says with raised eyebrows.
Violet sighs. “You’re definitely telling me about that shit later.”
I swallow down a groan as I grab the sweatshirt. My fingers brush against the nice fabric. It’s not the worn, beaten fabric of the sweatshirt I came here in. No, this one is thick, warm and cozy, with the Harley logo on the front. I look up at both of them, wondering where it came from.
“It’s yours,” Violet says, grabbing the sweatshirt from my fingers and shoving it over my head.
“Come on, before the food gets cold.”
I’m slow to shove my arms through the holes. After a quick brush of my hair with my fingers, we head down the hall. Voices instantly filter up the stairs, the amount of people making my knees shake.
Do they all know? I don’t want to be that person. The one with the sad looks on Christmas morning.
Haley must notice my face. “No one cares about your past here, Iris. We’ve all got shit we’d rather keep buried. No one’s going to look at you funny or ask questions that you don’t want asked.”
The sincerity in her tone makes my body relax, only slightly. Even if people won’t stare at me like a leper, I’m still the newbie. They’ll still know.
With a deep breath, we make our way down the stairs, and my eyes widen at the sight in front of me. The small bar tables have been removed and a massive table to fit twenty sits in the middle of the room. The Christmas tree has even more presents shoved under it, and I have no idea how that’s even possible. Christmas music rumbles lightly through the speakers as everyone walks around the table, scooping different foods onto their plate.
I’ve never seen such a feast, such an extravagant meal of various colors and sizes. It smells absolutely delectable in here; my mouth begins to water at the sight in front of me.
“Hungry?” Violet asks as we hit the bottom step. Everyone turns around at Violet’s voice, their eyes looking me over with a protectiveness I didn’t expect. Something I could’ve never anticipated.
I nod, watching as everyone glances away, going back to what they were doing. Everyone except one person.
Lynx.
My heart lodges in my throat, and I bring my palm to my belly at the lingering ache. His eyes instantly drop to my fingers, and his jaw tenses in frustration.
“He looks ready to tear down the entire world. He does get pretty possessive over his own.” Haley sighs, shaking her head as she walks off.
“Why does he look so damn growly?” Violet grumbles, tilting her nose up as he walks over to us. “You look like someone shit on your ham.”
He rolls his eyes at her. “No, I look like someone got stabbed.”
“Well, stop making that face before you scare off my friend.” She steps in front of him, like she can somehow protect me from whatever Lynx would inflict my way.
She doesn’t realize he’s already made his way into my veins. I can still feel him between my legs, and I know without a doubt, if he wouldn’t have shown up last night, I most likely wouldn’t even be standing here today.
“Hi.” I feel so out of sorts. So damn confused and lost but also so fucking found.
“How are you feeling?” His eyes lift to mine, and I can see in his whiskey gaze that he feels the same connection I do.
“Like I was stabbed,” I shrug, then wince, pushing into my stomach a bit. It feels swollen and so sore, but the rest of my body feels a little foggy. “Did you give me something?”
He nods. “You wouldn’t be walking if I didn’t. You really shouldn’t be walking, anyway.” He scowls at Violet. “Quit lingering around and help her into a chair.”
“Quit barking at me, old man. It’s Christmas for fuck’s sake.” She grabs onto me, pulling me to an open seat and helping me into it. It’s excruciating. The process of standing to sitting is literally torture.
I let out a breath once I’m seated, feeling dozens of eyes on me. Glancing up, I see a small set of brown eyes across the table from me. The little girl with the curly hair. “Hi,” I whisper, the pain still lingering.
“Santa came.” She points her fork at the Christmas tree, and I glance over, seeing the absolute mountain of presents.
“Really?” I’m envious of her excitement, and that makes me feel like shit. But I’ve never been as excited as she seems to be, barely able to sit in her seat, scarfing her food down so she can open presents.
She nods, stuffing her face with eggs.
I glance around, noticing the two girls from the bar the other night. Two guys sit on each side of them, their arms possessively around the backs of their chairs.
Lynx sits at the head of the table, talking to a guy with dark hair around the same age as him. He glances at me every so often, his eyes dark and heavy, suctioning me in place.
He makes me feel like the only person in the room.
Violet shoved a heap of food on my plate, but my appetite is nonexistent after last night, so I only nibble on my buttery roll as I watch everyone else.
It seems like everyone is as ravenous as the next, inhaling their food before I can blink. Soon after, chairs are scraping against the floor as people get up to head to the Christmas tree.