“Those are not legitimate reasons for me to go on a run with you when I’m terrified I’ll do something wrong and you’ll be the one to get hurt because of it, Savage.” She reached for his hand. Her fingers were actually trembling. “I hate making mistakes. I know this isn’t just about fun. I know something big is up.”
“Those fucking sisters of mine. I should kick their asses for scaring you.”
“It isn’t their fault. The entire club thing scares me. I have to get used to our life first before I take on club life. It’s all so overwhelming.”
Savage closed his fingers around hers, his thumb sliding over the back of her hand in soothing caresses to reassure her. “Seychelle, I want you to seriously hear me on this. I am Torpedo Ink. I am the club. You have to trust me to take care of you, baby. I know this scares you, but I swear to you, you just look to me and I’ll let you know what to do. The others will too, but it’s really me you have to trust.”
He brought her hand to his mouth and nibbled on the ends of her fingers and then bit down slowly, watching her eyes go wide. Her lips parted, but she didn’t protest. Her breath came out in a long rush, and she squirmed a little on her chair. He sucked her fingers into the warmth of his mouth to ease the sting.
“You’re so used to being alone all the time, Seychelle, but you have a family now. If we had the time, we could get married, and you’d have a little more confidence.”
She burst out laughing, that dimple of hers making an appearance, just like he knew it would. “Are you crazy? I’m already so overwhelmed, and you’re already so damn bossy, the last thing I need is to be your wife. I’m rethinking that part of our arrangement.”
Steele and Breezy arrived, Breezy taking the chair nearest the wall, Steele sitting across from her. He smiled at Seychelle. “Sorry we’re late. We got the boy down, no problem, but Breezy changed three times before we got out of the house. She seems to have a difficult time making up her mind what she wants to wear when we’re going out.”
“Why don’t you just choose for her?” Savage asked.
“Yeah, baby, why don’t I do that?” Steele nudged his wife.
Breezy giggled. Actually giggled. “There were extenuating circumstances. Every time I put something on, Steele seems to need to take it off, sometimes quite aggressively.”
“See,” Seychelle said, pointing one finger she managed to get out of Savage’s grip at him. “There you go with your why don’t you choose for her? advice. You would choose for me if I decided I didn’t like something at the last minute and annoyed you by changing.”
“Babe. Really? If I wanted you to wear something for the evening, I’d just ask you to and you would.”
“I might not.”
She gave him her chin. He wanted to pull her across his knee right there, she was so fuckin’ cute.
“Yeah, you would. And now we’re havin’ one of those absurd conversations we get into that I’m never certain how we got there.”
Czar and Blythe arrived. Czar pulled back the chair beside Seychelle for Blythe and then took the one next to Savage.
After greeting them, Seychelle turned to Breezy. “What do you think? Are men bossier after you marry them?”
Steele laughed. “Was I bossier before or after we got married, baby?” He nudged Breezy’s shoulder.
She gave her contagious giggle again. “You’ve been bossy since the day I met you, but yeah, you got bossier after we got married. For sure.”
“Definitely bossier after you get married,” Blythe weighed in.
“What the hell, woman?” Czar asked, not even trying to hide his grin. “I am the epitome of a politically correct partner. I believe in equality all the way.”
Blythe rolled her eyes. “You’re the epitome of bullshit right now, and lightning is going to strike you any minute. Why are we wondering about our men being bossy after marriage?”
“I’m considering my options,” Seychelle said. “Long engagements are making more and more sense to me. Perhaps even so long they last until I’m like in my nineties with this one.”
Blythe nodded solemnly. “I concur. Especially since Savage is so completely wrong over so many things. Think about it, Seychelle.” She leaned close. “He doesn’t even like tea. Imagine first thing in the morning when you’re dying for a cup of tea and he completely ignores your need and decrees coffee is the only solution to mornings.” She gave a delicate shudder. “It could happen.”
Seychelle hit her forehead with her free hand. “I hadn’t thought of that. That would be awful. A real disaster.”
Breezy gasped. “They’re kidding, right, Savage? You do drink tea.”
He shook his head. “Nope. Used to. Drank it all the time.” He rubbed the back of Seychelle’s hand and then let go to pick up a slice of the new batch of fresh, hot bread Darby brought to the table. He buttered it, aware of Czar and Blythe both staring at him as if he’d grown two heads.
“That was before. Blythe and I don’t agree on much, and she got pissed at me over something I said very early on to Kenny. Poisoned my tea.”
Breezy gasped again and swiveled in her chair to look at Blythe with wide eyes.
“Not enough to kill me. Just made me sick. Never could look at tea again without turning green.” Savage took a healthy bite of the hot, freshly baked bread.
Seychelle’s gaze cut to Blythe and then looked back at Savage. Breezy and Steele both eyed her as well. Steele narrowed his gaze and turned to the president of the club.
Czar shrugged. “My wife certainly has knowledge of the kind of herbs that could make someone sick if she wanted to dose someone’s tea. It’s always been common knowledge that Savage and Blythe disagree over just about everything.”
“Maybe so,” Steele said, “but Savage is full of shit.”
Breezy looked to Blythe. “Is he lying?”
Blythe raised an eyebrow. “Maybe. But then, why would he?”
Steele scowled. “You did not.” He made it an absolute statement. He ruined the certainty by looking to Czar. “She didn’t. She wouldn’t.”
Blythe gave him a placid smirk. “Savage, would you mind passing the bread? It looks delicious.”
Savage immediately passed her the small platter of hot bread while Steele and Breezy studied Blythe’s face. Steele continued to look at Czar and then shook his head again.
“If Blythe really made Savage sick, we would have heard about it.” Again, he spoke with complete assurance.
Savage rolled his shoulders, drawing attention to the fact that they were massive and covered in muscle. “It was early on. We’d just met Blythe, and Reaper was protective. We thought it best to let it go. And I was being a dick.”
“No surprise there,” Czar said. “Besides, I gave her a fitting punishment.”
Blythe blushed. “You did not. You tried to, as I recall. Savage totally deserved what happened to him, so there were no punishments allowed. Remember that, Seychelle: no matter how bossy they get, you have righteous justice on your side.”
Seychelle lifted her chin. “I’m going to attend classes with Sabelia, and it’s very possible Hannah Drake might actually help oversee them. Sabelia is going to give a few of us lessons in … um … properly … throwing a hex when needed. Not the kind that make body parts drop off—that would be just eww—but you know, the toad kind. You two should think about coming.”