“Yeah, you can have that fight and keep me out of it.”
“Where’s Marcus?”
“Outside, waiting for me.”
“You can go. Honestly, you don’t have to babysit me. I’m a big girl and I can look after myself.”
She stands and looks down. “Blaze asked me to stay, and he wasn’t an ass when he asked.” She smiles. “I’m sure he likes me now, and I don’t want that to change.”
“Don’t tell Marcus that.” I laugh. “He might get jealous.”
She waves a hand at me. “That man knows I don’t care for anyone but him.”
“You got really lucky there,” I tell her. It could have ended badly as he had huge issues. Rochelle didn’t tell me everything, but the things she did tell me, I could tell were eating her up inside. She wanted him, but also didn’t want to stay with him because of his darker side. She seems to have worked that out and lives with it now.
I’m hoping I can do the same.
My mother said you fall in love slowly, like watching a leaf lose its color after it hits the ground. Slow, but sure to happen. And some loves are unexpected, others sneak up on you, and some are right in front of your face, and you didn’t even know it was there.
Blaze is a combination of all these loves.
He’s unexpected.
He snuck up on me.
And he’s in my face, and I didn’t even know.
I don’t want to tell him how I feel. The only sure thing I have loved more than life itself is my daughter. And yes, my family, but love at first sight is what a child is.
Blaze? Well, Blaze is Blaze.
Mitchell is here, ready to collect Annabelle. He hasn’t commented on my lip, just looked at it, then looked away.
“So, have her back before dinner?” Mitchell asks.
“Yes, please.” I lean in and kiss Annabelle’s cheek. She smiles at me but stays in Mitchell’s arms.
I look up at him. “You’ve been good, you know. I just thought you should know that.”
Mitchell offers me a small smile. “I have to tell you something.” I wait as he looks to Annabelle, and then back to me. “I’m not interested in women anymore, Kat. Will that matter?”
“You mean… you’re gay?” I ask him, but I’m not really understanding.
“Yes. I fucked women when I was drunk to hide who I really was. I played the playboy part well, when all I really wanted to do was meet someone who made me happy.” He looks to Annabelle. “I don’t regret it, you know, and I certainly don’t regret you. Because you gave me a gift that I probably would never have gotten, and I thank you for that.”
I nod, not sure what else to say.
I don’t care if he’s gay or straight. As long as he treats my girl the way she deserves to be treated. That’s all I can ask for.
I watch as they leave, and when they do, I hear Blaze come up behind me. I asked him to stay in my room. He got back last night with a bag and crawled into bed with me and went to sleep. My stomach’s feeling better, even if it is black and blue today, and my lip is healing slowly.
Blaze’s hands wrap around my waist, and he is careful where they go.
“Bed and fuck, or fuck then bed?” he asks.
“Neither,” I say, pulling away. “Did you hear?”
He nods. “Puts me at ease knowing he more than likely wants me rather than you.” He smirks, his scarred eyebrow rising.
“You aren’t moving in,” I tell him.
“Yes, I am.”
“No, you are not. I’m not one of your girls who you can boss around. This… between us, will go slow.”
Blaze lifts his hands and rubs the back of his head, his arm flexing when he does so, showcasing his muscles. I have to resist the urge to move forward and touch him, because if I touch him that will lead to many other things.
“How about you start by introducing me to your world?” I ask him.
“My world?”
“Take me to one of your parties as your woman, not one of the girls.”
“Annabelle isn’t allowed to come,” he says, straight-faced.
I laugh. “As if. I wouldn’t allow her to come anyway,” I tell him.
Messaging Mitchell, he replies straight away that he would love to have Annabelle tonight. I’ve seen his place and approve of it. He made a room for Annabelle, and it’s full of toys and everything a toddler could love, need, or want.
“You really want to come?” Blaze asks.
I eye his naked chest and step forward, my fingertips dancing along his skin. “Yes, deciding factor and all.” I smile, pulling away. “Plus, you need to leave. I have a few things I have to do today, and I’m child free,” I say, waving back at him as I walk away to get ready.
“I can come,” he says.
“No, you can’t,” I say, ending that discussion.
I told Blaze I would drive myself and not to come back for the rest of the day. I went and had lunch with Annabelle and Mitchell, and then went home after to change to get ready to go over to the clubhouse. I would usually get Rochelle to come, but since she’s in her second trimester of pregnancy, I want to leave her be. She’s been great to me for a while now, and she needs time alone with Marcus before that baby comes and steals all their time away.
Driving down the long driveway, the gate is opened for me, and before I even get out of the car, Blaze is there waiting for me, hand out ready for me to place mine in it. When he grabs me, he pulls me to him so my body falls into his, and he kisses my lips.
“I’ve missed these today,” he says, then pushes his lower body on me so I know exactly how much he has missed me.
Music blares behind us, and I pull away to look around. I see a fire pit and the bar at the back where the rooms are located.
“Is it busy?” I ask him. “Are any of my girls here?”
“About that…” He looks behind him then back to me. “Rebecca is here. I didn’t invite her, but I sure as shit can send her away.”
“Would you do that for anyone?” I ask him. “Send people away because they don’t like them?”
He laughs. “No, only you.”
“She can stay. I can handle Rebecca.”
“I’m sure you can,” he says as we start walking.
Blaze’s hand goes to my ass, gripping it through my jeans as we walk in. A few people look to us. I’ve been here before, so none of this is new to me, but now I’m attached to their leader, so it’s a bit different.
Is that even what they call him? I have no idea.
How will the girls handle me being here? Because every time I’ve been here before, they all whisper about him, and I know they all want him.
He is their unicorn.
Unattainable.
And now he’s mine.
“You already know Snow,” Blaze says, sitting, then reaching for me and pulling me to his lap.
“Yes, I do.”
“How you doing?” Snow asks.
“Good,” I tell him honestly.
What happened didn’t affect me as badly as other people believed it would. I don’t know why. But I know I’m fine. Let’s face it, it could have been a lot worse. Way worse than it was.