“Why don’t you do it?”
“No one wants to see a fifty-five-year-old man kicking ass with his shirt off.”
“You’re in better shape than Zeke. The chick that just left looked at you like a lollipop.”
“She is my daughter’s age.”
“Maybe, but she isn’t. Oceane might be dead, but you aren’t.”
Dalton gave his friend an angry glance.
“Don’t give me that look. I’ve known you too long for it to work on me.”
Whip changed the subject when Dalton got up to grab another beer from the fridge.
“When you going to hit the road?”
“In the morning.” Twisting the top off, he took a drink. “I already booked my flight. Keep an eye on my bike until I come back?”
“Brother, we both know you won’t be coming back anytime soon. I’ll give it a week before you send someone to pick it up.”
“I should be back in two at the most. Won’t be staying long. Have a few other friends I promised to visit.”
“Stay away from them, Hollywood. Some good ol’ days aren’t worth revisiting. I haven’t been back for a visit since I left, and we’re not that far away. No one is left who is worth visiting anyway; most of the brothers we knew have left and formed their own clubs or found another one that has real brothers who know how to take your back, which is what I did. Best decision I ever made.”
“Marrying Nina is the best decision you ever made.”
Whip laughed. “I can’t take credit for that. Nina threatened to leave me if I didn’t.”
“I’ll stop by and see her and the kids before I leave to say good-bye.”
“Make sure you do, or I’ll let her take your bike out for a spin.”
“Then make sure you video it. Her riding a bike is something I want to see.”
“Me too.”
They sat talking until Whip looked at his watch and saw the time.
“Better be going home. Nina busts my chops if I don’t get home to say good night to the kids.”
Dalton stood up. “Thanks for letting me hang out. I appreciate it.”
“Anytime, brother. I’ll see you in the morning.”
Dalton went to his room after Whip left, already dreading going back to his former life. He had sold his home in L.A. after Oceane died but had kept their home in France. Dax would have a driver waiting for him at the airport and had reserved a hotel for him in St. Louis. Taking off his shirt, he sat down on the end of his bed to take his boots off.
Nights and mornings were the worst part of his day. He couldn’t get used to sleeping alone without Oceane by his side, and he hated to wake up in the mornings for the same fucking reason. He buried his head in his hands. The grief that was a persistent ache in his chest during the day built to agony of grief that grew worse each night the longer they were apart.
“Oceane…” The thought of burying his grief in a bottle of liquor or in another woman’s arms held no appeal. He loved his wife too much to tarnish what they had together for thirty-three years. He was stuck in an existence that no longer had the same meaning as it did before.
Grace and Dax no longer needed him, and without Oceane, he no longer had the drive to succeed as he did before.
He felt as if the best part of his life was over, and the only thing left was waiting until he would be with Oceane again. Lowering his hand, he stared grimly down at the wedding ring he had worn since the day she slid it on his finger. He vowed to never take it off the day he had put it on, and again the day he lost her. The platinum metal didn’t represent their love but the life they had forged together. A life that was now empty without her.
Taking off his jeans, he settled back on the bed and turned the lights off. Whip had offered to let him stay at his house, but he turned it down. He didn’t want to see how happy other couples were when he hadn’t taken a deep breath since Oceane had taken her last. The years they had spent together seemed to have passed in a blink of an eye. He had always joked that he spoiled Oceane, but truthfully, she had spoiled him. She ruined him for other women. Not one could ever compare to the love and devotion she had shown him during their marriage.
No one ever would.
3
“So, you’re telling me I just made a fool out of myself?”
Her friend sitting across the table didn’t show the least sympathy for her, eating her fries as if she couldn’t care less.
“Pretty much. Why in the fuck didn’t you answer your phone or look at your text messages?”