I hadn’t seen the woman who’d brought me a bunch of clothes in a few weeks. Nor had I given her a check for a donation like I’d wanted to, either.
“I feel so cut off from the world right now,” I said.
“Yeah, I feel you.”
“I haven’t even called Shelly,” I admitted. “To tell her about, well, everything.”
No matter how much I tried to keep her in the fold, she wasn’t part of the Blue Angel family, and therefore would always be on the outskirts. She should’ve been the first person I talked to when I found out about Knight. But we were on lockdown and Rachel, Darcy, Joni, and Allison were here so I’d turned to them.
“This is fucking ridiculous!” came Zip’s roar.
“I’ve a right to be concerned!” Colt yelled back.
All movement and conversation stilled as the fight down the hall unfolded.
“Concerned, yes. But this is fucking ridiculous. We need to be able to live our lives.”
“Get the boys. We’ll fucking vote on it,” Colt bellowed.
The Blue Angels didn’t need to be gotten since they could hear everything that was going down between Colt and Zip. With a sigh, Gray stood up and headed out back. Boxer, Reap, Torque and the others followed suit.
I finished breakfast, tossed the paper plate in the trash, and then headed back to our bedroom. I was sorting our dirty laundry when Colt filled the doorway, his face dark with annoyance.
“Vote didn’t go your way, did it?” I asked.
“Democracy’s a democracy,” Colt said, but his voice was filled with anger. “Why are people so shortsighted?”
I nudged the door closed so we could speak in private. “I think because people make most of their decisions emotionally.”
“Yeah.” He shoved a pair of dirty boxers into the bag. “You’re right about that.”
“They’re right, too, though. Can’t live your life in fear, waiting for something to go wrong.”
He let out a sardonic laugh. “That’s just it. I know things are gonna go wrong. It’s just a matter of time.”
“Hell of an outlook on life, Colt.”
“You disagree with me? You? Based on what you’ve lived through the last few weeks?”
“Sure, life is one shit storm after another,” I agreed. “But look what it can bring. I’ve got you. I’ve got the girls. New family.”
“Knight.”
“He’s not my family,” I protested.
“We haven’t gotten a chance to talk about it the last few days, have we,” he murmured. “Sorry for that, babe. Sounds like you can use an ear.”
“I could use my own bed,” I stated.
“Yeah?” He slowly came toward me, backing me up until I hit a wall. “What do you want to do in that bed?”
I grinned. “Sleep for hours without being awakened by screaming children or fighting couples.”
“Everyone is clearing out except for the Coeur d’Alene brothers. I don’t want to take you home—not while all this shit with Dev and the cartel is still a loose end.”
I sighed and reached up to wrap my arms around his neck. “I know you couldn’t control the outcome of the vote and everyone is taking their families home. But if you want to stay, if it’ll make you feel better, then I won’t fight you on this.”
He leaned down and captured my lips with his. “Thank you.”