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A ghost of a smile teased at Rory’s lips. “Let me know when that happens. Maybe then I could at least stab a few bitches in the boobs if nothing else.”
The swinging kitchen door opened, and Quinn walked in with Raider right behind her. Seeing me, Quinn’s eyes brightened. “You’re up. I was hoping we could go over to the house together and grab a few things. Raider is going to drive us in my car.”
I stuffe
d the rest of my sandwich in my mouth, nodding. “Good idea. I need to get the rest of my things packed up. I’m leaving tomorrow.”
The light in my best friend’s eyes dimmed. “I really wish you wouldn’t.”
Hearing the sadness in her voice made the burn in my chest ache more, but I couldn’t stick around just because the alternative would make her sad. She had other people to stand by her through whatever life threw her way. She was going to be fine. But I needed to get away from this place and these people before someone else succeeded in eviscerating me completely.
I didn’t tell her that, though. Instead, I gave her a grim smile. “I really need to get back and check on my mother. Maybe if I’m around more than once a month, she will start recognizing me more often than not.”
“True.” Quinn still looked upset, but she gave me a reassuring smile. “Well, let’s go get your things, then.”
Raider was already at the door, Quinn’s keys in hand. He gave me a long, hard look as he held the door for us, but he didn’t say anything. I thanked Rory and Gracie for the sandwich and followed after Quinn. Outside, I got into the back seat of my friend’s little Honda and stayed silent as he drove us back to the house we were technically still renting. Every few minutes, he would look at me in the rearview mirror.
Less than two miles from the house, I was fed up with his grumpy silence and judging looks. “What?” I demanded, meeting his gaze in the mirror. “Just spit it out and get it over with.”
Quinn shot him a look that told him to be good, but his eyes were still on me and he didn’t see her. “I don’t get you.”
“I don’t really give a fuck. You don’t matter to me.”
“Back at ya. But you matter to Quinn, and that’s what matters to me. Your leaving will upset her, so I’m not just going to sit back and let you hurt her when you walk away.”
“Raider,” Quinn tried to cut in, but neither of us paid her any attention.
“I’m sorry that my leaving will hurt Quinn. I don’t like it when she hurts any more than you do. But I have a mother sick in a nursing home who rarely even recognizes me. I think taking care of her is more important right now.”
“She’s right,” Quinn interrupted before we could get into the heated argument that was already charging the air in the small car. “I know what it’s like to have a sick mother. That can take up your entire life. Leave her alone, Raider.”
A muscle ticking in his jaw, he lowered his gaze from the mirror. She reached over and took his hand, giving it a squeeze, and I turned my gaze out the side window. As irritated as I was over Raider trying to butt in where he had no business, I was glad Quinn had someone who would do that to try to make her happy. I still wasn’t a fan of the manwhore, reformed or not, but as long as he took care of Quinn and their baby, I wouldn’t have to cut his favorite appendage from his body.
The house was still a mess. Neither of us had been back to the house for longer than needed to pick up a few essentials since the Italians had shot it up. Inside, glass and bullets still littered the floor. Bullet holes decorated the walls as well as the furniture. How no one had been hit by one of those bullets was still a mystery to me. It was a miracle, that was for freaking sure.
The door to my bedroom was usually locked, but it had been kicked in. I figured whoever had come to look for the USB drive had done it to get in. Ignoring the splintered doorframe and the size-fourteen boot print on the door itself, I crossed to the closet and pulled out my largest suitcase. Without bothering to fold my clothes, I dumped them into the case, hangers and all.
Once it was full to the point of bursting, I struggled to zip it closed and then grabbed the matching smaller case, doing the same. The whole process took less than twenty minutes, before I was going into the bathroom and grabbing all the things that belonged to me, which took even less time. I kept my makeup and most of my hair products in my gym bag for work, but I still had a few things here that needed to go with me.
When I was done, I struggled to get the cases out of my room. Raider and Quinn were in the living room, and Raider grumbled something under his breath before moving forward to take the luggage from me. Lifting them both, he carried them outside, tossing them none too gently into the trunk of the car.
From the doorway, I paused and looked back at the house. From the beginning, I knew I wouldn’t be here long, but it had been the closest thing to a real home I’d ever had. Not even when my mother was in her right mind had I felt like I was really at home with her in our apartment. But this place, with Quinn and Colt to come home to at the end of my shift, had become a safe haven for me.
Swallowing hard, I forced myself to look away and turned to leave. Quinn stood right in front of me, her eyes full of hope. “You will always have a place to come back to, Kelli. Whatever happens down the road, I hope you will eventually come back to us.”
I didn’t want to argue or hurt her more than I already had, so I gave her a grim smile and nodded. “Yeah. Thanks, babe.”
Chapter 13
Colt
From the second I woke up again, I was pulled in a hundred different directions. Everyone wanted something, needed help with this or that and something else. All I wanted was to find Kelli and work out this thing between us, get her to forgive me so I could focus on the shitstorm the rest of my life was.
Gracie told me when I went looking for Kelli that she’d gone back to her house with Quinn and Raider for some things, so I hadn’t put up much of a fight when Hawk and Spider asked me to help out with a few things. She was with my brother, so I knew she would be okay. We could talk later, I assured myself as I rode across town on a couple errands so Spider didn’t have to leave Willa, who was still in bed more often than not from the whole blood pressure situation she was experiencing.
While I was out, I got a dozen more calls from not only Spider and Hawk, but Trigger and Raven as well. All of them needed something from somewhere, and I was starting to wish I’d taken one of the trucks instead of my bike. By the time I got back, it was dark and I was starving.
Grabbing a few sandwiches out of the kitchen, I went to my room to take another shower to get rid of the chill that had set into my bones while I was out. The weather was getting colder, and I wouldn’t have been surprised if it snowed later that night. On average, Creswell Springs got around ten to twelve inches of snow during the winter months. Nothing too major, but this year wasn’t going to be like all the rest. It was going to be a bad winter.
