I blinked at her as I absorbed what she was saying. “In a weird way, I can kind of see why that would motivate them…”
“Without knowing exactly what it is they’re doing, that’s the best example I can come up with. Or at least the only one I really want to think about. Because thinking about you and my niece or nephew being hurt makes me want to cry.”
“Me too,” I said, sniffling a little. Not the thought of me getting hurt but the idea that something could happen to my baby.
“My suggestion is to see if you can talk to the other women who are with these guys and get their thoughts on everything, then go from there. Don’t make any rash decisions in the meantime.”
“That’s a good plan.”
“Is there anything that’s like…all bets are off?” she asked.
I shrugged, giving her a helpless look. “I don’t know. This is so far out of my depth I don’t really know what’s going to bother me. Or what they’re even really doing.”
“You need to talk to Bolo again,” she told me.
“I know,” I sighed.
“Are you worried that if you pry he’ll change his mind about being with you?”
I looked up and stared into gray eyes that were a few shades lighter than my own. It always shocked me how perceptive Sophie was. A reasonable woman would be worried about his dangerous lifestyle, I was worried that if I rejected his dangerous side he’d reject me. And she knew it. “How-” I shook my head. “Never mind.” She never knew how she seemed to just pluck thoughts out of my head. It really just came down to how close we were and that we were very similar people. Being only a year apart my parents had always joked that we were like twins. “Yeah, I sort of am.”
“He’s not stupid enough to lose you over something like that. If he wasn’t willing to answer questions, he wouldn’t have told you, andthatwould have been a huge red flag.”
“Him not telling me he commits crimes is more of a red flag than him committing crimes?” I asked, squinting my eyes at her.
She shrugged. “Well, yeah. ‘Cause then he’s hiding it. At least he’s told you. That also means he’s serious about this. And that he trusts you.”
I laid a hand on my belly. “I sure hope he is serious about it.”
She laughed. “Sis, I think if you weren’t a flight risk he’d already have a ring on your finger.”
Giving her a skeptical look, I shook my head. “That would be fast, even for him.”
She shot my look right back at me. “Uh huh.”
“You don’t even know him,” I reminded her.
“I know what you’ve told me. Seems like he’s a really smart guy and he’s figured out that you don’t trust very easily and is biding his time. But the man calls or texts you every day, multiple times a day. He doesn’t let more than a few days go by before you see each other again. He-” She paused, studying the look on my face. “I’m going to stop now because I can see the panic trying to claw its way into your logical brain. Just trust me. That man isintoyou.”
“I’m having his baby,” I replied. She was right. Her bringing up all the ways that he was sticking close by was making me realize just how involved in my life he’d become in a very short amount of time. It was making my trust issues flare up. “What if he’s love bombing me?”
She rolled her eyes. “He’s not love bombing you. He’s trying to make sure you realize he wants you without making you bolt.”
“Sure. It sounds reasonable when you say it like that.” I shoved all thoughts of Bolo out of my mind, mostly to make sure the irrational side of my brain didn’t take over and destroy the tentative happiness I was starting to build with the sexy biker. It would be far too easy to let that side win and do something stupid. “Can I ask you something else? Totally off topic?”
“Of course.” She set her plate down, having finished eating while we were discussing the weird direction my dating life had taken.
“It’s…sensitive.”
She focused on me. “We can talk about anything, Dev.”
“I know. I just want you to know I love you first.”
She tensed, so I knew she knew what was coming. “I’m fine.”
“Are you really though?” I asked, searching her eyes. “This wasn’t my plan, but I’m glad it’s happening. I don’t want to make any of this hard for you.”
“I’m so thrilled for you.” Her voice was husky now as she held back tears. “I miss Eric every day. Just because he’s gone doesn’t mean you don’t get to fall in love, get married, have kids. I wouldnevertake that from you, or our sisters.”
