“You don’t have to. But I could use some company. Won’t you have a cup of tea?”
“Maybe. Yes. I’m sorry.” I plopped down with a sigh.
“Quit apologizing and eat a cookie. Suzie baked them.”
“Suzie?” The most closed-down female in the whole place. I’d never seen her anywhere but on the way to her room or huddled on the chair she preferred here. “She bakes?”
Thea held up the plate. “You tell me.”
I picked up one of the golden-brown triangles, chunky sugar glistening on top. “They’re pretty.”
“Taste.”
The shortbread had just enough crunch and melted in my mouth. “Oh, Goddess,” I mumbled before swallowing. “She bakes.”
“I think it will be a good thing for her.”
“And us!” I finished the first treat and reached for a second. “Definitely for us.”
“One of the things I think are most important with our ladies is finding their gifts and talents. Many don’t think they have any at all.”
“I-I wish I had some.”
“You do.” Thea poured a cup of tea from the delicate china pot embellished with pink roses. “You just don’t see them yet.”
“And you do?” I accepted the cup and waved away the cream and sugar.
“Enjoy your tea, dear.”
We sat in companionable silence for a while, and of course I ended up telling her about everything that happened and about the dates I’d accepted and had to get out of. Thea listened and kept my cup filled and never offered a bit of advice.
That was her super power, I mused, as I headed upstairs to my bedroom. And it was an amazing one.
Chapter Twelve
Aries
I’d had some things to do outside of the club, so I didn’t come in until hours after Carver and Diesel. I checked in with Thea, brought her some more donations, and asked if she knew of anything Josie needed. She suggested some nice clothing to help with her self-esteem, so I let her get on our account and order some to be delivered to the motel.
When I walked into the office, I went through the laundromat but didn’t see Josie. Tonight was a scheduled night for her, but one of the call-ins was attending.
My chest tightened. What if something happened?
“Where is Josie?” I asked, walking into Carver’s office without knocking.
“Hello to you, too, brother. She’s at the motel. I gave her the night off.”
“Why? Is she okay?”
“She is now. There was a situation in the club. She wandered in, looking for you to tell you something, and she was cornered by a jerk. He did some gross talking and freaked her out, but she wasn’t hurt physically.”
I whirled around. “I’m going to—”
“I took care of it, Aries. I got her away from him. Diesel removed the asshole, and I got to cuddle our mate and calm her down.”
That lucky fucker. Not happy about the way he came to the cuddling part, but he got to actually hold our mate?
Fucker.
