Page 58 of Glacier

“I’m sorry,” she said, waving a hand and sniffling. “I’m not a crier. Don’t have time for falling apart. But that has to be the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me. Are you sure you want to be friends with someone like me? Even with my history at the club” she hesitated, then straightened her shoulders and met my eyes, “with Glacier?”

I understood why she was asking. Most women would have a problem with it—but I wasn’t most women.

I raised an eyebrow. “Are you going to make a play for him now he’s with me?”

Rita looked horrified. “No,” she gasped. “I’d never go after a taken man.”

“Well, then, we’ll have no problem.” I shrugged. “I told Glacier the same thing—who he slept with in the past is none of my business. But if he fucks around on me now, I’ll cut his balls off before I slit her throat.”

I wasn’t joking. I’d do it in a heartbeat. I didn’t share.

I bit back a chuckle at their expressions—but I saw the respect in their eyes.

“As neither of you is interested in my man, I don’t see why we can’t be friends.”

Rita still looked stunned.

Harriet smiled and turned to her friend. “Told you. Juju is a different breed of woman. I’m glad she’s one of ours. Now, I think this celebration calls for chocolate.”

She reached over, pulled a chocolate pie from the stack at the end of the counter, and placed it between us. Opening the drawer to her left, she took out three forks and handed one to Rita and me.

I took mine and held it up, keeping my eyes on Rita. “To new friends and new beginnings.”

I tapped my fork against Rita’s, then Harriet’s. They both smiled and tapped mine back.

“To new friends,” they chorused their agreement.

We dug into the pie.

We didn’t bother taking the desserts outside. Instead, we set them up along the counter with bowls ready for when the men came looking—because we knew they would.

I liked Rita and Harriet. They had a different take on the club than the men. They gave me the history—what it was like before Glacier took over.

“You need to know this,” Rita said. “It’ll help you understand why we think you’ll be good for the club, but for Glacier in particular.”

They didn’t leave anything out—from how their moms were treated to how dirty the club had been. The brothers who did time. The ones who were killed because of bad deals the previous President made.

How Glacier cleaned up the club.

He was only eighteen when he took over, which shocked me, but I could see it. My man was a man of action. He might do illegal things, but underneath it all, he had a good heart. He cared about his people.

I could see he was respected by his brothers—and it wasn’t through fear.

That was how the men found us when they walked into the clubhouse. The surprise on their faces made me want to smack them and roll my eyes.

My eyes caught Glacier’s the second he came through the door. I wasn’t sure what he saw on my face, but he walked straight to me, grabbed me, and claimed my lips in a hard kiss—only releasing them when I melted against him.

“You okay, Juju?” he whispered in my ear.

“Yeah, honey. I’m good.” I smiled up at him. “I’m so proud of you.”

He pulled back, shocked into lifting his dark glasses. I looked into his beautiful eyes and my heart tripped wildly.

“You are? The fuck? What did I do?”

“Everything, Simon. You did everything.” I kissed him again, softer this time. “Fucking love the Kings, baby.”

It was a good night.