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Feeling pretty pleased with their purchases, they handed off their purchases to Cork and headed for a tiny coffee shop. Settling into a booth, they sucked on an iced coffee and waited for their food.
“Darkness talked about renovating his upstairs and wants us to snag him some furniture. What do you think he’d like?” Tiffany asked.
Rose’s lips pursed. “I don’t think we should go by what he would like. We should pick furniture a little girl would feel at home growing up in.”
Tiffany thought about it and nodded. “I agree. Maybe we can find something that’s a happy medium. They make cribs that turn into little beds and stuff like that.” She sighed and confided, “It feels a little strange buying for someone I barely know.”
“I’ve known Darkness for years,” Rose said with a wave of her hand. “He’s weird and cool and strange and amazing all at once. Maybe we can find furnishings kind of like him…you know, eclectic.”
Grinning at her enthusiastic, soon-to-be sister-in-law, Tiffany agreed. “It’s kind of sweet that he trusts me with something this important. He hardly knows me.”
“Everyone can tell that you’re a nice person, and you have good taste in clothing, so it’s not a gigantic jump to think you might be up for the job of picking out some cool furniture.”
A server stopped by, dropping food onto the table for them. Digging into their burgers, Rose moaned. “There is nothing in the world like a gourmet burger.”
“I have to agree. These are the best I’ve ever had.”
“My dad discovered this place when we were little. We used to come here every Monday night. He used to say it was our reward for making it through a weekend.”
Tiffany laughed. “Your family must have had more interesting weekends than mine.”
“Maybe,” the teen allowed. “Growing up around the club was fairly stable. Unlike some clubs, the Blind Jacks are like a real family and weather the storms together, and with Darkness holding the gavel, things are pretty stable.”
Tiffany choked on her burger. Thumping herself on the chest, she coughed. Washing the lump of meat down with a drink of coffee, she tried to get her head around that little nugget of information.
Rose giggled at her reaction. “I’ll just bet you can’t imagine anyone more unstable than Darkness.”
Choosing her words carefully, Tiffany said softly, “Let’s just say he’s a little more unhinged than I’m used to.”
Frowning, the teen leaned forward. “He’s not unhinged. Besides, word from the grapevine says you freaked out on my brother the other night, and he had to restrain you.” Glancing away, she sighed. “I did that for a few weeks after my rape. Since my brother ain’t the kind of man to abuse women, I know he wasn’t the cause of your meltdown. That makes me think you’ve been around guys that are way more unhinged than our club president.”
Shifting uncomfortably in her seat, Tiffany tried to figure out how to disclose her past to an underaged person. Saying nothing would be seen as disrespectful to the young woman trying to be her friend. Then again, how much was too much to disclose to a sixteen-year-old?
Settling for the middle ground, she decided to spare the girl the gritty details. “I was in an extremely abusive marriage. My husband was a rich asshole who got off on mental and physical abuse. Sometimes, I still have bad dreams. Your brother knows all about it and has been nothing but nice to me.”
“Well, it sucks that you had to go through such a miserable first marriage. I hope it didn’t last long, and I’m really sorry that happened to you.”
Swallowing thickly, Tiffany hauled in a much-needed lungful of air. “Thanks, Rose. That’s sweet of you to say. I didn’t mean Darkness was unhinged like that. Just that he’s a little more unpredictable and negative than I’m generally used to seeing in a man. Except for my ex, of course, who was totally unglued.”
“I just want you to know that Darkness is nothing like that,” Rose said seriously. “He’s weird, anxious, and says inappropriate things, but he’d never hurt a person just for the fun of it. All the brothers are good men. Most of them are just following in their father’s footsteps or came up rough and joined for lack of better options.”
Tiffany tilted her head. “Do you mind if I ask why you seem so preoccupied with Ace?”
Sitting up straighter, Rose grinned. “I don’t have the hots for him or anything like that. I just feel connected to him because of his brother. If you think about it, we both got a pretty raw deal. I might have gotten sexually assaulted, but Ace ended up with all the dirty looks and loathing that should have, by all rights, been dumped on his brother.”
“Too bad they look so much alike,” Tiffany remarked, feeling genuinely sorry for the guy.
“Yeah, it’s just another little part of life that kind of sucks. I guess I keep thinking if we partner up and get friendly, everyone will see he’s nothing like his brother and leave him the hell alone.”
“Sweetheart, it’s not your job to protect your abuser’s twin brother,” Tiffany said sympathetically.
Anger flashed in Rose’s eyes, and her knuckles turned white around her cup. “Ace is not just some psycho’s twin brother. That’s not his defining characteristic as a human being. If it is, that would make my defining characteristic be a poor little rape victim.”
“I didn’t mean to insinuate that, Rose. I’m just concerned that you take too much on yourself by worrying over Ace. That can’t be healthy.”
Leaning a little closer, Rose spoke in a low, clear voice. “I’m not some brainless little adolescent tripping through life, trying to save the world. I’m sixteen, and I’ve made straight As since first grade. Yours truly is on track to graduate by the time I’m seventeen. I have every reason to believe I’ll be accepted into premed at Denison when I graduate. I grew up in this club, punched my first whore at twelve and pretty much coordinate the club’s biggest annual charity event with whatever help I can scrounge up.”
Tiffany grabbed her arm. “Calm down, I—”
