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“Her kids are cute. They’ll be a handful.”
“I know. Rosemary and Woodrow will help. I can get people to do shit to make it less work.”
Ruin exhales hard. “What if you fuck this up?”
“I won’t.”
“Nomad, I’m not your live-in buddies or Landry. I know the real you. I’ve seen what you’re capable of.”
Cracking my neck, I grumble, “I’ve got this handled.”
“Kati’s bullshit sent you into a dark place. I don’t want to see that again.”
“Landry’s not a shallow cunt like Kati.”
“Let’s be honest here. You don’t know if she is or isn’t. You admitted to me weeks ago how you hadn’t even spoken to this woman. Now, she’s in your house with her kids. That’s a lot of pressure.”
“You’re not telling me anything I don’t know,” I mutter, erasing the space between us. “I tried doing shit right, but my plan got fucked sideways. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go down. I’m adjusting to the new circumstances, so I don’t need you cutting me off at the knees.”
“Thisisme supporting you.”
“It doesn’t feel that way, Ruin.”
“Because you think we’re all out to get you. I don’t know why you blow cold air at your club family, yet you trust Woodrow and his woman.”
“They never ragged on me for Kati.”
Ruin glares hard, revealing the asshole he hides under his “man of the people” bullshit. “I never said a damn thing. Why the fuck would I? I married a moron who nearly killed my kid.”
Snarling at his bullshit, I point out, “It’s fucking adorable that you remember shit that way. Real convenient for you. But I remember it differently. Like how you said I should get a DNA test as if you knew something.”
“I got one when Joie was born. We live a wild lifestyle. I didn’t trust my woman, so why would I trust Kati?”
“Uh-huh,” I mutter.
“Look, I know that bitch hurt you in a way that’s not easy to walk off. You wanted that baby far more than you wanted her. That’s why I’m worried your thing with Landry isn’t so much about finding a woman as your desire for a broodmare.”
“That word doesn’t mean what you think it does.”
“She’s carrying a baby. Her man is dead. That kid will grow up thinking you’re its father,” he says and then leans back and shakes his head. “Tell me that you didn’t ask Kati to stay, even after you knew the baby boy wasn’t yours.”
I look him in the eyes and speak slowly. “I didn’t want that kid once I knew it wasn’t mine. I’d always hate it for being her cheating baby. Even if I could see past it, I’d need to put up with her. I’m not like you, Ruin. I couldn’t live with someone I didn’t want just to make nice for the kid. Once I knew Kati wasn’t the woman I imagined, it was over.”
“And what happens if you find out Landry isn’t what you’ve imagined?”
“That’ll be different.”
“How?”
“Becauseshe’sdifferent. Kati was like a shiny ring, all brand new and sparkling. But under the bright veneer, she was a piece of crap. Landry isn’t shiny like that. She’s like one of those earthy gemstones. You can chip away at her surface, but she’s the same person underneath. I felt it right away. After spending all this time watching and listening to her, I know I’m right.”
“What if you aren’t? Humor me here and explain what happens if you chip away at her surface and find something that makes her unacceptable. What if she’s sneaky or cruel? The woman has five fucking kids, and you killed the man who paid her bills.”
“He broke that little girl’s arm and elbowed Landry in the fucking face. What if she lost her baby? The guy deserved it.”
“Yeah, you’ll hear no argument from me about him ending up in the ground. But we don’t go hunting assholes every day. This guy sucked, but he was paying for those kids. What happens if you don’t want her?”
“Like I told Armor, I’ll make sure they’re okay.”
