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Darcy shielded herself and her children with an umbrella. Lily clung to her leg and Cam stared down at the coffin with swollen, somber eyes.
The Old Ladies were in different stages of grief. Several of them were shedding tears. But Darcy remained stoic. I wondered if she’d cried at all, or if she was in complete shock over the loss of her love.
Despite being able to move in the world again after being set free from the chains of lockdown, I didn’t breathe deeply. It still felt like there was something waiting in the shadows for me.
After the funeral, we congregated at Darcy’s. Jazz and Brielle—Brooklyn’s business partners—had set up for the wake. There were tasteful white flowers, platters of food, and the entire kitchen was full of liquor and drinks.
It was all so familiar, because we’d just gone through the same thing not even a month prior. Even though I’d only been with the club for a little while, I could already see that each loss took the club down another notch.
Raze stood with Rach in the living room. Both of them were sipping drinks, and it seemed to me that something was brewing between them. I kept the smile to myself.
Willa was coming out of the bathroom as Viper and I made our way to the kitchen.
“Hey,” she said, leaning over and giving me a hug.
“Hey. How’s Savage?”
“Already ornery,” she said with a slight smile. “Ready to get out of the hospital.”
“When’s he going to be discharged?” I asked.
Viper placed his hand on my shoulder and moved toward me so Kelp and Bones could move past him.
“Probably in a week,” she said.
“Did Brooklyn tell you what we’re doing?” I asked.
“No.”
“We’re going to cook for you guys—and for Darcy. Make it easy for you to eat well over the next few weeks.”
“Oh, that’s too sweet,” Willa said, tears glistening in her eyes. She hastily brushed them aside.
I squeezed her hand and then looked at Viper. “Food?”
He nodded. Viper placed his hand on Willa’s shoulder to comfort her. Surprise flitted across her face.
“I see you,” I said to Viper as we headed to the dining room. I handed him a small plastic plate.
“See me what?”
“I see you softening,” I said. “Getting comfortable around people.”
He didn’t say anything as he spooned egg salad onto his plate.
“I promise not to tease you about it.”
“Yeah, right,” he muttered.
I chucked him under the chin. “Could it be that you actuallylikemy teasing?”
“I’ve learned to live with it.” He shot me a wink.
We took our plates of food and wandered outside. The rain had stopped, and the Old Ladies sat together at the glass patio table. The brothers gave them space and gathered on the other side of the backyard.
I looked at Viper and he nodded. He went to join his brothers and I headed to the table and took an empty chair.
Darcy was staring into her glass.
