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“You got a dog?” Maria asks with a smug grin.
“Trigger brought him home from a sale today,” I sigh as I roll my eyes and laugh. “Apparently he couldn’t just leave him there. He hopped in the car and that was it. Now he’s ours.”
“Flame!” Brenna cries with laughter. “I want a dog!”
Flame and Trigger amble over and drop onto the couch next to us. “I’m sorry you’re missing your bath,” Trigger whispers in my ear. “Ghost is calling church. Then we can go home.”
“You’ll let me know if everything’s okay?” I ask, now worried. If Ghost is calling church at eight o’clock on a random Thursday, something must be happening.
“You let me worry, babe.” He leans forward, giving me a kiss square on my lips. “Henry!” Trigger calls.
The dog immediately turns towards us and scurries to our feet, plopping his head straight into my lap. “That’s mama’s good boy,” Trigger praises him.
Ghost comes stomping out of the hallway and stops in his tracks when he sees Henry. “Who the fuck got a dog?”
“We did,” Trigger admits with a grin at his president.
“You’re crazy. A new dog and two kids?” Ghost shakes his head as he leans down to pet the mutt at my feet.
It hasn’t escaped me that Henry has not left my side once since I walked through the front door three hours ago.
One by one, all of the members of the club slowly trickle in. Once everyone is here, they all disappear to the back room where they hold church.
Maria eventually retreats to the kitchen to do who knows what, leaving Brenna and I sprawled out on the couch.
Henry tentatively climbs up on the couch with me, he wiggles his way to lay behind my bent legs, resting his head on my hip. I rub my large belly and smile at Brenna as she watches me from her side of the couch. I can tell she wants to say something, but she remains quiet.
“What is it?” I finally ask her. “Just spit it out, Brenna.”
“I just want to say I’m sorry.”
“You didn’t do anything.”
“If I never would’ve come here, none of that would’ve ever happened to you.”
“Stop. Because if you never came here, Flame wouldn’t have found the love of his life, you would still be running, and I wouldn’t have another best friend. Is that what you want?”
Her eyes fall to the floor. “I guess not.”
“Exactly. Don’t ever feel like anything that happened was your fault.” I shake my head, pushing the panic away the way Sophia taught me. “I made the Instagram without your permission. I should’ve checked with you first.”
“You were just trying to be a good friend,” Brenna sighs. “You know, you never told me why you decided to make it. Why did you?”
“I knew you didn’t want to dance. It was clearly written on your face. I think you would’ve been amazing, but I knew you didn’t want to. I thought that if I could get your work out there and help you make money that way, you wouldn’t have to do something that made you uncomfortable.”
“You’re a really good friend, Pebbles.”
“You are too, Brenna.”
Brenna smiles, pushing up from the couch. She comes over to sit near my head.
“Can you keep a secret?” she whispers.
“Uhm, duh! Spill.”
“We stayed here last night, and so did Lilah and Ringer. I walked into the kitchen this morning and, I swear on everything that is holy, she was wearing an entire wedding ring set! I turned to make a cup of coffee and by the time I turned back around there was no ring, but I swear she had one on! I looked really closely and I’m pretty sure there was an indent on her finger.”
“What?” I ask, shocked.
