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Constance fanned herself and grinned. “Ooh, lawd, don’t remind me. Lord love a duck. That man is something else.” Celia had no idea what the two of them were cackling about; she was still on the omega male thing and the pissing on her to mark his territory thing.
“But it’s just a ring.” Lenore and Constance both sighed hard and long, and this time it was Constance who refilled Celia’s glass as they set about trying to teach her the error of her ways.
CHAPTER 26
Riley was getting pissed when the time that she should’ve been home came and went, and there was still no sign of her. He’s been sitting here alone, stewing, not fit for company. Even Eileen had taken one look at him upon his return to the house, mumbled something under her breath, and made herself scarce.
He refused to call Celia’s stubborn ass to find out where she was, though, because he was afraid that if he did, he just might say the wrong thing this early in their relationship. He’s been trying to tell himself ever since he left her earlier that maybe he was overreacting, but each time the anger would just get the better of him again, and he’d remember how he felt when he got that phone call from Jasmine.
The woman has been a pain in the ass ever since he met her and he’d only been able to keep her in check with the fact that he was a married man. She hadn’t seemed too put off by that fact but at least she’d had the good sense not to push the issue. After his wife’s death she’d started her shit again but he thought that now that he had a woman she’d back the hell off. Now that fool had to go there without her ring.
He fought back the feeling of rejection that kept cropping up whenever his mind tries to go there. He knew that that’s not what this was, but still, it stung that his woman had taken his ring off for any reason. How can she be this damn dumb? Doesn’t she know that a man’s ring represents his claim?
He’d felt like ten kinds of fool when that clinging vine had smarmed at him on the phone. He hadn’t come right out and told her who Celia was when he asked her to meet with her; he knew his woman would be prickly, that she’d see it as him interfering with her work, and he wasn’t in the mood to deal with her shit. Now he wishes he had told Jasmine more than just that he needed a favor for someone close to him.
In one of their pillow talks, Celia had made him promise that he wouldn’t use his wealth or his power with the locals to interfere with her job, but now it seems that in trying to keep to her damn rules and regulations, he’d shot himself in the foot. “Where the hell is she?” Riley looked at his watch for the third or fourth time in as many minutes only to see that the time had barely moved.
He was contemplating saying fuck it and going out after her after all when his phone rang. He was so distracted he didn’t even bother looking to see who was calling. “Hello!”
“Boy, come and get your woman. She’s passed out drunk on my front porch.”
“Ms. Lenore?”
“Who else?” He pulled the phone from his ear and looked at it after she hung up on him. What the hell?
Riley jumped down off the porch where he’d been sitting brooding while he waited for her to come home and headed for his truck. Is she crazy? Anyone with a lick of sense knows better than to drink with Ms. Lenore and Ms. Constance. Oh, right, she’s still relatively new. He thought of such inconsequential things as he got into his truck and headed into town after her.
His anger had cooled somewhat by the time he reached Mss. Lenore’s place, but it was on the rise again when he walked up on the porch, and the drunk gave him shit. “Who called him here?” Celia scowled drunkenly and swatted at Riley, who’d come to stand in front of her, hands on his hips and towering like a sentinel.
Both Lenore and Constance tried not to laugh since the boy looked loaded for bear, but it was close. Poor Riley looked as if he didn’t know whether to be mad or glad. It’s nice to see someone take the boy down a peg or two. He could do with a good distraction after the year he’d had, what with his crazy ass wife going around killing people.
“Celia, your man is here to haul you home.” The damn girl had gone back to sleeping after she’d tried to hit her man and missed. It’s been like this for the last half an hour. Every so often, the girl would open her eyes and mumble something not fit for mixed company before her head would drop onto her chest again.
