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"That's not Esme's fault, Benji," Effie says softly.
"Never said it was, but surely you knew who he was and who his father was?" he says pointedly.
My anger whips through me. The fuck is wrong with him?
"No, I didn't," Esme says, keeping her head held high. "Tell me, Mayhem, do you know everything about Effie? About her family?"
Silence spreads throughout Esme's home. All my brothers are glaring at Mayhem. I get it, he's hyper protective of his woman and kids, but fuck, he needs to watch who he's talking to. I'm not letting him get away with talking to her like she's in the fucking wrong.
"What about this home? You own it, right? You're a schoolteacher. This is a good neighborhood. How are you able to afford somethin' like this?"
"Enough," I snap. "I'm warnin' you, May, keep your fuckin' mouth closed," I snarl as I glare at the fucking asshole.
A soft hand reaches out and grips my arm. I glance down and see Esme watching me, her eyes focused solely on me. "It's okay," she whispers. She releases me and starts to rock Tyson in her arms. "My granny died. She was rich, and she left my brother and I money. I had enough money to purchase this home and have it renovated. I rented it out to a couple for three years and was able to restore some of my savings from it. Anything else you'd like to know that you have no entitlement to knowing?"
Serenity laughs. "There's my girl," she praises. "Also, May, you don't ever talk to her like that again. I've watched my best friend be emotionally and mentally abused by that asshole for the past eight years. I won't allow anyone else to treat her like that."
His brows knit together. "What?" he snarls. "What the fuck?"
"You're so fuckin' quick to judge everyone, May, you never take a look at what's actually happenin'. Had you actually looked at the girl, you'd have seen how broken she is," Preach hisses. "I'm with Seri. You don't ever fuckin' talk to her like that again. You do, we're gonna have problems."
"Same," Shadow rumbles, while Storm nods his head in agreement.
"Judging the way Reaper's looking at you, May, you'd do best to keep clear of him. You fucked up and that's on you. Now, back to the matter at hand," Ace says as he turns to Esme. "Do you know much about the business Harry and his father are in?"
She shakes her head, her eyes wide as saucers. "No. He always told me that his father worked in a corporate job but never what it was. I never cared to ask, to be honest. I knew he was rich, but I didn't need his money. I worked my ass off to get through school and become a teacher."
Ace nods. "You did work your ass off," he says with a grin.
"How do you know?" she asks with a raised brow.
"Esme, you've been around my woman and kids. Eda loves you?—"
"You had my background checked," she surmises. "I understand that. Maybe you should have let Mayhem look at the file. It would have helped him not put his foot in his mouth."
I can't help but chuckle. I love that she's not afraid to speak her mind. That asshole Jacobson hasn't completely destroyed her. I slide my arm around her waist and pull her into me. "So, what's goin' to happen now?" I ask, wondering how we're gonna go about this. That fucker isn't getting anywhere near Esme again. I'll break the fucker's jaw before he even gets close.
"I'm goin' to give Makenna a call, find out what she knows about the fuckers. If anyone knows the ins and outs of the businessmen in New York, it's her and her husband. Once we have all the intel, we'll be able to go from there. You are under the protection of the Fury Vipers, Esme. That means anyone comes near you, they'll have us to deal with,” Ace promises.
She shakes her head. "No, you don't have to do that. Please, I don't want anyone to get into trouble."
"Don't worry yourself about that. Focus on healing from that motherfucker. I'm sure Reaper has that covered though."
"You make this?" Preacher asks before Esme can respond to the prez. "Es, this is the fuckin' shit. You cook like this all the time?"
I watch as she blushes, her cheeks bright pink. She lifts her shoulders and shrugs, all the while keeping her focus on the little boy in her arms. She's fucking shy. It's cute as hell.
"She's a great cook, and she's an even better baker. Although, don't tell Octavia that. We're still reeling from the last time someone told her that."
Esme's shoulders begin to shake. "Poor Tavia," she says through her laughter. "She seemed to take it as a personal challenge. I love Tavia's baking."
"You got any baked goods?" Storm asks, his eyes bright with glee. "I'll be able to judge who's better."
"That ain't a lie. The man eats everythin' Octavia bakes," Shadow says with a grin. "Storm has a fuckin' sweet tooth."
"Girlie, do you?" Storm asks.
"Of course I do, but you do realize that I'm not a girl, right? I'm twenty-six years old."
