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As if he knew what I was feeling, Rage leaned over and kissed my temple. “You’re doin’ great, baby. Just a little while longer.” I nodded, not trusting myself to even whisper a reply.
Sting glanced over at us and nodded. Rage returned his nod before whispering to me, “Stay here. Don’t move.”
He stood, putting himself between me and Dustin’s line of sight. Stepping forward, he waited until he knew he’d caught Dustin’s gaze before moving toward the table where Sting and the other officers sat.
“Virgil! Hey, man!” Dustin’s face split into a grin. I was surprised to notice it wasn’t exactly a happy, welcoming smile. If anything, he looked nervous. I got the impression he hadn’t expected Rage to be here.
“Rage. My name’s Rage. You know that.”
“Sorry, bro. I’m just relieved you’re here. You can help me find Pepper.”
Rage nodded. “I could. What if I told you I knew where she was, and that she was safe?”
“Oh, man! That’d be a miracle! I need to see her. To see her and the baby.”
“The baby.” Rage repeated, staring hard at Dustin. “Why weren’t you there when the baby was born?”
“I was in jail, Vir-Rage! I couldn’t get there.”
“You didn’t call me to go to her. Why?”
He shrugged. “Didn’t wanna bother you. Besides, Pepper never liked you. You made her uncomfortable.”
“Why didn’t you call Pepper and tell her where you were? She was all by herself at the hospital.”
“Why do you care?” Dustin’s control slipped that little bit before he gathered himself and resumed his caring attitude. “I only had one phone call. I thought it better to call a lawyer so I could get out as quickly as I could. I really thought I’d be out before she had the baby.”
“And the three months you were in jail? Surely you had phone privileges.”
“She’d just gotten a new number right before I got arrested. I didn’t know her number, and we didn’t have a landline.”
All plausible excuses. I’d give him one thing. He’d really planned this out. Which wasn’t like Dustin. He never paid attention to details. Rage had to know this too. Would he believe Dustin?
“You never really answered my question about what you’d do if she didn’t want to go back to you. Suppose she left on purpose and wants nothing more to do with you? I think I told you several times she was way outta your league. Maybe she figured it out and wants to get on with her life.”
“She’s got my kid, Rage. Surely you can understand. A man’s got a right to get to know his child.”
“So, if she doesn’t want to be with you anymore, you’re going to… what? Take her to court for custody?”
“I might.” Dustin looked away from Rage, his gaze shifting around the room. Instinctively, I froze, trying to become part of the shadows. The last thing I wanted was for him to see me. “Have to get a paternity test done. Kid might not even be mine, but I thought it was for her entire pregnancy.” He stuck his chin out. “If you know where Pepper is, I got a right to see her.”
“I’m afraid you don’t have any rights here,” Sting said sharply. “This is our territory. You invited yourself in and demanded our help. Doesn’t mean we have to give it to you, or that you get to demand anything.”
Dustin looked sullen, muttering, “I just wanna see her. Need to talk to her. Me and her got some things to discuss.”
“Tell me what you want to talk to her about, and I’ll see if I can relay the message.” Rage crossed his arms over his chest. He wore a short-sleeved black T-shirt, his muscles straining the cotton. It was a blatant show of strength on his part to intimidate his brother. I had no idea if it was working on Dustin, but it damned sure worked on me. I could see his namesake again. While he was always calm and controlled around me and Cassie, now he was letting his temper peek out a little bit. I’d thought he was intimidating before I came here, but that was nothing compared to the Rage I was witnessing now.
“It’s private.”
“You don’t get to do private here, Dustin.” Rage’s voice was quiet, but there was a thread of menace that was impossible to ignore. “You don’t get to make demands or claim you have rights regarding other people or any other nonsense you’ve done in the past. Not here.”
“She’s my fiancée, Virg. It’s my duty to protect her. I can’t do that if she’s not with me.” I’d seen Dustin stand up to Rage several times in the past, but Rage had usually given in unless it was completely unreasonable. Dustin liked to push back just because he could. He’d often commented that he could get Rage to do whatever he wanted him to if he approached him the right way. I wondered if that was true. If so, I might be in trouble.
