Total pages in book: 49
Estimated words: 45515 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 228(@200wpm)___ 182(@250wpm)___ 152(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 45515 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 228(@200wpm)___ 182(@250wpm)___ 152(@300wpm)
Rocket had set some real clothes out for me on our bed and, yes, my property cut was there. I grinned. Apple was gonna be so jealous.
I reached for my phone to snap a pic for her, only to remember I didn’t have one. Which is when I remembered that Dani and Apple would be worried. Wylde too but fuck him. He was a grown-ass man.
I sighed. No. I’d never tell a soul, but I loved Wylde as much as I did Apple and Dani. I didn’t want him to worry.
When I made it to the kitchen, I was fully dressed and sporting my new vest, skintight jeans, a white tank top that showed my belly, and fucking fabulous motorcycle boots. I found Effie and Rocket chatting and eating eggs and toast with their bacon. Along with strawberry jam. I ruffled Effie’s hair before picking up a piece of bacon from Rocket’s plate and studying it. It was crispy but there was still a speck or two of brown on it.
“You get a pass this time ‘cause you’re new, but it needed another three or four minutes.”
“Woman, it’s burnt to a crisp. Any more burned and it’d be ash.”
I blinked at him. “What’s your point?”
Effie giggled and scooped a forkful of egg through her jam and shoved it into her mouth. “I think it’s delicious.” For emphasis, she picked up a piece and popped it into her mouth.
“Don’t go takin’ his side, you little imp. We girls gotta stick together.”
“What about Gina?” Effie looked up at me, her eyes wide. “Shouldn’t we stick with her too?”
“I’m going to fix that as soon as we finish breakfast,” I said. I avoided looking at Rocket because I knew he was probably grinning. I also knew that out of the mouth of babes…
“I like Gina. She read me my favorite story three times and never once complained.”
“She did, huh?”
“Uh-huh. Are we going back to Gina’s house?”
“Yeah. We are. But. You have to promise to do what I tell you to. If I tell you to go with Byte, I want you to do it. I promise it won’t be long.”
She nodded eagerly. “I like Byte.” Then she frowned. “But Gina doesn’t. Maybe I’ll just stay with you. That way Byte doesn’t scare Gina.” She grinned and I knew I was being played. How did I know? Because it was exactly something I’d say. Besides, it was the perfect excuse I needed for me to get Gina one on one and away from the guys in the club. So, in a way, Effie had helped me play Rocket. I was good with that.
“Right. Awesome idea, kid.” I held out my hand for a high five. Which Effie gave me eagerly.
I ushered Effie out the door with Rocket right behind me. “Did that just fuckin’ happen?”
I looked up at him innocently. “What? Effie was looking out for Gina. It’s good for kids to understand and know how to protect the feelings of others. I’m so proud of her for realizing Gina was uncomfortable around Byte and since Effie doesn’t know anyone else in the compound, I know you don’t want someone else looking after her. That might scare her and Effie has to be fragile after everything that’s happened.” I barely stopped to take a breath, wanting to cover all the bases before Rocket could come up with an alternate plan.
“I’m so fucked,” he muttered before snagging my hand. “Come on, sour puss. And before you get all pissed off, you earned the nickname after this stunt.” I’d have been worried if he really looked angry that I’d managed to get around him, but he didn’t. If anything, his eyes twinkled with amusement. Almost like he was pleased I’d worked out a way to get what I wanted without defying him.
“Yep.” I didn’t look at him, letting him lead me to the big F-150 in the driveway. His bike was in the garage. Typical.
It was a short drive to the little house where Gina lived. Effie chatted the entire way, preventing Rocket from saying much about what was about to happen. Which was what I wanted so I kept a running dialogue going with the kid. She and I were going to be epic around here. I could already tell.
We pulled into Gina’s driveway and I saw her peeking out the front window behind the curtain. Yeah. Nothing fishy there.
“Come on, squirt,” I said. To Effie. Not Rocket. Though calling him squirt made me want to giggle. There were so many different ways that could be implied and I was cataloging every single one of them for use if he ever called me sour puss in front of anyone. I’d forgive him for doing it at the Iron Tzars’ barn a year ago but my benevolence only went so far. As I hoped, Rocket gave me the side eye. Yeah. He knew me. “Game, set, and match.”