'Cept I'll still be thinkin' of Tease long after she's gone. It's gonna take a whole truckload of beautiful bunnies to forget this woman. Goddamn you, Emilie. I can't have a girl waltzin' into my life and turnin' it upside down, just isn't me. You know, this afternoon when I went downstairs for a smoke break with Kimmi, I actually stopped to smell some roses. Like fuckin' literally. I sniffed the damn things.
I touch a hand to my forehead and smoke my cigarette, glancing over at Tease. She's been acting weird since I gave her my stupid ass speech. I've been rehearsing the damn thing since she fell asleep, fighting myself on whether I should even bring that crap up. But I gave myself the weekend to test this out, so that's what I'm going to do. She has to know about me, all the dirty truths. I won't admit to myself why I need her to know. Why I'm trying to stuff a life altering revelation into a couple o' days. I'm not even sure what I want to happen after all this. Say Tease and I get along, have a good time, then what? She stays in Triple M? The thought really ain't all that far-fetched if you think about it.
The doors to the hotel open, and my attention shifts to Margot in her jeans and her orange tank top. She has her duffel bag hanging off one shoulder, and her Triple M jacket draped over one arm. As soon as she emerges outside, the hisses start up, the insults, the name-callin'. I feel violence boiling all around us, threatening to break free. If that happens, even my Beck bullshit won't be able to save Miss Margot.
“Thank you for your sympathy,” Margot says to Austin, but his face is stoic, frozen into a blank expression. I have no idea what he's feeling right now. I sure hope Amy does because that man is going to need all the support we can give him. She hands him the jacket and he takes it, stepping aside as Margot makes the walk of shame, head down, eyes on the pavement. Kimmi refused to come down here, deciding to sit in her room instead. I wonder if she's watching on the balcony? I glance up but don't see her. Damn it Margot. Fuck you Mint. Why can't poor fucking Kimmi get a break?
Austin turns to look at Tease, and my attention shifts to her back, draped in property patches. Without hesitation, she moves forward and takes Austin's cell from his hand. The group grows quiet while she dials the number.
“Tax?” she asks and then pauses, looking out over the sun soaked pavement towards the road where Margot's heading with her bag. “Triple M's identified the shooter as one of their own.” She takes a step back, red hair billowing around her face. A moment later, she glances over her shoulder and meets my eyes. I smile at her, even though this isn't the happiest fuckin' party I ever been to. “Her name is Margot Tempe, and they're willing to release her to you. She'll be at the 5th Avenue bus station in Nashville by three o'clock.” Tease keeps watching me. I'm sure the whole of Triple M is wondering what's going on between us right now. I hope finding out Margot was the shooter will cool their jets a bit. I don't want any of that anger taken out on Tease. “And they accept your terms. We'll exchange at the Grand Bent Plaza Monday at noon.” Tease turns away from me and hands the phone to Austin.
He takes it and from her and reconfirms the information. Provided Margot doesn't run for it and actually uses that bus ticket we bought her, we might be able to appease Seventy-seven Brothers. If she doesn't, well, at least we'll have given her a chance to escape. Not that she deserves it, but hey, mercy is an underrated trait anyhow. I move forward, breaking away from the crowd and pausing behind Tease.
“The plaza then,” Austin says looking at Tease and then up at me. “I hope we can trust Tax not to screw us over?” he asks, and she needs nod.
“Melissa?” I ask because I haven't heard a damn word about her injuries. Tease turns to face me, tucking her hands into the pockets of the jeans she borrowed from Mireya. Paired with the red tank, the jacket, the purple heels … fuck me down to the border and back. I know Tease suggested we go out for burgers again, but maybe I'd rather stay in and have something else to eat. That body is makin' my damn stomach rumble.
“My brother said she was fine, and if there's anything about him to be admired, it's his honesty. You'll get what he says you'll get.” She smiles at me and tucks some of her hair behind one ear. I like how she wears it, down, parted slightly to the side. Nice and casual, no thrills. It's so fucking sexy, I lift my hand up and run my fingers through it. Tease closes her eyes and leans her head into my hand, drawing a deep exhalation of breath from my lungs. When she realizes what she's doing, she opens her eyes and steps away abruptly. “Thank you for thinking about what I said, for digging beyond the obvious. It doesn't seem like much, but finding out who shot your friend and why, this is a big deal to the club. It's going to make all the difference in how this turns out. And as far as Broken Dallas goes, I'll talk to my brother about them. He could pressure them to back off.” Austin narrows his eyes like he doesn't trust Tease, but I give him a look. He might be my President, but he's also my friend and he knows when to back off. Hell, he should be thanking the stars that Tease is around – I haven't checked out Amy's ass since I met her.