Page 49 of Dark Bonds

“Okay, have fun ladies!”

Chase drove away as I hooked my arm through hers.

“Food?”

“Definitely. I’m famished.”

We walked inside and were seated in a booth at the back. We were grateful, given the conversation we were about to have was going to be anything but PG-13. To my credit, I held off until we were seated.

“Oh my God, you were with Chase!” I squealed.

“Shhh, the whole diner just heard you! Yes, I was with Chase.”

“Apparently, I’ve missed a lot. So, let’s deal with the elephant in the room first. I just…”

“No,” she cut in, “my apology from last night stands. You might have been the one who dragged me there but the decisions I made that night were my own. I think the issue was the fact my actions were so out of character for me.”

“Maybe so, but you were becoming more and more withdrawn. I don’t think you even realized it. I maybe should have dragged you to a normal club, though,” I grinned.

“What it boils down to is I’m not mad at you. Can you forgive me for being such a bitch?”

“We’re best friends. Consider yourself forgiven. Now, explain to me why Chase was dropping you off?”

Her face morphed to one of anger and the excitement fell from mine.

“Shit,” I muttered, “What the hell is that look for?”

“It has been a very eventful few days. Some good and some not so good.”

“What happened, Raven?”

“Andrew happened.”

“Andrew? That anal-retentive asshole you work with?”

“That would be the one.”

“What does he have to do with it?”

She proceeded to fill me in on her two visits with him. By the time she’d finished telling me about his reaction, I was livid. In a competition between me and her men, I wasn’t sure who would maim Andrew the worst.

“Who the fuck is he to judge you on anything? Raven, he sounds dangerous.”

“Speaking of which, there’s a little more to it.”

My eyes narrowed, my hands curled into fists, and my jaw tensed. “It got worse than him throwing a hissy fit?”

“A lot worse. I think he might be obsessed with me. Apparently, he threatened Brian and his family. That’s why he broke things off so abruptly. I was terrified when he left, so I messaged Sebastian. They were at my house in under fifteen minutes. They had me pack a bag and I’ve been staying at their place since Friday.”

“I’m sorry you didn’t think you could call me,” I said sadly.

“I did try calling you before I even called Andrew, but you didn’t answer.”

“In other words, this all could have been avoided?”

“No, I think Andrew has been working very hard to insert himself into my life and this would have happened one way or another. No worries, this isn’t on you. I must have done something along the way to make him think I’d be interested in any sort of relationship with him.”

“I doubt that. Let’s stop talking about shitty things. Tell me about those boys of yours,” I said, eyes twinkling with excitement.

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