Page 25 of Claim Me

“Well,heisn’t the bad guy, either.”

Stepping closer, Tack presses us apart with the palms of his hands. “No one is the bad guy.”

“No one,” Hector says and imitates Tack’s hand gesture.

Seeming confused, Jacinda shuffles closer to Natasha. Sighing, I realize everyone’s on edge.

“I appreciate you all coming up with me to talk to Indigo. I know it’s a pain to drive to the hills. We could linger a bit if you want. Maybe Caveman can share fatherhood tips.”

“No, we’re good,” Bear says, immediately lifting Hector and walking to the SUV with the booster seats. “Let’s stop somewhere for dinner as a reward for the kids being so good with the pig.”

“Pigs are smart like dogs,” Jacinda says as he picks her up and rests her in her booster seat. “I have a pig, please?”

“Maybe. But we have to wait until the baby is bigger.”

The kids lose interest in pets once they start talking about their baby sister. I figure they’ll be discussing Olívie for a while.

Tack and Bear kiss their women before joining the kids in their SUV. Soon, I’m in the middle spot between Natasha and Hunter inanother SUV. The line of vehicles makes its way out of the hills and down toward our upscale neighborhood.

“What do you want to talk about?” Natasha asks when I fall silent and just rub their baby bumps.

“I feel like I’m trying to force things with Indigo.”

“Because of the baby?”

“A little maybe. But even before then, I was assigning all this meaning to our quickie. I got to thinking we could fall in love, and I wouldn’t be alone. It would be so perfect, too. He’s part of the family. I can trust him with the girls. It’s like we’d skip over all the awkward stuff in a relationship. But that’s not a smart way to look at things. I’m acting like I’m desperate.”

“You’ve been alone for a long time.”

Tearing up, I admit, “I miss life with Sync. I want a man. I know I said I didn’t, but that was because Indigo and my brothers were making it impossible for me to date. Besides, the men I was trying to date were lame.”

“I’m going to be honest, okay?” Hunter says, and I brace myself for her brutal truth. “You and Indigo aren’t coming at this thing from healthy places. You’re lonely and longing to replicate the good times you had with Sync. Indigo has been nursing his feelings for you for years. Neither one of you is seeing the situation clearly.”

“What do I do?”

“You’re going to dinner tomorrow, right?”

“A full date with movies, too.”

“Try not to view him as your foster brother or the father of your baby. Don’t think about the past or future. Simply focus on having fun like you would with a guy on a date. See if you two have chemistry.”

“What if we don’t?”

“I don’t know.”

“What is chemistry, really?” Natasha asks. “Is love enough? Indigo isn’t a stalker with no sense of who you are. You aren’t clinging to the first man to show you interest. You two have history. You care for each other on a deep level. But are you attracted to him?”

“I always thought Indigo was sexy. But so are Bear and Tack and a lot of my foster brothers. I didn’t consider riding any of them. Of course, since our time together at the clubhouse, I’ve imagined Indigo naked a lot. His good looks seem very obvious now. I definitely want to have more sex.”

Natasha takes my hand. “I don’t know if Bear and I have chemistry. We didn’t immediately start flirting when we met like Tack and Hunter did. But once I saw Bear in a romantic way, I couldn’t see anyone else. He was the only one for me, even when I thought we couldn’t be together.”

“Does Indigo remind you of Sync?” Hunter asks.

“No. Sync seems normal and relaxed. He isn’t, of course. Indigo wears his trauma on his flesh like tattoos. It’s always there. No one spends time around Indigo without feeling how deeply troubled he is.

“Does that bother you?”

“I’d rather have someone fucked up in an obvious way than someone who hides it well. Sync was never honest. He hides his damage from himself. Even when he wanted to end things, he wouldn’t say it. When I dumped him for cheating, he just said I was making the right decision.”

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