Page 74 of The Prez

I roll my eyes, but grin over at her. “Yeah, whatever.”

“Do you think she was happy?” Maria asks softly. “She had to be, right? Since she had a husband and Little Raf. Elena was happy?”

Another lump forms in my throat, though my eyes still remain dry. “I think so. When I think about Elena, I think about her living the life she always wanted to live. The life she deserved after what happened to us.” Omari slides closer to me, wrapping an arm around my waist. He delicately traces the scar on my side and I shudder, remembering he said I’m not a failure when I tried to protect Mama.

“Me too, hermanito. Me too.” She swipes the tears from her face. “So, how is your motorcycle club? You still being an ornery ass to them?”

“Everything is good. I’m not ornery, I’m their president. I can’t be soft on them when I need them to do what needs to be done.” I don’t go into detail, but Maria’s husband works with me and she knows what he’s involved in. But I want to respect her house and not talk about the ins and outs of our business.

We hang around for a few more hours, talking to Maria and telling her all about Tennessee. She wants to visit, so Itold her I’ll pay for her a passport so she can come hang out with us for a few days.

After crying some more and giving us long hugs, we take our leave, having called Finn to pick us up.

We go straight to bed when we get back to Rax and Finn’s, stuffed full of good food and tired from talking well into the night.

The next morning, Rax and I visited the warehouse where they stash the drugs. We walk from table to table, checking that everything is wrapped and packaged properly.

“Looks good,” I mutter to Rax, who is following close behind me.

“Diego and I figured it’s better to pack ‘em up like this, so they’re easier to hide on transport. Who’s coming down next month for pick up?”

“Brian, Jace, and the prospect.”

Rax chuckles. “You got a new prospect? He cool?” Rax killed one of the last prospects and Finn the other. Fucking murder couple.

I shrug. “He is so far. Jace put him forward. He’s dependable. Omari’s friend was in trouble and he wasted no time getting him out of there when I called. I think he might stick around for good.”

Rax stops beside me, zipping up the bag I just looked through. “Speakin’ of stickin’ around, Omari seems like a nice guy. Gentle, like my Finn, and a spine just like him. You did good, Prez.”

I smirk at him. “What? Not gonna give me shit for dating a guy?”

“Did you give me shit?”

My smirk turns into a full smile. “No, I didn’t. I keep … I keep wondering if he’ll wise up and see that I’m no good for him. He’s soft, he’s gentle. He’s not like us. He’s innocent.”

“Remember what you said to me in your office when Isaid I wasn’t good enough for Finn?” I nod, but don’t speak. “You’re good enough for Omari. He’s with you because he thinks you’re good enough for him. Don’t think for him, let him make the decision for himself, yeah?”

“Sí. You’re right. I can’t lose him, Rax. He’s my everything. He and Little Raf, they’re everything. I don’t want him to wise up and leave me.”

Rax throws an arm around my shoulders. “From the way that man looks at you, ain’t no way he’s goin’ anywhere. Besides, Finn was innocent too. You see where he ended up.”

I glance over at him with a grin. “Yeah, I see. I told you that boy liked being sullied.”

Rax barks a laugh. “True indeed.”

We finish checking the supply and I talk to Diego for a little bit, then we head back to Rax’s house so we can go out for a while.

Me, Omari, Little Raf, Rax, and Finn head to the beach a few blocks away, allowing Little Raf to play in the sand and he and Omari build sand castles. Well, Omari builds. Little Raf tries to put sand in his mouth and mostly succeeds.

Omari was uneasy about coming with his shirt off. I told him if it makes him feel comfortable, he can wear a shirt and not get in the water. Anything to make him feel at ease. He chose to wear a shirt, which does nothing to hide my desire for him. He sees me looking and ducks his head, cheeks pink as he uses the bucket to make more towers for his sand castle.

After an hour or so, Omari takes Little Raf to the water’s edge, putting his tiny feet in the waves. Little Raf doesn’t like the cold of the water, whimpering when it touches his feet. “Okay,” Omari says, pulling him away and drying them off quickly. “No more cold water for you.”

I chuckle, and Little Raf looks at me like he’s not impressed. For a nine-month-old, he sure is expressive.

Finn and Rax sit under an umbrella and we join them, rubbing sunscreen on us and the baby. Omari’s phone beeps a text tone and I raise an eyebrow. He sighs, pulling the phone from the baby’s diaper bag. I notice his hands trembling when he checks the message.

“What is it?” I ask in a voice harder than I mean for it to be.

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