Page 124 of Rest In Pieces

Mercy shakes her head. “No, I’m good.”

“Okay.” Legs nods. “You know, I’m not gonna lie. I’m shocked as hell Scope let you out of his sight with you being ready to pop. Not taking anything away from you, Jinx. I’m pretty sure you could kill me and dispose of my body before I even realized I was dead,” Legs speed talks. “But this is Scope we’re talking about.” She looks at Lil. “Imagine if Hannibal had an older brother.”

Lil’s eyes widen as she looks at Mercy. “Intense, brooding, and completely psychopathic?”

“So, you know him?” Jinx says with a smirk.

I laugh before taking a sip of my drink, refusing to get involved in the girl talk.

“You have to be brave as fuck or crazy as hell to get involved with someone like that.”

“She’s definitely both.” Jinx grins at her.

Mercy sighs and holds up her wrist, showing us a pretty silver bangle with an opal in the center. “Tracker from Kaz.” She fingers her small stud earrings. “Tracker from Wizz.” Then she flicks her nipple before rolling her eyes. “Tracker from Scope.”

Lil blinks, her mouth dropping open. “He put a tracker in your nipple piercing?” she shouts, drawing the attention of everyone around us.

“Sorry, sorry,” she mutters before turning back to Mercy, who groans.

“He also has two prospects at the entrance to this place and another two stationed at the diner, just in case there’s an apocalypse and I need saving. Not that I can’t handle myself, and Jinx wouldn’t let anyone lay a finger on me.”

“There are worse things in life than being loved so fiercely,” Legs says softly.

Mercy looks at her sharply. “You okay?”

Legs nods, but I keep my eyes on her, knowing she’s struggling right now. “I’m leaving the MC. I handed in my notice at the pawnshop, and I’ve started looking for an apartment and a new job.”

“Oh wow. That’s huge. You mind if I ask what brought this on?”

“It’s just time. Turns out there’s more to life than just good dick. I know—it surprised the hell out of me too,” she says in mock disbelief, making all the women laugh.

I watch her, seeing it for what it is—just an act. She looks at me and answers my silent question with a shake of her head.

She’s not okay yet, but she will be.

“I get wanting to leave the life. There aren’t many options for women in it. I know I’m the exception, so I understand wanting more. But that doesn’t mean you have to leave your job.It mightbe good to have something familiar around you while everything else changes,” Jinx tells her.

I look up when I sense Amity approaching and so miss the first part of Legs’s reply.

“…clean break. Besides, it’s hard when you’ve been known for one role for so long; people have a hard time seeing you as anything else.”

“I understand,” Lil says, reaching over to squeeze her hand.

Everyone’s quiet, and I’m glad for the reprieve as I wrap Amity in my arms because I don’t know what the fuck to say.

“We’re wrapping up early for the day, but I thought it might be fun to traumatize your man a little, Mercy. Get a little payback for him hijacking your womb,” Amity says, feeling the sadness in the air and doing something about it—because that’s my girl.

“Ooh, tell me more.”

“As your bodyguard, it’s my duty to tell you no. But as your friend, I’m warning you that it’s a bad idea while you’re pregnant with my goddaughter,” Jinx teases Mercy. “And as an old lady whose men cross the line so fucking often, I sayfuck it. Do what you’ve gotta do.”

“Eeeee!” Mercy squeals

I groan. “Scope’s gonna kill me.”

Amity pats my chest. “There, there, I’ll make it up to you.”

“By testing blow job-proof lipstick?” I ask, excitement creeping into my voice.

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