Page 39 of Utah

Marek didn’t tear his attention away from me for several seconds, making me regret having him repeat his question.

He finally glanced around the room before speaking again. “We’re gonna get there a couple hours beforehand to scope out the area, look for an escape in case we need it. The plan is to just talk to Rafael, see where his head is at, if he’s gonna side with his nephew.”

“And if he set everything in motion,” Jagger blurted.

“That too,” Marek said, pointing at the guy. “He won’t say that in front of us, but I’ve gotten pretty good at reading people over the years.”

A few of his guys nodded. Moments later, a collective acceptance permeated the space when everyone moved toward the door.

“You sure you’re up for this?” Prez’s steps fell in sync with mine as we stepped outside. “’Cause I’m good if you wanna stay back.”

“Not a chance in hell.”

“Okay.” The inflection in his tone rose slightly, but it was the subtle crook of his brow that told me he understood why I had to go with them.

The older guys in the club were built different than us younger members, and it had everything to do with the two wars they had with the Savage Reapers. And it was because of their experiences that I had faith in their abilities to get us out of this upcoming meeting alive.

As I climbed into the back seat of the SUV, I prayed my meds weren’t making me delusional.

22

After dropping Utah off at the clubhouse, I went straight home. I barely focused on the road in front of me, too consumed with the overwhelming dread that held me captive. Nothing good could possibly come from him going to Mexico to meet with a cartel—the same cartel that killed Crash right in front of him. If I knew anything about the father of my unborn child, it was that while Utah was reserved and quiet, he could fly off the handle as quickly as I could, which wasn’t a great trait. There was no way he’d be able to keep a level head, not with the amount of guilt he carried over Crash’s death. He didn’t admit as much to me, but I could tell. Any person with two eyes could see how much he was suffering.

I noticed he was more irritable these past few days, but I chalked that up to everything he’d been through. Hell, my mood switched from hot to cold and back again, so who was I to call him out for feeling any type of way? I didn’t like how many pills he’d been taking, but I wasn’t the one recovering from being stabbed. I had my own issues to worry about—growing a human first and foremost—but there was also the uncomfortable situation between me and Will.

I called in sick for my shift later today. There was no way I could deal with Will on top of being on edge waiting to hear from Utah. I’d be of no use to anyone. And because I wasn’t on the schedule for the next couple days, I’d have time to focus on what I needed to, mainly keeping my nerves in check until he came home.

The front door opened, and Evie walked in, looking exhausted.

“Rough day?” I asked, curling my legs beneath me on the couch and muting the television.

“Two people called off, and I swear everyone in town needed their medication today. It was crazy busy.” She plopped down next to me and kicked off her shoes. “Did you eat? I’m starving.”

“Not yet. Mom made pot roast. It’s in the kitchen.”

“I love that she still wants to cook for us.”

“Me too, since neither one of us is any good in the kitchen.”

“You’re gonna have to learn how to cook something for that baby,” she said, patting my belly.

“Or I’ll make Utah do it,” I joked, but the mere mention of his name made my eyes well for the tenth time today.

“What’s the matter?” Evie shuffled closer and put her hand on mine. “Is he not a good cook either?”

I laughed, thankful to my sister for distracting me for a moment. “No, it’s not that. He’s actually a pretty good cook. It’s just… I don’t… I don’t know what’s going on with us.”

“Other than you’re crazy about each other and you’re having a kid together. Yeah, I can see how that’s confusing.”

I gently smacked her leg. “You’re not funny.”

“I beg to differ. Ben thinks I’m hysterical.”

I was relieved to talk about something other than my drama, so I dove headfirst into my curiosity.

“Who’s Ben?”

A mischievous smile played on her lips. “Just someone who’s come into the pharmacy a couple times.”

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