Page 28 of Tess, Property of Blaze

He lowers his voice, then I hear a door clicking shut. “Listen, Blaze, I’m not doing this to piss you off. Right now she’s just going through something, something she will tell you about when she’s ready, but now is not that time. Can you at least give her a day?”

Grinding my teeth, I say, “Jeff, with all due respect, this is none of your business, man. She’s my woman and I need to hear it from her.”

I thump my closed fist on the counter. I’m angry, furious, why did she run to Jeff? What’s so bad that she couldn’t talk to me about it?

I can hear him whispering to someone, likely Tess, and I bite my tongue, holding back all the words I want to let fly at him. Then finally I hear her voice.

“Hello?”

I straighten up, relief washing through me. She’s safe.

“Tess? What’s going on?”

“I’m okay, Blaze, I’m just at Jeff’s. I’ll be back at the clubhouse soon.” Then I hear hesitation in her voice when she asks, “That’s if you want me to come back?”

“What do you mean, if I want you to come back?”

“We… we didn’t end things well, and you haven’t answered any of my calls or texts all day. I figured you were done with me.”

Fuck!In the past hour, all I’ve thought about is getting her back to me, making sure she’s okay and safe, but what she’s saying is the truth, and it makes me feel like an asshole. She’s right, I didn’t answer her calls or texts all day. Why would she want to come home to me, after I just walked out on her?

“Baby,” I say softly, “come home, we need to talk.”

I hear a sniffle. Is she crying?

“Tess, you there, baby?”

“I can’t,” she cries, the sound of her tears coming through the phone.

I kick the chair in front of me over and storm out of the store, anger now taking over. “Why the fuck not, Tess? Are you fucking him?”

She gasps loudly. “You can’t be serious right now,” she hisses, now sounding pissed.

I pace the front of the store, insane jealousy that she’s choosing to stay with Jeff and not come home with me eating at me.

I stop wearing a hole in the sidewalk, and growl through the phone, “Is this why you won’t marry me? You and Jeff have something going on?” My body shakes with my rage, and people walk past me quickly as I flash them a deadly stare. It’s good that they do because right now, the way I feel, I just want to hit something, or someone.

“You’re being ridiculous. Jeff and I are just friends.”

“Then come home. I’ll come get you, just tell me where he lives.”

Silence fills the phone. “Tess, you there?”

“I can’t,” she whispers. “Please, Blaze, don’t ask me more, I can’t answer your questions. I’ll call you tomorrow. Please, Blaze, just give me this.”

Holding my phone between my ear and shoulder, I walk back to the front door of the store and lock it. Once I’m done and sure it’s secure, I grab my phone in my hand again and stride toward my bike. “I’m coming there, Tess, give me the fuckin’ address. No more games.”

She starts to cry, and I find it only angers me more. Why is she crying? Why does she need time away from me? What the fuck is going on?

Before I can verbalize all the questions spinning through my head, Jeff’s voice comes through the phone. “Blaze, it’s me. Do yourself a favor, mate, and go back to the clubhouse. I’ll call you tomorrow. Just give it a day at least, I promise you I’ll look after her.”

“Look after her?” I growl. “She’s not yours to look after.”

“She’s my friend, you know that, and right now, I’m telling you as her friend, to give her some space. Just a night. We’ll talk tomorrow.”

Feeling defeated, I drop my head—there’s just no winning this conversation. Finally I force out, “Okay, just one fucking night. But I will be there tomorrow, you can count on that.”

“Okay, brother. I get it. Tomorrow, then.”

“Tomorrow,” I repeat.

Jeff hangs up and I stare at the blank screen for a while. Finally coming to my senses, I place it back in my jacket pocket and start up my bike. Everything in me wants to call Gunner and ask for Jeff’s address, but something tells me that right now isn’t the time. Okay, baby, you want a night, you’re gonna get a night, but you will tell me everything, I whisper to myself, before I take off toward the clubhouse.

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