Page 100 of Broken Bonds

“I can’t wait. Give me a few days to plan and get everything together. I’ll rope Jilly into helping me. It’ll be fun,” I tell him, bouncing on my toes excitedly when the doors slide open and we step on.

“What? I can’t help?”

“Nope. I’m feeding you guys. It can be a celebration and a thank you. For all you guys have done for me since you showed up.”

“You don’t have to thank us, Baby Doll,” he says.

“I know, but I want to. So, let me,” I say, squeezing his hand in mine as we walk outside.

ChapterThirty-Three

RION

I’m burning with jealousy,and no matter how hard I try to keep myself from feeling it, I can’t.

Both Forde and Link have kissed Ramsey now, and she let them. They’ve been smug bastards for weeks, walking around with stupid, love-struck grins on their faces anytime she’s mentioned, which is often between the two of them. I can’t even be mad because they’re so fucking happy, and that alone pleases me.

I just want my chance, too.

They’ve been spending time with her, bonding and building connections, while I’ve been staying in the background other than putting the nursery together. Now, I don’t know how to approach her to let her know that if she’s giving them a chance, I’d also like one.

I suppose I could always ask Jillian for help, but she’s been giving me shit ever since I lost my head when Ramsey hugged me. I can’t get through a shift atJinxwithout her calling me Ray or teasing me for the obvious-as-fuck hard on I have for her best friend. She’s lucky I actually like her and kind of see her as a little sister.

“What’s got you all up in a tizzy?” Forde teases as he jumps across the bar, and I roll my eyes.

“Tizzy? What are you, ninety-three?” I scoff, scrubbing the bar top harder.

I’m surprised it’s taken either of them this long to call me out on my shit, but I just assumed they’ve been so preoccupied with Ramsey they hadn’t noticed my surly mood. I’m not even mad at anyone, really, just myself. It’s my fault that I haven’t done more to get to know her until this point, but I was trying to give her space. That’s what Link said we needed to do, and then Forde took the initiative when he realized how badly she was doing.

“Come on. What crawled up your ass? You’ve been a growly, grumpy bastard for weeks now,” Forde says with a sigh, turning to face me and crossing his arms.

“Just leave it alone,” I grit out, throwing the rag down and moving to cleaning the glasses with more focus than is strictly necessary.

“No. You were all smiley and shit when you came home from showing Ramsey the nursery, and now you’re a surly bear who growls at everything and everyone. You’re starting to scare the customers,” he says, and I turn around to look at him, my eyes widening.

Then he fucking laughs and I growl while punching him in the shoulder.

“Ow, man. That hurt,” he chokes out, laughing and rubbing his arm. “Seriously, what’s up?”

I scrub my hand across my face and sigh.

“I don’t know. You’re both connecting with Ramsey and she’s letting you. And then here I am. I’ve barely spoken to her, other than when she saw the nursery, and now I don’t even know how to approach her.”

“Oooh, is somebody… jelly?” he taunts, smirking at me when I glare at him.

“Fuck off,” I huff, shoving him away.

He just shakes his head and laughs under his breath.

“You know she wants us all to come over so she can cook for us? Said she wants to say thank you for everything we’ve done for her. Just talk to her then,” he says with a shrug.

“What? When? She doesn’t have to thank us!” I tell him, my brows raised.

“That’s what I said, but she wants to do it. Who am I to tell her no? She said to give her a few days when we went to her doctor’s appointment the other day, so I’m sure she’ll want to do it sometime soon.”

The door to the bar opens and several of our regulars trickle in, so we get to work after that. But Ramsey stays stuck in my head the entire time I work.

I can’t get her out of my mind, everything about her leaves me feeling damn near obsessed with her. It’s like the moment I realized she was meant for me, nothing else in the world mattered. Justher.

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