Page 51 of Peacock Me Like a Hurricane

“I’d like to say it isn’t always this insane, but that would only be partly true. I’ll tell you the same thing I tell him; I form my own opinions. I give everyone a chance until I can’t, much like our ex-family members.”

“You haven’t spoken to Rhea since…?”

“No. She is not willing to discuss her destructive behavior and I am no longer willing to be a player in her drama. Rafe was right to tell them to fuck off.”

“She hasn’t tried to contact me—only Taurus.”

“She won’t. Rhea doesn’t do confrontation and you’ll confront her. Thus, she hides.”

“Oh, damn it, Deli. I didn’t want to talk about her. I came to welcome you to my family and check out the pad.”

“It’s easy to get caught up in her theater. That’s why I had to remove myself.”

I feel the sizzle of her anger at our former friend. She’s serious. “I came to tell you how much you mean to him.”

“Well, I’m crazy about him, so we’re even.”

“I also want you to know something—and you’ve probably already figured it out—but the other night was hard. Taurus made a promise to you that he will never leave you. No matter how much you hurt him, he’ll stay as long as you’re honest. When he goes off like he did last night, you shouldn’t worry that he’s leaving you.”

She nods, but I think she’s still unsure. More people than just Rhea have hurt this woman, and there’s something she’s hiding. “I’ll admit, the Company meeting was messy, but I dealt with it. Taurus has to teach a couple months of knitting classes—which he will loathe—but he won’t go away.”

Her eyes shine with humor, but her expression is serious. “I’m glad. He worried me.”

“I’m still going to kick his ass for blocking me out.”

“I didn’t know he blocked you. I thought it was only me.”

“He hasn’t been able to block me for over a year—and he’s tried.”

“Huh. Odd that he could.”

“I assumed it was the level of will involved.” I shrug and she tilts her head, looking interested so I expound. “Ever try to dosomething that you don’t really want to do? You struggle, right? Maybe the reason you can’t, despite your effort, is your lack of desire to do it.”

Again, her nod doesn’t match her expression. She’s got a funny way of agreeing with things she doesn’t believe. Perhaps she doesn’t have a fully formed thought to share or perhaps she’s used to having to agree with everything everyone says to keep them happy. “When he’s tried before, some crumb of him didn’t really want to, so he couldn’t. We fight a lot, so it’s not like he hasn’t had plenty of chances.”

“Gee, I can’t imagine that. He’s so tranquil,” she mutters and I laugh.

“It’s the good kind of fight—no gut wrenching, just bleeding.” I wink and touch my dagger again. “Anyway, I wasn’t thrilled when I couldn’t reach him. But even then, sweets, I didn’t worry that he wasn’t going to be mine after. You did.”

Her hair cascades around her even with the ponytails. “It’s new and it’s been hard. I was raw and I didn’t know what to think. He ran, I got overloaded, and I didn’t know what to do because I knew it was my fault. My excuse—though true—sounded lame. I worried that he’d duck out of sight because he’s mentioned doing it several times lately. We’ve been betrayed a lot.”

There’s more to it than that and I wonder, not for the first time today, if she’s got deeper darks than Taurus knows about. He knows all my uglies from the past, but I’m not sure she’s ready to release her demons yet. “He has, but that’s not what you did. Hurt isn’t the same as betrayal. He may run when he’s hurt, but he’ll always come back. That’s why I’m here; I want to reassure you of that. I thought if I did, it might make you feel better. What I should have considered is that being with him makes you feel better, so this is kind of superfluous.”

She gives me a small smile as if she wants to say something but has decided against it. “I appreciate it, though. It does clarify things.”

“Okay, I also wanted to meet the woman who totally stole his heart.”

That earns me a blush, an adorably wrinkled nose, and the cutest response I’ve seen anyone ever have to Taurus. Yeah, I see what’s got his head spinning. “He loves you Deli. Enjoy him. Love him. We’ll talk again, I’m sure.”

“We will.”

Trying to make her feel less uneasy, I murmur, “I’m, um, not good with letting people inside, but I’d like to be friends one day.”

Her smile is bright. “I’d like that. Take all the time you need.”

“I’m glad I stopped by. If you reach out, you can find him. He’s ready to get back to you and he’s quite irritated that I’m still here. Expect a sulky clone in need of a smooch when he gets here.”

“Uh-oh. Pouty Taurus alert,” she giggles.

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