“You want to be my ol’ lady, right?” he sought confirmation. Best to triple check. Sure, she’d said yes last night, but she’d been blackout drunk. That didn’t count.
She furrowed her brows. “What?” She peered at him. “You have to ask?”
This is why requesting shit sucked. Responses never came right away. It was just easier to tell people. Then he didn’t have to wait around for them.
Well, that wasn’t an answer. “The only way it won’t happen is if you don’t want it.”
In some clubs, brothers could claim a woman without her consent. The women were truly property. Hell, it’d been how shit was before they’d patched over to Odin’s Fury, but since they’d changed their colors, things got a fuck ton better. This was one of the many improvements.
Wait. She still hadn’t responded.
He jabbed his finger into her tickle spot, making her squirm instantly. “Well?” He pressed over her giggles.
“Yes!” she squeaked. “Yes! I do!” She gasped, flailing around and driving her body against his.
Chortling, he relented. Wrapping his arms around her again, he pulled her back against his chest so he could bury his nose in her nape to inhale her pure scent. The smell of her thoroughly sexed up was truly amazing. It was his favorite scent of all time. He’d known the answer, but he enjoyed hearing her say it.
Blue wanted to be his woman. He’d known that for a damn long time, and the feeling was mutual. It’d been the incentive he needed to end the marriage, finally.
“That reminds me,” he said before he kissed her temple. “I want to show you.”
Mooky rolled her back to her side. After he stole another moment of sunlight admiration, he wore a goofy grin and found the motivation to get out of the bed to show her. After stepping into a pair of briefs, he trotted from the bedroom.
He had two goals: leave Blue in the bed alone for the shortest amount of time as possible and give her some more security.
Making a mad dash out of the bedroom, he beelined for the kitchen and into the cabinets, where he kept his mail. After he sifted through the envelopes and folders, he located the one he wanted. When he returned to the bedroom, he found her wearing nothing but the property vest and her panties, sitting up in his bed, scrolling through her phone.
Jesus-H-Christ. He couldn’t go another round. His dick literally could not… Okay, apparently his pop-up-and-say hello wanted to try.
But no.
They didn’t have time. So calm the fuck down.
“Here you go,” he said as he flipped the folder toward her.
Time felt as though it slowed to the point he thought his heart stopped as he watched every revolution of that manila folder gliding through the air. The anxiety made little sense. It was a done deal. It was just a matter of time. Everything was wonderful with Blue. This would only make it better.
Yet he held his breath and sat on the edge of the bed as she flipped open the folder.
Without a word, Blue turned one page and then the other. Her brows furrowed in what he could only describe as a look of consternation. Clenching his jaw, he willed her to speak. He needed her to say something.
Ask questions, something. He’d gladly explain, but he didn’t want to assume she didn’t understand what he’d given her. Especially since she’d seen them already, but fuck. This waiting shit sucked donkey balls.
Shaking her head, Blue flipped back and forth. Then finally, she slapped the papers down and peered at him. “Why?” she asked in a voice laced with accusation.
“Wh-wha-”
“Why did she suddenly agree to sign these?” she asked, holding up the folder. “There isn’t a damn thing changed.”
The anger surprised him. He’d expected relief. He’d wanted joy. He hadn’t seen this reaction coming. Frowning, he closed his eyes, dipped his chin, and tried to best figure out how to explain it. Hell, he’d only truly come to understand a few hours earlier. Which felt like a lifetime ago. He’d been so ready to put it behind him, he’d fucked Blue hard enough to shove Angela out of his mind.
The conversation the previous night with his soon-to-be-ex-wife played through his mind. He had the answer, but was it enough? Would it satisfy Blue? Letting out the heavy puff of air, he met her gaze, ready to do his best to explain. “The short answer is you,” he said honestly. “The long answer is her.”
As expected, she gave him a blank stare in return, but he tried to sort the words.
“The two of us stayed in our marriage for as long as we did because it was easier,” he admitted to his part as well. After all, he was just as guilty as Angela. And if he was doing this for real with Blue, he was being honest. “I finally filed because of you, but because I did, it made her realize she had to figure out who she was. She didn’t want to face that, so she battled until she saw how hard I brawled back. She’s scared but accepted it.”
Hearing the words from him, explaining Angela, clarifying her plight to Blue, made his chest twist. He’d thought the nagging resentment and anger would cling to her memory for how their marriage progressed, but it’d dissipated. He truly understood how lost she’d been. In appreciating his soon-to-be-ex-wife’s plight, he’d found peace—mostly.