Page 51 of Roses Are Dead
Fin’s jaw went sideways. Mine hung open until I realized what I was doing. How had she figured all that out in just a few minutes? And, how did she get Roishin to try on all the shit she got?
But I had to play it cool. Jackson’s advice rang in my head. “You look amazing.” It wouldn’t hurt to praise Betty Jo either. Maybe she’d give me a discount? “Nice work.”
Her eyes narrowed on me. “Don’t bullshit me. And most of all, don’t be such a tight ass. This woman deserves every cent in your wallet.”
She was just goading me to barter.
Fin must have seen through it, because he snorted. “Bear already dumped a grand outside. What he ordered for her ain’t cheap.”
Roishin’s eyes widened. “No.” She took off the coat and handed it to Betty Jo.
What did she have on underneath? Practically nothing, that’s what.
It could only be described as my fucking dream girl outfit. The leather hugged her curves and pushed her tits up into perfect half-moon mounds I wanted to taste. With her hair down, she looked feral and wild. No paint needed. I stared until she disappeared into the other room.
A slap upside the head knocked me out of my trance. “That was testing out something to sell at the rallies. She’s not going home in what she had on, so stop gawking.” Betty Jo hustled after her.
Meanwhile, Fin doodled on a piece of paper. Every once in a while, he’d stare off into space and then doodle some more. Finally, he asked me, “Where’d you find her?”
“Carl’s.”
Fin was far from retired, despite his lone-wolf status in Hagerstown. He and the club went back for decades now. And he knew all about our businesses and the players.
“No shit?” He squinted and listened to Betty Jo and Roishin argue about what she’d wear and what she wouldn’t. “Fill me in.”
I did as succinctly as possible. “He beat her. I have her now.”
His low swear was quiet. “What’s her take on that development?”
“She’ll come around. She’s a fighter.”
He laughed. “Betty Jo was the same way.” A rare smile spanned over his grisly face. I can’t say it improved his looks much, but the lines around his eyes deepened while the ones on his forehead almost disappeared. He drew a few more lines.
Soon, Roishin came out in her jeans, leather riding chaps, and a decent coat. My thermals peeked out from the open collar. Her skin was flushed, and she’d tied her braids into a knot near the nape of her neck. They still hung to her waist, but they were out of the way enough to ride.
Betty Jo announced, “I had to fight her on the jacket and chaps, but she’s good enough for the ride back.” She dug into a crate. “Here’s some gloves for her, too. Fin’ll add them to the bill.”
Fin leaned to push the paper toward Roishin. “Let me know if there’s anything there you don’t like. I’ll change it.”
She picked up the page and studied his drawing. Her hands shook.
I glanced over to see if Fin had noticed. His eyes met mine, and he raised an eyebrow. He’d noticed her nerves.
The last thing I wanted was to keep scaring her like this. Worse? If I didn’t do something about it, there’d be questions. As carefully as I could, I rose and walked around to stand near Roishin. From my vantage point, I could see what Fin had planned. It was brilliant. Thorny ropes of rose briars twisted around the hilt creating a finger guard. The blade would be one of his multi-layered Damascus steel masterpieces which kept an edge for years with minimal maintenance. The scabbard had a triple moon signet embellishing the throat where the guard merged into the pattern; creating a locket to keep it from falling loose. The design was brilliant and far beyond what I’d imagined.
Roishin leaned into me. I steadied her with a hand on her hip. “What do you think?”
“It’s perfect,” she whispered. Then tacked on, “But too much. I can’t…”
“Sold, Fin.” I took the paper from her hands and passed it over. “When should we come back down?”
“How’s the twenty-third work for you?”
I pulled Roishin closer and caught the faint smell of vanilla that clung to her hair. The sweetness pulled my face closer to hers. “Can you make do without it for that long?”
Her eyes met mine. “It’s already been a month. I’ll?—”
Shit. “Can you work any faster, Fin?”
