Page 58 of Rambler's Snow Bunny
I won’t make that mistake again. I don’t give a fuck what anyone says, Eddie is going to die. If it starts a fucking war with the Dirty Devils, then so fucking be it. I’ll burn the world to the fucking ground before I let anything else happen to her.
My eyes drop to her battered face. I love her. And she loves me.
Fuck.
I mean, I’ve known for weeks that I love her, but I never imagined in a million goddamn years that she could love me back. Not an old surly bastard like me.
The Gods know she deserves better, but her fate is sealed. I’ll never let her go.
Gently, I slide my arm from beneath her head, being careful not to wake her. By the grace of the Gods, she doesn’t stir as I ease off the bed and tiptoe to the door. Slowly, I pull the door open, wincing when the hinges squeak.
Need to put some WD-40 on those later.
I pause, looking back at my woman’s sleeping form. Her pink hair is spread across the pillow like cotton candy. She looks so small, so vulnerable. The urge to crawl back into bed and wrap her in my arms is strong, but I’ve got business to handle.
Quietly, I close the bedroom door and make my way down the hallway. In the kitchen, I pull my phone from my pocket, scroll through my contacts until I find Klutch’s number, and hit call.
“Yo!” Klutch answers after two rings.
I move further away from the bedroom. “Need a favor, brother.”
“How’s Pinky doing?” Concern laces his voice.
“That’s what I’m calling about,” I say, keeping my voice low. “Need you to come over here and sit with her while I take care of the problem.”
Klutch grunts. “Me and Dems are on our way. Be there in twenty.”
The line goes dead before I can even thank him.
With that handled, I set the phone down on the counter and scrub a hand over my face. My brothers have my back. They always do.
I busy myself with tidying up the kitchen while I wait. Sitting idle right now isn’t an option because it’s taking everything I have not to stick my fist through the fucking wall.
I right the barstool that got knocked over during the struggle, wipe up a smear of blood on the floor, and gather the pieces of the broken lamp Cleo used to knock that mother fucker out.
Thank the fucking Gods for that crazy woman. I’ll buy her all the crazy fucking clothes her closet can hold after what she did tonight. If she hadn’t shown up when she did...
I can’t even finish the thought.
A soft knock at the side door pulls me from my dark thoughts. I stride over and peek through the curtain to see Klutch and Demi standing on the step. I open the door, holding a finger to my lips as they come inside.
“She’s asleep,” I whisper, jerking my chin toward our bedroom. “Probably won’t wake up, but I didn’t want her here alone just in case.”
“How is she?” Demi asks, her eyes wide with concern.
Klutch wraps an arm around her shoulder. “Babe.”
“What?” She looks up at him, then back to me, and must see that I’m barely keeping my shit in check because she nods quickly. “Right.”
Demi moves past me to the living room, settling onto the couch. Klutch steps closer, his voice dropping even lower.
“She’s safe with us, brother. Go do what you gotta do.”
I nod, clapping him on the shoulder. “Thanks.”
I grab my keys from Pinky’s purse and slip out the side door, closing it quietly behind me. The night air is cold, the stars hidden behind a blanket of clouds.
Feels fitting somehow.
