Page 16 of Resist Me (Men of Inked 3)
“Not like that, Pop. I saw James,” I croaked out for some unknown reason, hoping to take the heat off Flash.
“Oh my God,” Suzy screeched, with a giant smile.
“Who the hell is James?” Anthony asked, looking at me with knitted brows.
I opened my mouth to speak, but Suzy, in her excitement, answered for me. “He’s Thomas’s friend. He brought the card from Thomas to the wedding. Izzy met him there.”
I nodded to Suzy, not worried about anything else she’d say about James. No one, not even Suzy, knew that I’d slept with James the night of the wedding. That information I hadn’t shared with a soul. I knew when to keep a secret, and that was one I’d hold close to the vest.
“Isabella, did he have anything to say about your brother?” Ma asked, and I couldn’t hold out any longer.
“Well, that’s the thing.” I swallowed, readying myself for the barrage of questions and some pissed-off brothers. “Flash took me to a biker bar and we ran into his club.”
“I told you to stay the fuck away from that MC,” Joey interrupted.
“Language, son,” Pop said, and then returned his eyes to me. “Go on.”
I shifted in my seat, worried that the dinner would turn into a free-for-all, but I knew the information about James would both be a relief and a worry. “When I got there, one of the men at the table wouldn’t look at me. He was acting funny.” No one was eating, and everyone was staring at me. “When he finally made eye contact with me, I knew it was Tommy,” I said, leaning back in my chair.
A collective gasp sounded around the table as my words seeped in.
“Is he okay?” Ma asked, dabbing at her eyes.
“Yeah, he’s good, Ma.” It wasn’t an outright lie. He was okay, relatively speaking.
“Did you get to talk to him?” Pop asked, resting his fork next to his dinner plate.
“I did. We spent an hour alone together.” I nodded and smiled. The last thing I wanted to do was add more worry to their lives. “He promised me he’d be home soon and he asked me to send his love. He misses us all.”
“How did he look?” Joey inquired, leaning forward with his hands clasped over his plate.
“He looked tired, but otherwise good,” I answered.
“How exactly did you get time alone with him?” Anthony asked, the perpetual scowl on his face intensified.
“That’s not important,” I snapped, glaring back at him and biting my lip.
“Like hell it isn’t. Spill it, sister,” Joey growled with snarled lips.
“Jesus,” I muttered. “He kinda called dibs on me for the night.” I smiled, pretending like it was no big deal.
“I’ll kill Flash!” Joey yelled, slamming the bottom of his fist on the table.
“Fuck,” Anthony groaned.
“Dead man walking,” Mike growled.
“Calm the shit down!” I yelled over their over ramblings.
“What’s that mean?” Ma asked, confusion written all over her face.
Pop shook his head, patting my mother’s hand. “I’ll explain it later, love,” he said to her.
“No matter how it happened, I was able to spend time with Tommy,” I said, looking around the table. “I wouldn’t trade my time with him for anything—not even the nonsense I had to go through to be with him.”
“Tell me more about what he said,” Ma said, ignoring the others at the table.
I spent the entire dinner talking about Tommy and answering questions. Knowing that he was alive and breathing was something we didn’t know on a day-to-day basis. Not being able to hear his voice over the phone or get a text message were the hardest parts to deal with.
He’d been missing from Sunday dinner for so long that it had become the norm. His seat was never filled; it sat open, waiting for his return.
I ate my last forkful of pasta, placing my napkin on my plate, and sighed. I felt relieved to get the information off my chest and be done with the questioning by my family.
“Thanks for the great dinner, Ma.”
She patted my shoulder as she walked by me on the way to the kitchen. “Thank you, Isabella.”
I smiled at her, nodding. As she left the room I looked over at my brothers, who were still wearing scowls. They were like little girls who couldn’t let shit go easily.
“We’re not done here,” Joey barked, standing from his seat and carrying his plate in the kitchen.
“Oh boy,” I whispered, breaking out into a fit of giggles.
Pop winked at me. He always knew when shit was going down. He had my back. That I knew. He’d make sure the boys didn’t get too crazy.
As I stood, plate in hand, Suzy stood too, following behind me.
“James, huh?” she teased, elbowing me as we entered the kitchen.
“Yeah.” I rolled my eyes, placing my plate on the counter next to Ma. “Want help?” I asked her as she rinsed the pans.
“Nah, baby. Go sit with everyone. You’ve had a long weekend. I’ll be fine.”
I sighed, turning and running into Suzy. She smiled and winked at me. She wanted to know only about James, and it made me uncomfortable. I walked by her and made my way toward the family room and my usual spot on the floor.
“Did you talk to him?” she asked before my ass hit the carpet. She settled down next to me instead of next to Joey.
“Who?” I asked, playing stupid.
“James,” she groaned. “Come on. I know there’s more there than you’re saying.” She grinned, tilting her head and studying me.
“We spent some time together.”
“Ooooh,” she whispered, positioning herself next to me as she sat Indian style.
Suzy was now five months pregnant, and showing. I couldn’t imagine having a lump sticking out of the front of me. I always lay on my stomach and would be uncomfortable during the entire pregnancy. I winced thinking about childbirth and babies. I loved them, but fuck. I was nowhere near r
eady to become a mom.
“Don’t you have a man to sit next to?” I hinted, motioning toward Joey.
“Nah. He’s okay for now. They’re talking sports.” She rolled her eyes and put her finger in her open mouth and stuck out her tongue, making a gagging sound.
“What else is new?” I turned toward the television, hoping she’d drop the topic.
“I know there’s more to you and James than you’re saying, Izzy.” She nudged me with her side, almost knocking me over.
“What are you talking about?” I asked, shaking my head and looking into her eyes. “There’s nothing between us.”
She giggled, covering her mouth with her hand. “I saw you two sneak out of the wedding reception.”
I looked at her, my mouth gaping open, shocked by her words. “You never said anything to me before.”
“I forgot with the honeymoon and then the baby.” She rubbed her belly in a circular motion as she spoke. “You mentioned his name and it all came back to me.”
“Lucky me,” I whispered, resting my head in my hands.
“Did you sleep with him?” she asked, wiggling her eyebrows.
“No. Wait. When?”
“I knew it!” she roared, breaking into a fit of laughter. “Tell me all about it.” She fluttered her eyelashes, moving closer to my face. “I won’t tell a soul.” She crossed her fingers.
“He got me out of Daytona, but no, I didn’t sleep with him this weekend.”
“Tell me you did on my wedding night. I want all the juicy details.”
“It was such a huge mistake,” I whispered.
“Why?” she asked, her eyebrows shooting up and her smile vanishing.
“I knew it the moment I woke up in his hotel room. I got my shit and got the hell out of there.”
“Oh, no. You hit it and quit it?”
“Where in the hell did you hear that phrase?” I asked as I started to laugh.
“I’ve been hanging around you for too long.” She laughed, biting her lip.
Talking to Suzy always made me feel better. I knew what I told her never made its way to Joey. He never questioned me on anything I confided in her, and I knew without a doubt he’d ask if it had. My brother couldn’t keep a secret. No one in my damn family could, except my girls.
“What are you two talking about?” Mia asked as she stretched out on the other side of me.
I was now in the middle of a Mia and Suzy sandwich, and I couldn’t be happier. These were my girls. The sisters I hadn’t had growing up, but I was thankful for them now.
“James,” Suzy blurted, drawing her lips into her mouth.
“Me likey,” Mia said, and laughed.
“How do you know him?” I asked, turning to her, confused.
“Suzy told me about him at the reception. We watched you slink out with him and not return.” She cocked her eyebrow and stared at me.
“Fuck,” I muttered. “Did anyone else see?”
Mia shook her head, pursing her lips. “I don’t think so, and if they did, no one has said anything.”
I looked toward the ceiling and sighed. “Thank Christ for small miracles.”
“Is he the one?” Mia asked, a giant smile on her face.
