Page 57 of Wrath

“Oh, wow.” Her entire body seemed to deflate as she muttered, “You really care about her, don’t you?”

“Do you get what I’m saying to you, Rosa?”

“Yeah, I get it.” She sighed as she muttered, “Loud and clear.”

Without saying anything more, she turned and started walking back home. I waited until she’d gone into the house before I headed back to see about Stitch and Mia. When I got back to the front of the house, Stitch’s truck was gone, and Mia was sitting alone on the porch. “Dad went back to the clubhouse. I told him I’d drive you over to get your bike later tonight or tomorrow.”

“How’d he seem...”

“He was fine.” She shrugged. “A little outdone with me, but he’ll get over it.”

“And you?” I walked over and sat down next to her. “How are you making it?”

“Better now that I’m not going to jail.” She motioned her head towards Rosa’s place. “You get everything sorted with her?”

“Yeah, I think so. Just hate I didn’t do it sooner. Maybe then, all of this could’ve been avoided.”

“Maybe. Maybe not. It’s hard to tell.” Mia grimaced as she said, “She really liked you and hoped that things would work out. Can’t really blame her for that.”

“Yeah, but she had no business taking her hurt out on you. I should’ve made sure that didn’t happen.”

“It wasn’t your fault.”

“It was, and I’m sorry about that. Will you give me a chance to make it up to you?”

“What do you have in mind?”

“I could take you to dinner and maybe out for a few drinks?”

“That sounds great, but a couple of pizzas and a bottle of wine sounds even better.” She gave a little stretch, then admitted, “It’s been a bit of a day.”

“Yeah, it has.” I stood, then held out my hand. “Let’s get you inside and settled, and then, I’ll run to town and grab dinner.”

“Are you sure? I could go with...”

“Yeah, you could, or you could take a minute to catch your breath.” I led her inside and over to the sofa. Once she was nestled in her spot, I grabbed a blanket and tossed it over her legs. As I offered her the remote, I asked, “You still do the whole pepperoni and mushroom thing?”

“You remembered that?”

“Hard one to forget.”

“It’s actually really good. You should try it.”

“Um-hmm. We’ll see.” I grabbed my keys, then started out the door. “I’ll be back in a few.”

As soon as I got out to the truck, I called the pizza place and put in our order, then started driving towards town. On the way, I thought about everything that had taken place with Mia and Rosa, and something Mia had said kept playing over and over in the back of my mind—‘You need to stop trying to mess around with what’s mine!’

Mine.

It was a word I never dreamed Mia would use in reference to me, but now that I knew she had, I wasn’t sure what to do about it. Mia was an amazing woman—beautiful, smart, and sexy as fuck. Any man would be lucky to have her. I knew that. Her father knew it. Hell, everyone fucking knew it. I had to do right by her, even if that meant walking away.

That wasn’t something I wanted to do.

I liked spending time with her a lot more than I ever expected. I enjoyed her humor and quick wit, and the fact that she was tough and could handle her own. Hell, she definitely proved that today. It was hard to make sense of it, but there was something about her that made me feel better. I didn’t feel weighed down by the constant nightmares and regret, and that meant something to me.

She meant something to me.

I picked up the wine and pizza, then headed straight back to the house. When I walked in, I placed everything on the kitchen counter, then started for the living room. I was about to announce my arrival when I noticed that Mia was still on the sofa.

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