Page 13 of Vicious in the Dark

CHAPTER EIGHT

MAVEN

The clatter of dishes at the table behind me made me jump. I stifled a gasp, hoping Rumer didn’t notice. A quick scan of the restaurant revealed it to be busy but not packed. I could see everyone present as well as the entrance. I wasn’t sure who exactly I kept watching for, the Thorns from Castle Grove or the men I’d left behind when I ran from this city.

Both, but for entirely different reasons.

“His name is Snake. He’s a new prospect for the Crypt Keepers MC, but he’s nice and wicked hot.” Rumer shoved her phone in my face, forcing me to look at a picture of a sneering guy with a shaved head. “Maybe you can meet him at the club sometime. I usually drop in on Saturday night.”

Hard pass. Taking a sip from my mug of hot coffee, I shook my head. “You are not dating a guy named Snake. Besides, he looks like he’s barely legal. You’ve got to be at least five years older than him.”

Rumer set the phone face down on the tabletop and dug into the grilled chicken salad she’d ordered for lunch. She shrugged and shoved her long blonde braid behind a shoulder. “He’s still teachable. That’s important. So are you going to tell me why you came back in the middle of the night with only your cat and a bag of your things?”

Her sudden change of topic momentarily threw me for a loop. My gaze dropped to my tofu and rice veggie dish. Dragging my fork through the food, I pondered how much to tell her. Rumer was no idiot.

“I ran into some trouble there. By accident. I thought it was best to play it safe and get out of town.” Spearing a forkful of food, I stuffed a bunch in my mouth, hoping it would keep me from having to answer more questions.

Rumer appeared skeptical, brows knitting together as she assessed my story. “Uh huh. And you came back to River City instead of moving somewhere new? What made you want to do that?”

I had half a mind to catapult a chunk of tofu off my fork at her. “Maybe I missed you. Mom and Dad too. It’s been a while.”

“Fuck yeah, it has. Seeing you only on holidays sucks ass. Are you planning to stay a while? My place is yours for as long as you like. I doubt you want to move back in with the parental units.” Scrunching her nose, Rumer reached for the vanilla milkshake next to her plate.

She had that right. As much as I loved my parents, I didn’t want to live with them again. Not at twenty-nine. I needed my own space. Since my father had been injured by a stray bullet in a shoot-out with the Archer crew four years ago, he’d been retired from the syndicate, spending his time at home with my mother, which meant he had way too much time on his hands. He tended to be a tad pushy when he thought he knew best. I kind of dreaded having to go there for dinner tonight. Staying with Rumer would do until I found my own place.

“I’m not sure how long I’ll be here. A while I hope. Guess it kind of depends on a few things.” Unable to bring myself to talk about the guys, I trailed off.

I was dying to ask about them. She kept me up to date on important stuff, like the time Ruthless had gone missing for three days. Otherwise, we didn’t discuss them much.

“You mean it depends on the boy toys you left pining after you in your absence,” she supplied, not bothering to sugarcoat it. “Maddox is going to crap his pants when he sees you. Looking damn good, queen. I love that top on you.”

The mention of his name was enough to steal my breath. He’d never know how much I’d missed him, try as I might to never let him cross my mind.

“Thanks. If you borrow it, try not to spill shit on it.” Glancing at the blue top I wore, I set down my fork and reached for a napkin to dab my lips. “Listen, Rumer. You can’t tell them that I’m back. Not yet, okay? Promise me.”

Pausing with a bite of food halfway to her mouth, she studied me. “You’re going to reach out to them, aren’t you? I’m sure they’d be happy to know you’re home.”

“Are you fucking kidding me right now?” I nailed her with a knowing glare. “You already told them, didn’t you?”

Rumer winced, affecting a dramatic pout. “Don’t be mad. I thought it would soften the shock if they knew. Did you want to run into them on the street one day and have them find out like that?”

“You’re such a little shit,” I hissed, clutching my coffee mug tight in one hand. “You sold me out.”

“I didn’t,” she protested, setting her fork down so she could raise both hands in surrender. “I would never. You’re my ride or die, Mave. You know that.”

“Ugh, it doesn’t matter. They were going to find out anyway. I just thought Dad would spill it to them first.” Settling back in my seat, I threw the balled up napkin across the table. It dropped into Rumer’s lap. “Let’s hurry up and get out of here. I have some shopping to do before dinner tonight.”

That was putting it lightly. Once I found a place to rent, I would replace my furniture. For now I needed some clothing and a few personal items. Maybe an air mattress. My sister didn’t have much for guest accommodations in her apartment. Her second bedroom had become her place to throw anything she didn’t have space for elsewhere. I didn’t want to cram in with her abandoned treadmill and the overflow of clothing that didn’t fit in her closet longer than necessary.

An afternoon of shopping with my sister was exactly what I needed after the past few days of unexpected insanity. Browsing racks of clothing helped take my mind off things, for a while. Although I couldn’t entirely shake thoughts of the guys from my head. At some point I would have to face them. Some of them would be easier than others.

I didn’t know how I’d bring myself to look into the eyes of the man who made the shitty decision that almost got me killed. It had been so long. There were so many things left unsaid between us.

Back at Rumer’s apartment we fought over the bathroom just like we had as teens. It may have been her place but that was no excuse to hog the only bathroom. The woman had a full on dance party in there while doing her hair and makeup.

“I’m not sure I’m ready to be bombarded by Dad’s endless row of questioning. It always feels like an interrogation.” I set my makeup bag on the one tiny square of free counter space, pulling out a pot of creamy eyeliner.

“That’s because it always is,” Rumer chuckled, sliding over enough to give me a sliver of mirror. “You should have heard him when he found out I’ve been hanging with the Crypt Keepers. I pretended my phone died mid-conversation and took a week to call him back.”

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