Page 51 of Race or Ruin

She threw back her covers and went to the bathroom. With any luck she could be dressed and hiding out in the kitchen with the old ladies like she was yesterday. She’d been able to avoid him for the time before he and the other men left to deal with Dagger’s house. He’d stopped by the kitchen and told her they weren’t through with their conversation, leading her to believe he planned to pick up where they left off once he returned this evening.

So what did she do? She’d hidden out in the kitchen with the old ladies, cooking dinner, doing clean up and entertaining the remaining children, all in an effort to avoid being alone with Race. She felt his eyes on her several times throughout the night and it had taken everything inside her not to look his way. She’d slipped off to his room the first chance she got and then pretended to be asleep when he joined her later. She’d been holding her breath waiting for him to pick up the conversation, but was relieved when all he did was strip his clothes off and climb into bed. She’d been surprised when he pulled her into his side.

God, the man was infuriating. Why did he have to toy with her? He’d kissed her in front of the old ladies and then he’d held her tight through the night, like lying against his side was the most natural thing in the world. Why the mixed signals?

She still couldn’t understand why he would do those things after saying he didn’t think she was old lady material. Why would he do that if he planned on telling her to get lost?

She reached into the shower to turn the water on. While she was waiting for the water to get hot, she used the toilet. Stepping into the shower, she made quick work out of washing her hair and getting dressed in some clothes Calliope had here. Race must have gathered them up for her and left them on the end of the bed. Thank God. If she had to put on the same panties, she would have freaked. She would have gone commando to avoid it.

Exiting Race’s room, she walked past his office. The door was closed but she could hear his voice and a few others behind it. She kept going, needing a cup of coffee like she needed her next breath.

“Good morning, sunshine.” Damn, Calliope was way too chipper in the mornings.

“Good morning.” She accepted the cup of coffee Jane handed her. “Thank you.”

“How did you sleep last night?” Calliope asked coyly.

“Like a log.” She was lying through her teeth. She’d pretended to be asleep when Race came to bed last night. It wasn’t until he’d pulled her into his side that she’d finally drifted into a deep sleep that held nothing but dreams of Race telling her goodbye.

Calliope eyed her suspiciously, then shared a look with Jane. Thankfully, she didn’t call her on her lie.

“What are we fixing for breakfast this morning?” she asked.

“Breakfast burritos. They’re easy to carry. The guys say they want to get out of here earlier today than they did yesterday so we’re fixing portable food. We’re going to fill the thermoses and fix more sandwiches to take with them, too.” Jane filled her in.

“Okay. Sounds good. What do you want me to do?”

“How about you start putting the burritos together? We’ve got everything cooked that needs to go in them. If you can do that, Calliope will get more coffee going and the rest of us will start on the sandwiches.”

Bellamy had to admire the well oiled machine Jane ran. Things went smoothly and quickly.

She was about halfway through her task when her phone began to ring. She pulled it from her pocket and saw it was her brother calling. “I’ve got to take this. I’ll be right back.”

“Go ahead. We’re almost done here.” Jane waved her off.

Stepping into the hall, she wasn’t sure where to take her call. She didn’t want to go to Race’s room in case he came back there looking for her and wanted to resume their conversation from yesterday. “Hang on. I’m trying to find somewhere quiet to talk to you.”

She slipped past his office with the door still closed and made a right. At the end of the hall she found a door slightly ajar. She peered inside and discovered they had a gym. All the lights were off except for the one in the middle. Upon entering she spotted a lot of workout equipment scattered about. A bench along one wall, hidden in shadows caught her eye. She took a seat and spoke into her phone. “Good morning, Isaac.”

“Good morning. Why didn’t you answer your phone yesterday?” he launched right in.

“Because it was dead. I needed to recharge it.” She rolled her eyes. He was always so overprotective.

“Where did you ride out the storm?” The sound of pots and pans banging around in the background drew her attention.

“The Sons of Redemption clubhouse with Calliope and Jackson. They have generators and lots of food.” She opted not to tell her brother that Race had forgotten to pick her up and she’d nearly frozen to death. She didn’t want another physical altercation to break out between the two men.

“Good. I was worried you’d be stubborn and try to ride it out all alone at your house.” If her brother told her he was going to give up being a crime lord and start a career as a drag queen, she couldn’t have been more surprised.

“Excuse me? What did you say?”

“I said I’m glad you rode out the storm at the clubhouse. At least I know you’re not freezing or starving all alone.” More clanging could be heard in the background.

“What is that noise?”

“Grandma Martha looking through boxes to find her pots, pans and utensils. She’s making me breakfast.” She could almost hear the smug smile in his voice. She couldn’t blame him. Grandma Martha’s cooking was the best in the world.

“You’re at Grandma Martha’s?”

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