Page 17 of Bowser (Dragon Riders MC 2)
“I’m so sorry I haven’t gotten over there lately. I’ve got these two cases that—”
I waved my hand in the air. “No shop talk while I’m around, remember?”
She smiled. “I love you for that.”
“I know you do.”
She laughed. “The couch?”
I looked over toward the piece of furniture. “The couch, indeed.”
“So, how are things at the clubhouse?”
We both made ourselves comfortable before I answered the question.
“I actually want to ask you something since I’m kind of on a time constraint.”
“Oh? How long are you here for?”
“Forty-five minutes.”
She rolled her eyes. “Link can be a bit dramatic at times.”
“A bit?”
She giggled. “He means well, though. He wants to make sure you’re safe.”
“I know he does, and I respect that. But I do want to ask you something.”
She took a bite of her chicken sandwich. “Shoot.”
“What do you know about Bowser? You know, the guy who’s there every night and not sleeping?”
She swallowed hard. “He’s completely okay, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“I mean, do you know specifics? What’s he actually like?”
“You can trust him.”
“That’s not what I’m asking.”
She stared at me. “So, what exactly are you asking, Hope?”
I shrugged. “Just if you know the man, is all. His likes and dislikes, or whatever.”
“Uh oh.”
“What?”
“What happened, Hope?”
I furrowed my brow. “What do you mean?”
She put her sandwich down. “Is he hitting on you? Is that what’s happening? I can tell Link if—”
I sighed. “Forget I asked.”
She took my hand. “Hope, just be honest with me. You’ve got me worried now. Is Bowser making you feel uncomfortable?”
I wasn't sure if I could answer her honestly and not get him into trouble. But I had to try. I had to believe that our bond as sisters was stronger than her bond with Link.
“I don’t want him to get in trouble, okay? Because I liked it. That’s what you need to know first,” I said.
She puffed out her cheeks. “Oh, boy.”
“Don’t ‘oh, boy’ me. It’s not bad.”
“What happened? Just spit it out.”
I lowered my voice. “Well, last night we kind of… kissed.”
Her eyes bulged. “What?”
“We were just having this moment, you know? Opening up and being honest with one another. He was comforting me; I was comforting him.”
“Comforting him, how?”
I picked up my drink. “Not sucking his dick, if that’s what you’re asking.”
She grimaced. “Hope, look—”
I held up my hand. “I’m so tired of people starting off their sentences with me like that. Address me like I’m an adult and not like I’m a petulant toddler.”
She sighed. “To answer your question, I don’t know what kind of man Bowser is. I haven’t talked with him much, but Link seems to trust him, so I trust Link’s assessment of the man.”
“That’s good, at least. That Link trusts him.”
“You can’t do something like that with him again, though.”
I paused. “And why not?”
“Please, Hope. I know this sucks. I know you’re cooped up. I know you want to get back to your life. But please, I’m begging you, don’t get involved with someone until I can at least talk to Link about Bowser. You know, find out some more details for you or something.”
I narrowed my eyes. “That’s not why you’re doing this.”
“What?”
“You’re lying.”
“What!? No, I’m not.”
I nodded. “Yes, you are. You have a tell.”
“A tell.”
“Yep.”
“What’s my tell, then?”
I leaned back. “If I told you, you’d try to fix it. But you’re lying to me, at least partially.”
She chewed on her lower lip. “I’m also concerned that you're too fragile right now to handle another man from a crew like this.”
“And there it is.”
“Hope, I’m not saying you’re weak.”
“Yeah, you kind of are.”
“No, what I’m saying is that you’ve been through hell and back with one crew and we’re still no closer to wrapping that one up. Why in the world would you ever want to get back in bed with another crew for any reason at this point?”
“Because I like Bowser and I trust him?”
“A man you hardly know? That sounds a lot like what happened with Skeleton.”
“Are you saying Bowser’s like Skeleton?”
“What? No!”
“Then, what are you saying, Joanna? Because you're not doing a very good job of it. And that’s kind of your job as a lawyer. You know, talking and shit.”
She glared at me. “If you want to spend your forty-five minutes bickering, I can do that. Or we can be productive and actually talk this out. At least put things on hold until I can figure out what kind of man Bowser is from Link. The two of them have been friends and cohorts for years now. They pledged this crew together. Let me at least ask him some questions later this week. Okay?”
“Does that mean you’re going to actually come visit? Or do I have to kiss Bowser again and come tell you about it just to see you?”
She paused. “I don’t even know if you’re being serious or sarcastic?”
