Page 12 of Rome
“Hey, what’s up, man?” Caleb’s expression darkened as he listened to whatever Saint had to say. I watched with concern as he dropped his hand down to grip the back of the chair so tightly that his knuckles turned white.
“You’ve gotta be shittin’ me,” he barked.“Fuck!”He closed his eyes and tipped his head back before taking a deep breath. “Yeah, that’s good. I’m on my way.”
He jabbed a little harder than necessary to end the call, then tossed the phone down where it skittered across the top of the table.
“I’ve gotta head back to the shop. Pic fucked up, big time, and I need to sort it out before things get out of hand.” He ran his fingers through his hair, and I could tell he was hanging on to his temper by a thread.
“Is there anything I can do to help?” I asked, walking around the table to place my hands on his chest. He breathed deeply again and covered my hands with his, lowering his head to rest his forehead against mine.
“No, baby girl, but I appreciate the offer. It’s club business. I’d better get changed and get down there before all hell breaks loose.” He dropped his hands and stepped back, turning on his heel to head upstairs. I went over to the sink and washed the last couple of dishes there, then wiped down the stove top and counters. I’d just finished when I heard Caleb thundering down the stairs. He hustled into the mudroom next to the kitchen, and I picked up his phone from the table and followed him in there to find him putting on his boots. He grabbed his cut from the hook by the door, shrugging into it, while I held out his phone.
He took it with a grateful smile, slipping it into the inside pocket of his cut. He stepped forward and slipped his arms around me, then gave me a kiss.
“I’m sorry our evening got cut short, Abs.”
“It’s OK. It can’t be helped. Ethan will be home any minute, so he and I will just watch a movie or something until you get back.”
Caleb winced and pulled away. “I’m probably going to be late, baby girl. Once I see how bad things are at the shop, I may need to go to the clubhouse to meet with the officers.”
My eyes widened in surprise. “It’s that bad?”
He heaved a sigh. “Yeah, it’s that bad. Pic’s really screwed the pooch this time. The fallout won’t be fuckin’ pretty.”
I reached up on my tiptoes to wrap my arms around his neck. His arms came around my waist, and he buried his face in my neck.
“Are you going to be OK?” I asked softly, afraid to ask what I was really worried about. I knew that if Caleb went to the clubhouse in the mood he was in, he’d likely end up having a drink, which means he’d likely end up drunk and passed out somewhere. That was his thing, and it was one of the very few points of contention in our marriage.
My husband knew me well. Too well. I felt him tense for a second before he relaxed again and pulled me in tighter. “I’m good, baby girl. It’s under control. I promised you, remember?”
I nodded, relief flooding me that he understood my concern without me voicing it. Relief also, that he was willing to curb his drinking because I’d asked him to. He still didn’t think he had a problem, but he knew that I worried about it, so he’d stopped.
“I haven’t been drunk since that night last year, and I haven’t even had a drink in over two months, when we hung out with Jag and Molly at the clubhouse.”
“Caleb, I’m sorry, I just – “
“It’s fine, Abby,” he brought his fingertip up to press against my lips. “I don’tneedto drink, so I’m not. It’s that simple.”
I closed my eyes so he wouldn’t see the worry reflected there. I wasn’t sure it was that simple. I wasn’t sure that was a long-term, sustainable solution, but I had to have faith in him.
“Now, I need to haul ass before Pic makes things any damned worse than they already are. Love you, baby girl. Give E a kiss for me and tell him I’ll see him tomorrow after Church.”
“Love you. Be careful.”
“I always am.”
He took off with a roar of his bike a few moments later and I slowly made my way into the living room to lower myself onto the couch. I picked up my Kindle that I’d set aside earlier, only to find that the story no longer held my attention. Dario’s seduction of his blushing bride didn’t hold a candle to what Caleb had just done to me upstairs.
I picked up the remote from the side table and clicked on the TV, then spent the next ten minutes aimlessly flipping through the channels. It was a relief when I heard a car in the driveway, and I got up to open the front door. I was just in time for Ethan to dash inside, dodging to the left to avoid barreling into me, before running down the hallway. The door slammed in the half bathroom as he yelled “Sorry Mommy, I gotta pee!” I heard a deep belly laugh and looked up to see Pop climbing the steps to the porch.
“I tried to get him to go before we left my place, but he insisted he didn’t need to,” he said, shrugging his shoulders, and I laughed.
“Do you want to come in for a while?”
Pop shook his head. “No, darlin’, but thank you. I’m gonna head on over to the clubhouse for a bit.” Judging by the scowl he tried to hide, I figured it had to do with Pic.
“Club business?” I asked wryly.
“Club business,” he agreed with a nod. I didn’t bother asking anything else, since club business was rarely shared outside the patched members of the MC.
