Page 12 of Haunted
I sigh pushing back my bitterness. Wear or not, I’d much rather have Eli standing by my side when I face them. I open my closet and try to find something to wear. I need something to help keep my courage up when I see Dane and that bitch. I wouldn’t mind if it also caught Eli’s eye, too. I don’t want to look like I’m trying too hard, though. I look at my very limited closet and frown. I don’t have anything in here that says look-what-you-threw-away-asshole. I purse my lips and with a sigh pull out a pair of black leggings and the new moss-green sweater I bought recently. It’s very demure up front but the back has a V-cut that narrows as it goes down. It’s kind of sexy, but not over showy. Plus, it’s very comfortable. I’ll wear this with my black ankle boots. Then, I’ll try to figure out how to fix my dang hair.
I take my time getting ready and with every minute that passes, my nerves get worse. I don’t have the patience to try and tame my curls. So, I just pull it up in a high ponytail at the top of my head. I add in some product to tame it just enough so that it doesn’t look like a frizzy mess.
Once everything is done, I am just walking back into the living room when Cammie runs to the large window that looks out onto the drive. “Pez is here!” she squeals.
A new wave of nerves hit me. The man I haven’t seen in months but have sadly been dreaming about is outside and somehow, I have to make him and everyone else believe that I don’t feel like I’m dying when I finally see him.
Suddenly that feels impossible …
Chapter 11
Pez
“What the fuck?”Sabre mutters as I pull into Daphne’s driveway. I let my gaze move across the front of a small brick home in Manchester, Kentucky. The place looks like shit. Even with my help and that of the club, this place needs some bigger work done. It’d be stupid to put money in the place right now, though. It’s just going to be sold. There’s no point in losing even more money, when it’s just going to be sold, and Daphne’s asshole ex will be getting money from it. That’s the main reason that most of what the club and I do at her place is just what is needed most to keep her and Cammie comfortable including landscaping. I also keep her car running, but I’ve never let her know when I do that anymore—mostly, because she keeps trying to give me money. There’s not much Daphne will allow. The damn woman makes me feel like I’m constantly walking a tightrope and praying she doesn’t get upset with me.
Daphne doesn’t understand how much I care about her. If I had my way, her and Cammie would be living in Corbin close to the club where I could take care of her. Fuck, if I had it my way, she and Cammie would be living with me. I’d be her man.
Fucking pipe dreams.
“What are you bitching about already?” I ask Sabre.
“Where’s Dane’s vehicle and Daphne’s van? What’s that thing in the driveway?”
“That’s the damn piece of shit your daughter drives,” I inform him. “That fucking slime she’s married to, took the van and his car when he moved in with his secretary.”
“He left my little girl—he left Daphne for his secretary? When the fuck did this happen?”
“For a while now, asshole. He filed for divorce and lately he’s focusing his efforts on trying to take Cammie,” I tell him, smirking because I can tell everything I tell him is another blow. Maybe it will make him get his head out of his ass. I’m not holding my breath, but one can hope at least. Daphne sure as hell could use Sabre in her corner.
“Why the fuck didn’t Drew tell me? Or you, for that matter, asshole.”
“You don’t think we tried? We even bring up Daphne, and you start spouting bullshit or just leave. Besides, Daphne didn’t really want you to know. In fact, she’s going to try to keep it hidden from you today. You let her have that, Sabre.”
“The fuck I will. She needs help. I can tell that just by looking at this place,” he growls.
“She does, but you will not ruin Cammie’s birthday.”
He curses under his breath, but somehow manages to get control of himself. “Shit, this is a clusterfuck.”
“It has been for a while. Daphne could have used her dad, old man.” He looks at me with haunted eyes. I know, because I see the same look often—every time I stare into a mirror.
“Some things can’t be changed. Some things are beyond our control, Pez,” he whispers brokenly.
“Bullshit. You just give that woman and her daughter your love. That’s all she needs. You need to find a way to do that, Sabre.”
“It’s too late. There’s too much water under the bridge.”
“Papaw!” Cammie yells, coming out the front door and running straight for Sabre. “Mama said you weren’t coming, but I told her you would!” she squeals with the innocence only a five-year-old can manage.
Sabre picks her up in his arms and holds her tightly. His head goes down to breathe her in. I’m more than a little jealous. I usually get those hugs, breathing in the baby lotion and shampoo that Daphne uses for her. I already miss her little hands holding me tightly as if she’s trying to hold me together—which she does most of the time.
“Pez!” she says when her gaze locks with mine. “You came, too!”
“Did you think I’d miss your birthday, Pixie?”
She keeps one arm wrapped around Sabre’s neck and then puts her other hand on her sweet little chin, tapping a finger on her lip. “Did you bring me a present?”
I laugh. “That depends.”
