Page 25 of Chef
Joe grins and moves faster. I don’t blame her. There’s an urgency in me to get these done because it means that we’re getting closer to shutting down Ashfall and I’m getting closer to getting rid of Nathaniel.
“So, how's Chef?” Joe asks, avoiding my gaze.
Rolling my eyes, I angle my head to look at her. “You can just ask, you know?”
“I don’t want to pry.” I raise a brow. “OK, Idowant to pry, but I was being polite about it,” she huffs.
A laugh bursts out of me and I shake my head. “I don’t know what it is about MC’s, but we sure do love to gossip.”
Joe is quiet for a moment. “The last MC I knew wasn’t anything like this one,” she says quietly.
“Wait.” I stop and turn to Joe. “You know another MC?”
She swallows, head down. “My ex was in one. Nothing like this one. They didn’t protect women. Only hurt them.”
I wrap my arms around Joe, giving her a squeeze. I remember the first time I ever saw Joe. The DRMC were bringing Addyand Bree to Vex and Loyal and Joe turned up, battered, broken. It hurts my heart to know that someone with so much light and love could have ever been treated that way.
“You’re safe now Joe. We’ve got you.”
“And we’ve got you,” she whispers before sniffing loudly and stepping back. “Come on, we’re gonna have more women to look after soon.”
“More for our beginner girl gang, huh?” I bump her shoulder, and there is my Joe. Bright headscarf, white teeth on display as she beams at me, gripping my hand as we beeline to a cute little cabin tucked next to an oak tree.
“So, whatcha think?” She slings her arm over me, as we stare at our after work project.
“I think I need to hit Pinterest.”
***
“Hey, it’s just me,” Chef calls out as he comes in through the door.
“Hey,” I reply, not looking up from my phone where I’m intensely adding to my Pinterest board. “How was work?”
“Just men getting covered in oil and grease.”
My eyes flick up as Chef leans against the kitchen island, opposite where I’m sitting at the dining table.
“Sounds sexy.”
Chef snorts and then chuckles when I wag my brows. I like this new norm we’ve settled into. It probably helps that Chef is actually a good room mate. Every morning I wake up to my coffee perfectly doctored, with just the right amount of caramel creamer. Chef eats his protein overnight oats while I eat my granola. And when it looks like it’s getting low? The next day there will be a new box waiting in its place. I know they’re smallthings, but they mean a lot. Which makes this whole thing hard. I didn’t want to see Chef, or be anywhere near him really. I was too pissed and hurt and scared and whatever other emotion my system would throw at me whenever he was near. What I never thought I’d feel was content. I like when he comes home and we talk about our day. Don’t get me wrong, hanging out at the clubhouse with Loyal, Joe, Damian and Justice is a hella good time, but surprisingly, so is spending a quiet evening near someone I’m beginning to get to know again.
“So, what has you all frowny and thinky over there?”
“Thinky?” My nose screws up. “If you must know, I’m helping Loyal and Joe with a couple of the cabins. If, no,whenwe shut down Ashfall, there will be women needing a safe place to stay.”
Chef’s face softens, and everything feels very domestic all of a sudden. I know Chef feels it too because he straightens and clears his throat.
“We’ll shut Ashfall down. Because you’ll take out Nathaniel.”
I give him a tight smile. It’s nice his lush lips are saying those words, because I have a feeling that there will be a long line of DRMC men who will try to stand in the way of my bullet and Nathaniel’s head.
“Fingers crossed!” I say cheerily. “Until then I have a cabin to renovate, meat to peddle and a fake wedding to get through.”
“So, just another day in the DRMC?” Chef says, brow cocked.
I can’t help the grin on my face. “Just another day in the DRMC.”
Chef
