Page 40 of Ky
“Pancakes,” she says, clapping her hands and bouncing on the balls of her feet.
I chuckle. “How about something simpler, like cereal?” I reply.
Willow pulls up, crossing her little arms over her chest, and full on pouting now. “No cereal. Pancakes.”
Ink touches my arm. “She can have pancakes Sera, the ol’ladies made some,” He explains, and I smile softly, before moving lithely towards what I assume is the kitchen. I place a stack of two pancakes on a plate and pour some maple syrup over the top.
With Willow’s hand in mine, we return to the common room, and I place her on a chair in front of a round bar table, cutting her food into bite-size pieces, as I sit across from her. Watching her eat.
I thought I’d have a slight reprieve from all the people surrounding me, but I didn’t account for the fact that Lexie would be here as well, I notice her stand from the corner of my eyes as I try to concentrate on watching Willow.
Her pretty gray eyes, her teased hair in what was all pink, is now in a kaleidoscope of blonde pink and black, paired with a fully inked sleeve tattooed on her right arm, make her a badass bitch as she saunters her way toward me. I stand to my full height, which isn’t much when you’re only five foot three, and push my shoulders back, preparing myself for another confrontation.
Willow finishes her breakfast, and I wipe her mouth as she slides off the chair.
“Can I go play, mommy?” She asks, and I nod my head before she skips away.
I watch my little girl toddle off towards a group of kids around the same age, and I bite my lip, wondering if I should intervene.
“She’s safe. That’s Everleigh’s youngest, Ivy,” the younger woman drawls, coming to stand by the table I’m sitting at, sipping my coffee, pretending I wasn’t anxious at what she was going to do. She was hankering for a confrontation when the girls visited me at my house, and I could tell she was hankering for one right now, but I was determined to not give it to her.
“Look, Lexie, is it? I’m really not in the mood for this.” I couldn’t help my hackles rising, and my voice came out sounding snooty. Something I was trying to avoid.
The other woman stops, sighing deeply. “I’m here to apologize to you.” She shocks me by saying. “How I treated you was not on, and I’m truly sorry,” she says, her eyes staring across the room to where Ink was talking in hushed tones to a beautiful young girl that looks like Everleigh, but younger, and I know this is her daughter Lily. I’d met her briefly at Chains’ birthday party a few months ago, but since Ink was hanging all over me that night, she had virtually ignored me.
Covered in ink like 99% of the rest of the men, he would be intimidating if I didn’t know him so well. But he’s also extremely handsome, with close cropped hair, a well-maintained beard, and piercing ice-blue eyes.
“Oh, well, okay.” I stammer, unable to get my mouth to form complete sentences, that’s how much Lexie has shocked me.
Another shock to the system is when Lexie laughs, attracting the attention of a man who I think is named Riggs. He could hardly take his eyes off her.
“I’m really not a bitch to the people who know me. I guess you just brought it out of me when we first met. I wanted to apologize to you in the pharmacy, but you ran out of there so fast, I wasn’t prepared to chase you down.” She chuckles, and I can’t help but smile at the memory. She stretches out her arm. “It’s not my place to tell you what you can and can’t do. You all three are adults, and can decide for yourselves. So, friends?”
I smile at her and accept her hand. “Well, that’s very mature of you.” I reply
“It’s been known to happen a time or two,” She says, her unusually gray colored eyes glimmer with mischief and we both laugh out loud, drawing the attention of the others in the room, finally breaking the tension that’s existed between us since we met.
“I guess I was just protective of Lily when I heard you and Ink were seeing each other.” She replies, by way of an explanation to her shitty behavior toward me. “I always thought they’d get together.”
It was difficult to meet her eyes, because I was afraid she would see the lies in them if I did. I wanted to shout that Ink and I were nothing to each other, but if I did that, it would leave me vulnerable to Ky. And I just couldn’t handle that. Especially now, knowing he was involved with his ex again.
It’s true; I hadn’t told anyone that I was pregnant yet, but we were still too deep in this thing for us to back out now. My eyes search out Ink, who’s still talking to Lily, and guilt slides up my throat, making me want to throw up.
Or it could be as simple as I haven’t yet eaten anything, and the baby was demanding food.
She was younger than either Lexie or me; as I watch her for a beat—Ella, another beauty that’s attached to the club, comes up to her and says something before they both walk away from Ink.But it’s the furtive glance back over her shoulder that gets to me the most.
I know Ink is hung up on her, so maybe I should just end this madness, pack up my things and disappear somewhere with Willow, where no one will find me?
“Thank you. Apology accepted.” I smile.
“I hear on the grapevine Ky is about to cut that bitch Mariah loose.” Lexie’s words bring a flicker of hope, but I remind myself not to get carried away by the fleeting feeling.
But then I frown, Lexie’s the second person who’s called Mariah a derogatory name. The first being Ink when I was in the hospital. What was going on? Nobody seems to like the other woman. I wonder what that’s all about.
“Where did you hear that from?” I ask, ready to disbelieve anything she has to tell me. But before she the chance to reply, Ink appeared. I was so relieved to see him, I almost threw myself at him.
“Come on, Lexie, just quit it,” Ink spats.