If he cut this deal, he might not be able to see Maddy and Thuy again, but they wouldn’t have to worry about being run off of the farm. The club wouldn’t have any reason to go after them. He would be miserable — but they would be free.
He reached out and shook his old friend’s hand, even as it felt like his heart was breaking.
“Then I’ll take the job.”
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Thuy went down to the Piggly Wiggly — a name that always made her giggle — the next day. She wasn’t scheduled to work, and Kevin was taking care of the cows. She and Maddy decided to make Christmas cookies, since it was right around the corner. Maddy had turned her on to the tradition when they were in the dorms, all those years ago, and it would help keep Thuy’s mind off of what Drill was up to.
Last night had shaken her severely… both the incident with the bikers, and her near-miss having sex with him. Which he had been the one to stop, she thought, feeling embarrassment burn through her. What was she thinking?
Her body squirmed. You weren’t thinking.
There was going to be a next time: she was sure of it. The question was, what was she going to do?
Make cookies, that’s what you’re going to do. Repress. Was it healthy? Nah. But right now, she really didn’t care. She’d had more changes and emotional upheaval in the past month than she had in the past ten years, and right now, she had hit her limit. So right now, she was going to shut that shit down and eat some feelings, dammit. Procrasti-baking!
She walked down the baking aisle, picking up parchment paper, putting a bag of sugar and a bag of flour in the small cart. She grabbed a few packages of chocolate chips as well, as well as dried and crystallized ginger. Then she headed for the dairy case. Butter. She needed a lot of butter. She might as well grab ice cream for good measure, making a mental note to hit the freezer as well.
As she was grabbing boxes of butter, a woman’s voice interrupted her. “You’re the girl that lives at the Blount house, aren’t you?”
Thuy looked over, blinking. She didn’t recognize the woman, but she supposed it was a small enough town that the lady might’ve been at the memorial service. Maybe the woman recognized Thuy from there? Or was it just because Thuy was a recognizable stranger? “Um, yes,” Thuy said finally.
The woman was middle-aged, perhaps in her early fifties. Her skin tone was winter-pale, like copier paper. Her hair was a uniform blonde that suggested box color, and her face was fully made up and a little bit tight, though that was probably from her ponytail. She dressed in fully coordinating cotton-candy pink. Her face looked a bit foxlike, with a pointed nose and even more pointed bright gaze. Her smile was predatory, and Thuy instinctively took a step back.
“It’s such a tragedy,” the woman said, her drawl rich and slow. “Old Man Blount was all alone there, at the end.”
Thuy wasn’t sure how to answer that. “I didn’t really know him,” she finally said.
“But you know his daughter,” the woman said leadingly. “You live with her, don’t you?”
“She’s my best friend,” Thuy replied.
“Oh, yes, of course,” the woman said, with a tone that suggested she didn’t buy it for a minute. “And how long have you two been… living together?”
“We’ve been together on and off for ten years,” she said, deliberately letting the woman believe whatever the hell she wanted.
The woman all but drooled at the information. “And you’re going to be raising that baby of hers together?”
Thuy tilted her head, studying the woman. “I’m sorry. Remind me again: how is this your business?”
The woman jolted as if she’d been pinched. “I knew the Blount family,” she finally spluttered. “I knew Old Man Blount when he was younger. And I knew his wife, Maisey.”
Thuy shrugged. “So?”
“So, I know that they would both be heartbroken at how those kids of theirs turned out,” the woman said, with a firm nod of her head. “First that trash, no-good thug son of theirs joining the biker gang, and then their daughter — well, I imagine Maisey’s heart would just break at how she…”
She stopped, as if she suddenly realized what she was saying.
“What you’re saying is, Maddy’s mother was just as homophobic as you are?” Thuy said, with a small, razor-sharp smile. “And judgmental about what might have driven her son to those extremes? Which, I might add, you know nothing about?”
The woman focused on her defense of Drill. “That kid is a hell-raiser,” she said. “Never was any good!”
“Oh, shut the fuck up, Karen,” Thuy snapped.
Now the woman gasped. “How did you know my name is Karen?”
Thuy blinked. “Is it? Really?” She burst out laughing in surprise. Sometimes, the universe just handed you one. “It’s a figure of… never mind. We’re done talking.”
Karen’s face went splotchy with anger. “You don’t know anything.”
“No, Karen, you don’t know anything,” another woman chimed in. Thuy looked over to see an attractive, middle-aged black woman standing there, lips pursed in disapproval, shaking her head. “Leave this poor girl alone. You’re just stirring up trouble and looking for gossip, anyway.”
Karen stood up straighter. “Daisy Payton, I was just trying to have a civil conversation and this girl cussed at me!”
The woman, Daisy, shook her head. “Bless your heart, Karen. I know you well enough to imagine what you did to provoke it. I’m just surprised it’s taken this long for someone to actually do it to your face.”
Karen spluttered. “She’s living in sin with that Blount girl! And has the… the gall to tell me that that biker brother isn’t trash!”
“Throwing stones is a dangerous hobby, Karen,” Daisy warned. “Especially talking trash when your own house isn’t clean.”
Karen glared. “I’ve got nothing to hide.”
“Really?” Daisy leaned against her own cart, looking amused. “Where was your husband last Saturday? And — wait for it — where were you?”
Daisy’s mouth fell open. Then her pale face quickly turned as red as Santa’s suit. Without another word, she turned, abandoning her cart, and rushed away.
“Lord grant me patience,” Daisy said, shaking her head. “That woman is a trial.”
Thuy looked at her avenger, Daisy. The woman looked to be a young middle-age, with glowing dark umber skin and burgundy lipstick. Her hair was cut in a stylish bob, matching the sophistication of her business suit. “Thanks for that,” Thuy said gratefully.
Daisy held out her hand, and Thuy shook it. “Don’t worry. I just didn’t want you to think that all of us in Green Valley are like her,” she said, dismay evident in her tone. “Close-minded idiot. And like so many close-minded people, she can’t seem to be close-mouthed along with it.”
Thuy laughed. That was a good description.
“I’m Daisy Payton. I own Daisy’s Nut House.”
Thuy grinned, pleased. “You make the best doughnuts I’ve ever eaten in my life,” she said honestly.
“Thank you! That’s sweet.” Daisy smiled, her eyes twinkling. “You and Maddy stop by when I’m around, and I’ll buy you a coffee to go with. When’s she due?”
“February-ish,” Thuy said.
“We can put up a sign-up sheet at the Nut House,” Daisy said. “People will make you meals, drop ‘em off so you aren’t staying up all night and trying to keep yourselves fed. We’ve done it for pregnant moms before.”
“That’s amazing,” Thuy said. “Although I think we still have casseroles from the funeral in the freezer.”
“It’s the south, honey. We love a good casserole. And we take care of our neighbors,” Daisy said, with emphasis. “You need anything, you reach out, okay?”
Thuy nodded. She bit her lip. “Can I ask you a question?”
“Sure.”
“About Drill…” Thuy hesitated, then plunged forward. “That’s Maddy’s brother. Was he really that bad
?”
Daisy looked at her with surprise. “I’ll be honest — I didn’t know the Blounts that well. Sometimes I think that old man had an allergy to anything that brought pleasure, so once his wife died, he stopped going to the Nut House, stopped bringing those kids. I’d heard he was hard on the kids, but it was just gossip,” Daisy mused, then frowned. “And he fell in with those bikers. They’re a bad crowd. So yeah, I’d say he was trouble.”
Thuy nodded, feeling miserable.
“He’s probably still trouble,” Daisy murmured. “If you were wondering.”
Thuy swallowed, then shrugged.
Daisy stared at her for a second. “You’re not with Maddy, are you? Not romantically, I mean.”
“No,” Thuy said. “Although people shouldn’t care even if I was. She’s my best friend, and I’m here to help her out for as long as she needs me.”
“You’re good people,” Daisy said. “A bit of advice?”
“Shoot.”
“Don’t fall for troublemakers,” Daisy said, her voice tinged with sadness. “They’ll break your heart every time. That’s probably really personal, and I don’t know you, so I don’t want to get in your business. But trust me. My daughter fell in love with the wrong type, and it… it ended badly.”
Daisy looked sad, and Thuy didn’t want to press her further. She nodded. “Thanks again, Daisy.”
With a little wave, Daisy went back to her shopping. Thuy picked up the rest of the ingredients, heading to the cashier, her enthusiasm for dessert making suddenly waning. She wasn’t sure if there was enough sugar in the world to get her mind off of this.
Don’t fall for troublemakers. They’ll break your heart every time.
Thuy sighed. But what did you do if it was too late?
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Drill knew he shouldn’t, but he found himself gravitating back to the farmhouse. He told Catfish he needed the night off, that he’d make the vice president announcement the next day. Told Catfish it had to do with a woman. Catfish had been indulgent; after all, he’d gotten what he wanted, at least in part. Having Drill as vice prez might not be as helpful as the cash, but the important thing was, it’d keep the club together.
Drill felt the weight of a thousand bricks on his shoulders. For Catfish, keeping the club together was like keeping family together. He’d never felt betrayed by the club, never wavered in his faith. And he’d fight tooth and nail to keep the club together and protected from all comers.
There was no escape for it for Drill now, he realized. Not if he wanted to keep Maddy and Thuy safe.
He had to tell them. He wasn’t going to be able to see them again, but they’d be in the clear. That was the best he could do.
He knocked, then walked in the front door and was instantly assailed by delicious smells. He sniffed deep, letting the scent envelop him. “Man, what is that?”
“Cookies,” Maddy called out, leaning back with a grin and a full sheet tray of them. “Christmas cookies.”
His stomach growled. “I haven’t had Christmas cookies…”
Since Mom died.
He felt a little clench of grief. So much of their lives had gone sideways after the accident that had taken their mother. That’s when his father had gone from strict to demanding, just as Maddy had said. It was when all warmth and comfort had left their home. It eased a knot inside him, to know that Maddy was bringing back some of that warmth and comfort.
Maddy disappeared back into the kitchen. Thuy walked out with a tray of chocolate chip cookies. “Wanna try?” she teased, a small smile playing around her lips. “It’s… tasty.”
His body tightened. She was teasing him. Deliberately taunting him, her eyes alight with mischief. And God, did he want to take her up on her unspoken offer.
Instead, he picked up one of the cookies, still warm from the oven. He took a bite, melting chocolate oozing, the cookie perfectly crisp on the outside but still somehow chewy. “Delicious,” he purred, his eyes never leaving Thuy’s.
She blushed. His smile widened.
“C’mon. We made some BLTs,” she said, backing down a little.
“Good. I’m really… hungry,” he teased.
She nudged him. Fortunately, Maddy hadn’t watched any of this exchange. It was probably — no, definitely — stupid of him to get something started that he shouldn’t finish. He didn’t know when he’d be able to see either of them again, if ever. Maddy would understand, he felt sure. She’d been through this once before, when he’d left at sixteen. But Thuy… if he slept with her, and then left her...
She’d never forgive him. Nor should she. Because he’d be an asshole for it.
He cleared his throat, trying to get his head right. He walked to the kitchen. There was a plate full of sandwiches in the middle. He sat at one end, Maddy at the other, and Thuy sat between them.
Maddy’s eyes were wary. “Did you get everything cleared up at the club?” she asked. “Are we still in trouble? Should I be expecting… I don’t know. Anything?”
“No,” Drill said quickly, grabbing a sandwich from the pile. “I got everything cleared up.”
“How?” Thuy asked suspiciously.
Of course she’d ask. She’d know that it wouldn’t be easy, better than Maddy, better than anyone.
“The new president and I go way back,” he found himself hedging. “I pointed out that the old vice president wouldn’t have knuckled under and given away cash he had coming to him. And I threatened to rough up one of our captains.” He sighed. “Catfish knows that the more division we show, the weaker the club is. We can’t afford that. It’s even worse than him losing out on the money.”
Maddy bought it, hook, line, and sinker. Thuy still looked unconvinced.
He should tell them now. The deal he’d cut with Catfish, the price he was paying to ensure they were safe. But he wanted to enjoy some normalcy, some comfort. Just for one more night, he told himself, as his heart ached in his chest.
This was all he was going to get.
“How was your day?” he asked instead, biting into his sandwich.
Maddy’s eyes twinkled. “You should ask Thuy,” she said with a grin. “She told Karen Smith to go fuck herself at the Piggly Wiggly.”
He choked. When he recovered, he turned to Thuy. “You what?”
“I said to shut the fuck up, actually,” Thuy said, a little sheepishly. “It was utterly self-indulgent, I guess… but in my defense, she was being rude as hell.”
“You know that woman can be rude, Teddy,” Maddy agreed, looking at Drill. “Although it’s usually, you know, Southern rude. All innuendo and passive-aggression.”
“Yeah, well, I’m from Oakland,” Thuy muttered. “I believe in aggressive aggression.”
“Do you miss it?” Drill asked.
Thuy looked at him, surprised. “What? Oakland?”
“You always hear all this bad stuff about it,” he said. “And you had a rough childhood there.”
“In part of it, yeah,” Thuy said. “But I also — I mean, you realize your sister and I lived there? Before all this happened? And after we graduated from college?”
He shook his head.
“There are different parts of the city. It’s not just one big, bad place,” Thuy said thoughtfully. “Even the poorer areas have pockets of beauty and lots of cool things. I loved living there.”
He heard the wistfulness in her voice. Maddy must’ve as well. She fidgeted with her napkin.
“I’m sorry, Thuy,” Maddy said. “I know how much you’ve given up to be here.”
Thuy looked at her friend, with a small laugh. “Not this again. Hey, did I tell you I met the woman who runs Daisy’s Nut House? And that she’s awesome?”
Drill let them talk, liking the easy back-and-forth of their conversation. He helped clear away the dishes, then helped himself to more cookies: chocolate chip, some truly impressive ginger snaps, even some toffee with chocolate and almonds.
Drill knew that it w
as getting late. He just didn’t want to leave.
This could be your last time. He wanted, craved, this warmth, this sense of family. He hadn’t had this sense of belonging, even in the Wraiths, since childhood. He did not want to go.
“Are you going to stay in the cabin tonight?” Maddy asked, yawning widely. “In case, you know… something happens?”
“It shouldn’t,” he admitted. Still — just because Catfish was on board didn’t mean that Sledgehammer or someone else wouldn’t do something stupid, he rationalized. “But if it’ll make you feel better, I can definitely stay in the cabin one more night.”
“Thanks,” Maddy said. “Well, I think I’m gonna watch a DVD in my room. Or see if I can stream Netflix from my phone.”
“Good luck with that,” Thuy said with feeling, and Maddy laughed. Then Maddy disappeared up the stairs, leaving Thuy with Drill.
He ought to leave Thuy alone. Drill damned well knew he ought to leave her alone.
“Want to come to the cabin with me?” he heard himself ask instead.
Then he held his breath.
This was wrong. They didn’t have a future. He’d guaranteed that. And if he slept with her, then walked away — she’d hate him. Hell, he’d hate himself.
She sidled up to him. It looked like she was thinking hard. Then she nodded, like she’d made a decision.
“Yes,” she said quietly. “No matter what… yes, I want to go down to the cabin with you.”
He understood what she was saying, and his heart slammed against his ribcage. He swallowed hard.
Then he took her hand, and led her out the door.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Thuy walked hand-in-hand with Drill down to the cabin. She felt hyper-aware of her senses: the smell of woodfire from a chimney, the feel of cold on her cheeks. The way the moonlight shone on the metal roof of the cabin. The strength and warmth of Drill’s palm against her own. She swallowed hard. This was a big step.
She knew what it meant, to agree to come with him to the cabin. She wasn’t holding off any more. She knew that what she felt about him was serious. She’d defended him at the grocery store, against that horrid woman, because her protectiveness had been triggered. That’s what she did for the people she loved.
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