get out of prison.
This time, I take another step back, seeing the same look in his eyes that I saw years ago. “That’s not true. You’ll find a good woman one of these days.”
“Only one woman I’ve ever wanted to claim, and she didn’t want me back,” he says, his voice dropping low as he looks into my eyes. “Now, I hear that she’s gone and shackled herself to a man that refuses to claim her.”
Fuck! I should have known this was coming. Rocky knew about my feelings for Round, long before Round had any idea. He didn’t like it then, said that it would lead to nothing but heartache for me, and it sounds like he likes it even less now. It doesn’t matter, though; this is between Round and me. Rocky doesn’t get an opinion.
I shake my head, avoiding his stare. “That’s none of your business.”
“Fuck that,” he growls, glaring at me. “You’re my friend. I don’t like seeing my friend hurting. You can lie all you want, but it’s gotta sting that you’re still not wearing his cut.”
If it was anyone else saying this shit, I would be pissed. They would probably be feeling the back of my hand by now. But from Rocky, it’s coming from a good place. It’s just a place I’m not comfortable visiting right now.
Taking in a deep breath, I try to explain. “I never asked him to claim me.”
“You shouldn’t have to ask, Lisa. The fucker should be begging you to be his,” he says, crossing his arms over his chest. “I heard about Lauren, and I know he’s out of excuses. He shouldn’t be treating you like a bed warmer. You are worth more than that. You know you are.”
His words are like a slap in the face, reminding me of my place in Round’s life. I should say, my lack of a true place in his life. For the first few years I was in his bed, I understood his reluctance to make anything official. At least, I tried to pretend to understand. He had an old lady and refused to leave her, even though they never shared a bed. Hell, they hardly even talked.
He said he didn’t want to put his kids through a divorce. It didn’t seem to matter that his kids were grown, and his old lady spent most of her time with her lover. Even as time passed, he never mentioned cutting Lauren loose. Nothing mattered but pretending all was good between the two of them.
When his daughter died, he gave up all pretense of a relationship with Lauren. He hardly ever went home, never even bothered checking in with her. Instead, he started talking about telling his other kids his marriage was over. Even though he never came right out and said it, I assumed he meant to take me as his old lady after cutting Lauren loose.
Then, before that could happened, his wife was in a car accident. She died instantly, and he quit talking about making me his old lady. I didn’t expect him to claim me right away; no way would he trash her memory like that. When he moved me in with him, I figured he would claim me soon after, but I was wrong. He never even mentioned it. Even after all these years, I am no closer to being his than I was the first time we made love.
“Please don’t, Rocky,” I whisper, trying to hide the pain from my voice. “I don’t want to talk about this right now. Just let me enjoy having my friend home.”
He’s quiet for a second, before nodding his head. “Okay, sweet thing. Let’s go grab a beer and catch up.”
I paste on a smile and wrap my arm around his waist. “Let’s skip the beer and grab a bottle of Jack instead.”
As soon as I turn around, my eyes land on Round’s son walking toward us. Smoke is staring at Rocky, a look I can’t quite name on his face. He stops a few feet from us, looking from Rocky to me then back again.
Rocky slings an arm over my shoulders and says, “Hey, VP. My friend and I are gonna go grab a drink. Wanna join us?”
Smoke shakes his head, his dark eyes resting on me. “No, I gotta talk to Dad.”
Feeling the weight of Rocky’s arm, guilt swamps me. I jerk away and mumble, “We were just catching up.”
The words have barely left my mouth, when Smoke’s eyes soften.