greeted, snapping me out of my daze as he sat down across from me. “What’s churning in that brain?”
“I was just thinking how awesome it is that so many people showed up today,” I replied.
He nodded and took a sip of my coffee. “Yeah, it’s pretty fucking awesome. How’d you do it?”
“How did I set it up?”
“No, how did you talk Buddha into not giving up?”
“I think you’re giving me too much credit.” What was I supposed to say? That I’d agreed to maybe kill his boss? “Torch talked to him too.”
“Oh, come on,” he groaned. “Your old man refused to entertain Buddha and the only other person he told that night was you. I was there and didn’t find out about it ‘til I talked to both of them the next day.”
I stared at him with a straight face, wondering what the hell was going on here. Did he know? “He probably just realized what a big decision it was,” I said with a shrug.
“Buddha wouldn’t have told either of you if he hadn’t already made one,” Zed pressed. “And once his mind’s set, it’s set.”
I smiled and took back my mug before he drank it all, I needed all the caffeine I could get. “How about you tell me what’s really going on with the club instead? Why’s everybody working around the clock?”
“You’ll have to ask your husband, you know the rules.”
“Yeah,” I smirked. “I also know the rule about a private conversation with the president staying that way, so I guess we’re both shit out of luck. Unless, of course, you already know what was said and this whole conversation is a pointless exercise in testing me.”
Chuckling, he reached into his cut, pulled out a flask, and held it out to me. “Have a drink, darlin’. You look like you need it.”
“It’s like eight o’clock in the morning,” I pointed out.
“So?”
So nothing. I snatched the flask and took a nice, long gulp of the whiskey inside. It burned, but it was a good burn, the kind that took the edge off. “Thanks.”
He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. “Anytime. So why the long face? What’s bothering you?”
“I’m good, Z, don’t worry about me.”
His eyes narrowed. “You’re a shit liar, babe. I know you.”
I trusted Zed and knew I could confide in him, but today wasn’t about me. Buddha was the one with real problems, I couldn’t even figure out what mine were aside from being worried about my man. So, I tried to change the subject. “I didn’t tell Torch you gave Nadia a car either. What’s up with that? Are you two a thing?”
He groaned and shook his head.
“What?”
“You know damn well what. You deflect questions better than a fucking politician.”
“I can’t help it, just part of my charm I guess.”
“Or you’ve had to watch what you say your whole life,” he added.
“That too.”
He cocked his head like he was trying to read my face, or at least trying to unnerve me. “It couldn’t have been easy. I don’t know if I could go that long always watching my back and not having anybody to trust.”
“You get used to it.”
“Yeah, I imagine you’d have to. Eventually, it just becomes who you are, right?”
Why did it feel like I was being lured into a trap? “What are we talking about?” I asked.
“You. Your life before and your life now. It’s a change and change is hard, that’s all I’m saying.”
Goddamn it, he’d deflected right back and hit the nail on the head. “But it’s a good change,” I insisted.
He eyed me skeptically, like he knew I was talking out of my ass and was just daring me to lie to him.
Fuck.
“Fine,” I sighed. “You wanna know what’s bothering me, Z? I’m trying my best stay cool and give Torch his space, but I know something’s going on and it’s driving me fucking nuts that I can’t do shit to make his life easier. I’ve had to be a fixer my whole life, I don’t know how to just sit back and wait for things to work themselves out.”
He scratched his beard and nodded. “I get that. I’d say you’re doing a lot just by being there, but I know it’s not what you wanna hear.”
“Nope, not really. I’m sorry, this is why I didn’t wanna say anything. You don’t need to be in the middle of something I’m not even sure is a problem.” Shaking my head at myself, I stood up and grabbed