Maria bit her lip at the same time Holly said, “Um, ‘cos you kind of are?”
Maria tsked. “I mean, it’s not that bad.”
“Have you guys met the DiAngelos?”
“Once.”
“I’ve only met the youngest brother. He’s not an asshole like the rest of them, but that probably has something to do with the fact that he’s Diego Jr.’s age.”
“So, it’s bad?”
“Honestly, they probably don’t even know you exist. From what Jackson was telling me, it’s Greyson that’s the issue. Probably ‘cos Dalton and Maverick can’t, or won’t, hide how they feel. Some kind of power trip thing orsomething, maybe? He wants what they have.”
Holly’s words weren’t exactly reassuring, but Maria added, “Not only will Mac and Dalton be there, but so will we. Including Diego and Jackson. Trust me, no one is fucking with us.”
I told them about the first time Greyson had gotten me alone, and Maria visibly cringed.
Holly’s hazel eyes narrowed to near slits. “That asshole! Putting your hands on you like that!” Holly said.
Maria glanced to the side. “You’re not the only one. He likes trying to take things that aren’t his. He was super-touchy with me when Mac was in that coma and Diego was at the hospital every day. But it all stopped after I had Diego Jr.”
I cursed the screen preventing me from hugging my friends. “Listen, it’ll be fine. Power in numbers and all that. Greyson is an ass, but we got this. We’re going to go there, looking fine as hell, eat all the hors d’oeuvres, and drink too much champagne.”
“Then we’re going to go home and get railed by our fine-ass men!” Holly raised her Coke in a mock toast and I grinned.
Maria clapped her hands. “Hell yeah, I’ll drink to that!”
My phone pinged low battery and since it was getting late, I bid my girls goodbye and hung up. I lay in bed after plugging the thing in, missing Mac’s presence and Dalton’s voice.
I was finally meeting the DiAngelos, the whole reason for this charade. Tomorrow, I had to get as much information about them as possible without raising suspicion—or creating any more hostility than necessary.
At some point, I fell into a fitful sleep, and I woke up around ten feeling like crap. Mac had told me not to worry about coming in today, so I was surprised when my phone showed a missed call. I tried calling him back, but the call went straight to voicemail. A couple of minutes later, a textfrom him came through: “It’s all good, Vixen. I’m in with Silas right now but I’ll talk to you later.”
I stretched and then headed into the bathroom. After washing my face, I tossed back a couple of ibuprofen and headed downstairs for a late breakfast.
With a plate of eggs and toast in one hand, and a cup of coffee in the other, I made myself comfy on the couch before flipping on the TV. I loved these quiet mornings alone. Or, at least, I used to. Now I found myself wishing I had company. Blue-eyed company, to be exact. I sighed and started a letter to Uncle Tommy while sipping on my coffee. In between bites of egg, I told him about the dinner with the DiAngelos. I also added that, from everything I had seen, the Mills brothers and a vast majority of the club had no desire to be affiliated with the family. I guess, in the back of my mind, I was hoping to prove that the men I loved weren’t the bad guys.
I busied myself around the house, wiping down counters and cleaning my bedroom and bathroom until a honk outside startled me. Opening the door, I discovered Maria idling at the end of the driveway in her minivan. I walked out to her, not bothering to put shoes on, as she rolled the window down.
“Girl, what are you doing? I thought we were meeting at Holly’s?”
She shrugged. “Your place is on my way and, besides, do you really want to try and figure out how to strap a gown with shoes and shit to the back of a bike?”
I eyed my Triumph, sitting at the front of my drive. She had a point.
“Alright, let me get my shoes on and I’ll be right back.” A few minutes later, I had everything I needed and tossed it into the back of her car. “Who’s watching the kids?”
“Diego’smamàhas them until tomorrow night. I’m kind of excited—he and I haven’t had a lot of alone time lately.”
I listened as she told me about the most recent drama with her ex on the way to Holly’s. It had been reallymessing with Jewel’s head, and I hated it for the poor kid. But I reassured Maria that she wasn’t to blame. Just because she slept with the dude didn’t make her responsible for all his bad decisions. Holly’s place was about five minutes from mine, a swanky-looking Georgian that could’ve fit two of my townhouse inside.
“So, like… how rich is Holly?”
Maria gave me a look like she couldn’t believe I was asking, since the answer was staring us right in the face.
It was around one, which meant we had about an hour before the lady Holly hired would be here. Jackson was out, evidently taking care of some last-minute things with Diego, Mac, and Dalton, so it was just us girls. I liked how close the four men were. After all, Jackson had been one of the guys to follow me to the clubhouse that first night.
Holly was in sweats and one of her husband’s t-shirts, and I teased her as she opened up the door. “What, no butler?”
