Page 102 of Kneeling to Candy

“Yeah.” I grin. “I’m pretty crazy about my biker boy.”

“So you love him?” Opal asks, her smile nearly as big as mine.

“I mean, I’ve never been in love. But with Butch…” I throw myself back against the couch cushions, mimicking a swoon, “it has to be love.”

Opal gets teary-eyed, swiping under her eyes. “This makes me so happy, I’m gonna cry.”

Ebony side-eyes our rainbow-haired friend. “It’s those baby hormones. They drag the emotions right out of you, I swear.”

Red looks up from the floor at me, distracting herself from the baby talk. “Have you told Butch yet?”

“Um, no,” I say, flipping my pink hair over my shoulder. “The dude turned to stone when I brought up a dream I had where we got married. How do you think he’s going to react when I tell him I love him?”

“But things are different now,” Opal protests in a soothing tone, wiping at her tear-stained cheeks. “You’re sharing a suite, and he made you his old lady. Telling him you love him is not out of line if you’re feeling it.”

I chew on the inside of my cheek. “Hmm. Maybe. But I don’t think now is a good time to be bringing up my feelings for him.”

“Why not?” they all ask at once.

“The case,” I explain in a defeated tone. “It’s a lot. We’ve already dealt with enough in a small window of time. There’ll be plenty of time to confess my feelings to him after the mission is done.”

Opal looks unsure. “It seems simple enough to express it to him. But if now is not the right time, then it’s not the right time. You say it when it feels right—natural.”

“Agreed,” Ebony says, taking another big gulp of wine.

Jo comes back to the living room, blowing away the sandy-colored stray hairs that fell loose from her French braid. “I think we need to call it a night. Simone is not feeling great at the moment.”

“The joys of pregnancy,” Ebony says, with a sardonic laugh.

“Let’s keep the pregnancy talk between us,” Jo says, rubbing a hand down her strained face. “Simone is worried this might be the flu. She doesn’t want to give Chase false hope.”

Ebony points her finger toward the bathroom. “Jo, there’s no hiding morning sickness. Evening sickness? Whatever. Chase is going to assume she’s pregnant the first time he catches her praying to the porcelain god.”

“We shouldn’t assume she is based on sickness alone,” Jo protests flippantly. She’s clearly concerned for her older sister.

“I bet my right tit she’s preggers,” Ebony challenges, slapping the side of her boob.

“Has she taken a test yet?” Opal asks, rubbing her baby bump.

“I gave her one from my stockpile,” Jo says, thumbing in the direction of the bathroom. “It’s really early if she is—the test might not pick up the pregnancy hormone. We should know any second.”

“Oh, my God!” Simone hollers from the bathroom.

“I knew I should’ve put money on this bet.” Ebony sighs, downing the rest of her glass.

CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

BUTCH

It’s three days before the rescue mission. As a pertinent member in this case, my focus should solely be on the assignment, and nothing else. However, my head won’t get in the game unless I deal with my personal shit first.

So where am I? Downtown Fort Collins in Old Town Square with Ziggy, looking for an engagement ring and wedding bands in a local glitzy jewelry store.

I may not be breaking the news to Candy until after the mission. But when I do, you better believe I’ll be ready. This time around, I’m going to do things right by presenting her with a ring worthy of her. Fuck that Ring Pop. My woman deserves a real rock on her finger.

Biting the inside of my cheek, I scan the glass cases and all the shiny gemstones sparking back at me. All of them are nice, but nothing screams goddess-worthy.

A whole hour of ring shopping, and nothing to show for it. Frustrated, I run a hand over my short hair. “This is impossible.”

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