Page 118 of Healing the Heart

Elena raised a mug of what looked like hot tea to her lips, saying before taking a sip, “She ain’t lying. I think it’s a curse all Rossi doms have. To hook up with subs who have drama.”

“Maybe it’s them who create the drama. Ever think about that?” Megan quipped. “My life was placid before Tony came crashing into it like an EF4 tornado.”

“And boring,” Elena reminded her.

“Well, there is that,” she replied with a secretive smile.

“What’s your drama, then?” Regan persisted. “Or his?”

“My drama is over. Now it’s all him. Lingering from years ago before I ever met him.”

“He was married before,” Lexie explained. “His wife and daughter died. It’s very sad. The little girl was only two.”

Naturally, that brought down the mood of the table.

“Where’s Angie?” Regan asked, scanning the crowd. “She went through something similar with Lil T. She’d be the one to talk to.”

“Did he dump her and run off to Africa?” Fiona asked as she poured a third margarita, filling her glass to the salty brim. If they insisted on talking about it, she needed more tequila to numb the pain and keep the tears at bay.

“Not Africa,” Megan clarified, taking up the pitcher when she was done and refilling her and Regan’s glasses with what was left. “But he dumped her three times before he got his head out of his butt.”

“Three times!” Fiona gasped. “That means she went back to him twice. What is she, a glutton for punishment?”

“She loved him,” Elena explained, her tone wistful, but it didn’t stay that way. “Lucky for him, the third time was the charm. Otherwise, we were going to have an intervention.”

“You’ve seen these Rossi men, right?” Regan asked.

“Noah is a Rossi man,” Lexie explained.

“Then you know they’re hot and can do a number on a girl’s head and heart.”

“Noah Richmond? The one they call Doc?” Megan asked.

“That’s the one. Also known as Master One and Done,” Fiona replied, risking a brain freeze by slurping a mouthful of slushy drink. Maybe if her head hurt, she could forget about the pain in her heart for a while.

Megan pointed toward the door. “I’ve only met him once, but isn’t that him about to come to blows with Axyl, Cap, and Jonas by the lobby door?”

Lexie and Fiona both jumped to their feet and faced that way.

“That’s him, all right,” Lexie confirmed. “Jonas doesn’t look happy.”

“No one does. Excuse me,” Fiona said, moving that way.

“Wait! We’ll go with,” Regan called, also moving, along with the other women at the table. “You’ve gotta learn, babe, especially in Decadence, you don’t go headlong into a drama without your posse.”

That she had a posse for the first time in her life would have tickled her to death. But there was some shoving and chest bumping going on by the doors. Three other men had arrived and formed a barrier to Noah getting in.

It took her ducking, sidestepping, physically squishing herself between bodies, and a dozenexcuse mes to get within hearing distance of whatever was going down.

“If she wanted to talk to you, she wouldn’t have blocked your number and would have replied to your letter,” she heard Jonas say calmly, but with a bite to his voice. “Until she decides her next move, you need to keep away and give her some space.”

“She’s had nearly four weeks of space.”

“After you destroyed her,” Axyl hissed, getting in his face again. “What part of blocked calls and ignored letters don’t you understand, man?”

“Let’s take this discussion somewhere other than the lounge, gentlemen,” Elena’s master dom husband stated coolly. “Cap, Rick, maybe you can escort Doc to the conference room in administration?”

Noah was big, but the other two men were human mountains. They flanked him and directed him toward the lobby. He hesitated, scanning the crowd, clearly reluctant to leave. His gaze passed over her then quickly shot back. For a moment, they connected.

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