Page 40 of Cocky Jerk

“I’ll just ask Delia to finish it.”

His eyes slice back to me.

“Leave Delia alone,” he grinds out.

The tone of his voice sobers me up some and I sit straighter in my chair. I’m such a dick. All this time I’ve been sitting here, wallowing in my misery when he and Delia are living a nightmare of their own.

“Everything okay?”

He looks away.

“No, but what’s the use in complaining about it? Ain’t gonna change a damn thing. I can’t give her what she wants…what we both want. I got the debt and an empty nursery to prove it.”

“I’m sorry, man,” I empathize.

I wish there was more I could say, but there are no right words when it comes to their situation. Do you pray for them? It seems rather pointless when all their prayers go unanswered. Soraya is sure this party we’re planning will bring them some joy, but what happens when they wake up the next morning and the pain they forgot for a couple of hours is still there?

Sighing, Tig shakes his head.

“It is what it is. I’m going to go get Gary so I can finish his session. You good to drive home?”

“Yeah.”

He nods and starts for the front door. Pausing midway, he turns and looks at me.

“Hey,” he calls.

“Yeah?”

“I want to meet her.”

“Who?”

“Your girl,” he clarifies. “I want to meet her. Delia and I can use a night out and I can’t think of a better way to spend our time than watching you act like a lovesick fool. Set it up.”

With that, he turns on his heel.

My mouth drops open to say something, but I quickly smack my lips together.

Looks like I just got them to the party, and I didn’t even have to lift a finger or concoct some crazy story.

Who’s better than me?

Chapter Thirteen

Antonia

The weekend passed without muchcontact from Marco, odd considering how much we spoke from Tuesday to Friday. If we weren’t texting, we were FaceTiming, and we didn’t go more than two hours without hearing from one another. Friday afternoon I called him, and he rushed me off the phone. I figured the back to back night shifts were getting to him. Either that or he had a secret wife and child he was trying to hide. Dramatic, I know, especially considering I was the one hiding a family of bikers.

Saturday he was off and told me he planned on catching up on his sleep before heading to his cousin’s tattoo shop, so I didn’t call him at all. Sunday morning, he texted me, but again it was brief which only fueled my paranoia more.

You can imagine how miserable I was all day, thinking he was going to ghost me for our date. I spent most of my lunch hour plotting how I’d get back at him for making a fool out of me. Five o’clock came and there was still no word from him.

Still, I called my father and told him I had a date and ordered him to call off my tail as per our agreement. I pulled my bag over my shoulder and shut down my computer. On my way to the elevator, I realized if Marco didn’t show, I was going to have to ride the subway back home. Once, this morning was enough. That thing was a cesspool of germs—another strike for Marco Pirelli.

I pressed the button for the elevator and when the doors opened, there he stood with a sexy smile on his face. Soraya had already left for the day, so he didn’t exit to greet his friend and he didn’t pay any mind to Penelope who was lurking behind me. Instead, he reached for me and pulled me inside the elevator, pressing his lips to my cheek. They were soft and cool against my heated skin, and I yearned to feel them against mine. He didn’t let on that something was wrong and before I knew it, the anger I felt and all the crazy suspicions I had before he arrived, disappeared.

Just like Tuesday, he opened the car door for me and when we entered his apartment complex, he waited for me to step onto the elevator first.

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