Page 11 of A Perfect Christmas with Chaos
“The works," I confirm with a laugh.
Palming his beard, he grins wider.“That’s what I’m talkin’ about.”Then he eyes my vest.“Damn, darlin', that looks good on ya.You definitely make one fine old lady.You keep him on his toes, you hear?”
I nod, and we share a serious look for a moment that somehow shares the sediment that I won't let Mav ever treat me poorly again, and Griz will hand him if ass if he does.
Like I said.He's my favorite.We share an unspoken bond and I couldn't be happier to have him in my life.
Dozer finally notices the vest, or maybe he just didn’t want to acknowledge it until now.Either way, his smile goes from genuine to brittle.“Yeah, looks good, Pumpkin.You happy?”
Smiling, I tell him with all the sincerity in the world.“I really am.”
He nods.“Glad to hear.Make sure he treats you right, yeah?”
“I will.”
From there, it's a madhouse as people arrive at once: Lily, Goose, Edge, and Rigor, quickly followed by Sunny, Smoke, Taz, and Whiz.Bethany and the kids arrive a little late, but I anticipated that so it's all good.
Finally, it’s time to eat.Mav carves up the turkey.Griz slices the ham.Lily pulls everything cold that we’re eating out of the fridge and puts serving spoons in every dish.Kendra helps the kids.Bethany lays out two large pans of funeral potatoes ready to serve, and a huge box of rolls she ordered from the bakery by her house.
I can tell right away that Bethany's nervous and maybe even a bit flustered, and I eye her curiously, but without time or the privacy to get into it, she whispers in passing that she’ll fill me in later.
Dozer ignores her like the plague, staying on the opposite side of the room.He even sits on the opposite end of the table from her.It’s probably not obvious to anyone but us.
At one point, when Bethany was talking to Rigor, who sat beside her, I saw Dozer glaring daggers their way.And it gave me the feeling that there’s more animosity between them now than there was a few months ago.It makes me wonder if something happened that I don’t know about.
I watch them occasionally and think about how sad it is that you can care so much about someone and yet put so much effort into avoiding them at all costs.I realize, though, it's because they're both scared of getting hurt and have so much history to work through.
Maybe that's it.They need time.When it's off, it promotes disaster and deeper hurts.When it's right, it simply works and unravels naturally.This fight they're struggling through makes a bit more sense when I think about it this way.
I just hope that one day when the timing is right, they put this same effort into making each other happy instead of pushing each other away.
As the dinner winds down, I catch sight of the solemn figure that is Taz.While everyone is talking and bantering back and forth, he seems to be in his own little world.As if mentally, he’s in another place entirely.
Mav did share with me that Taz still feels guilty about what happened with me and with Warner.He's been letting Mav pummel him in the ring since that night, and seeing the truth of his words now; I make a mental note to try to catch Taz alone later and let him know that I don’t have any hard feelings.But just in case that doesn’t smooth things over, I know how he can make it up to me.
Thoughts of finding Ivy dance in my head.Now that the apartment’s ready, it’s time to track her down and try to pay back the favor I owe her.Maybe Taz can help with that, and it'll keep his mind off whatever he's stewing over.
After dinner, the guys head out to the garage for a few beers and to smoke.The kids play in the backyard, and the women clean, gossip, and share a bottle of wine.
As I wash dishes, Lily dries.We’re nearly done when she leans in and whispers, so only I can hear.“I think Goose is using again.”
Caught off guard by her remark, I pause and look over at her.Her impeccable hair is curled and lying over one shoulder.She’s dressed to the nines, which is the only way she does it, in a black satin shirt, tight jeans, and cheetah print heels.
Her brows are drawn together, and her eyes dart to mine for a second.“He’s been gone a lot lately.He threw up this morning.Twice.He’s sweating like crazy.I think he’s going through withdrawals.I want to ask him, but if I’m wrong, he'll think I don’t trust him.”
I hear the back door open.Stealing a glance over my shoulder, I spy Goose as he comes in, and it’s as if he knows we’re talking about him because his gaze clashes with mine.
All of the guys follow him into the house and huddle at his back.It's the first sign that something's going on.
“Lil’.”Goose calls her name.
We both freeze up.
“Baby, come here for a second.I got somethin’ I wanna ask ya."
The tension in the room rises, and the guys murmur under their breaths to one another.Even Bodie is abnormally silent.
Lily drops the rag on the counter.She pulls in a deep inhale before turning and facing him.I turn, too, and watch her saunter across the room to him.
