Page 77 of Exile & Lula
Though I couldn’t argue with Nova’s reasoning, I wished she’d remain safe at home with the kids.
“What are you afraid of?” Lula asked after our afternoon fuck.
Stretched out on the bed, I wrapped myself closer and muttered, “I don’t know.”
“Do you think someone will attack the clubhouse?”
“Not really. The Void might hear about us all together, but it’s not like they have teams at the ready.”
“Then what’s got you worried?”
“I said I don’t know.”
Lula studied me. “You think if Nova is around your club friends and mine, she’ll find a dick to ride.”
“No,” I grumbled, though I didn’t like the picture she painted. “Nova’s been around my club friends before.”
“In a social setting without the girls around?”
Lula's question dug deep into my gut and made me feel worse. “No.”
“Nova wants to have fun. Why not let her do that in a safe location surrounded by people who will keep an eye on her?”
“Will people do that, or will I do it?”
Pressing her naked body against mine, Lula didn’t challenge my snarly mood. She remained calm and lawyerly, breaking down the problem and finding a solution.
“This party is for our clubs and close friends only. No club sluts or randos off the street. It’ll be easy for my people to know if Nova, or Ivy, for that matter, is in danger. You and I can spend the entire night fondling each other in a booth while my sisters watch out for your sister.”
Grinning at Lula’s sexy wink, I admitted to myself that I had kept Nova locked away at home with the girls for my sake as much as hers. But even her isolated life hadn’t been enough to keep her safe. A simple trip to the store nearly stole her life.
Rather than locking away my sister, I chose to relax and let Nova have a little fun. However, Lula wasn’t wrong that I worried about Nova dating. She’d been with one man in her life. Chris was a “fun” guy. He was “charming.” He seemed “harmless.” These were the words our mom used to describe him. Yet, I only knew Chris as the guy who punched my pregnant sister in the face.
Putting aside the past, I followed a naked Lula into her giant closet. By the time the Black Rainbow was thirty minutes outside of Little Memphis, Lula was dressed in black jeans, a white T-shirt, black Converse shoes, and her Crimson Guard vest. I wore my club vest, dark jeans, and a white T-shirt.
“We nearly match,” she murmured and looked ready to pounce on me.
Rather than get tangled up in the sheets again, we found Nova in the kitchen wearing faded blue jeans and Vanessa’s Spinal Tap T-shirt.
“I want to go,” Lyric insisted, seeing her mama wearing makeup.
Skylar shrugged. “Bebe’s ordering pizza. I want to stay here.”
Nova knelt next to Lyric. “This party will be loud and smelly. Bebe’s house has pizza and a playset. Plus, I bet Pax will roll around on the ground with the dogs like a big kid.”
Lyric considered her options before taking Dillon’s outstretched hand. Soon, we walked the three girls and two dogs next door. Bebe welcomed us inside while Pax immediately moseyed over to us adults.
“Stay sharp,” Pax told me. “If the Void wanted to hit the clubs, tonight would be a fan-fucking-tastic time to do it.”
Overhearing her grandfather, Dillon reacted with horror and reached for Lula.
“The best time to fight an enemy is when your forces are together,” Lula said in a comforting tone. “But, in reality, the bad guys won’t know we’re throwing a party. Even if they learn about it, they can’t attack that quickly. It’ll be fine.”
Dillon hugged Lula and nodded. However, her dark eyes also focused on me, searching for a promise from the man who saved her mom. I gave her a reassuring head nod. The fear in her expression disappeared quickly.
I smiled at how much she trusted me to keep Lula safe. Dillon wasn’t looking for a second dad as much as an attack dog. I hoped she understood how I would kill and die to keep Lula safe.
With Dillon reassured, we walked back to Lula’s house. Nova decided to drive her SUV in case she wanted to leave earlier than the rest of us. I didn’t mention how she couldn’t travel alone in Little Memphis. Rather than bring Nova down with reminders of her ugly past, I smiled at Lula, who climbed on her motorcycle.
