Page 46 of Property of Baffle
“I’m sure it does.Now, let’s get you out of this truck, so you can go get your man.”
After a whole ordeal trying to get back out of the truck, down on the ground, and hold my weight off my foot until someone could pass me my crutches, I was worn out and breathing hard.So much for getting ready and looking nice to see my husband again.I felt like a gross, sweaty mess all over again.Not to mention the bulky cast and only one cowboy boot took away from the flirty skirt and sweet but sultry country girl look I was going for.
As if the universe thought my ego needed to be brought down yet another peg, I had to hobble into the clubhouse to see that patch-chasing hoes just kept digging for gold, no matter if the club brother was available or not.
Rick was seated on a couch at the back of the clubhouse common room and despite seeing that Rosa - the hoe in question - had scooted closer to him just since I walked through the door, I continued to hobble on my crutches in a forward trajectory.Tilly finally noticed where my eyeballs were glued.When she looked up, her reaction was almost comical.
“Oh hell fucking no!This is not happening after all the work I just did to bring you back to the clubhouse.”
She must have missed the part where I hadn’t tried to turn around and leave.When it looked like Tilly was going to march her butt across the common area and snatch a club bitch up, I threw a crutch out to the side to stop her.“Let’s see how this plays out first,” I stated in a way that I knew she would take me seriously and listen.
She stopped in her tracks, just as I did.Some of the men who were hanging around noticed and their heads swayed back and forth between their VP and me.I couldn’t hear what Rosa said when she eventually leaned in and squished her tits into my man’s arms while her lips hovered over the shell of his ear, but I did not miss Rick’s reaction.Nobody could have missed what happened next.
Rick put both hands out and shoved the woman so hard she not only tipped off his lap and the couch, but she did a complete roll across the floor before she came to a stop.“You’re not my Nell!Only my wife touches me.Only Nell can make me feel better!”His declaration was slurred, but still clear enough for everyone to understand.His club brothers snickered, laughed, and went back to whatever they’d been doing before.Tilly tapped me on my shoulder and gave me an encouraging smile.
“Looks like that’s your cue.”She left me there to navigate the rest of the way to Rick while she went to join her husband and son at the bar.
Once I made it all the way to him, Rick looked up with glassy eyes and gave me a dopey smile as he asked, “Are you real?”
“I’m real and I’m here with you,” I answered.
Baffle turned to look down at the woman who was still perched near his feet.“See, told you.Only my Nell.You’re gone!”
Bigfoot came over then and helped Rosa off the floor, though I didn’t think it was an act of kindness or chivalry.Judging by the way she was arguing with him, he was following his drunken VP’s wishes and escorting her out.
“Come on big guy, we need to get you back to your room,” I said.
“Our room, Nell,” Rick corrected.
I smiled at him and glanced around only to find Knuckles there by my side.“I’ll help you.”He did just that and helped Rick stand and shuffle his way to our room while I hobbled along on my crutches.After Knuckles helped me get my husband settled in bed, I carefully joined him and listened as he told me the story his father had relayed to him and his sister during their visit.
When I heard the part about Lila, it made a bit more sense why she was so hell-bent on her daughter not only hooking up with Baffle but getting his patch and a ring.She wanted her daughter to have what she hadn’t been able to achieve herself, a Mendoza man.It was wild to me that she would want that even after seeing how tragically his father’s life played out.
“Don’t want to end up like them,” Rick mumbled.
“We won’t.I promise, we’ll figure this out and do better.”I leaned across him as best I could and kissed his lips.As I drew back, I whispered, “I love you, my husband, and I’m not letting you drift away.You won’t let me do it either.”
There was a contented smile on his face as he closed his eyes, but I wasn’t sure if he truly heard me or if he would even remember.It was okay because I could say it to him again in the morning.
25Dreaming
Baffle
My head was thumpingto the beat of its own drummer as I rolled over and tried to get comfortable.My knee and back hurt from the way I’d been passed out.I didn’t even fucking want to know how I managed to get to my bed on my own the night before.
My leg rolled right over warm flesh and I stopped fucking breathing.
No!No fucking way!
I reached out and felt that there was indeed a woman lying in bed next to me.My heart started to pound double-time as I jumped back.“What the fuck?”I asked as my feet cleared the bed and landed on the floor.Before I could give myself a second to chicken out, I threw the covers off the woman so I could see who I would have to kill.To my complete fucking surprise, Nell shot up in the bed, blinked hard once, then one more time before her head swiveled so she could see me.
“What’s going on?”
“Nell?”I stupidly asked because I was still so stunned to see her there, and thankful.So fucking thankful that I hadn’t made a drunken mistake the night before.
“Yes, you do remember that I’m your wife, right?”Her teasing tone allowed my heart to kick back to its normal cadence.And I took a seat next to her on the bed.
“Fuck, sweetheart, the last thing I really remember was Rosa offering to make me feel better on the couch last night.I thought…” I paused a moment because it felt wrong to even admit what I’d just been thinking.Then I saw the smirk on my wife’s face and went with it.“I thought she came to my room and took advantage of the situation or worse.”
