“It’s an excuse for you to bust my chops so you’re not layin’ down and tryin’ to get some shuteye.”
“This is because there is no way I’ll achieve the shuteye portion of that order.”
“Then you can’t sleep but you can rest.”
“Deke.”
“Justice.”
They went into staredown, something Deke had a feeling he’d win but he didn’t get the chance to bring that to fruition.
He heard vehicles approaching.
He looked to the door and felt her head lift from his chest to look that way too.
Carefully, he detached from her, got up and went to the side window.
Then he blew out a sigh.
Krys’s Camaro, Lexie’s Charger, and if it wasn’t bad enough Krys was clearly bringing a posse rather than just a bag filled with Jussy’s things, that posse included Twyla and Deke knew that because her pickup followed Lexie’s Charger.
He turned his eyes to Jussy.
“The big-haired cavalry has arrived.”
Her brows drew together, she flinched and again his gut burned.
“Stay here,” he ordered.
She nodded.
Deke went out the door.
He was at the bottom of the steps in front of the closed door by the time they all got out of their cars and started tramping his way, the girl gang including Lauren, who was carrying a bag.
“You couldn’t carpool?” he asked.
“Get out of my way, big man,” Krys demanded.
She was pissed and not hiding it, a staple in Krys’s emotional stratus.
Though now he could see she was a lot more pissed than normal.
“She’s had a rough morning,” Deke growled.
“No shit?” Krys asked, stopping in front of him.
“She doesn’t need you losing your mind,” Deke told her.
Krystal had no reply except to put two hands on him to shove him out of her way.
There was no chance Krys could shove Deke out of her way.
What there was a chance of was a heavily pregnant Krys wanting to get to her friend so Deke would let himself get shoved out of her way.
This he did.
She threw open his door and stomped in.
“Hey, Deke,” Laurie greeted, walking past him, face a warring mixture of amusement and concern.
Deke lifted his chin.
“Deke,” Lexie said, also walking past him with the same look on her face, except with Lexie, it was clear the amusement was winning out.
Deke didn’t say anything and not only because they heard Krys shouting from inside, “Motherfucker!”
“Yo,” Twyla gave her greeting, not breaking stride as she walked right by him.
He followed Twyla in.
He had a decent-sized Airstream.
Him, Jussy and four women was four women too much.
“I do not believe this shit!” Krys was still shouting.
“Calm down,” Deke grunted.
Her eyes cut to him.
“Calm down?” she yelled.
“Hey, Jus,” Lauren said softly and he took his eyes from Krys to watch Laurie push through and set the bag on the floor by the couch. “Krys and I went to your place. Got some of your stuff. Think you’re covered but you need anything else, you give us a call and we’ll take care of it for you.”
“Hey, I’m Lexie,” Lexie stated before Jussy could get in a word to Laurie. Lexie was sidling closer to Jussy, doing it with a friendly but cautious smile on her beautiful face. “I get that it’s not a good time for us to meet but Krys was calling around, saying you were staying out here with Deke and we thought…you know…”
She did not share what she thought Jussy knew.
Krystal did.
“Jus’s gotta stay here with you, we’re doin’ a once-over of this place and an inventory. Told Chace I wanted Jus’s ass at Bubba and my place and he said Jus wanted to be here so she’s here. But she’s here and we’re gonna scrub it down so a female can live in your lair without toxic spores taking root in her lungs, not to mention we’re makin’ sure you got some food to feed her.”
She said all this to Deke, not Jussy, and she wasn’t done.
“And if you give me lip, I’ll be glad for it because I’m lookin’ for a reason to lose my mind and someone to lose it on and you’re a big guy. You’ll be able to take it when I do.”
“You women wanna clean my trailer, I’m down with that,” Deke replied and watched three women blink at him in surprise.
Twyla did not. She was a sister to her sisters and she was a sister to the brotherhood and not because she was a lesbian but because she was a badass. She knew any man would not turn down a pack of women cleaning his house.
So she was grinning.
“But you can come back and do it,” Deke went on. “Jussy’s gotta lie down and get some rest and before you give me shit,” he said the last, his voice lowering. “I already changed the sheets.”
“Talked with Tate,” Twyla said at this point, cutting off a Krys who had opened her mouth to speak, or maybe snap, though she could have also been set to do more yelling. “I’m not on tonight at Bubba’s so I am on tonight to keep a lookout here. Tate thinks, days, when she’s up for it,” she jerked her head Jussy’s way, “she’s at the garage with Stella, at the bar with Krys or at the salon with Lexie. Never alone. Public. Lots of traffic. She’ll be good.”
Deke announced an alternate scenario which was actually the only scenario.