Kami leaned forward and hissed, “The nerve.”

“No, nerve is described in England as ‘cheek’, otherwise known as audacity or impudence, demonstrated by you walking up to our table and being a cow.”

“Nina,” Max muttered but he didn’t sound angry anymore, he sounded the opposite.

It was Max’s sister and if he didn’t want me to have a verbal altercation with her that was his call. I’d said my piece anyway.

So I sat back, drained my glass and declared, “I need another martini.”

“You gave up Shauna so you could end up with the likes of that?” Kami asked, gesturing with her hand at me.

Kami’s comment about Bitsy had been my final straw. Her insult to me was Max’s.

“I gave up Shauna because she was fuckin’ Curt at the same time she was fuckin’ me, hedgin’ her bets and tryin’ to talk Curt into leavin’ Bitsy so she could land him if she didn’t manage to land me. And I gave her up because, once she thought she was in, she was mostly a bitch and thought she could lead me around by my dick. She couldn’t, she didn’t like that, so she got even bitchier. When I finally scraped her off, she latched onto Harry who she could lead around by his dick at the same time spendin’ his money and fuckin’ around on him. Now, you got your explanation, you got your scene, go sit the fuck down and, I swear to Christ Kami, you don’t leave the drama behind next time I see you, I won’t fuckin’ see you. Yeah?”

My goodness. Max, I realized, was mostly patient in his Mountain Man way but when he was done being patient, he didn’t take any shit either.

“High and mighty, always were,” Kami shot back, still raring to go.

Max shook his head. He was done and I knew this because he slid in beside me and looked at Brody, remarking, “Remind me to thank you for this great fuckin’ idea. Steaks at The Rooster. Fuckin’ brilliant.”

“Don’t blame me,” Brody muttered, grinning.

“Waitress!” I called, lifting up my martini glass when I caught her eye and then circling it around the table indicating she should bring a fresh round for all.

“I love your top, Neens, I forgot to say,” Mindy told me.

“Oh yes, darling, and yours is lovely. I forgot to say that too,” I replied.

“And that thing in your hair,” Mindy continued. “It’s fab.”

“Thanks,” I smiled at her.

Kami emitted an annoyed, unladylike snort and stomped away.

When her lingering malevolent presence wafted away on her heels, Max’s arm came around me and he suggested, “Maybe we should put Kami in a room with your Dad, see who’s the last one standing.”

I looked at Max and proclaimed, “Dad would kick her ass.”

Max grinned and stated, “Babe, Kami ain’t no slouch.”

“I can see, still, Dad hadn’t given me the good stuff this morning. Probably jetlagged.”

Max was still grinning when he muttered, “That ain’t good news Duchess.”

“What’s this about?” Mindy asked and Max and I looked at her.

“Nina’s Dad’s a dick,” Max answered bluntly.

“What?” It was Brody’s turn to ask.

I explained, “My ex-fiancé told my father I was here and my father is concerned about losing the social status he was counting on gaining through my marriage. Therefore my father flew out here to tell me I was making a big mistake, he did so this morning in his uniquely insulting way, managing also to utter slurs against Max who he doesn’t even know before Max had to chase him out of his house. However he hasn’t left town which means he’s at the hotel in Gnaw Bone likely planning to hatch a sinister scheme against Max, me, both of us, the town of Gnaw Bone and all its inhabitants or maybe even the entire county.”

Mindy and Brody both stared silently at me.

“Like I said,” Max summed up, “Nina’s Dad’s a dick.”

“Wow, you’ve really had a bad day,” Mindy said softly.

She didn’t know the half of it.

“Thus me ordering another martini,” I replied on a teasing smile.

Max’s arm gave me a squeeze but when I looked at him he was looking at Brody. Then he spoke in a tone that could only be read one way and that was extreme approval.

“You should have seen her with her Dad this morning, Brody. Christ, she chewed him up and spit him out. Thought I’d have to get out the mop and clean the floor.”

Brody grinned but noted, “Bro, not sure that bodes well for you.”

“I’m not a dick,” Max replied. “I’ve noticed Nina saves the lethal stuff for bitches and dicks. Me, even pissed, she’s tame.”

My eyes narrowed on him and I asked, “Tame?”

Max’s eyes came to me and he murmured, “Honey, with me, your claws are like a kitten’s.”

Mindy giggled. Brody chuckled. My eyes narrowed further and our appetizers arrived.

***

I’d finished martini number two and was enjoying the final sips of the glass of full-bodied, delightful red wine I had with my now consumed, utterly delicious steak, its accompanying sautéed mushrooms and loaded baked potato after an individual, baked camembert, my appetizer, which was superb when our next incident hit.

Shauna.

Brody spoke first and he did it the instant his eyes hit her standing at the end of the table.

“Seriously?” he asked disbelievingly.

She ignored him and everyone else. She only had eyes for Max.

“Max, can we talk a second?” she asked politely, her voice unlike it was the night of the buffalo burgers. It was lower, sultry, cajoling.

“Nope,” Max replied curtly and I noted happily he was immune to her sultry cajoling.

She leaned in and said softly, “Honey, please.”

I was, unfortunately, even though Max asked me to be careful, slightly inebriated. Therefore when she called Max “honey”, I was not in any shape to fully consider my response as in, perhaps not have one at all.

Instead, my happiness about Max’s immunity to Shauna melted clean away, my back went ramrod straight, I looked at Mindy and I asked loudly, “Did she just call Max ‘honey’ in front of me?”

“Fuck,” Max muttered and his arm wound around my waist, pulling my lower body tight to his.

“I think she did,” Mindy whispered, her face again pale and she was watching me closely likely uncertain whether to jump across the table and hold me down or jump into the fray with me.

I looked at Shauna and told her, “You just called Max ‘honey’.”

“I’m sorry, Nina, this’ll only take a minute,” Shauna said, having decided that she was not a cold, heartless, cheating, she bitch from hell but, tonight, she was sugar sweet on the surface, however still unsuccessfully hiding the heartless, cheating, she bitch from hell she was to her core.

“No, it won’t take a minute, Shauna, because in one second you’re going to walk away.”

“Nina, honey,” Max murmured.

I threw out a hand my eyes glued to Shauna and declared grandly, “I got this.”

Max’s arm tightened and he said, “Shauna, Nina’s unpredictable when riled. Do yourself a favor, take off.”

“Max, seriously, this is important,” Shauna replied.

“Let’s go back to you calling Max ‘honey’,” I suggested.

“Nina, again, sorry but I really need a word with Max,” Shauna pushed.

“I might have been willing to allow that had you not called him ‘honey’ right… in… front… of… me. Now you’ll get one over my cold, dead body,” I retorted.

“Baby, calm down,” Max said on another squeeze.

“It slipped, habit,” Shauna said, the ice queen frosting her features for a second before she could hide it, her words meant to remind me she’d enjoyed Max, even if just for awhile then she fought it back and said, again low and fake sweet, “Sorry, really.”

“Apology accepted,” I declared magnanimously. “Now please, we’re nearing dessert, the best part of the meal. Don’t ruin it.”

She looked back at Max and said, “Max, you know I wouldn’t bother you if it wasn’t important.”

“Spit it out, Shauna, and go,” Brody ordered, sounding impatient.

She didn’t pry her eyes from Max. “It’s private. Max, please.”

Max’s mouth got tight as he tired of her game and stated, “We don’t share anything private, Shauna.”

“Max,” she begged and Max’s patience slipped too.

“Honest to God, Shauna, Brody’s in town and we’re tryin’ to have a nice meal. What the fuck?”

She realized she was getting nowhere so she changed tacks and announced, “I’m pregnant.”

The air at our table went static.

I was watching Max, my lungs burning due to the fact I was not breathing, wondering when he “scraped her off” and if there was a possibility this child was his as I watched him blink slowly.

Then he growled in his now lethally dangerous, deep, gravelly voice, “Come again?”

“Can we talk privately?” she repeated.

“No, Shauna, why are you tellin’ me this shit?” Max asked.

“Because it’s Curt’s.”

“Holy crap,” Mindy whispered.

“Jesus Christ,” Brody muttered.

“Oh my God,” I breathed.

“What the fuck?” Max clipped.

She squatted at the table beside Max and looked up at him.

“Max, you have to talk to Bitsy,” she entreated.

“Why in the hell would I do that?” Max asked.

“Because this is Curt’s baby. Because Curt would have taken care of me, of the baby. He told me so. And because, now, Curt’s gone,” Shauna explained.

“You have got to be shittin’ me,” Max bit out and I could tell he was beyond angry, he was building up to enraged and it was my turn to put my arm around his waist.

“Can we talk about this privately?” she asked again.

“No, Shauna, fuck, I don’t wanna talk about this at all. I don’t even wanna know this shit.”

She shuffled closer and put her hand on Max’s knee and my eyes honed in on it as she begged, “Curt would take care of me, you know it, you know he would. I can’t afford to raise a baby by myself.”

“Are you mad?” I asked and her eyes sliced to me.

“What?” she asked back.

“Mad? Insane? Crazy? Nutty? Bonkers? Round the twist? Mad?” I explained, my voice rising.

“Of course not,” she snapped.

“Then first, get your hand off Max’s knee,” I snapped back and her hand shot away like Max’s skin burned. “Second, trot away and find someone else who might be heartless enough to help you try to fleece Bitsy out of money. You have got to know Max would never do that.”

“It’s Curt’s child and that’s Curt’s money and Max knew Curt and knows Bitsy and everyone knows Max is fair.”

“And you were sleeping with Curt when he was married to Bitsy,” I retorted. “Hard knocks but you live by the sword, Shauna, you must be prepared to die by it.”

Her eyes narrowed and the frost started setting in. “What does that mean?”

“That means you played with fire now you’ve been burned. Live with it. Now, honestly, just go away.”

“This is none of your business,” she snapped, standing, the mask slipping completely, now she was staring ice daggers at me.

“Sorry? I’m sleeping in Max’s bed. They were my jeans Max’s hand was down tonight. But it was you who called Max ‘honey’, you who put your hand on him right in front of me and you who walked up to our table, interrupting a lovely evening and laying this rubbish on us. So I’m making it my business. Go away.”

“We’re talkin’ about an innocent baby here,” Shauna returned.

“We’re talking about you still digging for gold even though the vein has run dry and having the sheer gall to walk up to Max in a nice restaurant and try to drag him into it!” I shot back.

“What’s happening here?” a man asked and I looked over Max’s shoulder with hopes of seeing a manager or someone of that ilk but Harry was standing there.

“Fuckin’ A,” Brody mumbled.

Max slid out of the booth. “Everything’s fine, Harry, Shauna was just leavin’.”

Harry ignored Max and stared at Shauna, asking, “Why’re you botherin’ Max and Nina?”

“Harry –” Shauna was back to her fake sugar sweet pleading tone.

“Thinkin’ you can fuck Nina over like you fucked over Bitsy and me?” Harry asked loudly and I studied him somewhat drunkenly, thinking he was a lot less goofy when he was angry.

“Can we go somewhere private?” Shauna asked demurely.

“No, everyone in the restaurant already knows you’re a fuckin’ slut, why would we need to be private about it?”

“Fuckin’ A,” Brody repeated on a mumble and also stood. “Harry, man, seriously, let’s you and me take a walk.”