I stood in front of Susan and Glen’s house and pasted on a smile. I was glad I was the last one to arrive because I wanted to be the first to leave and wouldn’t have to worry about being blocked in. I knocked on the door and took a huge breath. One of the regulars opened it, and after exchanging air kisses, waved me in with an almost empty wine glass. I scanned the room and didn’t see Susan.

“Sorry I’m late,” I said to the seven pairs of eyes that greeted me. There was a round of warm smiles and hellos. “I can’t stay. I need to talk to Susan quickly though,” I hastily informed them. I waited for someone to hint at where she might be.

A brunette who was new to the group, and whose name escaped me, provided the answer. “She should be a few more minutes. She’s in the guest room helping her sister put her daughter to bed.”

I frowned. I knew Susan had a sister, and an infant niece who lived in Georgia, but I didn’t know they were visiting. Susan had recently shared with the group that her sister was a recluse who didn’t drive, and barely left her home. She wasn’t in an abusive relationship. She had a good and kind husband who did his best to encourage her to be more social.

One of the women started to offer an explanation. “We got started without Susan. We were lucky she still had book club tonight.”

Another woman lifted her glass to toast. “Both of them could use a glass of wine.” There was a murmuring of agreement from the others.

“What’s going on?” I asked. I had no clue what they were talking about.

“Susan’s sister agreed to a visit, but we all know she doesn’t drive, and she most definitely doesn’t fly. Her husband couldn’t get away from work to bring her down here so Susan drove to Georgia yesterday to get her. They left early this morning to come back, and according to Susan they spent at least five hours in bumper-to-bumper traffic.” She gestured to two of the ladies. “We offered to call off girls’ night, but Susan told us to get started without her while she helped her sister get the baby settled.”

“Oh,” I squeaked. I had seven eyewitnesses that basically told me it would’ve been impossible for Susan to be behind the note and chess piece I’d found earlier. Unless of course, she hadn’t really spent the day driving from Georgia and decided to include her phobic sister and infant niece in her plan. It sounded ludicrous even in my own head.

“Even though they’re exhausted I think Susan wants her sister to have some girlfriend interaction since she’s taking her back before we meet up again,” the brunette whispered.

“I can’t stay, but since I was nearby I wanted to say hello,” I lied. “Will you tell her for me?”

“Of course.”

“Yes.”

“We’ll miss you.”

I barely heard them as I turned around and walked out the front door.

Christian, my heart cried. I need Christian.

I robotically climbed into my car. My emotions were all over the place. None of it made any sense. Then again, maybe I’d been trying to put a puzzle together that had been missing a few pieces. I was almost at Axel’s garage and still wracking my brain for a reasonable explanation.

A million thoughts shoved each other out of the way as they clawed to the top of my brain one at a time. Maybe Nick’s fiancée, Rachel, was behind it all. Yeah, and Jolly Roger is her happy accomplice, I inwardly sneered. Maybe Susan had someone else sending the notes and planted the chess piece. What if it was one of the women who my father had rejected for my mother? Christian might’ve casually mentioned my surgery, and it could’ve made its way around the biker gossip circle without either of us knowing. No. Christian didn’t make small talk, especially about something so personal that concerned me. What if it was one of Moe’s sisters? Except there was no explanation as to how they could possibly have known about Grizz’s daughter moving back to town or about my hysterectomy. Then again, maybe somehow they had known, and the barren comment was a stab in the dark that hit home. My head was spinning with outlandish possibilities. There were too many unknowns to pursue this on my own. I needed my husband but dreaded his reaction after finding out how long I’d kept this a secret. He would be angry with me for not coming to him immediately. And I couldn’t blame him.

I let out a wary but relieved breath when I saw his truck. Knowing that I wouldn’t have to deal with this alone lightened my predicament. I parked but didn’t leave the car right away. I took a moment to collect my thoughts. Christian would demand a succinct timeline, and I needed to make sure I could explain it properly.

Unfortunately, my brain wouldn’t cooperate. When I started remembering the circumstances surrounding the hateful messages, my mind wandered back to possible suspects, and the last note in particular. It had been so personal it could’ve only come from someone close to us. Someone who had access not only to intimate details of our life, but to that chess piece as well. Someone who might’ve been jealous of our happiness. I didn’t want to think it. God knows I didn’t mean for the name to pop into my head. But as if on cue, my phone rang. It was him. I almost didn’t answer, but curiosity got the best of me. When had he ever called me on my cell phone? I only had his number because we’d exchanged them early on, but neither of us had ever called the other. Until this moment.

“Slade?” I answered.

There were no pleasantries or small talk. I had to pull the phone away from my ear when he barked, “Mimi, where the fuck are you?!”

I stiffened at the tone in his voice. “Not that it’s any of your business, Slade, but I’m at Axel’s. I just pulled up to see Christian.”

There was a pause on his end, and he sounded like he was catching his breath. “You’re with Christian at the garage?” he panted.

“I will be in less than sixty seconds,” I practically spat.

“Why isn’t he…”

I didn’t let him get the rest of his sentence out as I disconnected the call and blocked his number. I didn’t want Slade bothering me while I explained to Christian that I had a stalker, and there was a distinct possibility that it was his older brother.