Page 44 of Bones

She’s mine.

My gut instinct was right.

“So,” I hear Meredith ask Xanthe. “Can someone tell me what the hell the pole room is? I heard Rose tell Suit to meet her there. What is it? Can we go there?”

Oh, fuck.

Atiana laughs and points to the door at the back of the bar. “The pole room is through there. It’s just got the dancing poles, a few couches, and a lot of exhibitionism.”

“And occasional orgies,” Lu adds, smirking.

“Basically, don’t go in there unless you want to see some biker dick,” Ora adds, making the women laugh.

“Sometimes we get on the poles and have a little fun,” Lu says, taking a sip of her juice.

“It’s where the men hook up with the club girls,” Xanthe adds, looking over at Ghost, who is watching her from the other side of the bar. “Which is probably why Suit headed there.”

“Who do you think is the hottest man in the clubhouse?” Atiana asks, scanning the room. “Besides your man, of course.”

“This is dangerous,” Ora mutters, and I couldn’t agree more. War will likely want to knock out whoever she chooses, and don’t get me started on what Ghost will do to whoever Xanthe chooses.

“I won’t get mad if you choose mine.” Isla laughs.

“Well, now I’m dying to see who you choose, Doc. I’m hoping it’s my brother, otherwise I’m going to have to kick someone’s ass,” I call out, letting them know I’m eavesdropping.

And if Meredith says that Pyro is her second choice, I might have to get him sent back to the Dawson chapter where he came from.

They all turn to me and gasp. “How long have you been standing there listening?”

“Long enough that I’m now invested.” I grin, sitting down at the bar and pulling Doc to stand in between my legs.

She spins around and wraps her arms around my neck. “I’ve been invited out on a girls’ night next weekend!” She lowers her voice. “With a best-selling romance author. How cool is that?”

“How many shots have you had?” I ask, amusement filling me. She’s so fucking beautiful. And I’m grateful the women have all accepted her into their fold. But why wouldn’t they? She’s incredible.

“I don’t know, five.” She shrugs, spinning back around to face the group. “Anyway, let’s continue this conversation when Nate isn’t here.”

“You call him Nate?” Ora smiles widely. “I love that. I didn’t even know that was his name.”

She flashes me a wide smile. “He’s always been Nate to me.”

Isla smiles at me. I can tell she’s happy for me, and they both want me to be happy. I hope now they can live their lives without feeling guilty about me, too, because I never meant to put that on them.

Ghost comes over and pulls Xanthe next to him, clearly done sharing her. I’m surprised he let her stand there by herself for so long. He whispers something into her ear, and her cheeks flush. “I’ll be right back.”

She pulls him away, heading upstairs.

“They’re not going to be back, are they?” Doc asks, and I laugh.

“Not likely.”

War, Haze, and Lore all come and grab their women, leaving Meredith and me alone.

“Come on, you want to go into the pole room? I’ll take you there,” I say, standing up and offering her my hand. “First, I’ll make sure no one is fucking in there.”

“Well, that takes the fun out of it, doesn’t it? I want to walk in and see whatever is authentic,” she replies, and I huff out a sigh.

Authentic.