Brennan's Jealousy

R.H.M.
I hurried to the shelter, where Daffodil was waiting for me behind the lobby desk. I gave her a tense smile, and she eyed me closely.
“Are you alright?” She asked.
“Yes. How are you?”
“I’m okay. I’m just tired. It’s been a long day,” she answered.
“I’m sure. How is everything here?” I continued to question her, hoping that she would tell me about how Leah was doing without me directly asking her.
“It’s good. The dogs and cats absolutely adore Phoenix. She is so loving. Probably the best assistant that I’ve ever had,” she gushed before freezing to study my face. “What’s her deal anyway, R.H.M.?”
“She just needs help. That’s all she’s doing here,” I told her.
“Mhmmm. How long have I been here, R.H.M.?”
“Since the beginning. Why do you ask?” I responded.
“So you would say we know each other fairly well, right?” She said.
“Yes. I would,” I replied slowly, trying to figure out where she was going with this line of questioning.
“What’s going on between you and Phoenix?”
“Nothing. She just needs—”
“Help. I know. I heard you the first time. But what do you need? I saw the look in your eyes when I said her name. You like her, don’t you?”
I groaned. “Daffodil, she is just trying to heal.”
“Mhmmm. Keep telling yourself that. And while you’re at it, you might want to tell her that too,” she said, smirking as she held out the folder that contained the supply list for the shelter to me.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“She asks about you a lot. All of our conversations revolve around you. If you’re not careful, R.H.M., she might latch onto you. Just be careful with her. She’s more fragile than she lets on,” she told me.
“I know,” I sighed as I reached out to take the folder from her, tugging at it when she held it tightly.
“No, Brennan, I don’t think you do. She doesn’t ever speak about herself. It’s all about you. It’s almost like she’s afraid to breathe air into her demons,” she told me gently. “If she confides in you, take that as a win. She needs someone to lean on, and I have a feeling that she has chosen you to be that person. I know about your past. If you can’t be that person, tell her. Guide her to someone who can be that for her. If you can’t be that person for her, keep your boundaries. Don’t lead her on. That will do more harm than good. Okay?”
“Yes, Mary. I promise I will be careful,” I told her.
“I hope so. I don’t want to see either of y’all hurt.”
She let the folder go, turning away from me, and I knew that our conversation was over. It had been the same since I met her. She was one of my favorite people, and I was glad that she had chosen to stay. Between her and the few bikers that had chosen to come to Eden to help the people I brought in, we were fully set up with all the people we needed to run our community. I rolled the folder up, sticking it in my pocket as I walked out of the shelter.
I stuck my hands in my pockets as I started on the way back to my office to order what she needed as I got lost in my thoughts. Before I knew it, I found myself in front of Leah’s house, glaring at Armadillo as he talked quietly to Leah with her hand in his and her head on his shoulder. I was instantly furious when I saw how comfortable she obviously was with him. I didn’t like it. In fact I absolutely hated it. Clenching my jaw, I turned away to go back to my office. I took two steps before spinning back around.
“PHOENIX! COME HERE! I WOULD LIKE A WORD WITH YOU!” I yelled.
Her head snapped up, and she immediately pulled her hand away from Armadillo’s. It didn’t matter. I had already seen their intimate embrace. She said something to him before standing up to come over to me.
“Yes?”
“Did you read the Eden handbook that you were given upon arrival?” I asked.
“Part of it,” she admitted.
“Have you read the part about initiating relationships here?”
“Not yet. Why? Is there a rule against it? I’m sure there’s not. I see people who are obviously in relationships. Besides, I thought it was just you that couldn’t date.”
“You can’t either for a month,” I snapped. “You need to heal a little before you can go into a relationship and be able to handle it.”
She narrowed her eyes on me. “Is that in the handbook?”
“Yes. Page 11. Paragraph 3,” I told her gruffly.
She folded her arms across her chest. “Is that why you don’t date, R.H.M.? Because you haven’t ‘healed’ enough.”
“This isn’t about me! I am only here to help Mister. I’m not here to date,” I told her.
“Fine, you’re not here to date, but what does that have to do with me?”
“It’s the rules! You can’t be involved with anyone for a month!”
“Oh, this is so rich!” She snarled. “You are the one that’s been kissing me. You even spent the night with me, even after telling me that you couldn’t,” she said furiously.
“I-umm.”
She rolled her eyes. “You can’t have it both ways, R.H.M. You can’t say follow the rules and then break them yourself because you want to. It’s not okay. It’s not right. And I won’t tolerate it. If it’s a rule, then it’s a rule for both of us. Me and you! Not just me.”
“Leah—”
“No! Save it. You said you couldn’t spend time with me anymore. So I found someone who would. And now you show up here acting all high and mighty? Just save it. I don’t want to hear it. And for another thing—”
“Hey, gurl!” Rosemary called out, interrupting the rest of Leah’s angry words.
Leah turned toward her, giving her a pursed-lip smile. “Hey, Rosemary. How are you doing?”
“I’m doing well. I just wanted to stop by and see how you are fairing,” Rosemary said as she came to a stop beside me, glancing at me curiously.
“I’m doing okay, Rosemary. I’m just speaking with Armadillo.”
“Oh. I’m sorry to interrupt. If you need anything, you know where I live. Don’t hesitate to come ask,” Rosemary told her.
“Thank you. You don’t know how much that means to me to have someone that cares so much about me that I can come to them for anything,” Leah said, shooting me a furious look.
I flinched, knowing that she was telling me that she didn’t trust me to be there for her. It made me sad to hear that she felt that way, but I knew that my actions were the reason for her words. I clenched my jaw as Rosemary hugged her before walking away. She didn’t get far before turning back to Leah.
“Hey, I forgot to ask you what your name is,” Rosemary called out, making me relax.
“It’s Phoenix.”
Rosemary beamed at her. “Good choice. Goodnight, Phoenix.”
“Goodnight, Rosemary.”
When Rosemary was out of hearing range, Leah turned back toward me. “If I want to have a relationship with someone, I will, and there’s nothing you can do to stop me. I’m tired of being told what to do. You have no idea how tired I am.”
“Leah—”
She held her hand up. “Come back tonight if you want to talk about this more. If not, this is all that I have to say about this matter.”
I watched in shock as she walked away to go back to sit next to Armadillo. I was a little frustrated that she had gotten so upset at me. I was only trying to make sure that she followed the rules and—fuck! That was a load of bullshit. I just didn’t want to see her developing a relationship with anyone else. The muscle in my jaw ticked again as I watched them continue to talk quietly.
“Armadillo?”
He looked at me for a moment before coming over. “Yes?”
“She is not allowed to date for a month,” I reminded him.
“Yes. I know. That’s not what this is. We are just talking,” he told me.
I narrowed my eyes on him. “I hope so. You know what will happen if you break the rules.”
“I do, and I swear—wait.” He glanced over his shoulder at Leah, who was watching us closely. “Are you jealous?”
“What?” I asked, taking a step back. “No! I’m just trying to make sure that Eden’s rules are followed.”
His eyes narrowed to slits. “You are! I hate to tell you that unless she tells me to back off, I’m not going to stop pursuing her. I won’t ask her out until her thirty days are up, but just so you are aware, when they are, I will tell her how I feel.”
I stared at him, not quite knowing what to say. There was nothing I could say that wouldn’t make him even more firm in his belief that I was jealous, so I nodded curtly and walked away. Fuck! I really had to fix this. I didn’t want Leah to date Armadillo. Not when I took into consideration how I was starting to feel about her. Fuck! Maybe it would be better just to send her away from Eden. At least out there, she wasn’t a threat to my mental or emotional wellbeing. Even more importantly, if she wasn’t here, I didn’t have to watch her potentially fall for someone else.