UNDYING: A Bad Boy MMA Romance (Midwest Alphas) (Book 3) by Tabatha Kiss Page B

that I was all the Dames had left—” she places a palm on her chest, “my heart has just been throbbing like crazy! Is this how Lillian felt all the time ?!”
    I chuckle, feeling great sympathy for her. “You’re going to be perfect, Amy. It’s your birthright, remember? Just do what you always taught me: Dog paddle through it, but do it gracefully. ”
    “Oh, who am I kidding?” she spits. “That advice was crap — I was full of shit.”
    “Well, that crap actually made a huge difference to me,” I point out. I raise an arm and drape it around her shoulders. “You’re going to do fine. Just be like Bowie.”
    “What the hell does that even mean?”
    I shake my head. “Never mind.”
    Her chest rises and falls with an epic breath. “Graceful dog paddle.”
    “Graceful dog paddle,” I repeat.
    She flicks in my direction, peeking over at me from the corner of her eye. “So, have you given anymore thought to Tobias’ proposal?”
    My arm drops from her shoulders as my own heart kick starts in my chest. I lower my voice to hide it from Tobias’ ears. “It wasn’t exactly a proposal…”
    “You know what I mean,” she says. “Do you want to take the next step with him?”
    “I don’t know,” I admit. “Moving in together is generally something you do after a few dates, which we still haven’t done, by the way…”
    Amy rolls her eyes. “Oh, please . Would you stop dwelling on what you two haven’t done and appreciate what you two have done? I mean — look at him, Claire. You two have been through absolute hell — more hell than most couples ever go through.”
    “Yeah, but—”
    “No more buts ,” she interrupts. “He adores you, he loves you, he would die for you — and almost has . If you ask me, you’re acting a little ungrateful.”
    I raise an eyebrow, stabbed in the gut by her violent tone. “Okay then…”
    “I’m sorry—” She winces. “Still working on that graceful part. I didn’t mean any of that.”
    “No, you’re right.” I sigh, looking ahead at Tobias again. “The only thing holding me back is Rick and this stupid situation. Once it’s done, Tobias and I will move forward.”
    “Assuming it ends well.”
    Nausea strikes my gut. “Obviously.”
    “Which I’m sure it will,” she adds quickly. “No worries.”
    I chuckle. “You don’t sound too confident about that…”
    “No?” she asks, her voice quivering again. “Yeah, well…” Her head turns back to look at Ryan. “I guess you’re not the only one with someone to lose from all of this.”
    I bite my lip, my eyes falling to the Double Ex King tattoo still vibrant on the back of Ryan’s right hand at his side. Ryan gave up everything for Amy. His friends, his family, his home; Everything gone because he fell for her. If they can manage to make their relationship work despite all that, then Tobias and I can, too.
    Pike and Tobias slow to a crawl. I glance around them into the food court, pushing against my fear as I lay eyes on Rick. He sits at a corner table across the court, leaning back in a chair with his feet propped up on the table. There’s three men with him, each one leaning against the wall behind him, their black eyes staring at us as we draw closer.
    Amy pushes forward to take the lead with square shoulders, forcing every bit of confidence she has into her step. She takes a long breath before sitting down at the single chair across from him. “Hello, Rick,” she says.
    Rick grins and throws up his hands. “Amy — it’s a pleasure.” He looks over her shoulder at me. “Hello, Claire.”
    His voice drags down my back like a set of jagged fingernails. I swallow, attempting to clear my tight vocal chords, but they barely wet. “Hello, Rick,” I reply, fighting the stiff choke. Fear clenches me, but it’s a comfort to see Tobias plant himself in front of me.
    Rick stares back at me with his stiff, blue eyes. “It’s nice to see you again. I really mean that.”
    His face