“What? What is it?” His eyes become instantaneously alert as he looks up at me.
“You fell asleep. I was gonna finish feeding him and lay him back down,” I inform him with a happy smile graced upon my face.
“Shit, I’m sorry,” he sleepily mumbles.
“It’s understandable. No foul play here, go back to sleep,” I issue. He smirks at my order then puckers up his lips. Leaning down, I graze his lips with mine before snuggling Jagger to my chest. He cries in protest at the loss of his food, but quickly settles once I place the nipple back at his mouth. He attacks it voraciously, scared that he’ll lose his meal once again. I chuckle at him which causes a smile to spread where he’s sucking down his bottle.
“You look just like your daddy,” I inform him as I sit in the chair and let him finish devouring his meal. His eyes begin to slowly fade. Once I know he’s out for the count, I burp him and place him back into the safety confinement of his playpen.
Crawling up on the bed, Kruger pulls me into his embrace. He’s still fast asleep while doing this. Even unconsciously, he desires me to be nestled into him.
“I love you, Kruger,” I whisper into his chest, then place a kiss on his hard pec. It doesn’t take long for my eyes to close and darkness to invade me.
Kruger
I come awake to whimpers in my ear. It takes me a minute to place where it’s coming from, but Stella is laying on top of me with silent tears streaming down her cheeks. All those memories she dredged up are visiting her in her dreams. I pull her further into me and speak words of love and commitment to her. She slowly settles, but once she does, I can’t fall back to sleep. My mind conjures up pictures of a young Stella in the hands of her father. My anger grows by leaps and bounds as each thought invades my mind's space.
I hear Jaggar begin to stir, so I slowly make my way out from underneath my old lady. She grabs my pillow and nestles down into it. When she falls back into slumber land, I walk over to the bathroom and relieve myself. By the time I’m done, Jaggar’s eyes are wide open, scanning the room. “Hey, little man,” I say as I reach down and pick him up. “Let’s get you changed and fed. We’ll let your momma sleep in. What will it be this morning? Cereal, cereal or cereal?” I chuckle. He begins babbling so I say, “Cereal it is.”
We manage to make it through our morning routine without bothering Stella. She’s still passed out as Jaggar and I head out of the room. Only the men are in the kitchen once I arrive. Country is feeding Hunter and Gunner is doing the same with Mane. “Women sleeping?” I ask them.
“I tried to get Charlee up, but she threw a pillow at me and told me to get the fuck out,” Country states with humor.
“Cameron didn’t even stir,” Gunner tells me.
“I need to talk to y’all,” I say. When they give me the ‘get the fuck on with it’ look, I fill them in on all I learned last night.
“You know that we’re gonna make him pay one way or another, right?” Gunner asks me and I give him a ‘duh’ look in return.
“She’s gonna give me information on her sister, today. I thought we could follow that bread trail and find out more about the parents,” I say as I scoop up a spoon full of baby cereal. Once I get it in his mouth, he blows out raspberries and my face is coated in baby food.
The men all begin to laugh at my predicament.
Assholes.
Stella
I must not have been far behind Kruger this morning, because when I step foot into the kitchen, I get the show of a lifetime. “Oh my,” I sputter out. “He got you good.”
“Ya think,” he says as he takes a towel and wipes his face.
“Sure you want another one?” I ask, pointing at Jaggar.
“Yeah, I really do,” he replies.
“Shit, are y’all already talking about adding another member to the family?” Country chuckles out the question.
“Yeah, we want Jaggar to have a sibling close in age,” Kruger answers. “I didn’t have that experience, and Stella’s agreed that he deserves what I wasn’t fortunate enough to have,” Kruger goes on to explain. “I want to be ganged up on by my sons.”
“It may be a girl,” Gunner says as he gives Mane a wide smile.
“Bite your damn tongue, fucker,” Kruger growls, causing me to laugh.
“Let me finish this while you get cleaned up,” I say, scooting him away by bumping him with my hip.
“Nah, baby, I’ve got this. Why don’t you get you some breakfast and I’ll eat once you two are done?” My man, always putting our needs in front of his own.
“Stella?” Gunner calls my name, and my attention turns to him while I pour steaming coffee into my mug.
“Yes, Gunner,” I say, as I add in my sugar and a touch of milk.
“Kruger shared with us about your sister this morning.” My mouth drops as I worry about what all he told them in that regard.
“Um, yeah,” I manage to get out.
“Do you have any ideas about where she would’ve gone? We’d like to find her for you if that’s okay?” I stop and think about what he asks. Do I want to disturb the life Star has made for herself? Will me barging in make things easier for her, or will it complicate the life she’s built? It’s something I’ve chewed on since sharing my past with Kruger.
“Can we, can we find her without her finding out? If she has a good life I don’t want to intrude,” I finally answer after thinking long and hard about it.
“We can do that, darlin’,” he tells me, making me sag in relief. “But if it’s a bad life, and if we can help her, we’re gonna step in. She’s family now, we don’t leave family out in the cold.”
“You were gonna find her regardless of what I said, weren’t you?” I ask him while narrowing my eyes in his direction.
“I can neither confirm nor deny that without convicting myself.” Gunner looks at me with a blank expression.
“Whatever. You were and we both know it,” I snarl at him which causes him to wink back at me.
I simply shake my head and continue on with my morning.
22
Kruger
It’s been four long months that we’ve been searching high and low for Stella’s sister, and we’ve finally gotten a bead on her location. Pops managed to find her, and what he discovered has me determined to go and save my new little sister.
A lot has happened in these past few months. I found the parents first, which filled me full of glee. Those two were still at it, he’d fucking hurt innocent little girls and she’d convince them before going home that their parents would send them to an orphanage from shame if they ever shared.
We managed to infiltrate that information from them while interrogating them. They didn’t get the same simple death that Janella did; no, I flayed that fucker’s dick before ending his miserable excuse of an existence. As far as the mother went, I fucking cut out her deceptive tongue and forcefed it to her.
They don’t call me Kruger for the fun of it. No, I earned that name by crawling into other people's minds while they attempted to sleep. But the trail of dead bodies did not end there, no they did not. I found some of Jamie’s cohorts and fed them to the wild animals. Jamie is losing his support system one person at a time. We are weakening his defenses. Soon, he will have no choice but to take matters into his own hands, and once he does, we will be ready and waiting for him to step out of the shadows.
Back to Star, she hasn’t had it easy since leaving the side of her sister. She was a kid of the streets for three years before a man preyed upon her. A drug dealer, a pimp, a man who has Star swinging on a pole each night, filling his pockets full of green. She lives in a rundown motel. One that has more rats in residence than living human beings. It’s where this motherfucker has all of the women under his thumb living.
He gives zero fucks about them, as long as they do what he forces them to, he basically leaves them alone. The pictures Pops was able to get of Star, I clearly see my woman in her features which infuriates me. All I’m
thinking is that this could’ve ended up being Stella’s life.
“Do we tell Stella about her sister?” Country asks.
“I think we need more information before we get her worked up,” I state.
“So do we send someone to go and check things out?” Country questions.
“I’ll go,” Shamus jumps in. He hasn’t taken his eye off her picture since it landed in his hands. But if there’s anyone I trust to take care of business, it’s him. And my hope is, that she’ll end up being his one the way Stella is for me. I want her in the club, and if she’s with a brother, she’ll be here daily.
“Don’t do anything drastic,” Gunner issues. “You don’t do anything other than observe and make contact. Get her to talk to you and trust you, brother. But don’t take on Giovanni on your own. He’s a fucking snake with a den backing him.”
“You got it, boss. I’ll go pack and hit the road.” Gunner nods his head at Shamus’s words dismissing him.
“Be safe, brother,” I say.
“Will do,” he answers in response as he walks out the door.
Shamus
I don’t know what it is about this woman that captivates me the way she does, but I know that she’s meant to be part of my life one way or another. Her silky hair dances in the light from the stage in these photos… but it’s the look on her face that makes me want to be her hero.
She’s had a rough life so far; I aim to make things better for her.
Whether that means I take on a big brother role in her life, or if I become her man, either way, she’s gonna start wearing a smile on her face.
I’m not a good man, I’ve done things that cause the average man to cringe. But I will be her salvation. I will chase her demons from her life and slay all of her fire breathing dragons. I’m not a knight riding in on a white horse, I have no sword, but I have a Ruger with Giovanni’s name written all over it.
I may have been ordered to wait for backup, but if I see something I don’t like, I won’t be sitting back without acting in defense of Star.
As I get to my room, I notice that I still have her picture clutched in my hand. Sitting stiffly on the bed, I look into her eyes… eyes that look dead to the world around her.
“I’ll put that light back in your eyes, baby girl,” I promise this picture. A picture of a woman who already owns a piece of my heart, even though I’ve never met her in person.
She may be forbidden territory.
She may be a battle I’ll have to win.
But she deserves someone willing to fight to the death for her.
And I am that man.
Epilogue
Stella
“Kruger, what is up with me having to wear this damn blindfold?” I ask my old man, as we traipse the outside. “I’m gonna fall flat on my face.” As soon as those words leave my mouth, it’s as if I spoke it out into the universe. My foot finds a root and I trip, but manage to land in the banded steel arms of Kruger.
“Careful, sweet Stella,” he whispers in my ear as goosebumps stand on end over my heated skin.
“I wish you’d tell me what the hell we’re doing?” I ask, for what must be the thousandth time in the last few minutes.
“And as I’ve previously told you, it's a surprise,” he laughs.
“I hate surprises,” I mumble back.
“No you don’t,” he calls me out on my lie.
“I do when I’m blindfolded,” I reiterate.
“It’s gonna be worth it, baby. Just a few more minutes.”
“If you say so,” I pout.
“Trust me,” he tells me rather than asking me.
Either way, I respond, “Always and forever.”
“That’s my sweet girl.”
We only walk a few more meters before he stops me. He stands in front of me before saying, “I hope this is something that gives you comfort and shows you how serious I am about forever.”
My breath hitches at those words. “Kruger, you have nothing to prove to me.”
“Take your blindfold off, baby.” As soon as I do, tears form in my eyes.
“Kruger,” I say on a sob. He’s on his bended knee in front of me with a glistening diamond solitaire twinkling back at me.
“Stella, you and Jaggar, you are my everything. I’ve given you my cut, my son, now, I wanna give you my name. Will you make an honest man out of me and marry me?”
“Today, tomorrow, for the rest of my life, the answer will always be yes,” I hiccup the answer. He places the ring on my finger and scoops me up into his arms.
“Now, for surprise two,” he says.
“There’s something else?” I ask, because what could be better than this moment of time.
“Look over your shoulder, Stella.”
When I do as he says, I gasp. Standing in front of me is a log home, with a wrap around front porch.
“Welcome home, Stella.”
“I’ve been home for a while now. That is just a house, Kruger. You, you are my home,” I cry with happiness.
Kruger
“Fuck,” I holler out as I pump my hips into Stella one last time. We are currently on the floor of the master bedroom. We wanted to break it in before our house is filled with friends and family. “We just did it, Stella.”
“Um, yeah, Kruger, we did,” she snickers in response.
“That’s not what I mean, you minx. I can feel it, we just made a baby,” I go on to tell her.
“Um, I hate to burst your bubble, but no we didn’t.”
“Why would you say that?” I ask her, upset that she’s burst my bubble as she said.
“Because you already knocked me up, Kruger. I’ve just been waiting for the right time to share the news with you.”
“I-I, are you sure?” I ask, then panic sets it because we weren’t exactly easy with our love making just now. “Was I too rough? Do you think we hurt the baby? Should we go see the doctor? Yeah, that’s what we need to do. Why are you laughing at me? Get up and get dressed, woman.”
“The baby is well protected, Kruger. You can’t hurt her,” she says.
“Her? Baby, no, don’t do that,” I whine, yes I whine, because any girl who looks like my woman will have me buying stock in gun sales.
“It’s just a guess, Kruger.”
“Well, unguess that shit right the fuck now.” I stand, placing my hands on my hips giving her a stare that dares her to fight me on this.
“Whatever you say, Kruger.”
“Say it, Stella. I wanna hear you say it out loud.”
“Fine, you stubborn man. I unguess that this baby is a girl.”
“Good. Now that that’s settled, come here. We have more rooms to break in.” She stands up and runs from me. “You can run, Stella, but I will catch you.”
The End
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Other Books by Liberty:
Rage Ryders MC
1. Taken By Lies
2. Taken By Rage
2.5. Taken By Vegas
3. Taken By Sadistic
4. Taken By Chaos
5. Taken By Temptation
Rage Ryders Templeton
Faithfully Devoted
Forever Yours
Diva's Ink
1. Blank Canvas
Audible US
Audible UK
2. Clean Slate
3. Beautiful Template
Dreamcatchers MC
1. Charlee's Choices
2. Capturing Dreams
Surrogacy
1. What Should've Been
Crossroad Soldiers MC
1. Walking The Crossroad
2. Our Cross To Bear
Rogue Enforcers
Maverick
Co-written works:
Rebel Guardians MC (with Darlene Tallman)
Braxton
Hatchet
Chief
Smokey & Bandit
Law
Capone
A Twisted Kind Of Love
Rebel Guardians Next Generation (with Darlene Tallman)
1. Talon & Claree
2. Jaxson & Ralynn
3. Maxum & Lily
New Beginnings (with Darlene Tallman)
1. Reclaiming Maysen
2. Reviving Luca
3. Restoring Tig
Nelson Brothers (with Darlene Tallman)
1. Seeking Our Revenge
2. Seeking Our Forever
3. Seeking Our Destiny
Twisted Iron MC (with Kayce Kyle)
Shattered Trust : DreamCatcher MC Page 15