by Harley Wylde
I didn’t argue when he dragged me into the jewelry store. He kept trying to get me a flashy ring, but that’s not what I needed. I just wanted a plain band. He eyed a black band the salesman said was made of something called tungsten carbide. It surprised me that he’d be willing to wear a wedding ring, so I opted to get one that matched, just a much smaller one. The band I chose was thin and light.
We walked out wearing our rings, and even though I’d said I didn’t need to be married to him, I liked having that ring on my finger. Even more, I liked that he was wearing one. Even when he wasn’t at the clubhouse, women would know he was taken. Some wouldn’t care and might make a play for him anyway, but I’d have to learn to trust him. I did trust him with my life, but trusting him with my heart was difficult after he’d broken it. Granted, the last time hadn’t been Dragon but the club whore. My stomach clenched as I remembered what Demon had done to her.
“Let’s go home,” he said, lifting my hand to kiss my fingers.
Chapter Fourteen
Dragon
One Month Later
I glanced at the time, hating that I was stuck in Church when Lil was getting off work. Dr. Larkin had taken her back after she’d explained what happened, but he’d reduced her hours since she was carrying twins. I had a feeling it wouldn’t be long before he suggested she stay home. I damn well knew he’d replaced her already and her part-time hours were just a courtesy. My woman didn’t need to work, but if she wanted to, I’d try to understand. I’d much rather have her home with our kids.
“Ramirez reached out,” Grizzly said. “The man he answered to has been toppled from the throne, and Ramirez is stepping in. While he no longer needs to hide shipments in our town, or any other, he said he does have one last favor.”
“Thought he planned to call for us at some point,” Demon said. “Does this favor include firepower? Blowing shit up? Killing innocents?”
Grizzly shook his head. “None of the above, but I’d have preferred any of those.”
“Then what the fuck is it?” Dagger asked.
“Women. It seems the big boss had a few sweatshops up in New York. He brought the women up from South America and Mexico. They were trying to earn passage and citizenship for their families here in the US.” Grizzly sat back. “Ramirez apparently draws the line at using women. He’s emptying out the sweatshops, but he doesn’t have a place to put all of them.”
“Shit,” I muttered. “We’re supposed to keep them here?”
“Some of them,” Grizzly said. “He’s calling on the other clubs he manipulated before. I don’t know the total number of women he’s trying to place, but I do know we’re getting four of them. From what I’ve heard, they’re skittish and I’d honestly be surprised if all this hadn’t made them scared shitless. I doubt they’re going to trust any of us.”
“Don’t even think of asking Adalia to help,” Badger said. “I’m not putting my woman and kid at risk.”
“Neither am I,” said Dingo.
I was shaking my head already when the Pres looked my way. Nope. Lilian wasn’t going anywhere near those women until I knew it was safe. She still had a few months to go before she delivered Ronan and Mila. I wasn’t taking any chances with her or the babies. If those women were scared, they would possibly lash out.
Blades cleared his throat. “I can talk to China. She may be sympathetic enough to try and guide them. Can’t make any promises.”
“Shella is too young, and too damn wild to be of any help,” Grizzly said.
“This shit right here is why you need a woman, Pres,” Scorpion said.
Griz was already shaking his head. I knew damn well he’d never claim another woman. His wife had been his one and only. Losing her to cancer had just about killed him. If it hadn’t been for Adalia, I didn’t think he’d have pulled through. Even though he didn’t have Mae anymore, I seldom saw him with a club whore. After, he always looked guilty as hell, like he’d cheated on his woman. The single guys couldn’t get it, but the rest of us understood. If something happened to Lil, I wouldn’t want another woman in my house or my bed. Ever. She was it for me.
“Where are we putting them?” I asked. “They can’t exactly stay at the clubhouse. Do we have any homes to spare?”
“We’ll have to use the duplexes where we put guests. I’m not sure how long they’ll be here,” Grizzly said. “It’s possible Ramirez just needs a resting spot for them while he figures shit out. If they’ll be here longer than a few weeks, then I’ll come up with something else.”
“How long did it take us to put those up?” I asked. Half the club called them duplexes, some called them townhomes. It was three small apartments, all one level, and attached across. They weren’t that big.
“Think we need another three?” Grizzly asked.
“I was thinking four if there are four women, but even if they don’t stay for more than a few weeks or a few months, we could always use them for something later. Things haven’t been that bad around here, but if we ever go to war with another club, or another cartel, having extra sleeping spots for anyone willing to help wouldn’t be a bad idea,” I said.
“If we used the same plans and made two more sets of those little apartments, three across just like the current one, we could set it up like a little community of sorts and have plenty of space for whatever we might need in the future,” Cobra said.
“Henry headed up that project,” Grizzly said. “We’ll see how long it would take him to build more. Whatever crew or equipment he needs, see that he gets it. I have no fucking clue who will ride herd on those women if China isn’t up for the task, but we’ll figure that shit out when we have to.”
“Wonder what else Ramirez will want?” Demon asked. “This seems like more of a fluff kind of job than anything hard-hitting. Even though he’s taking over, I get the feeling he likes us in his pocket.”
“So we play along for now,” Wolf said. “If things get out of hand, or he wants something we aren’t willing to give, then we push back. Until then… is the club getting paid for our help?”
“Ramirez promised a bag of cash to offset any expenses we incur from having the women here,” Grizzly said. “He didn’t give an exact amount, and I was still pissed over the fact he’s dropping women on our doorstep. Not sure how long it will take him to get them here from New York.”
There was a knock on the door, which had the Pres scowling fiercely. Wolf got up to answer, murmured to whoever was outside, then opened the door to let Beau inside. The Prospect looked about two seconds from bolting out of the room.
“Interrupting Church isn’t the way to earn your patch,” Griz said.
“Sorry, Pres. There’s, um… there are bunch of… females at the gate.”
Females? Had we been dropped into a sci-fi movie? Why not just call them women? Griz stood and strode from the room with the rest of us following. When we reached the front gate, I understood exactly why Beau had phrased it that way. Fucking hell. One glance at the Pres and I knew he was going to go nuclear if Ramirez showed his face. Not only did we have more than four, but two of them certainly weren’t women. Yet.
“How old are you?” Griz asked the smallest.
“Thirteen,” she mumbled.
“And you?” Griz asked the girl next to her.
“Fifteen.” She tipped her chin up, but I noticed her hands trembled. Poor thing was trying to be brave.
“Who brought you here?” Demon asked one of the older women in the group, who couldn’t have been more than early twenties.
“Mr. Ramirez had his men leave us down the street. We were told to walk to your gates and ask to see Grizzly.” She licked her lips and glanced at the other women. “We’ve been traveling a while. Could we have some water? The younger ones are hungry.”
Demon’s gaze softened. “What’s your name?”
“Rosa. Rosa Perez.”
“We don’t have a spot ready for you since we just learned you would be coming here. The clubhouse isn’t the c
leanest, but you can rest and have something to drink and bite to eat,” Demon said. He held out his hand, and she slowly eased her palm into his.
As he walked off, I stared after them, feeling as if I’d just stepped into an alternate reality. Since when was our big bad Sergeant-at-Arms all soft and sweet with a woman? Lilian, Shella, and Adalia were different. They were the Pres’ daughters. But this woman? We didn’t know shit about her, including whether or not she’d told us the truth.
“Francisca,” said another woman, lifting her fingers in a slight wave. “But call me Franny.”
Her voice wasn’t as heavily accented as the others who had spoken. It made me wonder if she’d been in our country longer, even though she looked really damn young. Probably close to Shella’s age, if not younger.
“Come on, Franny,” Wolf said, leading her away. “Anyone else who is hungry, thirsty, or needs to use the bathroom better head with us to the clubhouse. We’ll figure out where to put you after that.”
I stepped back as they followed Wolf and Demon. Grizzly came to stand next to me, his arms folded over his chest, but I noticed he watched the younger ones. I had a feeling the Pres would be opening up his home to more strays. It was just his way. He and Mae had always wanted kids, but never been blessed with any of their own. They’d taken in Adalia when she needed help, then later Grizzly did the same for Lilian and Shella. I had a feeling he’d keep adopting kids until the day he died. Maybe it was his way of honoring his wife’s memory. Filling the house with the kids they always wanted.
“What now, Pres?” I asked.
“Now I get to tell Adalia and Lilian they don’t have rooms at my house anymore. The two younger ones will need them. Then I get to wait for Shella to have a fit that I’m bringing someone into our home.”
“You really should have turned that one over your knee long ago,” I said. “No offense, Pres, but your daughter is a brat.”
“I’ve let her run wild,” he said. “I shouldn’t have, but what’s done is done. Might be time to push that chick from the nest.”
My eyebrows rose at that. Griz would have let Lilian live with him indefinitely, and she was older than Shella. I’d heard about Shella drinking and partying in town with the college friends she’d made, and knew she’d gotten into some trouble in high school. Was the Pres really going to toss her out? Kid didn’t have anywhere to go that I knew of. She’d had boyfriends, if you could call those pretty bastards boys, but I didn’t know if she was seeing someone right now.
“You know, if you toss her out, Lilian will try to bring her to our house. No matter what happened between them, they’re sisters.” I looked at him. “That’s not happening. Not now, not ever.”
“I’ll handle it. Maybe Irish is ready for a visit. Shella could see her baby sister.”
He was going to set that hellion loose on the Devil’s Boneyard? Part of me wanted to call and warn them, but then I decided to just sit back and see how it played out. No one here would ever tame Shella, even though it looked like Dagger and Jared might have liked trying. I damn well knew that wouldn’t have ended in anything but heartache and a screaming match.
I clapped the Pres on the back. “You do that. Let’s go figure out where all these women are staying. You think those two are the only young ones? Everyone else seemed older. Hopefully, old enough to stay on their own. Even if we have to put more than one into an apartment, they could have a place to stay for tonight. Just need to make sure those units are cleaned and stocked.”
Beau cleared his throat, having remained nearby. “I could do it. Maybe get Carver and Simon to make a run to the store for groceries, but I can make sure there’s new soap, shampoo, clean towels and all that shit ready for the women. I know how to run a vacuum if I need to.”
Griz snorted. “All right. Which one is it?”
Beau opened and shut his mouth. “Um, which one is what?”
“Which of those women caught your eye? And don’t you fucking say it’s one of the younger ones or I’ll string you up by your balls.” Griz glared at him.
“None of them! I just want to help. If we don’t have a place for them, where are they going to go? Out on the streets? I don’t want…” He clamped his mouth shut, but I knew what he was going to say. He didn’t want them to end up like Dingo’s woman, Meiling, who happened to be friends with Beau long before she came here.
“Go,” Griz said. “I’ll assign a few men to buy groceries. I’ve bought shit for my girls enough to know what else to add to the list. We’ll make sure they have enough basics to get them settled for a few days.”
Everyone walked off, leaving me alone with the Pres. He eyed the clubhouse thoughtfully, rubbing a hand over his beard. I didn’t know what he was thinking, but when a slight smile curved his lips, I knew it couldn’t be anything good. He was scheming, and I had a feeling it had to do with those women and all the single men at the compound. Never before had I been more thankful that Lilian was mine. It would save me from his matchmaking.
“If you don’t need me, I’m out. Lilian should be coming home any minute.”
The words no sooner left my mouth than the SUV I’d bought her a few weeks ago came through the gate. She stopped and rolled down her window, eyeing me and her dad. “Should I be worried?”
Griz jerked his chin at me. “Go with her. Keep her home if you must, but tell her what’s going on. Then you’ll likely have to tie her down to keep her in your house. She’ll want to help.”
Yeah, he wasn’t telling me anything I didn’t already know. Dammit. I motioned for Lil to head to the house and I went to get my bike from in front of the clubhouse. As I backed out and started to pull forward, a blacked-out car caught my attention. The window rolled down and I tensed, half expecting a gun to appear, but instead a large duffle was thrown out the window on the drive near our gate.
Griz walked over and unzipped it, then stood, lifting it. The way he’d approached, all confident, told me he’d had an idea of who was throwing shit at our gates. I waited until he’d gotten closer to find out what the hell was going on. When he showed me the large amount of cash inside, I knew it was from Ramirez, and had no doubt he’d just bought those women far more than a few weeks. Something told me they were here to stay until we could make other arrangements for them.
“Well, Pres. Now if you try to pair those ladies up with our brothers, you’ll be a pimp, seeing as how Ramirez just paid you a fuck ton of money.”
Grizzly flipped me off and went into the clubhouse. I had no doubt he’d still try to pair them off with someone, even if it was just temporary. The guy wouldn’t hesitate to make someone bleed, would walk through hell for those he considered family, but under all that was a soft heart where women and kids were concerned.
I didn’t know what our future held, but I had a feeling that things were about to change.
Epilogue
Lilian
Three Months Later
“So help me God, if you put your dick anywhere near me after this, I’m going to cut it off!” I screamed as another contraction hit. The medical staff laughed, but Dragon winced and reached down to place a hand over his crotch.
“Push, Mrs. Starke. Almost there.”
“Don’t you fucking lie to me. I know damn well there’s another one in there.” Why had I thought having kids was going to be amazing? I’d been so excited the last several months, but now I was rethinking everything.
“One more push and the head will be out,” the doctor said.
I gritted my teeth and pushed, trying not to scream. Dragon’s kids were fucking huge and I was convinced they were going to rip me in half. A few more pushes, and I collapsed back on my pillows.
“Congratulations, Mom and Dad. Baby Ronan is here.”
Dragon smirked. “Good. He can protect his little sister when the time comes.”
I gave him a half-hearted slap on the chest. I was exhausted. Another contraction gripped me, and soon I was trying to push out our daughter. It
didn’t seem to hurt as much as her brother had, but hearing her cry was the sweetest sound. I smiled, my eyes closed, as I tried to find some energy to inspect my kids.
The murmuring caught my attention, then I felt Dragon gripping my hand tighter. I opened my eyes to find the nurses surrounding the babies, and my heart gave a kick. Was something wrong? I’d heard her cry. That meant she was fine, didn’t it?
“We’ll get the babies cleaned up and be back soon,” said a nurse, before my children were whisked from the room. The doctor remained to deliver the afterbirth, then a nurse helped clean me up.
“Where are the babies?” I asked.
She gave me a sympathetic look, then hurried from the room. I looked up at my husband with tears in my eyes. What was going on? Why wouldn’t they tell us if something was wrong?
“Dane. My babies!”
He smoothed my hair back. “I’m sure they’ll bring them right back.”
Dragon was right about our babies coming back to the room, but I didn’t think the look on the doctor’s face bode well. I reached for my children, and they placed Ronan in my arms first, swaddled in a blue blanket. He blinked up at me, and my heart melted. He was precious. Perfect.
“Hello, Ronan. I’m your mommy.” I stroked his soft cheek and pressed a kiss to his head.
They handed Mila to Dragon, and he stared at her. His gaze cut over to me, and I wondered what that meant. I lifted a hand, wanting him to show my daughter to me, but he seemed to tuck her closer to his chest and turn away a little. My brow furrowed as I tried to puzzle out his odd behavior.
“Mr. and Mrs. Starke, you have two beautiful, healthy babies. As Mr. Starke has probably noticed, Mila is a little different from her brother.”
“Different how?” I asked the doctor.
“She has congenital cataracts. It’s more common than you think, and there’s no need to panic. She’ll need an operation to remove the cataracts, and the sooner the better. We can get it scheduled as early as next week.”