“The fucker will be yours to take out.”
As I listen to him—and just like earlier—a spark of life jolts through me. I’ve often wondered how I would’ve felt moving forward if I’d been the one to take Ellis out. Would it have been easier to go on?
“Until then, I’m going to sit here and drink,” I say, tipping the beer bottle to my lips.
I’m going to drink a fucking lot, and hopefully, by the end of the night, I won’t even know my own name.
Nina
Zach drives my car while I sit in the back, watching over Sebastian. Once again, our little boy’s sleeping away. The radio’s playing softly, and conversation between Zach and I is tense, even though we hashed out everything earlier. He’s preoccupied with his mom’s offer, and I don’t have the energy to push him to talk about it. The car begins to slow, and I can already hear the music coming from the clubhouse. Motorcycles are parked up everywhere, with brothers scattered about. I have reservations about bringing the baby here. First, it’s loud. Second, people are drinking, and some are going to be smoking. Zach parks, but doesn’t make a move to climb out, nor do I.
“Will your dad be in there?” I ask to break the silence.
“I imagine so. He moved out of the house and took his old room back.”
Shit. I honestly didn’t want to see things come to this.
“Come on, let’s get in there.”
As we walk inside, Zach carries Sebastian in his car seat, and I carry his changing bag.
“It’s so loud in here. It’s going to wake him up.”
“Don’t think that would be such a bad thing, babe. The kid sleeps like it’s an Olympic sport. But I’ll have them turn it down. Once we do the rounds, I’ll take you both home.”
“That sounds good.”
I don’t mind putting in time at the club, especially when Zach and I are on the same side. But the baby’s so small, and I’m so freaking tired.
“Is he here for his first beer already?” Sparky hollers as he comes toward us.
He takes the baby seat from Zach and places him on top of the bar, pulling his blanket down to get a better look at his little round face.
“He looks like you, Zachery. Poor kid,” he laughs.
“Fuck off, brother.”
I smile when I see Bonnie and Alannah shoving their way through the guys to get their looks in.
“He’s gorgeous,” Bonnie giggles happily.
“He takes after his daddy,” Zach boasts, making me laugh.
Why do men do that? I mean, Zach’s the hottest guy I’ve ever laid eyes on, but it’s possible Sebastian gets his looks from me.
Rolling my own eyes, I unbuckle him from his car seat and gesture for Bonnie to pick him up for a cuddle.
“Oh, it’s been a while since we’ve had a baby to dote on. With Rayna, it feels like she’s been around forever.”
Her eyes widen at her words.
“I know what you mean,” Zach offers, trying to ease the situation.
Laughter fills the air, but it’s laced with tension. If I didn’t know half these guys, I’d be expecting trouble to kick off at any moment.
Zach lifts the car seat off the bar and takes the bag over to one of the tables.
Setting them both down, he pulls out a chair for me and I take seat, all the while keeping my eye on who’s holding Sebastian. The old ladies take up the remaining chairs around our table, and soon after, the brothers are joining us as well, but not Slade. He sits at the bar, drinking beer after beer, keeping to himself.
“You should go talk to him,” I whisper, nudging my chin in his dad’s direction.
“Trust me, he doesn’t want to talk right now. Besides, what would I say to him?”
He has me there. I have no idea what he should say, but still. “Just let him know you’re here for him.”
“Babe, he knows I am. I don’t have to say it.”
“Maybe you do. It wasn’t that long ago I didn’t know where you stood.”
His brows draw together. “Don’t do that. I thought we were moving on?”
“We are, but it’s true. All I’m saying is, sometimes you don’t say how you’re feeling, and you can’t expect people to guess. We’re not mind readers.”
“Is that what you really think? That you have to guess what I’m thinking?”
My voice lowers as I lean into him. “I’m always trying to work out what you’re thinking. You really don’t make it easy for me or anyone else.”
Leaning back in his chair, he stretches his arm around me, pulling me close. “I’m going to work on that. I don’t want you feeling like you don’t know me.”
“I didn’t say I didn’t know you. I said, I never know what you’re thinking.”
“Do you know what I’m thinking now?”
I give him the side-eye, waiting for him to continue.
“I’m thinking I’m a lucky fucking guy, and all I want is to be alone with you at home.”
“You’re the one who said we had to show our faces,” I point out. “You also said we didn’t have to stay long.”
A slow smile spreads across his face, reminding me of when we first met. He’s not open with his emotions, but every now and then, I forget I have to drill shit out of him.
“I’ll go check in with the old man, and then we’ll get out of here.”
I watch him weave through the throng of brothers, smiling, until he reaches Slade, and then his smile’s replaced with an overwhelming sadness. He’s tried so hard to keep his family together. It’s heart-breaking to see his parents’ marriage so broken.
Resting his forearms on the bar, Zach leans close to Slade. With their backs to me, I can’t work out how the conversation’s going, or if it’s going at all.
“Hey. I was gutted I couldn’t see the little one earlier. Is everything okay?”
Harper sits down beside me, clutching a bottle of water.
“It’s been a long day, but I’m good.” I can’t say the same for Slade, but that’s his business to share.
“You and Zach looked close,” she notes, jerking her chin in his direction.
“We’re getting there. We’ve been talking a lot, and it’s really helped.”
Her smile doesn’t waver, but mine does when she asks, “Is it true Kristen wants a divorce?”
What? Kristen didn’t mention anything about it. Then again, if she plans to leave town without Slade, it makes sense to cut all ties to him.
“I don’t know anything about a divorce, but things haven’t been good between them for a while.”
There’s no harm in saying that. Everyone with eyes knows it’s true.
“How are you and JJ these days?” I ask, steering the conversation in a different direction.
Her eyes light up and she smiles, subconsciously seeking him out over by the pool table when she whispers,
“Between us, I’ve come off birth control, and if it happens, it happens.”
I’m speechless. Harper and babies have never really gone together. I mean, she’s been great with Sebastian, but I always assumed—wrongfully, it seems—that she didn’t want to have kids. Even JJ himself has said he’s not interested in being a dad.
“Are you sure it’s not because you’ve been around Sebastian so much lately?”
It surprises me when she laughs. “Jay said something similar, but it’s something I’ve been thinking about for a while now. I never thought I’d be ready to be a mom, or even want to be one, but after everything that happened with Ellis, I realised I want it all.” She beams with excitement, and I find myself excited for her.
“Anyway, Jay isn’t complaining so much when I keep dragging him into the bedroom.”
I genuinely laugh, and it feels so good. I’m truly happy for her. “I bet he’s not.”
“Hey, Nina, are you sure you didn’t give birth to an angel? How’s he still sleeping through this noise?” Bonnie asks.
“I have no idea.”
And then the qu
estions come flying at me. The old ladies wanting to hear my birthing story, and them chipping in with their own. I end up enjoying myself more than I thought I would, and by the time Zach returns to the table, I don’t realise how late it is.
Zachery
A divorce.
My mom’s divorcing my dad. Even with everything’s that happened, my hope was that they’d eventually find their way back to each other. That maybe they could learn to live somehow after India.
First, mom plans to leave, wanting me and my family to join her, and now divorce. My dad’s moved into the club, the one place he knows she hates—even before India came along—and she’s now at the house, alone.
I guess if I’m being honest, I’m surprised it didn’t happen sooner. As for me, I can’t and won’t leave Willow’s Peak. This is my home, and the club’s as much my family as she and my dad are. Mom’s wrong about one thing, though. Sebastian will have a choice when he’s of age. It’ll be his decision if he wants to join. I’m a Lost Soul through and through, and the decision was wholly on me to wear the prospect patch. I knew my dad wanted me by his side, even if Mom was against it. In the end, it was my choice, and it’ll be the same for Sebastian. Whatever path he chooses to follow, I’ll fully support him in every way I can, just like I promised Nina.
It’s now two in the morning, and I wonder if the party at the club’s still going. I pull myself up from the couch at the same time my phone goes off. I answer it quickly so it doesn’t wake Nina and the baby.
“What’s up?”
“You’re needed at the club. We’ve got one of the assholes who trashed the graves. Tal and the twins are on their way to ride with you.”
Leo.
The call ends, and I slide into my boots before heading upstairs. Creeping across the room, I lean over the bed and nudge Nina until she wakes. Her eyes flicker open, instantly looking for the baby.
“He’s okay. He’s sleeping.” Sighing, her head drops back onto the pillow. “I need to go to the club. They’ve got someone who’s been fucking with us,” I whisper.
“How long will you be?” she asks, her voice thick with sleep.
“I don’t know, but I’ll be home as soon as I can.”
I lean down and kiss her, thinking the sooner I’m back in this bed, the better. I’m going at her pace, but fuck if it’s not killing me to sleep on the couch, away from her.
“Okay. Don’t forget to lock up on your way out.”
Like I’d forget.
Just then, I hear a door closing downstairs, breaking the stillness in the house. I stand up so fast, my back nearly cracks, and Nina shoots up in the bed.
“You heard that?”
“Is someone in the house?” she whispers nervously.
We both go silent, waiting for more. I know what I heard, and Nina heard it too. Moving across the room, I pull the dresser out and swat my hand between it and the wall until I locate the gun I taped there when I first moved in. Nina packed the only two guns she thought I kept here, but what she doesn’t know is there’s one hidden in every fucking room for instances such as this.
“Lock yourself in here and call Tal,” I say, throwing my phone at her. She’ll find his number in my contacts. “Tell him to ride faster. Do not leave this room unless I tell you to. Got it?”
She nods, her fear enveloping me as I open the door and hover in the hallway, waiting for her to climb out of bed and lock it behind me.
Hearing the lock turn, I creep to the top of the stairs, listening out for any movement. And just when I think there’s no one down there, I hear something else. Leaning over the banister, I can’t see anyone roaming about, but it sounds like whoever it is, is in the living room.
Taking one step down at a time, I take in my surroundings, keeping an eye out for any movement. It’s not until I reach the bottom step that I have a clear view of the living room, where I see a dark figure bent over, looking through the drawers in the television unit.
With his back to me, I quietly watch him riffle through our belongings. What the fuck is he doing? I take three steps closer and raise my gun, aiming it directly at him.
“Can I fucking help you?” I near enough growl.
The dark figure shoots up and spins around. Nina won’t be happy he’s trekked his dirty boots on her carpet.
I can’t make out his eyes through the slits of his ski mask, and keeping my aim dead on the centre of his chest, I use the other to flip the light on.
The room lights up, and piercing blue eyes stare back at me before darting around, trying to find a way past me.
“What the fuck are you doing in my house?”
“I… You…” His stutters fall silent as his shoulders sag, knowing there’s no way out for him. Even if he tried, I wouldn’t hesitate to shoot.
“I’ll ask a-fucking-gain, what are you doing in my house?”
“I was sent to take something from you,” he tells me, albeit hesitantly.
He sounds young and looks smaller than me. Even without a gun, I reckon I could take him.
“Take what? DVDs?” What else could he be looking for in a TV unit?
He shrugs his shoulders. “Anything you’d recognise at a later time.”
Someone’s planning something, I think to myself.
“Who sent you? And take that fucking mask off.”
He does as he’s told. Hell, he can’t be any older than twenty. I could definitely take him.
“I don’t know who’s pulling the strings. We get word from him, and he pays us to fuck about with you guys.”
“Have you got a piece on you?”
“No.”
“Lift your jacket and turn around slowly.”
Again, he does as I say, and his waistband is clear. “Show me your ankles.” He does. “Now turn your pockets out.” He could have a blade on him, and I’m not taking any chances. A phone appears, but that’s all.
I step back into the hall and wave the gun toward the kitchen. “Move. And if you try anything funny, I won’t hesitate to put a bullet in you.”
“Come on, you caught me. Just let me go, man. I was only trying to make some fast cash.”
“Looks like you took on the wrong job, then. You don’t get to walk away after coming into my fucking house while my family sleeps, you hear me?”
Motioning with the gun toward the kitchen again, he reluctantly starts to walk. Stepping up behind him, I shove the gun into his back, reiterating how fucking serious I am if he pulls any shit.
“Sit.”
He takes the chair in the corner as I go to dig out my phone before remembering I gave it to Nina. Sitting opposite of him, I keep my gun on him. One wrong move, this asshole dies.
“Put your phone on the table,” I instruct.
He does, and it lands with a soft thud.
Hearing the familiar sound of bikes pulling up outside the house, I reach for the landline phone sitting in the middle of the table and dial Mason’s number. It rings four times before he answers. “We’re here.”
“I heard. Come around the back and let yourself in.”
Hanging up, I stare at the unlocked door. “Learn how to jimmy locks as a kid, did ya?” I grunt, hating how easy it was for him to sneak into my home.
“It’s easy. Not much learning involved.”
Huh. He doesn’t mind using his tongue.
A few beats later, Mason walks in, followed by Myles and Tal. All three sets of eyes land on my intruder, and Myles is the first to speak.
“Is this why you left Neen? You got yourself a lover, Zach?”
“Fuck you,” I spit at him. “He broke in. Luckily, I was already awake and heard him.”
Mason chuckles. “It must be our lucky night. Two assholes instead of one.”
“Yeah,” Myles adds when I look at him. “Cas found someone in his house too. He’s the one they’ve got at the club waiting on us.”
“How many of you are there?” Mason inquires.
The slight shrug of the
shoulders annoys the shit out of me. What happened to his loose lips?
“Answer me.”
“I don’t know… twenty, thirty, maybe?”
Fuck.
Even the twins look shocked.
“We need to get him to the club. Can we take Nina’s car?” Tal asks, finally opening his mouth.
“Sure.” On second thought, I’m not leaving her and Sebastian alone here while we deal with this motherfucker. Anyone could come again.
“Actually, she’s coming too. Figure something out while I go get her ready.”
Having full trust in my brothers to watch over the intruder, I dash up the stairs and knock on the door. “It’s me, Neen. Open up.”
The lock disengages and the door swings open. Sebastian’s still sleeping soundly, but Nina’s freaking out.
“What’s going on? I just heard bikes arrive.”
“It’s the twins and Tal. We’re going to the club and you’re coming with. I need you to pack what you need for the baby in the next five minutes.”
“We have to come?” she asks, looking over at him. I know she doesn’t want to disturb him, and neither do I, but we have to.
“I’m not leaving either of you here. I need you safe while I’m not with you.”
“And we’re not safe here?”
“I’m just being cautious. Please don’t fight me on this.”
“I’m not. I just want to know.”
She sets about filling the baby bag with more diapers and clothes while I gently pick up my boy, making sure he’s wrapped up in his blanket.
“I’m good to go.”
Thank God she’s breastfeeding and doesn’t need to haul bottles and formula with us too.
We head back down to the kitchen where Mason and Myles have the intruder sandwiched between them. Myles runs the tip of his gun down the intruder’s face, making the guy flinch. He’s already as pale as a ghost.
Nina gasps behind me and the twin’s catch it too.
“Don’t worry, new momma, he won’t hurt you,” Myles informs Nina, though I don’t think it helps.
“JJ and Leo are riding over, and Harper’s driving. We’ll take Nina’s car and she’ll ride with Harper,” Tal advises. “They should be here any minute.”
His Last Chance : Sons of Lost Souls MC Book Seven Page 14