by KD Robichaux
“I understand that. I also understand that my clients’ eighteen-year-old daughter went missing two days ago. It looks like she ran away with her boyfriend, but my clients swear to me that’s not the case and she would never do anything like that.”
“Fuck! Was the boyfriend in on it?” Wes questions.
Jax fidgets then nods. “Yeah, the boyfriend’s dad is one of Snake’s new boys.”
“Jesus,” Wes hisses, disgusted. “Let me talk to my boys. I’ll call you so we can meet up and figure out what we’re going to do.”
“I’m in,” I say, going to Wes’s side. I don’t need to even think about it. I’m ready for this shit to be over with so I can stop worrying about these assholes fucking with my woman.
“Me too,” Mic chimes in.
“I’m down,” Harlen mutters.
“I was getting bored anyway.” Everret shrugs, walking up to the group.
“Looks like we’re in,” Wes sighs. “We’ll meet tonight and go over the details, but right now, I think this should just be a rescue mission. Once we have your clients’ daughter safe, we’ll figure out how to close the operation down.”
“Until tonight,” Jax says, heading out.
“We’re going to need to get some weapons,” I say.
“I know a place,” Harlen tells us. “If I head out now, I should still be able to make the connect.
“Mic, you go with Harlen. Everret, you find out everything you can on Franco Demitrez.”
“On it,” Mic agrees, walking away, followed by Everret and Harlen.
“We’re going to need someone to watch the girls,” I tell Wes, and I run a hand over my head then look at him.
“I know. Maybe one of July’s cousins can stay with them.”
“Would they kill to protect them? Die to protect them?” I ask.
He thinks about it for a moment. “They would do whatever is necessary,” he assures me.
“I wasn’t going to tell anyone, not yet, ‘cause it’s so early, but Kayan’s pregnant,” I tell him quietly. “We weren’t planning on this happening. Hell, I wasn’t even planning on her.” I rub my hand down my face, and when my eyes meet his, Wes is looking at me funny, his eyes almost soft and small smile on his face.
“Jesus, you move fast,” he mutters, his smile widening.
“When she told me she was pregnant, I thought I was going to fucking pass out right there in the grocery store. I have never been so scared in my life.” I shake my head, glancing away for a moment before looking at him again. “I never put much thought into the future until her,” I confess, and it’s the absolute truth. I lived day to day, not thinking about much, until that crazy, gorgeous girl stumbled into the bar wearing a catsuit. And then everything changed.
“I’m happy for you, brother.” He pulls me in for a hug then leans back just enough to look me dead in the eye, wrapping his hand around the side of my neck with a grin. “You ever think two years ago this would have happened?”
“Fuck no.” I shake my head and he lets me go.
“Me, neither.” After a beat, he asks me, “You okay?”
He probably sees the slight worry on my face, so I explain, “Never been in love. You know my family is fucked up.” We’ve had many nights, drinking and sharing parts of our lives not many people know. Wes is my best friend. There’s nothing I don’t share with him. Including everything about my biological parents, and how my aunt and uncle adopted me when I was a kid. “Before Kayan, I didn’t even know what love felt like. Romantic love, I mean.”
What I told Kayan is one hundred percent true. I am in this. I’ve never been happier in my life. Nothing is better than knowing the woman I love has my baby inside her. But at the same time, I’m terrified. What if my genetics somehow take over and I’m the worst father on the planet? My own parents didn’t want me or care about me. They didn’t care about anything besides the fucking drugs they loved more than their own child.
“I worry I won’t do her justice,” I admit, rubbing my chest.
“That’s love, brother. Knowing you’re not good enough, but keeping her anyways—that’s love,” he tells me.
“That’s fucked up.”
He laughs and agrees, “Yep.”
13
Kayan
“I want to follow Z tonight,” I say as July locks the doors to the clinic.
I keep telling myself it’s my hormones messing with my mind, but now I’m obsessing. Completely. Obsessing. And if I don’t get answers, I’m going to have a mental breakdown.
“Follow him where?” July asks, and I pull my keys out of my bag.
“I don’t know,” I murmur then look at my best friend. The best friend I don’t deserve. What kind of woman doesn’t tell her best freaking friend she’s pregnant the millisecond she finds out? And it’s been a week! But I shove that aside and confess, even though it sounds absolutely stupid, even to my own ears, “I feel like maybe he’s cheating. He’s been hiding something.”
She frowns at me. “I don’t think Z is cheating on you.”
“Tonight, I’ll find out for sure,” I say, and she knows there’s no talking me out of it.
When we were in college, I dated a guy who was cheating on me. The whole time, everyone knew except for me and July. Well, that was until we went to a frat party and walked in on him while he was having sex with our other roommate, Lynn. The fucking whore.
“Well, I’m going to go with you,” July tells me.
See? That’s how a real best friend treats their girl. Not like me and my secret-having ass. First, I kept having sex with Z from her. And now I’m keeping my pregnancy from her. What the hell is wrong with me? Did my parents really fuck me up that much? I need to find a way to tell her. But for right now, all I say is, “Thank you.”
“I always have your back, even if I think you’re crazy,” she tells me, making me feel even more guilt.
“We’re going to have to find some way to ditch our tail.” I nudge my chin toward Harlen, who is sitting on his bike across the parking lot.
“The anniversary edition of Fifty Shades of Grey comes out tonight. We will just say we’re going to watch it.”
“Perfect,” I whisper.
“Call me and we’ll make plans for the movies!” she shouts loud enough for Harlen to hear.
“I can’t wait to see Fifty’s ass on the big screen!” I shout back, and she laughs genuinely.
Standing next to Z’s bike, I watch as July’s cousin Sage pulls into the parking lot with her in the passenger seat. It was nearly impossible to convince Z that I needed to take my car, but when I finally broke out the big guns—“I’m just really scared to get on your bike, when I have our little bun in the oven”—he finally gave in.
“Hey, Z, are you sure you don’t want to watch the movie with us?” she asks, hopping out of Sage’s truck and skipping over, looking super excited to see the movie. When in reality, I’m sure she’s just super hyper from anxiety. It’s always me who drags her on these “adventures.”
“Thanks, but no, thanks.” He smiles then turns and kisses me. He holds me in his arms, whispering in my ear for only me to hear, “I love you, kitten. Eat all the snacks you want, but stay away from chocolate. I read on the internet today that chocolate and tomatoes could be the culprit for your reflux and nausea. I’ll grab you some Zantac on my way home just in case you can’t resist though.”
My heart breaks. What the hell am I thinking? How could I possibly believe my man is cheating, when he’s spending time during his day looking up remedies for my pregnancy symptoms?
But he’s still so freaking secretive. Still gives me incredibly vague responses when I ask him about his day. I just have this feeling he’s hiding something from me. And maybe it’s my past relationship that’s causing the mistrust, which is totally unfair to Z, but he isn’t doing anything to help me past it with all his ambiguous responses to my questions.
“Let’s go.” July smiles, threading her arm through mine
, and we head to the theater, Sage following close behind us.
“Are you sure you don’t want to come in?” she asks her cousin before we make it to the ticket counter.
“Nah, I’ll wait here,” he replies, and we turn to pay for our tickets. We stop to get popcorn and candy—I grab Sour Patch Kids instead of my usual chocolate-covered almonds—and give Sage a final wave before heading into the movie.
“What’s the plan?” I ask as we walk into our theater.
“We go out the backdoor to your car,” she tells me, leading me toward the front of the theater, where she pushes through the door marked Exit. The moment we clear the door, adrenaline hits me and my heart starts to pound wildly in my chest as we head down the walkway to the side parking lot where my car is parked.
It’s probably why I overreact and shriek, “What are you doing?” as July starts to toss the food we got into the garbage that is on the corner of the building. “You cannot throw that out.” I pull the popcorn from her hand forcefully, making half of it land on the ground, and I pout. “Or this.” I hand her the keys to my car and take the soda from her. I’ve been staying away from it for the past week, but it’s only Sprite, so it’s caffeine free.
“Are you good now?” she asks.
I shrug and take a swig, and she rolls her eyes then starts making her way to my car. The whole time, I glance around to make sure Sage isn’t anywhere around. Once we get it unlocked and us buckled inside, July starts up the car and pulls out of the parking lot toward the compound.
“So much for this plan,” I grumble through a mouthful of popcorn as we pull up in front of the compound fifteen minutes later. I toss in a green Sour Patch Kid for good measure.
“Yeah,” she agrees. The next thing I know, July is shoving my head down and ducking, and that’s when I hear the sound of a motorcycle pulling up. When the roar cuts off, we lift our heads and watch Harlen walk inside, coming out minutes later carrying an envelope.
“We need to follow him. He will be with Z,” I whisper, as if he could hear us inside the car from this far away.
“I know,” she murmurs, and we follow him down back roads for what seems like forever. When he pulls into a parking lot, July parks a block away, and we watch as he rides right to where the rest of the guys are waiting. When he gets off his bike, he says something to Wes then hands him the envelope. Even from this distance, we can see Wes is obviously pissed. He puts his phone to his ear.
“I wonder what they’re talking about,” I mumble.
“I don’t know,” she replies.
Wes goes over to Z and pats his arm, saying something to him, and my brow furrows. When Z’s body goes rigid, nausea overtakes my system.
“We’re busted,” I whisper. I don’t know how I know, but I do. July looks at me, puts the car in drive, and takes off. The moment we hit the main road, the sound of motorcycle pipes fills the air. “Oh my God. Z is going to kill me.” I brush the popcorn mess off my boobs nervously.
“Maybe we can get back to the theater,” July tells me, but from the look on her face, I can tell she doesn’t even believe that herself.
“Yeah, maybe,” I agree, already planning my own funeral. I think I’d like my casket covered in hydrangeas. I bet that’d be pretty.
I press back in my seat as July accelerates and takes back roads all the way to the theater. The moment she turns off the car, we get out and rush toward the door we left out of, but then stop dead when we come face-to-face with a visibly fuming Sage.
“Hey, what are you doing out here?” July asks, her voice three octaves higher than normal.
His eyes flare with rage. “Are you fucking kidding me?”
“What? I came out to smoke. You know… the scenes were so hot I needed a cigarette,” she says, and I have to force myself not to slap my own forehead. God, I love my best friend. We hear someone chuckle, and we both turn to look as Mic, Wes, Z, and Jax walk up to where we’re standing.
“This shit’s not funny,” Wes growls, glaring at Mic, who holds up a hand defensively in front of him.
When Wes’s eyes meet July’s, they do one sweep then he looks at Sage.
“You mind taking the girls home? We’ll be there in an hour.”
“No problem, man,” Sage answers.
I don’t have it in me to meet Z’s eyes. I’m not ready to face his wrath quite yet.
“Do not fucking leave the house.” Wes points at July, and it only adds to my guilt. I’m always getting my poor bestie in trouble. What the hell is wrong with me?
“Give me your keys,” Z orders me. I jump at the anger in his voice and grab July’s hand. I turn to look at her, my nose tingling as tears fill my eyes. She hands the keys over, and I watch as Z storms off toward the parking lot.
“We—” July starts, but her man cuts her off.
“Do not fucking talk,” Wes says, and I hear July’s teeth click as her mouth slams shut. “I’ll deal with your ass when I get home.”
At that, I feel her hand tighten around mine as anger overtakes all her other emotions, but she holds it in check, not saying anything in response.
“Let’s go,” Sage tells us, and leads us away from the guys and toward his truck.
“Sorry about leaving,” July mumbles from the passenger seat.
“You know we wouldn’t be watching you guys if there wasn’t some fucked-up shit going on,” Sage replies, and it makes my brows furrow. Why won’t anyone tell us what the hell is going on? When we get to July’s, Sage shuts off his truck, and we follow him to the front door before she lets us inside. “Both of you, sit here,” he growls, pointing at the couch.
July turns her glare on her cousin like a laser beam, and he visibly flinches.
“First, we’re not going to leave again, and second, I’m older than you and this is my house. Now, if you don’t mind, I’m going to take my friend back to the bathroom so she can splash some cold water on her face!” she shouts, and then we turn and she tugs me to the hall bathroom. “Sit here,” she tells me, closing the lid on the toilet so I can take a seat, and then she grabs a washcloth and runs it under the water before handing it to me.
“Thanks,” I murmur, pressing it to my face.
“He’s not cheating,” comes her sweet voice, and I exhale, squeezing my eyes tight. With all the craziness of the last forty-five minutes, the thought hadn’t even crossed my mind. But she’s right. Z wasn’t sneaking off with some other woman. He was sneaking off with his biker club brothers. So why couldn’t he just talk to me about it? Doesn’t he trust me? Does he think I’ll rat him out if he’s doing something illegal? I mean, I wouldn’t be happy about that, if that’s what he’s doing. But I love him. I’m carrying his child. I wouldn’t do anything to get him in any kind of trouble.
When we go back out to the living room, Sage is watching television. “The guys are on their way back.”
“Great,” she mumbles, and my nausea returns.
When the sound of their motorcycles rumbles outside, I nearly vomit right there in the living room.
The front door flies open, and my heart skips a beat when I see it’s Z busting in like he owns the place.
“How the fuck do you think it’s okay to take a pregnant woman on one of your crazy-ass adventures?” he roars at July, and all the blood drains from my face. I swallow bile rapidly, trying to keep from throwing up on the pretty white carpet.
“You’re pregnant?” she whispers, and I turn to see the look of hurt in her eyes. “How did that happen? I mean… when? Shit… I mean, why didn’t you tell me?” She shakes her head, completely overwhelmed by the news.
“I don’t know. I’m sorry; you know I love you,” I whimper then look up at Z, and a surge of fury ignites my veins. “And you had no right to tell her, you big, fat jerk. I’m pregnant, not incapable of making my own fucking decisions.” I stand up and shove past Z, whose glare softens when he sees my tears finally fall down my cheeks. “Fuck!” I scream when I get to the front door, when I realiz
e I can’t make my dramatic exit to really drive home the guilt he should feel for telling my best friend my secret before I got the chance to. “You have my keys. Either give them to me, or take me the fuck home.”
I glance at July, my frown wobbling against my will at the look on her face. She’s never seen me like this, and Z doesn’t even look a little bit fazed by my outburst.
Stupid, stupid, stupid! He was made for me. It’s clear as day. And I put us through all this shit tonight for absolutely no reason. Fuck my life.
“I’m gonna head out,” Sage says.
“Are you coming, or am I walking?” I raise a brow at Z, who grumbles something about his kitten having claws before he moves toward me. “I’ll call you tomorrow,” I tell July, my voice coming out breathier than I intended as Z’s big form nears, and we walk out the door.
We don’t say a word on our way back to our house.
Our house.
Fuck.
Again, what the hell is wrong with me?
What the fuck was I thinking, believing Z could possibly be cheating on me, when he just took me a week ago to meet his wonderful family? When we just found out I’m carrying his baby? When he just packed up all his stuff at the compound and moved in with me? Why am I so fucked up?
When we get home, I hop out of the car before he can come around and help me out, feeling jittery because I know we’re going to have to talk this through. And I don’t want to. I don’t want to admit how freaking stupid I am. As soon as we’re through the door though, I’m not given a chance to run from him. His big arms are scooping me up, and the next thing I know, he’s cradling me in his lap as he sits down on the couch.
“What the hell were you thinking tonight, kitten?” he whispers at the top of my head, kissing me there, and I can’t help it as my body melts into his.
Suddenly, knowing I have to open up to him, I start to tremble before tears start falling in fat waves. And then comes the snot. And right behind that come the sobs. “I’m so freaking dumb, Z. So stupid. I don’t know what’s wrong with me! I… I… I… thought you were… were… cheating on me!” The last words come out as a loud wail, and LeFou howls inside his crate.