Again the two stared at each other for a few minutes while the silence filled the room like a heavy perfume. She could swear she saw tears shining in Dickie’s eyes as well as Chuck’s. Unshed tears burned behind her eyes as well.
“Umm… this is a lot to take and I can’t….” Chuck said, looking away from Dickie. Then unable to finish he just walked out of the room.
In the hallway he must have run into Meredith because she could be heard saying, “What’s wrong… Chuck… talk to me! Wait, where are you going?”
“I can’t… I just need to… paint first then I’ll talk,” Chuck replied from further down the hall.
Soon enough Meredith entered the room and nearly yelled, “What did you guys do to him?”
Carla approached and grabbed her by the shoulders and said, “Dickie is Chuck’s biological father… he just found out about it.”
“What?” Meredith whispered and after a long pause said, “Shit! I should have been here… God, I have to go find him!” she cried trying to pull away from Carla.
Tommy stepped forward and touched Meredith’s shoulder and said, “Give him a little bit to handle his shit… trust me. He’ll be okay. I swear it. He just needs to soak it in… he doesn’t do emotion very well. I completely get that so just trust me and give him some space… he’ll come back.”
Meredith looked at Dickie with tears shining in her eyes and said, “He told me he was afraid that if Becca did find his parents… they would take one look at him and be so disappointed… that they still wouldn’t want him.”
The young woman choked out a sob and Dickie approached her and said, “I didn’t know… I swear I didn’t, sweetness, but he is a far cry from a disappointment.”
Carla gasped as Meredith threw her arms around Dickie’s neck and pressed her face to his chest and sobbed.
Looking over, Becca noticed Lilly was crying while Bobby frowned at her with a worried look. Carla was also sniffing. A giggle escaped her when she caught a glimpse of her brother… sound asleep.
She could feel several sets of eyes on her but then the others also snickered one by one as they followed her stare.
Lilly passed out tissues to Carla, Meredith and Becca. After wiping her eyes Carla said, “Perhaps we should take this back to my house… it’s the closest and quite possibly where Chuck is now. They won’t be releasing Greg today so I’ll come back tonight and stay with him. He should sleep for a while so I can sneak home and get a shower and eat some lunch before I need to come back.”
Meredith finished wiping her tears and said, “Sorry… I didn’t mean to make everyone cry but I just love him so much and I hate it when he hurts. I know painting comforts him but I still worry. He’s probably at his apartment… not at the house.”
“If he’s not at the house… I’ll send Dana over to check on him after bit,” Tommy offered.
“Bobby and I can keep the boys overnight if you need us to,” Lilly offered, looking between Meredith and Carla.
There was so much going on it was hard to keep up but Carla’s sudden possessiveness where her brother was concerned garnered a smile she had to hide behind her hand.
Her brother needed a real woman to look after him not the badge bunnies that were always chasing him around. She would secretly keep her fingers crossed for them both.
Upon arriving at the Johnson’s house they found that Chuck was in fact not there, just as Meredith had predicted. Tommy made his excuses, promising to send Dana over to Chuck’s apartment to check on him. Dana and Chuck were unusually close, almost like siblings.
Lilly had told her once that Dana understood Chuck on his level and had a special knack for pulling him out of himself. Somehow seeing how well Dana cared for Tommy’s daughters put Chuck at ease and he often shared things with her that he wouldn’t with anyone else… even Meredith.
“Thank you, Tommy… can you have Dana call me as soon as she leaves his apartment… please?” Meredith said.
“Sure… but try not to worry. He’ll be fine once he paints it out,” Tommy said and headed out the door.
Carla excused herself to get a shower and Meredith offered them tea as they piled into the kitchen and sat down around the table.
She helped Meredith pour drinks while Dickie explained the story to Lilly and Bobby… again leaving out the part about Amber Reynolds being unfaithful to him. He also never mentioned being a SEAL or specifics about his time in the Navy and fortunately for him, they didn’t ask.
Touching her sleeve, Meredith handed Becca a glass of tea as well and whispered, “There is more to the story, I can tell, but truthfully I don’t want to know and I would venture to say telling Chuck wouldn’t help anything either.”
After Dickie told them the story, silence settled in until Bobby looked at Becca and said, “I may have found some help for the shop but I don’t actually want to hire the guy. My sister-in-law Sherri, would likely kill me if I actually hired him since it’s her ex-husband. Tommy and I went to high school with him and he worked at the shop once before. I wondered if I could let him work out of the shop on commission… toss him the jobs we can’t get to or pay him for specific jobs. Something like a subcontractor?”
“I’m guessing you want some type of contract for him that says anything he builds falls under your company and its copyright and patents?” she asked him. “Meaning it becomes the property of the shop… if he leaves… he doesn’t take the work with him.”
Bobby smiled at her and said, “You are one smart woman.”
“I’m sorry to hear that since I had hoped that all these things you’ve been doing for them was the start of you taking responsibility for all of them”
Edna’s words were beginning to float through her mind like a broken record.
“I’ll see what I can do,” she replied.
“Just whenever… no rush,” Bobby said.
They sat around talking for some time during which Carla came in, having showered and changed, and fixed a sandwich. Carla sat listening to them talk while eating but as soon as she’d finished she said, “I should get back to the hospital… he should be waking up soon.”
“I can stay with him, Carla. You don’t need to do that…” Becca said.
“I don’t mind at all. You should rest… you had quite an ordeal yesterday. My father is keeping the boys overnight since it’s the weekend so I can sit with him. Besides he asked me to help him out until he’s recovered enough to return to New York and I agreed since I’m back to working only part time again,” Carla replied gathering her purse.
No sooner had Carla pulled out of the driveway than Meredith’s cell phone rang. Pulling it out of her purse she quickly pushed a button and said, “Oh, baby… are you ok?”
The talking died down as though no one cared that they were listening in on someone else’s private conversation. Normally she would make an effort not to listen in but much like everyone there she was worried about Chuck’s reaction to the news.
“It’s ok… you just scared me, Charlie…” Meredith said after a few moments of silence.
Becca could feel Dickie looking at her and upon meeting his gaze she watched his grin come back for the first time since he’d told Chuck.
“Mom went to the hospital to stay with Greg Sanders and the boys are staying over with Grandpa so I’ll come there. I’ll bring you something to eat,” Meredith offered and then laughed and said, “Very funny… I may not cook as well as you but I do okay… and it’s the thought that counts. I love you and I will see you soon.”
If he was teasing Meredith then he was Chuck again. She felt herself physically relax and hadn’t realized how tense she’d been worrying about the young man… her friend. She was old enough to be his mother but out of all of them… Chuck consistently taught her the most about overcoming obstacles.
As they were preparing to leave, her cell phone rang and upon answering she heard Tommy say, “Hey, if you guys have a minute when you head out from Carla’s, can you stop by the house
?”
“Sure… actually we were just leaving now. We will see you in a few,” she said and disconnected the call.
Seeing the look of confusion on Dickie’s face she said, “Tommy and Dana would like me to stop by their house.”
Twenty minutes later they were greeted at Tommy and Dana’s house by Gretchen who threw open the door and yelled, “My Dickie!”
She enjoyed the way the little girl acted as though she and Dickie hadn’t seen each other in months every time she greeted him. He appeared equally excited to see her and scooped her up in his arms. Then he kissed her cheek and said, “Where’s baby Melody?”
“She sings to me!” Gretchen said excitedly.
Seeing the baby in the swing and awake, he put Gretchen back on the ground and said, “Show me, squirt.”
Gretchen went over to the baby and made cooing noises at her and then began singing a song. After a few seconds passed the infant began not only humming but making other noises that made it seem as though she really was singing along.
It was by far one of the cutest things she’d ever seen and Dickie appeared to enjoy it as he was smiling from ear to ear.
The irony wasn’t lost on her that this man who appeared to be some sort of hardened biker was in all reality wrapped around the fingers of the two angelic little girls. Amazing. Dickie glanced at Tommy and Dana who shared a look as though giving each other courage.
“Hey, from what Chuck tells me… you can read an entire book by yourself. Is that right?” Dickie asked Gretchen.
“Yep!” Gretchen smiled at him proudly.
“Why don’t we go find one in your room and you can read it to me while your daddy and Mama Dana talk to Ms. Becca?” he asked.
“It’s just Mama now since she and Daddy are getting married. I asked her to be my mama just like my Daddy asked her to be his wife and she told me yes too.” Gretchen said matter of fact.
“That’s good to know… how about that story?” Dickie replied with a grin.
Watching him with the little girl was like some form of aphrodisiac. She had to tear her eyes away from the scene as he led Gretchen up the stairs to her room. Men and babies… she got it now. She went over and sat on the couch next to Dana. It was obvious they were nervous about whatever they had to say.
“I’m not sure if you know but Chuck did call Meredith and she was on her way over there when we left,” she said, attempting to ease the tension coming from the normally laid back couple.
“I went over there earlier…” Dana said and then looked away as if trying to compose herself. “He was painting a series of evolution type images that depicted himself and Dickie hand in hand. The first image is of Chuck as a small child and a younger Dickie… the last as they both are now. It’s hard to describe really… but it’s… it’s incredible. I know why he is painting it… because he didn’t get a chance to grow up as Dickie’s son, but when I look at it… I feel like it symbolizes the bond that a parent has with a child no matter the age of the child. It’s just incredible… his best yet in my opinion.”
“Is he okay…?” she asked hesitantly.
“Yea… I think it not only shocked him but really drove home all that his childhood could have been with… a family,” Dana said. “I told Tommy about it when I got home and I think it helped us make some decisions about our own family.”
“We’ve talked about the new baby a lot over the past couple of weeks and we’ve decided we are willing to take it… even if it means at some point we may lose it. We can be a positive influence on the baby for as long as we do have it,” Tommy said.
After a brief pause Becca said, “I think that is very honorable of you both.”
Each of the men in the group was honorable in their own way. Bobby for ensuring Edna could live out the time she had left in her own home, Tommy for being a first class daddy, Chuck for being so charitable and loving, and Dickie for being her saving grace. Edna knew that and had asked her to look out for them and she would… gladly.
“Love isn’t really as complicated as you two make it. Hopefully, it doesn’t take too long for you both to figure that out.”
It was suddenly so simple… it was like the rain had cleared out her mind.
“I will let Carmen know first thing in the morning and have her give you a call about the parenting course that is required for all new foster parents. We should probably get going… it’s been a rough couple of days…” she said.
Tommy grinned at Dana and she couldn’t help but appreciate the man’s good looks. They weren’t just honorable men. They were all handsome and sexy in a way that was as individual to each of them as the bikes they rode. She had the last single one of the bunch within her grasp and she wouldn’t let him go again.
The ride back to Dickie’s house was quiet as they both were lost in their own thoughts. Pulling into the driveway she was surprised to see Chuck’s bike parked in the front yard.
Chuck had Meredith backed against the only tree in the front yard and was kissing her. Becca looked over at Dickie just in time to catch his devilish grin.
“He really is my boy isn’t he?” he laughed and got out of the car.
As he came around and opened her car door, Chuck approached them tugging Meredith along behind him by her hand. Dickie turned and faced him when he approached and they stared at each other for a few moments.
Chuck held his hand out to Dickie. “I don’t know shit about having permanent parents but I’m learning about it a little bit at a time thanks to Carla. What I do know is that I’ve got the best fucking friends ever and that includes you. I’d like us to stay that way while I figure out how to handle this having parents thing.”
Dickie stared at him for a minute and then, rather than shaking his hand, he gave him a big bear hug complete with a smack to the back that should have winded the young man but only resulted in a smile.
“I don’t know shit about being a dad so I’ll be learning right along with you. I just hope that those two little girls know what kind of aged adolescent they’ve requested to finish growing up with,” Dickie laughed. “So I’m good with what does work… being friends while we figure it out.”
“I just had to make sure we were still cool… so now that it’s all good we’re going to take off,” Chuck said with a wink and a smile. “Oh, and Becca? I finally got that GED you’ve been nagging me about.”
After congratulating him, Chuck and Meredith loaded back up on his bike and took off down the street. Turning back to Dickie she said, “They will give us some really cute grandkids someday.”
She giggled at his shocked expression and then said, “You told me when I was ready to give you a test drive to let you know. Well I’m not interested in a test drive… I’m ready to buy.”
When he didn’t say anything but continued to stare at her instead she finally said, “Dickie? What…what are you thinking?”
“Are you asking me to marry you woman?” he questioned as a huge grin spread across his handsome mouth.
Was she? Though she knew nothing aside from his rejection would keep her from his side… was she ready for marriage again? Her heart was chanting a resounding yes.
“Yes I am… babe,” she said with a grin.
“I’m in for the long ride… if you are. I want you… and the girls… and Chuck. I want it all… I deserve to be happy and you make me happy and we’ll work out the complications as we go with good old fashioned teamwork. I am going to work as a children’s advocate and make little to no money so that we are forced to live off my commission percentage from the firm. I want to wake up next to you from now on and never have to lay awake alone again. Are you interested?” she finished, her heart lodged in her throat.
“Hell yea, I am,” he laughed and scooped her up and kissed her like the randy teenager he was.
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Long Ride (Riding with Honor) Page 17