by Sam Crescent
What they’d gone through these past months, for this moment, he’d never forget, and it had been so worth it.
There was no other feeling in the world that could ever replace this one. His love was so damn strong.
He stayed by Cheryl’s side, and as she was being processed to go to another room, just for observation as she’d struggled to take a baby to term previously, he took his daughter in his arms.
“Am I okay to take her out? To show her to her brother?” Butch asked.
The nurse nodded. “Of course. Make sure you support her head.”
“I will.”
He was going to protect this girl for his entire life.
He walked out of the hospital room. He expected to only see Alex and Michael, but Ned had arrived, as well as several fighters. Javier, Mistletoe, and Cruz were waiting for him as well.
They were all there to show their love and support.
“I have a beautiful baby girl,” he said.
Ned was the first to approach. “How is Cheryl?”
“She’s doing well. They’re just going to get her settled into a room, and then I’ll go back with her.”
The men each took a turn to come and see her, and then he went to Michael. Sitting down in the available seat, he smiled.
“Hey, sweetheart, this is your big brother. He has attitude, but I think one day he’s going to see what an amazing man he’s turning into and he’ll protect you. He acts all hard, but he’s really a big marshmallow.”
“I’m sitting right here.”
“That I know. Look at her, Michael. Don’t be a pain in the ass.”
Michael turned his head, and he waited. “She’s so small.”
“She is. She’s going to need a big brother someday.”
“I’ll be around,” Michael said. “Can I see my mom?”
“Of course. Come on.”
He made sure to look to Alex, who gave him a nod.
Michael followed him back toward Cheryl’s room, and there his wife sat, looking so damn exhausted and cute.
She smiled at him, and as he moved out of the way, he saw the joy on her face at Michael. She held open her arms, and her son went right into them.
“You’re getting so big. It’s illegal for you to get any taller. What are they feeding you?”
Michael laughed. “Food, Mom, just good food.”
“Well, I’ll just have to deal with you being a lot taller than me.”
****
Cheryl didn’t have anything wrong with her. The doctor had said to her that the body was a beautiful and mysterious thing. No one knew why she’d suffered the miscarriages before while this pregnancy went by without a single hitch. Either way, she loved it.
Lying down in the sitting room, she stared at her baby, who was wriggling beside her.
“We need to think of a name,” Butch said.
He lay on the other side of their little girl.
Alex and Michael had gone back to Fort Wills. She’d been able to spend a couple of days with her son, but for the most part, it had been in the hospital. The doctor wasn’t going to take any risks with her health, and she had a feeling that was down to Butch. He was pretty scary when he wanted to be.
“I know. What about Anna?” she asked.
“Nah, it doesn’t suit her.”
“Elizabeth.”
“Lexie and Devil’s kid is called that.”
She laughed. “They have so many kids, they probably have all the good names.”
“That’s true.”
“Are you happy?” she asked.
“More than happy.” Butch cupped her cheek, their baby between them. “I’ve got you. That’s always been more than enough for me.”
She turned toward his open palm and kissed him. “I love you with all my heart.”
“You own me.”
“I love it when you say that.”
Their daughter gurgled, and the sound filled her with even more love. “She is just so perfect.”
“You know I’m going to get arrested right? I’m going to have to fight all the guys that want to date her.”
“You’re going to be old, and don’t worry, I’ll handle everything. She is going to break some hearts, that’s for sure.”
She ran her hand down her baby’s body, touching her toes.
For so long she’d been worried that her baby wouldn’t make it.
Right now, it was kind of surreal that not only had she made it, but she was just so perfect. Every parent went through this. She’d felt the same way with Michael.
“You’re a beautiful little girl.” Cheryl chuckled. “I keep saying the same thing.”
“I know. We still need to pick out a name. Susan.”
“Nah, what about Carla?” Cheryl wrinkled her nose. “That doesn’t suit her either.”
They continued to throw out girls’ names, and each one just didn’t suit her until Butch finally called one.
“Jade.”
Staring at her little girl, Cheryl lifted up and smiled. “Hello, Jade.”
“It suits her.”
“It really does. Our baby girl is called Jade. I can’t believe it.” She held Butch’s hand as she stared down at their daughter.
“Come on, I think our Jade needs to go to sleep.” Butch got to his feet and carefully lifted Jade up in his arms.
There was no better sight than seeing the man she loved cradling their little girl.
She followed him up to the nursery. Standing beside the crib that they’d assembled just hours before, he gently placed their little girl down.
Jade had started to fall asleep downstairs, and now as they turned the light down and watched, she fell asleep completely.
Cheryl moved to Butch’s side, taking his hand.
They were a family.
The three of them.
All together.
Resting her head against his arm, she knew that even as she wanted to pause this moment, it wasn’t going to happen. They had to make some decisions.
Pulling Butch from the room, she got the baby monitor and they headed downstairs to the kitchen.
She grabbed the ingredients to make the hot chocolate, tension in the air.
“Alex told me you were talking about Fort Wills when your water broke,” Butch said.
“Wow, that didn’t take long.”
“I need to know if you’re wanting to head back there,” Butch said.
She put the milk in the saucepan and placed it on the stove to start heating. Turning back to face the man she loved, she gripped her shoulders.
“I don’t know.”
“If you want to go back there, we can.”
She stared at him. The wall that Butch put in place to protect himself was very much there. She found it a lot harder to read him when he was like this.
“Tell me what you want,” she said.
“It doesn’t matter what I want.”
“Bullshit. It matters to me.” She ran fingers through her hair. “I don’t want us to go on this merry-go-round, Butch. Just tell me what it is you want.”
“I want you. That’s all I want.”
“But where exactly do you want me?”
“Wherever you want to be.”
She laughed. “All of your life you’ve done everything that everyone else has ever asked of you without complaint. I’m asking you as your wife, as the woman who loves you, what exactly it is that you want, and you’re not being honest with me.”
“I don’t know what you want me to say, Cheryl.”
“What are you thinking? What are you feeling? Do you want to go back to Fort Wills? Do you want to stay here? What is it you want to do? Why can’t you be honest?”
“Because I don’t want to be selfish. For a long time, Fort Wills was my home, but it’s not where I want to be. But I’m not willing to put yours and Jade’s happiness on hold for something I want.”
“You want to stay here?”
“Yes. I like it here. I�
��ve made a life here. We’ve made a life here, and I happen to like Ned, meddling old bastard that he is. He’s something else. I love being here, and I can’t go back, not now. We can’t go back, Cheryl.” He’d stood up, and she watched as he closed his eyes, the fight leaving him.
“You don’t have to hide who you are from me. You’re not this passive person you claim.” She took a step toward him. “Don’t hold back. Tell me what you want?”
She watched and waited. He didn’t say anything for the longest time.
“Your milk is burning.”
She turned back to the stove to see the milk boiling over the edge of the saucepan. “Shoot!” She quickly pulled the pan off the stove and cursed. Looking at the spilling, she turned the stove off and then pressed a hand to her forehead.
Butch moved up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist. “I want to make you happy.”
“That’s a copout, Butch. For once in your life be honest with me and trust me to have your best interests at heart. Is that too much to ask?” She turned in his arms, cupping his face. “Tell me what it is you want.”
Silence fell between them. She held her breath as he continued to stare at her.
Finally, after what felt like a lifetime, he started to talk.
“I don’t want to go back to Fort Wills. It’s not where our home is, and a couple of the guys have talked to me about us starting a club here, as a charter.”
“Like the Vegas chapter or something?” she asked.
“Yes.”
“That’s good, right?”
“It all depends if Lash wants to expand.”
“Have you spoken to him about it?”
“No, the guys have had a lot on their plate.”
“So? This is your future like everyone else. Why can’t you, I don’t know, bring it up to him?”
“I will. When the time is right.”
“Do you think you can be a Prez, is that what you call it?” she asked.
“I think I’ve got what it takes. Yeah. Do you think you can handle being my old lady?”
“Butch, I threw my body over yours and threatened your entire club to get them to help you. I will do whatever it takes to help you, to be by your side, to love you.”
“What about Fort Wills?” he asked.
“What about it?”
“It’s your dream.”
“Since when? If Fort Wills was my dream, we wouldn’t have ever left it. I didn’t want to stick around that town. I had you.” She went up onto her toes and kissed his lips. “We took our punishment. You’ve done your time, and you need to stop wearing it like a damn noose around your neck. If Lash has any sense, he’d see what good it would be to have you here with Ned, keeping an eye on things. Especially with it all getting a little messy for them.”
He sighed. “There are times you speak a whole lot of sense.”
“This is one of those times. Come on, Butch, step out of that darkness you seem to enjoy being in. We made it. We have a beautiful daughter. Michael is flourishing with Alex.”
“He told me you two even managed to have a full-blown conversation, you and Alex I mean, without arguing.”
“It’s called adulting. It’s so hard.” She rolled her eyes, pretending to hate it. “We’ve got this.”
Butch lowered his mouth against hers and kissed her.
No matter what happened, no matter what they faced, she’d do it, by his side, for the rest of their lives.
Chapter Seven
“You’re sure you’re okay?” Butch asked.
“Yes. Go. Have fun. Do what you want to do. I’m fine.” Cheryl pushed him toward the door.
“You won’t put up the tree without me?” Butch asked.
“I’m starting to think he doesn’t want to go out and celebrate becoming a dad,” Javier said.
Cheryl laughed, but Butch caught her to him, kissing her deeply.
“I don’t want to go, but I have to. I’ve got to go and do the manly thing,” he said. The guys had come to his home with Ned in tow. Ned would be sticking around to keep an eye on Cheryl and Jade while Butch went out and celebrated the birth of his baby.
It didn’t feel right to him.
“You should be out with me,” he said.
“Hey, don’t worry about that. We’ve already got plans to take your woman out tomorrow night. How do you feel about male strip clubs?” Cruz asked.
“She’s not going to a strip club,” Butch said.
“You’re not going to a strip club tonight?” Cheryl asked, brow raised.
“Hell, no,” Butch said. “We better fucking not be.”
“Stop being such a pussy. We’re not going to a strip club. We’re going to have a drink, celebrate the birth of a new life, and he’ll be home, promise.”
“Good, good. Bring him home to me in one piece.” She kissed Butch’s lips. “Have fun and think of me.”
“Always.” As selfish as it sounded even in his head, he was counting down the days until he could make love to her. He’d already circled the day on the calendar, after Christmas, but it was still there. That day, Ned would be babysitting, and he was going to spend the entire day screwing his wife. Simple as that.
Kissing his woman one final time, he followed his boys out of the house, closing the door behind him.
“You know you didn’t need to do this, right?” Butch asked.
“We know it, but come on, you had a baby. Why not celebrate it?” Cruz asked.
“My wife did all the work.”
“You helped. You actually got all busy and put that baby right where it needed to be,” Cruz started to pump his hips doing some weird grinding action and making sounds along with it.
“He does that and wonders why no women want to fuck him,” Mistletoe said.
“Women want to fuck me. They line up to get a bit of the Cruz action.”
“I think I threw up in my mouth,” Javier said. “Cruz action?”
“Yeah, no woman is ever the same when they’ve sucked some Cruz dick.”
“You know, no woman is ever safe when they’ve been near you. They’re always trying to hide, that’s for sure,” Butch said, slapping Cruz on the back, and climbing into the passenger side in the front of the car. Javier took the wheel while Mistletoe and Cruz sat in the back.
“You want me to show you just how good my dick can be. I can show you right here and right now.”
“Dude, no one wants or needs to see your dick. Keep that shit to yourself. Man, why do I have to sit with him?” Mistletoe asked, leaning forward so that he was holding onto Javier’s chair.
“Because, I’m driving and Butch is partying tonight. Sit the fuck back,” Javier said.
As Mistletoe sat back, Cruz pretended to try to make out with him.
Butch laughed.
“So, you thought about any of what we’ve been talking about?” Javier asked.
“I have, and I’m going to talk to Lash.”
“You leaving The Skulls?”
“No, I’m not.” He’d already spoken to Cheryl about that.
The Skulls were his family. He didn’t want to leave that part of his life behind. What he wanted was the opportunity to expand.
Still, it was something he was going to bring forward. If Lash didn’t accept, then he’d have to consider his options.
Javier pulled up into a parking lot. Climbing out, Butch took a deep breath of the warm, humid air.
He followed his friends as they headed into a bar, and started to work their way down the strip.
He had no interest in strippers or gambling.
Knocking back a couple of beers and shots, he started to get a buzz. He watched as Cruz scared a couple of women away and laughed at his attempt to even try to get them to suck his dick.
By eleven, he was feeling the effects of the alcohol, and they’d settled into a nightclub. He ordered the round for his friends and noticed out of the corner of his eye Javier tensing up.
“What is it?�
� Butch asked.
“That guy,” Javier said. “The one that grabbed the girl, he’s the one that beat the shit out of Punk.”
Fortunately, he wasn’t drunk enough to not see.
Butch stared at the guy.
One of the girls was trying to get free, but whoever this piece of shit was didn’t seem to care.
“You sure?”
“Fucking positive. Someone got the fight on camera. They even sent it to Punk, and I got it.” Cruz held up his phone, playing the video of Punk getting his ass kicked.
Butch wasn’t happy. Punk was just a kid.
“Let’s go and see what he’s got to say.” Leaving the bar, Butch made his way over.
“Get off me,” the girl said, trying to get away.
“No can do, babe. You’re coming with me tonight, and you won’t be complaining when I slide my dick all the way home.”
“Let her go. She doesn’t want you,” Butch said.
He stared at the man who’d put Punk in the hospital.
Ned had been fucked off since Punk’s incident. His reputation was on the line, and of course, men thought they could now take on any of Ned’s fighters.
Butch would never understand why one bad fighter would tarnish them all, and yet that was exactly what was happening.
In the past few days, he’d seen it.
“Who the fuck do you think you are?” the guy said.
“Come on, Rhodes, we got to go,” another guy with him said.
Butch stared at the man. Rhodes was a well-known name, especially in the ring. His reputation for cheating preceded him. Ned wouldn’t have any of his fighters go against Rhodes, mainly because he’d been known to cheat and grab a weapon from one of his guys.
If Rhodes started to lose, then he’d fight dirty.
“Look, man, fuck off,” Rhodes said.
“You and I have got some unfinished business,” Butch said.
He felt the anger at seeing Punk beaten up, bloody, and bruised. This man’s reputation, Butch had seen him many years ago in the ring, when he first came to Vegas. Ned had shown him the ropes, taught him everything he knew, and in a way, Butch became the son he never had. This business, the fighters, would never go to Eva, nor would it go to Tiny. It would come to him. He knew the work. This was his life, and this was what he wanted to bring to The Skulls.
“I don’t know you.”