by Erin Osborne
“I can do that. Am I going to need anything special to do them?” I ask, knowing that I don’t have anything at the house right now to help me with that.
“I’ll get you a set of resistance bands that you can use. You might need some help when you first start, but I’ve been assured that you’re not going to be left alone again for the time being,” she answers, clicking a few more times before getting up to turn on the screen hanging on the wall.
Once she’s back at her desk, I hear her clicking away again before images fill the screen on the wall. She’s pointing out the place in my ankle that was damaged in the accident. It looks to be healing really good from what I can see. Dr. Anderson is looking at her computer as she clicks through the four images that were taken.
“I’m happy, very happy, with what I’m seeing here. It looks like you’ll be able to start putting a little bit of weight on it soon. I don’t think we’re going to have to go back in to put rods, screws, and all that stuff. But, I want to see what happens when you start rehab before we make any final decisions,” she says, clicking once again to make the images disappear. “I do want you to keep your appointment for next week so we can take another look and decide what we’re going to do then.”
“Okay. Thank you for seeing me so soon and taking care of my arm,” I tell her, unlocking my chair so that I can make my way out of the office.
“Anytime. If you have any other concerns, don’t hesitate to call,” she says, walking us out so that she can get the resistance bands from the receptionist.
Gage and Riley take my paperwork and lead the way out of the office. He lifts me back up into the SUV and makes sure I’m comfortable before closing the door. Riley turns around to face me for a minute before saying anything.
“Dylan was upset because he didn’t want you to go away like when you had your accident. I assured him we’d bring you right back,” she tells me, finally filling me in on what happened at the house when they showed up.
“That makes my heart break,” I tell her, knowing that for a little while he’s going to think that every time I leave the house. “I’ll talk to him when we’re alone again.”
“You’re not bein’ left alone,” Gage says, closing the door behind him as he gets in the driver’s seat. “Shadow knows that he’s to stay at the house until one of the girls can get there. If he can’t wait then he’s goin’ to have a prospect there. Just know that he’s not happy right now. It’s more at himself than you, but I’m sure he’s goin’ to have somethin’ to say.”
“Did the doctor have any idea what would’ve happened?” Riley asks, glaring at her husband for telling Shadow.
“I got a bad cramp in my leg last night. She’s thinking that it may have something to do with that. That’s why she wants me to do the exercises for now,” I answer, turning my head to look out the window as I think about things.
Riley and Gage talk quietly amongst themselves during the short ride home. I easily tune them out and try to get myself ready for the impending inquisition from Harley and then Shadow later on. This is not going to fucking be any fun at all!
Gage is pulling into my driveway before I know it and Steel meets us on the porch. He was probably outside smoking. As soon as the SUV comes to a stop, he opens my door and picks me up to carry me inside. I’m not sure what it is with every one of these men carrying me inside, but it’s kind of irritating. I don’t see why I can’t hop up the stairs and inside the door to my waiting wheelchair. Men!
“We carry you because after this mornin’, we’re not takin’ any chances with you fallin’ again,” Steel answers, letting a chuckle escape as he places me on the bed in a sitting position.
“I said that out loud?” I ask, knowing that I must be more frustrated than I thought if that’s happening.
“Yep,” he replies, letting Harley bring Dylan in closer to see me.
“Hey buddy! I’m okay,” I tell him, patting the bed next to me so he can climb on up. “I’m not going anywhere again if I can help it.”
“Mama okay?” he asks once he’s settled in next to me.
“I’m okay. Now, I’m hungry. What are we gonna have for lunch?” I ask, wanting to get his mind off of this morning.
“Chicken,” he says, jumping off the bed and racing out to the kitchen.
“Chicken nuggets it is,” Harley says, following him while looking at me.
“I’m okay. I promise,” I tell her, wanting to ease her mind as well.
“We’re headin’ out. If you girls need anythin’ call me. I’ll keep my phone with me in church,” Gage says, walking over to kiss Riley before they leave.
The rest of the afternoon, I sit in the wheelchair while Dylan plays next to me. Harley and Riley take care of some cleaning that needs to be done along with the laundry. Shadow’s not allowed to do laundry anymore. He didn’t ask me about anything a few days after I came home. When he pulled out the clothes, we all ended up having pink everything. He washed a new red towel with the rest of the laundry and we ended up having to get a few new clothes. His treat.
“Renee, I got a question for you,” Harley says sitting down on the couch and turning down the TV a little while Dylan sleeps on the floor.
“What’s up?” I ask, knowing where she’s going to go with her questioning.
“What’s going on with you and Shadow? He hasn’t said anything,” she asks, as Riley sits down next to Harley after handing her a bottle of soda.
“I don’t know. I get that club girls are around the club all the time. Kim explained what they do and how they all act like the guys are theirs when a new girl comes around. I don’t play that game though. I’m not going to fight over any man,” I answer her, taking a sip of my soda trying to delay the inevitable.
“He hasn’t even looked at another girl since meeting you. Nessa has been put on probation, but she’s about on her way out. The last time the Phantom Bastards came down, she made Shy run out of the clubhouse. Shy may be a club girl for them, but everyone knows that Slim is the only one she’s been with since entering the clubhouse,” Riley tells me, setting her glass down on the table so she can look at me. “Shadow would never do anything to chase you off. He has been miserable the last year. I’ve never seen him the way he was when he found out you were in an accident.”
“I know. But, I have a rule that I don’t give second chances. To anyone. It wouldn’t matter if it were you or him. I’ve been burned too many times,” I answer them, turning my head away to try to stop this conversation.
“Will you at least hear him out?” Harley asks, getting up to check on the laundry.
“He can tell me anything he wants to. Before he left he said we were going to be talking,” I tell her, not giving her anything more than that. “Now, how about a movie while Dylan sleeps?”
Harley and Riley give me the escape I’m craving and find a comedy to watch. I let myself get lost in the movie while I sit and think about everything. Today has been eye opening in learning that I still have to take it easier than I thought I would by now. Hopefully Shadow doesn’t completely lose his shit on me when he gets back.
Shadow
I left the house this morning so I could get to the gym for my training session. There’s another fight coming up and I have to get ready. The guy I’m facing is a beast and does anything he has to in order to win. I’ve been purposely avoiding telling Renee what I’m doing because we need to have a few different conversations before we get into the fighting thing.
Colin had just finished taping me up when my phone rang and I saw it was Gage calling me. I didn’t want to answer, but I know he won’t call me unless it’s absolutely important when I’m at the gym. He’s the only one that has my training schedule so there’s no way he didn’t know I was here.
“What’s up Prez?” I ask, motioning to Colin to give me just a minute.
“We just brought Renee to the doctor. She fell sometime after you left this morning and I’m pretty sure she’s going to need stitc
hes in her arm,” he says, walking somewhere as the quietness gets louder.
“What the fuck?” I shout, knowing that she was still in bed when I left the house.
“She had to go to the bathroom or somethin’. When she tried to get up, she ended up fallin’. I think she cut her arm on the wheelchair. We’re waitin’ to see what the doctor says now,” he answers, giving me as much information as he knows right now.
“Did she fuck her leg up more?” I ask, trying to decide what to do right now. Should I stay and train or leave to go to her?
“She doesn’t think so. I’ll let you know as soon as I know what’s goin’ on,” he answers, taking a deep breath before continuing. “The gash in her arm wasn’t too deep, but I still think stitches is the way to go. Her doctor is probably going to agree.”
“I’m goin’ to tell Colin I have to leave. I’ll be on the way back in a few minutes,” I tell him, getting ready to start untapping my hands.
“You’re not leavin’. If she hasn’t done any more damage to her leg then there’s no reason for you to be here. Stay and do what you gotta do. I’ll let you know what’s goin’ on soon,” he says, raising his voice over the sound of sirens in the background.
“I should be there,” I say, feeling torn in two right now. I know I need to train, but I need to be there for Renee too.
“No, you shouldn’t. Stay and I’ll let you know what we find out,” he says, hanging up the phone as I put it back on the bench and enter the ring.
“Everything good?” Colin asks, letting me warm up for a minute before we start working.
“Not really. But I guess I’m not needed there right now,” I tell him, taking my stance so he knows I’m ready to spar.
For the next hour we spar in the ring while I try to improve my accuracy and speed even more. By the time Colin’s next appointment shows up, I’m ready to take this aggravation out on the punching bag. So, I make my way over there for a little while before going through my routine of lifting. Today isn’t a leg day, so I avoid those machines. I spend another hour weight lifting until I feel almost normal again. Hearing that Renee fell and cut her arm pisses me off. I should’ve helped her into the chair before I left the house.
Picking up my phone as I make my way to the locker room, I see several missed calls from Gage. Instead of calling him back, I see that he’s also sent some messages. Opening them up, I see that Renee needed to get stitches in her arm and that there was nothing else done to her leg. I’m relieved that nothing else happened to her, but I should’ve used my fucking head and helped her before I left.
Instead, I was too concerned about getting away from her; putting some distance between the two of us. I don’t know how much longer I can see her every day, wearing skimpy clothes, and looking all vulnerable. The more time I’m in her presence, the more I want her. Yeah, I want to work my way back into her bed, but I want to be a permanent part of her life. A part of Dylan’s life.
We have church tonight and we need to go over any other information that’s come in about someone messing with Renee’s car. So far, every lead we’ve had has come up to a dead end. I’m at my wits end and I don’t know what to do anymore. The longer this person is out there, and we don’t know who we’re looking for, the more danger Renee and Dylan are in. I’ll do anything I have to in order to protect them, but I can’t search for a ghost.
Throwing my leg over my girl, I turn my bike on and leave the gym. During the whole ride back to Dander Falls, I can’t get thoughts of Renee and the time we spent together out of my head. When we first started talking, I had such a hard time getting anything out of her. Our first date was almost a disaster because I had no clue what she’d like to do or what to talk about with her. I remember taking her to the diner the club owns. When the waitress, a girl that’s been flirting with me and any of the guys since she got hired, came over to take our order, Renee almost left me sitting there. I had to plead with her to give our date a chance. As far as she was concerned, I had something going on with the waitress. Hell, I couldn’t even remember her name. I didn’t care to know it.
Anyway, we got our food ordered and continued on with our night, but I think it was still almost a fail. We ended up laughing and having a good time. Right up until we went to walk out of the diner. The waitress tried to slip me her number and Renee was pissed. I can’t say that I blame her either. Walking her out to her car, I wanted to kiss her good night, but I got the cold shoulder and knew that it wasn’t going to happen. So, I made sure that she was inside it and then watched as she drove away. I didn’t talk to her again for about two weeks.
I knew then that it would be tough to get her back on speaking terms with me. Somehow, I managed to do it though and things were going great until that last night at the clubhouse. Nessa fucked it all up. There was no more talking on the phone late at night, sitting at her house watching movies or hanging out with Dylan, and no more having fun. Hell, there was no more fucking either. No matter who I’ve been with at the clubhouse, it’s always Renee that I see in my mind. She won’t know that because I know that I’ll lose her for good if it comes out. I’m sure that I already have, but the day is coming for us to have that talk. Preferably before she starts rehab next week.
Today will have to be the day that it happens, I guess. I want to check on her before going to church so I’ll have to let her know that I want to talk when I get home from there. If she’s awake, then we can talk. Or we’ll have to wait until the morning. I really don’t want Dylan to be there for it, but I’ll work with what I have to work with. Renee and I need to talk and get things settled one way or another.
Before I know it, I’m pulling into the driveway to Renee’s house. There’s not much time before I have to be at the clubhouse, but I need to see her and jump in the shower quick after my workout. Parking, I make my way into the house to see total chaos. Dylan is running around naked as the day he was born. Renee is sitting in the wheelchair crying. And, Harley and Riley are chasing a naked Dylan around the house. He’s in the middle of an epic meltdown for some reason.
As soon as he sees me, Dylan runs into my arms and buries his head in my shoulder. Renee looks at me with tears streaming down her face and the other two stop dead in their tracks with confused expressions.
“What’s goin’ on little man?” I ask, not moving him an inch as I walk in and sit on the couch close to Renee.
“No bath,” he says, looking at me.
“Why don’t you want a bath?” I ask, not understanding why he doesn’t want to take one all of a sudden.
“You not home,” he says, leaning back into me.
Renee gasps and I know that she’s torn about this new development with her son. He’s never had a problem with the girls giving him a bath while I’m not here. My girl can’t get down to give him one, so he didn’t like it I guess. Well, we’ll see what we can do to fix the situation.
“Well, I have to go to the clubhouse. Will you please let Harley and Riley give you one while I take a shower?” I ask, trying to help them out anyway I can.
Dylan thinks about it for a second before nodding his head. He climbs off of my lap and makes his way to the bathroom as the girls follow him, shaking their heads the whole time. I look over to Renee and can see so many questions in her eyes. I’m not sure that I’ll have answers for any of them, but we’ll have to wait and see.
“How are you feelin’?” I ask, needing to know that she’s really okay after her fall.
“I’ve definitely been better. But I can’t complain I guess,” she answers, crawling back into the shell that she uses to protect herself.
“Don’t do that. Not with me,” I tell her, knowing that this is her go-to when she’s nervous and uncomfortable. “You don’t get to hide from me anymore. I’ve had a glimpse of the real you and we’re goin’ to be talkin’ about this shit once I get back. I’m goin’ to church while you guys have dinner. As soon as it’s over I’m comin’ back and then we’re goin’ to really have
a conversation. Everything is gettin’ worked out. Tonight.”
“I don’t know what you want from me,” she answers hesitantly. “Where do you think this is going, Shadow?”
“You know where this is goin’. Told you that the other day,” I respond, kissing her gently on the lips before I walk into the guest bathroom for a quick shower.
I don’t say another word as I make my way out of the house and to my bike. Church is going to be very intense for me and I don’t want to let my emotions get the better of me, but I know that it’s going to happen. We’re talking about someone trying to kill Renee. What if Dylan had been in the car with her?
I’m surprised that she didn’t suffer more injuries from the accident. But, I doubt that Dylan would’ve been that lucky. Shaking my head, I clear the thoughts as I let the air and freedom of riding surround me.
Before I know it, I’m walking into church to see that I’m the last one there. Gage notices me and bangs the gavel on the table to get everyone to stop talking and pay attention as I take my seat.
“Now that Shadow is here, let’s get started. How’s Renee doin’?” he asks, looking at me since I’ll be doing most of the talking tonight.
“She’s okay. I know her arm is bothering her, and it didn’t help that Dylan was in the middle of a meltdown when I stopped by there. But we’ll get through it one way or another. Havin’ a talk with her when I get back about everythin’,” I respond as I get comfortable for the meeting.
“Good. You guys need any help, let us know and we’ll do what we can to handle it,” he says before lighting a cigarette and getting down to business. “Now, the reason we’re here tonight is that Renee’s accident wasn’t an accident at all. Someone fucked with the breaks on her car. I don’t know who’s after her or what else has happened, but I want to figure this shit out before anythin’ else happens. Shadow have you noticed anythin’ since you’ve been stayin’ there?”
“No. There’s been no calls, messages, packages, or letters comin’ there. Renee hasn’t really said anythin’ about the accident at all other than when she was in the hospital and remembered almost hitting the lady that was walking across the street. We really haven’t talked about the fact that her breaks were tampered with. I’m goin’ to talk to her about that tonight. She starts rehab soon and I want to get this out of the way before then. Renee needs to know to be vigilant when I’m not around,” I answer, letting them know without words that I want security upgraded in her house and that I want more men on her.