“Let’s go,” he exasperated.
“Don’t you ever snap at me again,” Bones warned, glancing at me. “See ya, Kitten,” he winked.
“What’d I fucking tell you about calling her that?”
“You snapped your fingers at me like I was your fucking dog,” Bones argued, as he followed Riggs out of the apartment, closing the door behind him. I heard them bicker back and forth for a few moments before I heard nothing at all. I walked toward the window and glanced down, watching Riggs straddle his bike. He fitted his helmet to his head, tilting his head back as he secured the chin strap. I would’ve sworn he was staring at me but I couldn’t be sure as his sunglasses shielded his eyes and his facial expression was blank.
Hope.
It was going to break my heart.
It was strange seeing Jack with a woman. Well, not really, the dude had a lot of bitches at his beck and call but it was strange seeing him claim one. The sucker even put a ring on it. Not that Reina was a bitch or that Jack really was a sucker. He was a lucky prick, and she was a goddess. The pie goddess. That woman could throw down in the kitchen.
I wonder if Kitten can cook.
Jack wrapped his arms around Reina as he made his way down the hill from where his brother was freshly buried, back to where our bikes lined the road. Reina smiled, and I overheard her go on about stopping at the grocery store to get ingredients.
Because I was pissed.
Because I was due a pie.
And I wanted to collect.
Jack protested, and I started to argue when Pipe made his way over to us. He was grinning as he held the phone in the air and delivered us the sweet news that Blackie had finally pulled his ass out of the coma.
There was no question about it—the pie could wait.
We hustled out of the cemetery and drove our asses to the hospital, eager to see the brother we almost lost. The hospital tried to give us some shit about all of us not being able to visit him in the ICU but that didn’t last very long and we did what we did best, disobeyed the rules and strode into Blackie’s little cubical.
“There he is,” Wolf cheered.
Jack was the first to make his way to Blackie, ignoring the tubes and pushing aside the machines they were attached to. He bent down, taking Blackie’s head in his hand and kissed the top of his head.
“My man,” Jack said, kissing his head again before he leaned back and stared at our vice president. “Left side of the table’s been empty, brother,” he explained hoarsely.
“I’m sorry,” Blackie stammered.
“You got nothing to be sorry for,” Jack replied. “I owe you everything,” he reiterated. “You saved Lacey, and you kept Reina sane,” he continued. “You sacrificed yourself for the club and that shit deserves a whole lot more than a thank you. Need you well, Black, need you to reverse this shit Jimmy has you strung out on, knocking on death’s door,” he growled. “Whatever it takes, we’ve got you,” he insisted.
“Ay!” Pipe agreed.
“Did we get him? Gold is he…” Blackie asked.
“Oh, we fucking got him,” Jack assured. “Lit that motherfucker up,” he added.
“How?” Blackie asked.
Jack turned around and pointed his thumb over his shoulder at me.
“This son of a bitch right here, saved the day, your life and my sanity,” he declared.
“And still no fucking pie,” I added.
Blackie stared at me for a moment before looking back at Jack.
“What about the deal?”
“We made a new deal,” he explained.
“You got the drugs?” Blackie asked, trying to sit up.
“C’mon man, don’t worry ‘bout that shit. You need to concentrate on getting off this shit and getting yourself good,” Jack said, as he helped Blackie adjust himself in the bed
“I want to know,” he insisted.
“We took the drugs from The Red Dragons,” I offered. Apparently that was the wrong thing to say because Bones elbowed me in the gut and all eyes turned to me, glaring at me. I forgot that Blackie knew about the war with The Dragons, that he saw that shit, lived it and lost his wife in the middle of it. The guy wakes up from a coma to be reminded of the darkest time of his life.
Shit I’m a dickhead.
“You got the drugs from Wu? Are you out of your fucking minds?”
“Blackie, it’s good. We’re good. Jones arrested Jimmy at Temptations with the drugs,” Jack explained calmly. “Everything went like we planned.”
“We didn’t plan to fuck the Chinese,” Blackie said furiously, as he started to cough.
“It’s fine, brother. Wu and the Dragons have no idea it was us. We have a meet with them tomorrow for another shipment of guns. We’re good man,” Pipe offered. “We’re fucking good man, relax!”
Pipe turned, fixing me with a hard stare. “Tell him your news,” he demanded.
“What news?” I asked bewildered.
“Yeah, give it to him. He’s going to love this shit,” Wolf agreed.
I rolled my eyes and clenched my jaw.
“Fine! I gave you mouth to mouth,” I exasperated.
“Not that!” Jack said, shaking his head.
Bones leaned into me.
“Pea,” he muttered.
“Shit,” I sighed, feeling like a complete sack of shit for needing a reminder that Pea was my news.
My news.
My kid.
“I’m having a kid,” I announced.
“Give him the good stuff, tell him who’s the baby mama,” Pipe said, wiggling his eyebrows to Blackie. “Wait for it,” he told Blackie.
“Fuck off,” I said, flipping the bird to Pipe.
“Riggs knocked up Bianci’s sister,” Wolf supplied.
“Come on guys,” Bones started.
Blackie stared at me with a dumbfounded expression on his face, one I wasn’t sure was due to the ordeal he had been through or the one I was going through.
“Glad I could amuse you fuckers,” I grunted, as the door opened and Jack’s daughter, Lacey, stormed into the room.
Now, I’ve been in a lot of awkward positions in my life, but that one right there, may have topped the cake. We all stared at her as she kept her eyes locked with Blackie’s.
“You’re okay?” She whispered, ignoring the rest of us as she walked toward the side of Blackie’s bed. “You’re okay,” she repeated, this time her words more sure than the first time she uttered them. I wanted to shout at the two of them that it was pretty fucking obvious this was no casual encounter. If I could notice the way she looked at him then everyone else could because we all know I’m not the sharpest tool in the shed.
Blackie turned his gaze away.
“I’m good, kid,” he said, looking at Jack. “Going to want my gun back,” he added.
“Yeah,” Jack agreed, his eyes wandering back and forth between Blackie and Lacey.
Nice save!
“So a kid, huh?” Blackie said, turning back to me, his eyes pleading with mine to save his ass.
“Yeah, I’m going to be a dad,” I said, the words sounding weird coming from my mouth.
Lacey took a step back, staring at Blackie like he’d slapped her across the face.
“Congrats, man,” Blackie said, ignoring Lacey and the hurt expression on her face.
“I’m glad you’re okay,” Lacey whispered, turning on her heel and stepping out of the hospital room.
“Lacey,” Jack called.
“Dude, speaking of Pea…” Bones started, glancing at the clock.
“Pea?” Jack asked, as he stared at the door his daughter closed behind her.
“Don’t ask,” I said, turning back to Bones.
“Didn’t Lauren have the doctor’s appointment today?”
Shit!
Fuck!
I pulled my phone out of my pocket and saw I had missed three messages from Kitten.
Kitten: I’m here.
Kitten: Are you on your way?
Kitten: I guess you’re not coming.
The last message came an hour ago.
“Shit!” I roared, lifting my head as all eyes were on me. “I’ve got to get out of here,” I said hastily, looking back at Blackie. “Glad you’re awake, brother,” I added before jetting out of the room.
I fucked up.
I tried calling Lauren but my call went straight to her voicemail.
I was off to a great start.
I was a contender for father of the year.
Pea was lucky to have me.
I pulled my hat from head and dialed Lauren again.
Nothing.
I didn’t blame her.
I sucked.
Chapter Twenty
I climbed the stairs, carrying a bag of groceries as a consolation prize for letting down Kitten and Pea. Because stocking the fridge you bought and cooking dinner for your baby mama was as good as standing next to her while she listened to your kid’s heartbeat for the first time right?
Yeah, I didn’t think so either.
But it was worth a shot.
I paused at the door, reaching into my pocket for my key when I heard voices from behind the door. I leaned my ear against the door, sure it was Mama “Leone” lashing out about what a piece of shit I was but to my surprise Kitten had a different house guest.
A male one.
And not her brother either.
I set the brown bag of groceries on the floor and reached behind me for my gun, prepared to blow the head off the guy inside getting cozy with my Kitten.
I opened the door and stepped inside with my gun cocked and aimed that shit toward the man standing next to Lauren with his back toward me.
“Riggs!” She said, eyes wide as she stared at me.
“Kitten,” I ground out, taking a step closer. “Want to introduce me to your friend?”
“Want to put the gun down?” She countered.
The guy slowly turned around.
“Whoa! What the hell man?”
“Who are you?” I growled.
“Put the gun down, damn it!” Lauren shouted, stepping around the guy and grabbing my forearm.
I glanced down at her.
“One more time, Kitten,” I warned. “Who is your friend?” I asked, holding my gun steady on the guy.
“I’m just here to buy the car listed on Craigslist,” he said, holding his hands in the air.
“What?” I asked, dropping my gun and turning to Lauren. “What’s he talking about?”
She rolled her eyes, ignoring me as she walked toward the guy standing in the middle of the living room shitting his pants. “I’m sorry about that, he’s just been released from the asylum,” she began. “We’re still working on a treatment plan for his irrational behavior,” she began, batting her eyelashes at the douche. “I hope you won’t let my ill brother interfere with your decision to buy the car.”
“Your brother?” I asked incredulously.
“I think it’s time for his medication,” she added, dangling the keys in front of him.
He peered at me skeptically as I tucked my gun into the back of my pants and crossed my arms against my chest. He handed Lauren an envelope, and I watched as she peeked inside before handing him over the keys.
“Congratulations you’re the proud owner of a used car,” she winked.
One of my favorite things about my Kitten was the way she handled herself. She owned that guy with her smile and her sharp tongue.
She didn’t need a prince to rescue her, she was her own hero, and that was the sexiest thing about her.
That and well, maybe, her ass. She had a killer ass.
He looked at Lauren, taking the keys she offered.
“Are you sure you’re safe with him?”
Lauren didn’t even look at me as she answered him.
“I’ll be fine, once he’s medicated he’s a pussycat,” she reassured him, as she led him toward the door. “Thanks for coming by and enjoy the car,” she said.
“Thanks,” the guy said, glancing over his shoulder at me again.
I moved to reach for the gun again but he scampered out the door before I could. Lauren glanced down at the bag of groceries I had left in the hallway, bending down to grab them before walking into the apartment and kicking the door closed.
She walked into the kitchen and dropped the bag onto the counter before walking passed me toward the couch.
Kitten was pissed.
I bring out the best in her.
“Why’d you sell your car?” I asked.
She continued to ignore me as she flopped down onto the couch and grabbed her phone. I took a deep breath and accepted my fate as I sat down beside her.
“I know you’re mad…” I began.
She threw the phone onto the couch and twisted around, pulling her glasses off her face and her big blue eyes narrowed at me.
“Mad?” She shook her head. “No, I’m not mad,” she said.
“You’re not?” I asked confused.
“I’m disappointed in you, Riggs,” she informed. “Which is much worse than being mad at you. I get angry and then I get over it but once I’m disappointed in someone, I give up on them,” she explained, shrugging her shoulders.
“I’m sorry I let you down, Kitten,” I tried, reaching for her hand. I wanted to pull her onto my lap and erase the look in her eyes, the look that reflected all the ways my actions failed her.
“It doesn’t matter, Riggs,” she said, sighing heavily. “I’ll get used to your disappointment, probably even come to expect it, but I won’t let you disappoint Pea. I won’t sit back and watch you make promise after promise to our baby, only to break each one. I won’t throw you under the bus but I won’t make excuses for you either, and then there will come a point where I won’t tolerate it anymore,” she declared.
It wasn’t a threat, it was a promise, a promise that she would not let anyone inflict pain on our kid, least of all Pea’s dad. While I was failing miserably at impending fatherhood, Kitten was becoming one badass mother.
“I didn’t mean to miss the appointment, Lauren. After the funeral I was going to head straight to the doctor’s office but Pipe got the call that Blackie woke up from the coma,” I explained. “We almost lost him, fuck, I’m the one who found him half dead. I needed to see him alive and well, needed to erase that image of him dying from my mind,” I continued. “I lost track of time.”
Her eyes softened, and she cocked her head to the side. “Is he okay?”
I nodded. “Got a long road ahead of him, but he’s a fucking bull. Blackie will pull through,” I said, leaving out that he wouldn’t actually pull through if Jack found out whatever the fuck was up with him and Lacey.
I didn’t get that one. He was like twelve years older than her, but hey, who was I to judge anyone.
“How’d it go at the doctor?” I questioned, giving in to my urge to touch her and reached over and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
“Baby is good, perfect actually,” she smiled widely. “I heard Pea’s heartbeat,” she said, biting her lip and shaking her head as if the words amazed her. “It’s so strong,” she whispered, her smile reaching up to her eyes.
I stared at her and I envied the look in her eyes, the pride and love reflected in them. Since I realized I had missed the appointment I had been feeling guilty but now, looking at Lauren I was actually jealous I missed a chance to feel the way she did. I missed out on something big and I was feeling it.
“I have a picture, do you want to see it?”
I nodded.
“Absolutely,” I said, as she stood up and walked toward the kitchen. I followed her, surprised by how much I wanted to see Pea.
She pulled the sonogram picture off the refrigerator and I was never happier about a purchase than I was at the moment and I realized something els
e—furniture wasn’t going to make this place a normal home.
But Lauren would.
Putting Pea’s first grainy photo on the front of the refrigerator made these four walls a home.
I took the photo in my hand and tried to make out a head, two legs and two arms but all I saw was something that looked like a dot.
“That’s Pea,” she said, pointing to the dot. “And these lines, on this picture is the heartbeat,” she added, showing me the lines that traveled up and down the photograph.
“Wow,” I said, more to myself than to her, looking back at the dot, at Pea, before glancing over at Lauren. “Cute kid,” I teased, winking at her.
She smiled at me and I stared at her for a moment, my eyes dipping to her flat stomach as I tried to picture what she’d look like in the next few months as Pea grew inside of her.
How fucking crazy was that? Lauren was growing a human inside of her.
Without thinking, I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and tugged her into the crook of my arm.
“I’m sorry I missed this,” I said, holding up the photo. “But I won’t miss anymore,” I promised.
And I wouldn’t.
Because I didn’t want to.
Wow.
Funny, what one little picture could do to a person, how one little dot could mean so much.
I leaned down and kissed her forehead, dropping my arm from her shoulders and placed Pea’s first photo back where it belonged.
“Did you eat?”
“No,” she said, glancing at the bag of groceries. “What’d you get?”
“Sorry they were all out of cottage cheese,” I lied. That shit was vile, and I wasn’t about to subject Pea to that crap. I walked over to the bags and pulled out chocolate pudding, a gallon of milk, cookies, a rotisserie chicken, a tub of ice cream and lastly a jar of pickles.
All the necessities.
I may not know much but wasn’t it some cardinal rule that all pregnant chicks craved pickles and ice cream? Tada!
“Riggs?” She asked, picking up the jar of pickles.
I did good, I knew the pickles would be a big hit and I smiled proudly.
This baby daddy thing would be a breeze.
“Yes, Kitten?”
“How about we order out?” She asked, placing the pickles back on the counter, covering her mouth with her hand.
Reckless Temptations (The Tempted Series Book 4) Page 18