“Is that right?” he said sounding as if he was teasing but not looking at all like he was .
“Well, if that’s OK with you, daddy,” I grinned flashing him my sugary-sweet smile .
“Come over here and give your old man a hug,” he said and held out his arms. I walked over to him and he wrapped them around me and squeezed me tight. He was a hard ass, as hard as they come, but I loved him, and he loved me. “Missed you baby girl. Glad to have you back,” he said keeping his voice low as if he didn’t want anyone to hear him being anything but tough .
“Me too, dad… me too,” I said, and it was true. I had missed him. It had been a few rough years for me. I should probably have come back sooner, but it was the club that made me keep my distance. How was I supposed to choose between two evils? But, I guess in the end I did, because here I was. Really though, I just chose my parents, it had nothing to do with the club .
Now that I was home it felt good to be here. It felt right and as long as I didn’t look out the windows towards the clubhouse, I could easily pretend it didn’t exist .
After my dad gave me one more squeeze, he left the room, and I started to unpack. Once I had an empty box, I started to pack up the things from my teen years. If I was going to be here for awhile, I need it to be less pink as soon as possible .
* * *
F or two weeks I stayed locked inside my room. I came out at meal times but if anyone from the club came to the door to talk to my dad, I disappeared. I didn’t want to hear anything even remotely related to club business. My new motto was, out of sight, out of mind. And so far it had been working well .
But staying in my room all day and night was starting to wear on me. I knew I’d have to get out before I lost my mind. It was hard being stuck in my room all day with nothing but books, TV and the internet. The only contact I had with other people was with my parents .
I was eating dinner with my mom and dad the day I freaked out. It was probably around the one-month mark after having moved in with them. I could even remember what we were eating. My mom had cooked up steaks with a side of onions and baby red potatoes .
“OK. I can’t do this anymore!” I said dropping my fork on my plate. It clanked loudly before rattling to a stop .
“Do what, dear?” my mom asked keeping her voice calm but at the same time glaring at me to let me know she wasn’t happy about the fork hitting her good plates. But one of the things my mom was really good at was handling someone who’s temper was raging .
“Sit in this house all day!” I pushed my chair away from the table and crossed my arms. I stared at my feet, not wanting to see the look on either of their faces .
My mom shook her head, but I could feel my dad looking at me. And I knew he wouldn’t stop staring until I looked at him .
I shifted my eyes up and the look on his face hadn’t been what I expected. It looked as though he was having an idea, not that he was about to tell me how to act when I was under his roof .
The worst part of it all was that no one was keeping me inside but myself. I was worried that if I went out of the house, I’d run into Troy. If our paths crossed what would happen? Would he try to tell me things would be different, to come home? Or would it be something far worse? I didn’t want to know… under my dad’s roof I didn’t have to think or deal with any of the what-ifs .
“You should come grocery shopping with me tomorrow,” my mom said as she put her hand lovingly on my dad’s shoulder. The corner of his mouth curled up but I could tell he had something else in mind .
They were an interesting pair. My mom was gorgeous. Once upon a time she’d been head cheerleader, and Prom queen but now she was Terry Vincent’s old lady. I could tell she loved it and most of the time she seemed happy, but I also knew how much he had changed her life .
“Yeah, that’ll solve the problem,” I said sarcastically. It was almost as if being in this house made me revert back into my teen-aged-self. Even I had annoyed myself with my tone. “What I mean is, I think I need to start looking for work. A job. Something to do with my time. I can’t stay cooped up in here hiding from him forever .”
My dad sat there with his hands folded in front of him. He stared at me and started rubbing at his bearded chin .
“I think I might have the perfect solution,” he said placing his hand on top of my mom’s perfectly manicured hand. They’d always been affectionate with one another. Neither of them ever hid the fact that they were in love from me .
My dad was more than just in love with my mom, he was simply infatuated with her. And even time didn’t change that. If anything it only grew stronger. He assumed every man on the planet wanted to be with her, so he treated her like a queen. If she was happy he was happy. My dad would have done anything in the world for her, but she never asked him to do a single thing. Except maybe take out the trash .
I looked at him worried about what his perfect solution might be. Somehow I just knew it had to be club related because what else would my dad have for me to do? He lived and breathed for the club, it was the only thing he knew. I knew whatever his idea was it would somehow involve The Brother’s Rebellion .
“Before you shoot down my idea,” he said holding his palms up towards me, “hear everything I have to say .”
“Now I’m worried,” I said, but I was also intrigued and also a little excited to shoot down his offer. He knew when I moved in that I wanted to have nothing to do with the club. Nothing. To me it didn’t exist .
“I could use a little help in the office — ”
“Uh-uh! No way!” I said standing up even though I wasn’t finished with my dinner. But I was sure the more he talked the more of my appetite I would lose .
“What didn’t you understand about waiting until I was finished? Hear me out, Josie,” he growled as he stood up. He was nearly a foot taller than me and I knew he was trying using his height to show who was in charge .
My dad placed his hands down at the edge of the table and leaned forward. He was tall, broad and intimidating whether he meant to be or not .
I sighed and crossed my arms in front of my chest. My mom walked into the kitchen as if she was afraid there might be some kind of explosion and she didn’t want to witness it. I tilted my head and waited .
“You’ll work in my office in the house. You won’t have to into the clubhouse or even see anyone from the club, well, except for me,” he said as if he could see the checklist of pros and cons that was inside my head. “But I really could use some help with the books. I’m behind. I really don’t have time to keep up with myself and I don’t really want to find someone outside of the club to do it. It wouldn’t take you long to get up to speed. You’re good at that stuff .”
I opened my mouth to argue but something stopped the words from coming out. Maybe it wasn’t actually a horrible idea. It might actually be a good place to start. I wouldn’t be out in the world but I could keep myself busy while building up some skills that would help once I had to get back out there in the real world .
“What does it pay?” I asked thinking he’d laugh and tell me it pays for my food and rent. Which would be fair but if I could make some money that would definitely help. I could plan to actually move out and get a place of my own .
“How much were you thinking?” he said smirking at me .
“Same as I made before I had to quit my job and move back home .”
“I… I can do half of that,” he said looking as though he was nervous I’d say no. He actually wanted and needed my help, which made this even harder. I didn’t want to let him down if he needed me, especially after when I needed them they were there for me and let me move back home .
I put my finger on my chin as I thought it over. The money didn’t really matter, but I was holding out on him. I wanted to see how much he really needed my help or if he was just saying it to try to get me used to being around club things more .
“I won’t do anything illegal,” I said narrowing my eyes at him
.
“Josie!” he said as if he already knew I was going to accept his job offer .
“And I won’t step foot into the clubhouse.” I started pacing with a hand on my hip, “They better not come in here either .”
He took two large steps in my direction and pulled me into his arms. I smiled as he squeezed me against his big solid chest .
“I didn’t say yes, yet .”
“Yet,” he said with a big smile on his face. He knew he had me. I looked up at his aged face and his gray hair. His life had been rough, and it showed. He looked older than he was, but he was still a fairly decent looking man. My mom must have thought so too since she married him and stayed with him even with all the horrible club stuff she most likely heard about .
“They’ll stay away, although you might still have to see me,” he said putting his hands on my shoulders and pushing me back so he could look into my eyes. “You aren’t going to regret this, Josie. I’ll get the office ready for you tonight so you can start in the morning .”
“Ugh… OK,” I groaned even though I was happy about my choice. At least I think I would be. And at the very least, accepting his offer made him happy. I liked seeing my dad happy .
My mom had appeared in the doorway grinning at us. I knew she had been listening to every word. She loved both of us more than anything else in the world. We both looked at her and laughed .
“Shut up. The both of you,” she said as she wiped at the corner of her eye before she disappeared back into the kitchen .
I couldn’t help but smile at her back as she walked away. She was a tough woman, but she was also the biggest softy I knew. Especially when it came to our family .
Our moment together was interrupted by a knock at the door. My dad adjusted his cut and ran his hand through his hair before he stomped over to the door .
“What is it?” he growled as he looked out at the club members. One of them was nervously shifting his weight back and forth from one leg to the other. The only one that didn’t look even a little intimidated was Stone, the club’s VP .
He’d been in the club for as long as I could remember, but what I hadn’t remembered was how incredibly out of the world hot he was. He’d sure changed since the last time I’d seen him .
I sighed and caught his eye when he glanced over my dad’s shoulder to see who had made the noise. His serious expression didn’t change and his eyes were back on my dad in a heartbeat .
“It’s the Henchmen, pres,” Stone said and this time when he looked at me, he made it very obvious. But it wasn’t because he was looking at me for any reason other than he didn’t want to talk about club business with me standing so close by .
My dad glanced at me briefly before he stepped outside and closed the door blocking me from club business. The thought to press my ear to the door and listen crossed my mind, but deep down, I didn’t want to know. Yeah, I was nosy but the less I knew the better .
None of this was a world I wanted to be part of even if I was a little curious what kind of business they had that could be so important at this time of night. The Brother’s Rebellion was something I had been born into whether I wanted to be part of it or not. But that didn’t mean I had to like it, or participate in any part of it .
26
Chapter 2
A fter my dad brought me too the small office and showed me what I’d be doing, he left so I could make myself at home. He had taken all of his things off of the desk and room and moved it over to his office in the clubhouse. Well, one of the prospects probably did all of the moving .
The room was plain except for an odd family picture that hung on the wall. He told me I could decorate it anyway I liked so that I could feel at home in my new office. But I didn’t plan on being here that long that I would need to worry about anything. He also told me to make a list of any supplies I might need and he’d run out and get them, but he’d probably have a prospect do that too .
Even though I was just in a room in my own house, I had still dressed up as if I had been going to a real job. I started looking through the computer files trying to get a feel for how my dad handled his bookkeeping. It didn’t take long to realize he didn’t really handle it, everything was scattered around and completely disorganized. It was a mess, but at least it was something that would keep me busy .
I jumped when there was a knock on the door. It was strange because I figured my dad would just barge in if he wanted me for something .
“Um, yes?” I said worried that maybe I had just imagined the knock .
The door slowly opened and Stone peeked his head inside the door. He grinned at me but waited as if he was waiting for me to invite him in .
I pressed my thumbs into my palms. Club members weren’t supposed to be in the house, and they really weren’t supposed to be bothering me .
I waved him in and he walked up to the desk. He set down some papers and receipts on the desk and slid them towards me. I glanced up towards him and he looked right into my eyes. He smiled a killer half smile at me .
“Your dad asked me to bring these in to you,” Stone said still grinning. He glanced at the computer and then down at the desk. “You like it ?”
I tried to figure out what he was looking at but all I could see was his cut and his tight jeans. I cleared my throat and looked back up into his eyes .
“Sorry?”
“Like working for the big guy?” Stone said shoving his hands into his pockets as he looked around the plain room. “Simple. I like it .”
I shrugged my shoulders, “I guess so. Today is my first day, so not much to like or dislike yet .”
It was hard to keep my eyes on his. He was so gorgeous it made my knees feel weak and I felt like I was sweating more than normal. I didn’t even know what I was talking about with him .
“Ah, I see,” he said sitting down in the chair across from me. “Saw you move in a few weeks back… thought you’ve been working for him since then .”
I tilted my head feeling slightly confused about what he was doing. Yes, he was gorgeous, but he was in the MC. I didn’t want to have anything to do with anything related to the club and my dad should have made that clear .
The last time I had seen Stone he was a prospect working on earning his way into the club. And now, years later, he was The Brother’s Rebellion vice president. I don’t think I had ever said more than two words to him until today .
He had been known to be a ladies’ man. Like all the others he was rough and loud and smoked like a chimney. There had always been a woman hanging off of him anytime I had seen him. Old, young, tall, short, curvy, it didn’t matter, they all wanted him. And I could see why… his smile… his charm… his solid body .
But I was too smart. I wouldn’t fall for any of that. I hoped he was smart enough to not try to mess with the club’s president’s daughter. My dad wouldn’t ever allow anything like that anyway. He loved the club, but he probably wouldn’t want me mixed up with any of them. After all, he knew them all very well, all their good and all their bad .
Not that there would ever be anything my dad would have to put his foot down over anyway. I didn’t want that. I wouldn’t let it happen .
Stone had always been good looking, but I never really thought about him in any way other than just being a member of the MC. He’d been standing outside with the rest of the club the day I drove away heading for college. It had been totally embarrassing to have a send off, but it meant a lot to my dad .
I remember looking at him as I drove away. There had been some half-dressed woman hanging off of him as he waved his goodbye .
He had been something to gawk at even back then, but now he was even more. I couldn’t not look. And his smile. Oh God, that smile. It was a smile that could, and probably did, melt panties .
But none of that mattered to me. Stone wasn’t my type. Yes, he was hot, but other than that what else was there? I didn’t know anything about him, and what I did know wasn’t anything I’d be intere
sted in. My type was anyone that wasn’t in the MC .
Stone’s blue eyes glowed at me as I stared at him unable to think of anything to say. It wasn’t like I could kick him out. My dad wouldn’t be thrilled about that either. I didn’t want to have anything to do with the MC but I also didn’t want anyone to dislike me. I would just have to make it clearer to my dad that the club members needed to stay out of the office when I was working. That my office was off limits to them .
“What brought you back here anyway? I thought you were off living the good life? Didn’t you get married?” he said, and I knew that my dad hadn’t told anyone why I was back, which I was thankful for. It wasn’t as if I wanted anyone to know what had led to me coming back home. I didn’t really want Stone or anyone else for that matter to know about my shitty, abusive ex-husband .
“Break up… I guess,” I said as I rubbed my palms against my pants. He raised an eyebrow at me as if he was wanting to hear more, but I just kept my lips pressed together .
“Been there,” he said and stood up abruptly. I couldn’t even pretend to stop my eyes from moving up his body until I stopped at his eyes. He was so solid, and I knew under his T-shirt and cut that he was impossibly muscular. I was pretty sure that if I asked him to lift his shirt, he would have .
I shook the thought from my mind. Even though he wasn’t my type, he was definitely everyone’s type to look at .
“I better get back. Your dad said you’d know what to do with those,” Stone said, nodding at the unruly stack of papers .
“Oh yeah, right, got it… thanks. I’ll take care of them. You can tell him that… well you don’t have to tell him that… uh nevermind,” I said forcing an awkward smile. He looked at me as if I was missing several teeth .
He laughed, “You’re every bit as cute as I remember. Later sweetheart,” he said with a wave and left the room .
I stared at the doorway even after he was gone. I could have handled watching him leave the room about six more times .
Caught - A Brother's Best Friend Romance Page 10