Renny (The Henchmen MC #6)

by Jessica Gadziala

  "To... what?" I asked, choosing my words carefully. "To try to convince me to give you another chance?"

  He smiled slightly at that, sitting down at the edge of the bed, making me have to turn to face him. He pulled something wrapped out of his pocket and put it down beside him, drawing my attention to the small, thin, rectangle shape, completely at a loss for what it could be.

  "I'm not going to try to convince you of anything, Mina. First, because I respect your decision more than that. And second, you can't convince someone of shit. Either they want something or they don't. You either want me, sweetheart, or you don't. It's that simple."

  "It's not that simple. You..."

  "Fucked up. I admitted to that. And I apologized for it too. Now, if you're worried that I might dangle your parents in front of you again, let me assure you, that won't be happening. One, because I didn't like that look it put on your face. Never felt lower than I did when you looked at me like you didn't know who I was anymore, angel cakes. I would willingly relive the memory of the night I found all my brothers dead before I would go over yesterday again. I never want you to look that hurt or betrayed again. And two, well, they're fucking assholes and I would be totally fine never seeing them again for the rest of my life."

  I couldn't help it; I laughed at that.

  "I could go the rest of my life without seeing them again too," I agreed.

  There were some people who believed blood above all else. But people like me and Renny, people who found places like Hailstorm and The Henchmen, they learned that it wasn't about DNA; it was about who loved and supported you no matter what.

  That was what family was.

  And it had nothing to do with blood.

  "So we're agreed," he concluded, giving me a smile.

  "Well, we're agreed on the my parents being an asshole thing," I allowed.

  "Sit, Mina," he requested, patting the spot on the other side of the small package that I wanted to pick up and shake like a Christmas present. I moved and sat down, pivoting toward him slightly. "Look, I can't promise you that is the only time I am going to fuck up. We both know there's no guarantee of that. But I can tell you that it's the last time I fuck up that epically. That look you gave me and that argument and the subsequent drinking and hangover and realization of how bad I screwed things up for no good reason? Yeah, I am pretty confident saying I won't push like that again."

  "You're supposed to be some badass biker and you got a hangover?" I asked, smiling a little at the idea. "You guys are getting soft."

  "Don't think you'd be saying that if you met Edison."

  "Who the hell is Edison?"

  "Long story," he said, ducking his head a little. "So what do you say?"

  "About what?" I asked, stalling, not sure how I was supposed to be handling the situation. It was clear to me right then that, while I was good at telling others how to act and respond and make decisions, I was horrible at doing that for myself.

  I tried to detach myself from it, consider what I would tell someone else in my situation to do. At the end of the day, there was nothing more someone could say than sorry. It didn't mean you had to accept the apology, depending on the offense, but you had to acknowledge that no amount of repeating that phrase would change the meaning behind it.

  I certainly didn't need a man on his knees, crying, begging me for another chance. And, if that was what Renny came at me with, the decision to kick him to the curb would have been solidified. Because it was fake. Renny wasn't that kind of man. But he was the kind of man who usually never apologized, never tried to make amends for his fuck ups. He always thought his actions were justified, no matter how irrational that seemed to anyone else. It was how he was programmed. So the fact that he came to me and gave me a genuine, heartfelt apology, that meant something. It meant everything for someone like him, someone who previously never considered someone's feelings as important as knowing the truth, suddenly realized how in the wrong he was.

  And I even liked that he told me he couldn't promise he wouldn't fuck up again. I hated empty declarations. I hated when someone promised something there was no way they could say with one-hundred percent certainty they would never do again.

  His apology was possibly the most genuine one I had ever heard.

  "About not using this situation to prove a point instead of doing what you really want."

  "And what do I really want?" I asked, wetting my lips and watching as his eyes moved there for a second.

  "Me, sweetheart. You want me."

  My eyes went up, landing on his light blue ones.

  He was right.

  I did want him.

  I wanted him more than I knew it was possible to want another person, in a way that I wasn't sure was even healthy.

  "Renny..."

  "Admit it."

  There was no denying it. I wasn't even going to try.

  "I want you," I said, nodding. "But I'm not sure..."

  "You can never be sure," he cut me off. "I'm not asking for you to be sure. I'm not even asking for you to promise me anything except a second chance."

  I looked down at my hands for a second, taking a deep breath, then looking up at him. "Okay."

  "Okay?" he asked, smile rising slowly. "How about a little enthusiasm here? It's not an execution. In fact, you should be squirming in your seat since you are signing up for the best mother fucking oral sex just about every day for the rest of your life if you're signing up for me."

  I smiled then- big, happy, expectant.

  Because he might have been full of bravado, but I had experienced enough of his skills to know it was not false bravado.

  "What's in the package?" I asked instead, not being the type to get all mushy even if my insides were suddenly all warm and smushy.

  "Figured if my world class charm, notorious pussy eating skills, and love for you weren't enough, I should have a backup," he said, picking up the gift and handing it to me.

  It was as light as it looked and bent in my hands like fabric. My brows drew together as I looked at him for a second, before my hands went to the nondescript but pretty silver paper, slipped into a hole, and ripped it open.

  What did I find?

  Socks.

  But, wait.

  They weren't just socks.

  They were Pokemon socks with little Picachus and Balbasours and Charmanders and Squirtles all over them.

  If I hadn't been sure before then, I was absolutely one-thousand percent certain right then as my heart did a squeezing thing in my chest and my lips curved up enough to make my cheeks hurt.

  I loved him.

  "That's a good look," he said, eyes warm. "I like me a low maintenance woman," he added, reaching out to run his hand up my jaw. "Give her a pair of socks and she lights up like a mother fucking Christmas tree."

  "It's the thought," I insisted. Flowers and chocolate and diamonds said nothing but 'I am obligated to get you something'. A gift that had personal significance, this case not just knowing I played the video game to cope with my unhappy childhood, but also the fact that you could put a lot of emphasis on the conversation in The Henchmen basement that included talk of my Pokemon socks being the real start to our story, meant so much more. It meant they cared, they paid attention, and they knew you well enough to do better than generic.

  "So, we're doing this?"

  "We're doing this," I agreed, nodding.

  "Well, it's about fucking time, don't you think?" he asked, pulling the socks from my hand, grabbing me, and pulling me close. "So you gonna tell me or what? I told you a couple times already."

  "How do you know I feel it?" I countered, lifting my chin a little.

  "Well, see," he started, lips twitching from holding back a grin. "It all starts with a little dopamine. You saw me, you got all excited. Your brain kind of liked that feeling. Then we move onto stage two. This is where your system started getting flooded with adrenaline, epinephrine, norepinephrine, getting you all doped up on that high you got when
you..."

  "Renny, I know what goes on in the..."

  "Hush, I am giving you a science lesson," he said as his fingers started tracing up my thigh. "Then you know, you started getting addicted to me. I know, I know... I am a hard habit to shake. Then, of course, we can't forget that your amygdala shuts down, you know, because you're obsessed with me and don't want to see any of my flaws. Tricky little fucker that, makes you really unprepared for when I screw up. But you don't care about that because then, oh then, it's all about the cuddle hormone."

  "Also known as oxytocin," I smiled. Then my head slammed back into his shoulder as his hand slid between my thighs and pressed in with perfect pressure.

  "Gold star. Anyway, I tend to shoot you up with that anytime I give you an orgasm. So, let's just say," he went on as his fingers started tracing my clit, "I plan to keep you coming as much as possible until we get to the final stage where your ventral pallidum is so used to all that shit that you never ever want to give me up. And then we live happily ever after. The end."

  I was sure there was some sort of flaw to his argument somewhere, even with all the correct science thrown in, but I was suddenly too distracted by his fingers to care about any of that.

  But I wanted, before I came and he or I could blame all the hormones on the fact that I felt it, I turned my head on his shoulder. "Renny?"

  "Yeah, sweetheart?" he asked, ducking his chin down and looking at me, eyes intense.

  "I love you."

  --

  EPILOGUE

  Renny - 2 weeks

  She was all but moved into The Henchmen compound. Really, the woman didn't have very much. I guess that came from both living on the road a lot and then having your home be a barracks where you only had a foot locker to store your shit in.

  But my closet filled up with all her tees and tanks and utility pants and boots. My dresser drawers had her bras and panties and socks, including the ones I bought her that she wore first every time they made it out of the dryer.

  To the new puppies, well, it all came off like we had a lovers spat and made up.

  It wasn't exactly wrong.

  But there was no more faking it, no more covert operation to profile the guys. They learned about my skills and Mina's skills and all seemed to take it with a grain of salt, understanding that we couldn't afford to allow anyone into the organization who hadn't been properly vetted.

  All in all, they were a pretty laid back group.

  "So, you travel a lot," Cyrus concluded as we all sat around the common room relaxing.

  Relaxing.

  It was something I almost forgot was possible.

  But, the fact of the matter was, after Janie went all rogue and then the guys headed to Long Island, they did a good job of ending the Abruzzo empire. They missed a few lower-level guys who would likely try to rise from the ashes, but they were low level and a long way off from being any kind of threat. Besides, we were all pretty confident that they got the message to stay the fuck out of Navesink Bank.

  "Yeah, for the most part. There aren't a hell of a lot of jobs around here that need my set of skills," Mina agreed from where she was perched half on my lap, my arm around her lower back.

  "What about Renny?" he pressed.

  "Don't fucking own her, man," I said, shrugging. "She's got a job that takes her away, I'm here when she gets back."

  Lo came walking in just about then, face warm and soft.

  "How's the kid?" Cash asked, patting his leg and she moved over to him without hesitation.

  "Fat. Squishy. Green-eyed. Loud," she added, leaning back into Cash's shoulder.

  Summer had gone into labor four nights before, doing so without any fanfare, without actually waking anyone up at the compound aside from Maze who she asked to keep an eye on Ferryn and Fallon because it was her 'third kid and she didn't need everyone worrying about her'. By the time everyone got up in the morning, she and Reign already welcomed a second son, Finn, into the world.

  With the threat neutralized, they had every intention of welcoming their new addition back to their house, not the compound. In fact, Cash and Lo were supposed to drive Ferryn and Fallon there the next morning and help them settle in.

  Right then, there was an unexpected, loud, four pounds to the front door, making everyone stiffen. Lo and Mina hopped to their feet so we could too, Cash getting up and making his way toward the door, hand going toward the waistband of his jeans where he kept his gun, even though the only way someone could get past the guards was if they were approved.

  We still weren't expecting anyone.

  Cash went up and looked out the window, freezing for a second before ripping the door open.

  And there was Wolf.

  Really, it was a miracle that Janie had managed to keep him in the hospital as long as she had. Especially when all the tests came to the same conclusion- he was healthy. Aside from major fat and muscle loss and the weakness accompanying it, he was in tip top shape.

  Everyone had gotten the chance to visit him in the hospital, save for the new guys who were still kept primarily at the compound, Edison included.

  After about four nights cuffed in the glass room followed by days where he was nothing but comfortable and, at times, helpful around the clubhouse, Reign ordered his cuffs off and said he could crash with the other probates if he was so inclined.

  Apparently, he was.

  "I figured I would bring him here," Janie announced, shaking her head at him. "At least I have you guys to back me up and keep him from doing too much too soon. He's too fucking stubborn for anyone's good."

  "Love you too, woman," he growled at her, giving her a small smile as he made his way across the room, looking like each step hurt just a little more than it should have. "Lo, Maze," he said, giving them each a nod as he sat down. "Penny," he added when he spotted her in the doorway to the kitchen where she and Laz were getting some food ready for everyone.

  His eyes moved over to Mina, his brows drawing together.

  "Mina," she offered, giving him a smile and offering him her hand which he took and completely swallowed up with his huge mitt. "I'm..."

  "Mine," I offered, making Wolf's gaze snap to me, dark brow raising.

  "That was quick."

  "Yeah, well, what can I say? I'm fucking irresistible, man."

  "Good luck with that," he offered Mina who smiled at him.

  "I'm gonna need it," she agreed.

  "So you're Wolf," Edison said, walking in, head cocked to the side.

  "I'm Wolf," he agreed.

  "Edison," he offered, giving Wolf a nod.

  "The Edison?" Wolf asked, making Mina and I share a look.

  From what we could gather after we got his full name and ran him, he wasn't anyone special. He had a few arrests when he was younger, usually associated with his criminal father and uncle, then drunk and disorderly as an adult. Aside from that, nothing.

  "Yep," Edison agreed, leaning back against the wall, crossing his arms.

  "Nice."

  "We missed something," Mina said quietly as the conversation shifted.

  Mina- 1 year

  "Seriously?" I asked, sitting at the very large round table in Maze's dining room, the entire surface of it covered in magazines and computer print outs.

  "I thought we were done with this," Alex declared, shaking her head. "But, no, of course not. You had to go and get shacked up with a Henchmen and join the girls club."

  "You guys are the ones making it complicated," Summer insisted, jiggling Finn on her hip.

  "It's only complicated because this whole thing is ridiculous," Janie insisted.

  "Just because you wanted a small wedding doesn't mean everyone does," Lo chastised.

  So... I was getting married.

  It had been a natural progression of things, but I had been shocked when Renny asked me.

  And of course, he did it in true Renny-style.

  There was no silly trip to a nice restaurant where he had the ring put in a c
upcake or anything like that.

  Oh no.

  He got me a new game for my DS, telling me it was an advanced copy of some game not slated to come out for another six months that he had Janie and Alex get for me.

  And, along the lines of Pokemon Go, it was a real time, real life game where I had to chase not Pokemon, but little serial killers and try to cage them based on some clues that led me from place to place.

  The last of which led me to She's Bean Around and right to a table that was very familiar to me.

  It didn't click.

  Really, I was genuinely in the dark, too wrapped up in my new game to see that maybe the location was a bit too pointed. I sat down, tired from running around all morning, and opened the little envelope on the screen that was supposed to give me clues to the next tidbit of my profile.

  But it wasn't a clue.

  It was a demand to look up from my screen already.

  Like he had somehow known I would be too into the game to notice anything else.

  My head jerked up to find Renny kneeling next to the table, boyish smile in place, hand up, with a diamond ring between his fingers.

  It was exactly the kind he somehow knew I would like too, despite the fact that I never wore rings so he couldn't have just observed a preference. It was a single cushion-cut diamond on a thin platinum band- nothing crowded or over the top.

  "Didn't figure you for the rose-petal trail kind of woman," he said, breaking a long silence as I sat there too stunned to say anything.

  "So you had a video game made for me?" I finally asked when I found my voice.

  "Only got one chance to do this, figured I might as well do it right."