by Renee, K
“Mmm, Cason. Action and lunch. I’m a lucky girl.”
Smiling, I clean myself, then pull my jeans back up and fasten them.
Unlocking the door, I lead her back to our table. Our food is waiting and she digs in like nothing just happened.
After lunch, Henley and I decide to go see Anslie.
By the time we got to the hospital, the rest of my kids had shown up. It’s as good a time as any to tell them they are going to have another sibling.
As soon as Henley saw all of them together, she knew I would be telling them. Her hand squeezes mine and I’m pretty sure she was going to cut off the circulation in my fingers. I know she’s scared, but they are grown. They can all handle themselves, so having a baby brother or sister will be fucking cake walk for them now.
As soon as we walk in, Anslie had a giant smile on her face. “Dad. Henley. Hi! What are you doing here?”
“Came to see how you were doing,” I reply, watching the boys. They look uneasy and I can’t figure out what’s going on.
Henley walks over to Anslie’s bed and hugs her. They whisper something to each other and I swear both of their faces light up.
“Hey, boys,” I casually say to my sons and Brant. They are all looking at me like I’ve gone crazy.
“Hey, old man,” Dominic says.
When Henley walks back over to me, I can see tears in her eyes. She smiles at me, so I’m not sure if they are good or bad.
Looking over at Anslie, she’s giving the hurry up look that she perfected when she was seventeen. Well, here goes nothing.
“Guys…,” I start. Hell, how do you tell your adult kids you’re having another kid? “Henley and I are…”
I pause for a second and scan all their faces. Anslie looks giddy as hell, Dominic looks like he’s confused, Brant is looking between Anslie and me, Robbie looks like I killed his dog, Raef has a smile on his face, and Bentley is shaking his head. I can’t help but laugh.
Henley elbows me in the gut and I start to laugh harder. “Cason!” she scolds.
I hear the boys snickering and I want to smack them all upside the head.
I finally calm down and manage to get it out. “Hen and I are having a baby.”
“Ekkk!” Anslie squeals with the biggest smile on her face. “I’m so excited to be a big sister! I’ve always wanted to be one! Ohh, please have a girl. I’m surrounded by boys. I want a little girl in the family!”
Slowly, each of the boys starts to digest the news, coming over to congratulate us. Each one of my sons wrap Henley in a hug and welcome her to the family. I’ve never been more proud of them. I’m sure it must be hard for them to see me in love with someone else, but they’ve never let me down.
Chapter Thirty-One
I knew Cason telling his kids I was pregnant would be hard, but I was surprised by their reactions. I never thought they would welcome me into their family. I’m sure it was hard for the boys to share their father with Anslie when she was younger. It must be hard to see that he’s starting a family with me, too. I never thought I would be starting a family with a man who was in his fifties and had five kids. Sure, not every relationship is perfect, but I am glad I found an amazing one to be part of.
We spend some time visiting with everybody, then say our goodbyes. On the way out to the car, I can tell he wants to say something, but isn’t sure how. When he opens my door, he pauses and looks me in the eye, his hands tangling in my hair.
“I love you, Hen. You make me so fucking happy.” He crushes his lips to mine.
When we finally separate, I say, “After my parents died, I thought I would grow old alone. I never thought I would fall in love with a biker, let alone get knocked up by one.”
He buries his head in my neck and I run my fingers through his hair. When my phone starts to ring, I groan and dig it out of my bag. It’s Nikki, so I hit the ANSWER button and hold it to my ear as Cason helps me into the car.
“Hey, Nikki,” I say, putting my seat belt on. I hear Cason open his door and shut it.
“Hey, lady! How are things going? Are you okay after what happened at the office the other day?” I sigh. I hate answering questions like this.
“Yeah, I’ll be fine. Cason won’t let me go to the office without him.”
“So I take it things are going okay with Cason?” she asks sweetly, almost like she is trying to get information out of me.
“Yeah, things are great!” I chirp.
I look over and see a big smile on Cason’s handsome face. He leans over and kisses me. Smiling against his lips, I try to keep up with what Nikki is talking about. When his lips leave mine, he starts the car and heads back to the house. Instead of paying attention to what Nikki is saying, I’m too busy staring at the sexy man sitting next to me. When she stops talking, I don’t even know how to answer because I missed the last five minutes of the conversation.
“Please tell me you’re not doing the nasty right now,” she groans.
I laugh. “No, I’m not. Sorry. I was busy paying attention to Cason.”
She lets out a groan. “Eww, I don’t want to know.”
I start to giggle as we pull into the garage at home. Cason grabs the phone from me. “Sorry, Nikki, but my ol’ lady needs to go. She’s gotta suck my dick before I fuck her into a coma.” I can hear Nikki laughing just before he disconnects. I don’t even get the chance to say anything. He pulls me out of the car and gently tosses me over his shoulder. Slapping my ass, he states, “We got shit to do.”
“And what would that be?” I sass back.
His hand comes down on my ass again and I yelp. “Did you not just hear what I told Nikki?”
Chapter Thirty-Two
Two Weeks Later
Last week, Henley and I collected her things at her office. Good thing I brought Brantley and Dominic with us because Sutter thought he could start shit with me. When they found out Sutter was the one who hurt Anslie, they didn’t take it well.
I’m pretty sure Sutter is in a hospital bed right now. There’s a slight possibility they broke both his legs and arms. He will definitely be watching his back. The more shit he talked to Henley, the more I wanted to put him in the ground.
Today is the first day my girl is working in her new office. All morning, it is the only thing she can talk about. Seeing how excited she is makes everything worth it. I know she hated that I paid cash for the building, but the money doesn’t matter to me. I would have paid double that just to see the smile on her face when I give her the keys.
I watch her jump around and smile bigger than I have ever seen before. I drop her off at the new office, making her promise to call if she needs anything. Making my way to the club house, I stop off to check on Anslie and the twins.
She’s been home for a few days, but I still feel the need to check on her and make sure she is really okay after that scare.
Before I can even make it to the door, the twins come barreling out of the house and wrap their little arms around my legs. “Gampa!”
Seeing them makes me anxious to meet our little one. We are supposed to find out the sex of the baby soon. Either way, I know I’ll love that little one just like the rest of them.
Picking up the boys, I make my way to the house and kiss Anslie on the cheek. “Hey, baby girl. How are you feeling?”
She rubs her belly and smiles. “I’m great, Dad. How’s Henley doing?”
I smile. “She’s good. Today is her first day at the new office.”
“Ohhhh, I’m so excited for her.”
“Me, too. She is really excited about getting back to work. I just hope she finds someone to take over when she has the baby.”
“Dad, you guys will figure it out. I’m so happy for you. I don’t remember you ever being this happy with Mom. It’s a good look.” She grins and I wrap her in a hug.
We watch the twins play as we continue to talk. By the time I leave, it’s almost six, but I still haven’t heard from Henley. I dial her number and it just rin
gs. The only time she doesn’t answer for me is when she’s in court, but she’s not scheduled for court for another few weeks.
I have a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach, so I dial Bentley. “Bent, I need you to meet me at the law office,” I say as calmly as I can.
“Yeah, pops. I can be there in, like, fifteen.”
“Just get there as fast as you can,” I grind out.
“Why? Is everything okay?”
“I don’t know, but I have a bad feeling. Henley’s not answering her phone and I have a feeling something’s wrong.”
“I’ll get there as soon as I can.”
I pocket my phone and crank the engine on my bike. I drive like a bat out of hell to get to my ol’ lady. I won’t let anyone or anything hurt her or our unborn child.
Chapter Thirty-Three
The first day in the new office has been amazing. I still can’t believe Cason would do all of this for me. It’s like a dream come true, and the excitement is dripping off me. Maybe if I wasn’t so excited, I would have been paying more attention.
The last few days, my relationship with Nikki has become strained. I think part of it is because she doesn’t like me dating Cason, which I can understand. If she was dating him, I would be jealous as hell, too. He is the epitome of bad ass biker and sexy older man rolled into one.
When she walks into the WS Law Offices, I can tell something is wrong. She looks upset and I want to help her. At first, our conversation is normal. We talk about everything that has been going on lately.
However, the minute I tell her I’m pregnant, her whole demeanor changes. She looks pissed. I have never seen her mad before, so I don’t know how to handle it.
“You’re pregnant?” Her eyes are blazing and I am starting to get a little worried.
“Yeah, I found out a few weeks ago. Cason and I are so excited,” I say with as much enthusiasm as I can fake. I don’t want her to see that I’m scared. As she stares at me, I stealthy reach for my phone. Before I can hit Cason’s name, she grabs it from me and drops it on the ground, stomping on it a few times.
She walks to the front door and turns the lock, spinning back towards me. There is nothing in my office I can use as a weapon.
“Henley, remember when I told you to stay away from my man? I warned you, but you didn’t listen. Instead, you went and got pregnant by my man. He. Is. Mine!” she yells. “He has been mine since I was seventeen! He knows I am the woman he’s supposed to be with. He even told me so one night when he caught me sneaking out of Robbie’s room.”
I feel like I need to puke. He wouldn’t have said that to a minor, would he?
“He told me he loved me and that I was the only girl he could ever love. He wanted me to have his baby. He wanted us to be a family! You are ruining everything!”
As I back away from her, she reaches out and grabs me by the hair. She swings me around, slamming me into my desk. Luckily, it’s not high enough to hit my stomach, but I know I will have bruises on my thighs. I stumble over it and try and get as far away from her as I can.
“What do you want from me, Nikki?” I ask. I just want her to leave me alone. Putting my hand on my stomach, I watch her eyes turn almost black with anger.
“You’ve always known what I wanted. You took him from me, and I pretended everything was okay. But now you are having a baby with the man I’ve been in love with for years. I can’t let that go. That is crossing a line.” She has never told me how she felt about Cason. Hell, she acts like they were in a relationship.
“I’m sorry, Nikki, but I never meant to steal your man. I never knew you were in love with Cason. You should have–”
“You lying bitch! I fucking told you all about Cason and me, but you chose to ignore me…just like everyone else! You never cared about our friendship. You just used me to get to him.” The crazy look in her eyes is getting worse and I don’t know what to do.
“Nikki, I didn’t steal him from you,” I state.
“I set up cameras in both your places so I would know how close you two were getting, but the feed was shut off. I knew he would get tired of your fat ass. Cason only likes women like me and his ex, Selena. Trust me, Henley. You won’t matter to him in another few months. You don’t deserve him or his child.”
She lunges at me. When I duck, she topples over the desk and hits her head. I peek over the edge of the desk and see her lying on the floor. She looks like she’s unconscious, but I can’t be certain.
I run to the phone and dial Cason’s number, but it goes to his voicemail. Hanging up, I dial the only other number I know. Before I can connect the call, I feel something connect with the side of my head. Falling to the ground, I drop the phone and try to brace my body for impact.
As I hit the ground, I hear glass breaking behind me. The only thoughts running through my head are concern for the baby, and hope that Cason is the one breaking the window.
I can see Cason starting to run towards me, but Nikki pulls out a gun and points it at him.
“Don’t you dare go near her!” she screams.
I’m starting to panic, but I try to keep the fear from showing. I look over at Cason. He looks pissed and concerned at the same time.
“What the fuck is going on in here?” he growls.
“Baby, you know exactly why I’m doing this. We are meant to be together. Remember how good we were together?” she whines.
“Bitch, I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Cason spits out.
Nikki takes the gun and points it at me. “Cason, tell her that it’s me you love. Remember when you caught me sneaking out of Robbie’s room? You told me how much you wanted to bend me over the couch and take me. You told me you loved me! Tell her she isn’t the one who is supposed to be pregnant with your kid. I am! Tell her!”
Cason turns to me and our eyes lock.
“Tell her! If you don’t, I’ll put a bullet in her head. I want her to live with the guilt of breaking up our family, but if you won’t tell her, she won’t live through this.”
Nikki is staring at me. I’ve never been as scared as I am now. She can’t be that crazy, can she? I thought she was just jealous, but maybe I was wrong.
Cason’s head snaps over to Nikki and he stares at her for a minute. He must be trying to figure out if she’s serious or not. I hold my breath. Then he turns to me. “Hen, I love Nikki. I always have, and I’m sorry for leading you on.”
Even though I know what he’s saying isn’t true, it still hurts. Tears start to roll down my face, and I can’t help the feeling of dread coursing through my body.
He turns back to Nikki. “Nikki, come here, babe. Give me the gun. Let’s get out of here.”
I scoot back towards the desk when I see Bentley coming around the corner, his gun drawn and pointed right at Nikki.
“You’re lying!” she yells, raising her gun.
I watch as Bentley fires his gun, hitting Nikki in the head.
I can’t stop the sobs. The gun falls out of Nikki’s hand and discharges, but I don’t see where the shot goes. Tears are running down my face when Cason finally reaches me, pulling me into his arms. I have never seen someone get shot, and I know I never want to see it happen again.
“Henley, are you okay?” he asks, looking me over.
All I can do is nod. No words form, and I can’t stop the tears. I hold onto him tight, never wanting to let him go.
Chapter Thirty-Four
The last time I was this fucking scared was when Anslie had been kidnapped, and Brantley had been shot. All I know is I never want to watch someone I care about get hurt again.
No matter the outcome, Nikki was going to die. If Bentley didn’t pull the trigger, I would have. No one will ever come after my family and walk away from it.
“Henley, are you okay?” I ask, looking her over. I see a cut on the side of her face but, other than that, she looks fine.
She doesn’t answer me, but she does cling tighter. I wish I could have kept her from having t
o witness that. She’s too pure for the violence in the MC world, but I can’t give her up. I know I should protect her better, but how do I protect her from someone who was supposed to be her friend?
Part of me thinks there is more there than meets the eye, but I have no proof. I barely remember that girl from when the boys were younger, but I sure as hell never would have said “I love you” to any of their little fuck buddies. Sutter must have known she was crazy and set her up…or maybe it was Selena.
When Bentley walks over to us, Henley looks up at him with tears in her eyes. She releases me and throws her arms around him. He looks at me in shock, then relaxes when I nod at him. I hear her sobs as she thanks him for saving her life. He tries to shrug it off, but she just says thank you over and over again.
He looks over at me. Dad, help. I grab her arm and pull her back over to me.
“Cason, I’m so sorry. I tried to call, but she broke my phone, then hit me with something when I tried to use the office phone.”
I brush the hair out of her face. “Babe, it’s fine. I had a feeling something was wrong, so I got here as soon as I could.”
I lead her towards a chair and walk to get her some water, telling Bent to call the cops.
When I return with water, I sit on the desk next to her. I can’t help but worry that she’s not really okay.
“I’m proud of you. You did amazing. You know I just said what I did to get her to give me the gun, right?” I ask.
She nods, but doesn’t look at me. I can tell she’s upset and I want nothing more than to be able to comfort her. Gently grabbing her face, I force her to look into my eyes.
“Henley, I love you more than any other woman I’ve ever been with. I’m sorry, but you’re stuck with me now.”
I kiss her lips, and I can feel the ghost of a smile appear on her face.