I end up letting Hammer talk me into this. We pack up our small duffle bags and change into some comfortable clothes, and while I thought about it, I texted my brother and caught up with him. He was, of course, worried about me after last night, but even he knew I was in the safest place I could be, with a man who would take care of me. He ended up telling me that even while he didn’t get into an in-depth conversation with Hammer, he liked him.
Hammer and I rode out of Salt Lake City and he ended up pulling off into the town of Coalville. I didn’t know what’s going on, and I still don’t. Right now, we’re parked out of some sort of small café called Denise’s Home Plate.
Hammer and I walk inside and I don’t realize who’s in the booth until he rises and looks directly into my eyes, smiling so wide I think he could blind me. I turn to look at Hammer, not sure how he did this. How did he do this in so little time?
He managed to arrange for me to see my uncle Chris.
“God, I thought you’d be halfway across the world by now,” my uncle mutters, wiping his hand over his mouth, staring at me in complete awe.
I haven’t seen him since I was a child, since he tried to help me. “I . . . I’m sorry, I’m just so . . . I’m in such shock right now,” I mumble, in complete disbelief. Tears threaten to spill, but I try my best to not allow it to happen.
“It’s alright. When this guy called me and said his name was Hammer . . . I thought this was gonna be some sort of sick joke. I didn’t think you’d actually be here.” Uncle Chris laughs hard, causing me to join in as well.
Hammer’s phone begins to ring and he excuses himself, walks toward the door of the café and I take a seat across from my uncle, catching up on how he’s been and how life has treated him over the years.
Going to Salt Lake City may not have been the best idea, but I believe in balance and while I experienced something quite horrid last night, seeing my uncle is making up for it. He’s the kind of dad I wish I could’ve had. The kind I would’ve prayed for as a little girl. He did everything he could to try and keep me safe, even if others wouldn’t listen.
Chapter Fourteen
With the right person you don’t have to work hard to be happy, it just happens
~ Weird People Rock
Hammer
It’s been a week since the ordeal in Salt Lake City. The club’s been keeping busy, and so has my little sister. She’s arranged for us to have dinner in my father’s room at the hospital tonight and after the last family dinner Shiloh attended, I don’t know if she’ll be too keen on attending mine, but I want her there. If I’ve learned anything through this experience with my father being in the hospital, it’s that we need to let people know how much we care about them.
Yesterday Jada called me and we spoke about a few things. I’d asked her what she’s been up to and what not and while most in her life hasn’t changed when she asked about mine, I told her about Shiloh. It was only a matter of minutes before my mother called to see if what Jada told her was true, and of course, I was blunt. With my ma, there isn’t a woman who’s good enough for me. No one will treat me the way I deserve in her eyes, but I’ll be the first to tell her Shiloh isn’t just a girlfriend. Nope, she’s my fuckin’ queen, my ol’ lady, and I’ll shout it from the damn rooftops. I’m gonna end up speakin’ to Zane about getting a cut made for her. I can’t fuckin’ wait to see ‘Property of Hammer’ on her. Whether it’s the cut or her getting ink. I know back in the day, the old tradition for the Reapers Rejects was to get it tatted on too, but I don’t think many have done it recently.
“Hey, I’ve been meanin’ to check in with you,” Blackjack says as he flags me down in the clubhouse. I stop on my trek to find Shiloh and ask her if she’d come to the hospital with me.
“Hey, VP. What’s goin’ on?” I hadn’t heard Blackjack wanted to get in touch with me, which makes me concerned.
“Nothin’, man. Wanted to see how your pops is doing. I hadn’t heard any up
dates lately.”
Shit. This is why I love the club life, especially this club. While my brothers here might not be blood, you’d never know it. They’re just as concerned for my biological family too. “He’s hangin’ in there. Infection isn’t leavin’ his body, and the doctors are workin’ really hard to get him back on the right track.” I’m as positive as I can be with him, but Blackjack sees right through my bullshit.
“He’s been sick since the procedure, hasn’t he?”
I give him a curt nod. “Yeah.”
“Has anyone been honest with you, brother?” Blackjack’s question would blindside any other man, but not me. I’ve known him for too long. He’s the type of guy who wants to shoot it straight for you. No one likes to be unprepared in life, especially him.
“They’re beatin’ around the bush, but I can guess what they’re tryin’ to tell us.” The fact he’s had the infection and fevers for so long is cause for concern. All he does in the hospital is eat and sleep, and while his fevers have been low grade, it doesn’t mean it’s a good thing. A fever is a fever regardless, an indication something’s going on in the body and our body needs more help. It’s not only frustrating they haven’t been able to pinpoint where this infection is, but with every passing day, I’m terrified my dad is growing closer to meeting his maker, and I don’t think I’m wrong.
“Alright, well, if you need anythin’, just holler. We’re always here for you and your family, day or night.”
“Thanks, VP. I appreciate that,” I tell Blackjack with a smile. He walks over to Zane and Kade, who’s here visiting with his kids and his ol’ lady too. Meanwhile, Shiloh comes down the stairwell with a full hamper in hand. Naturally, I head up to her and take the heavy hamper out of her hands.
“I had it, you know. I’ve been doing this for quite a while,” Shiloh’s like the club mom in a way. If we had clubwhores, I’m sure she’d be their boss, but we don’t. We have the Vixens and they’re Octavia’s responsibility, but Shiloh and Rosa help her out quite a bit. Shiloh does a lot of things to help out here around the club. I think it has somethin’ to do with the deal she made with Fist when she stepped down as a clubwhore. Fuck, did she make it with Fist or Zane? So many years have gone by that I can barely keep track.
“I know you’re fully capable, but if I wanna be a gentleman, can you just let me, or do you gotta complain about it?” I poke a bit of fun at her and she busts out into an adorable giggle.
“Fine, onward to the laundry room then.” Shiloh smiles brightly and we walk side by side to the laundry area. She opens the door for me and I set the laundry basket down on the counter and lean against it as she does her thing.
“I know it’s short notice and all, but would you wanna come down to the hospital with me tonight to meet my pops? My ma and sis will be there, we’re gonna have a little dinner. Jada’s grabbing chicken from that place my dad likes downtown.”
Shiloh gazes down at the towel in her hands before looking over to me. She narrows her brows before she speaks. “Are you asking me to meet your parents?”
“You had me meet yours,” I point out.
“That’s not the same thing at all,” she gives me a knowing look, and okay, maybe it’s too soon to poke the bear.
“I want you to meet them and Jada. It might be too early to say this, Shi, but I’m in love with you. I think I have been for a long time if I’m bein’ honest, so yeah, I want the woman I love to meet my family, ‘cause if I have anythin’ to do with it, she’ll be part of it for a long time.”
Shiloh blinks her eyes in disbelief and I must render her speechless, ‘cause she doesn’t say shit. “You . . . you just told me you love me in a laundry room.”
“I did.”
“And you . . .” Shiloh stops speaking all of a sudden, tosses the towel in the washer and comes right up to me. She slips her arms around my neck and stands up on her tippy toes before her lips unite with mine.
Fuck.
This is it.
She i
s it for me, and I pray she feels the same about me.
Chapter Fifteen
Two people who meet and share such a connection, do more than fall in love; they change each other deeply and irrevocably.
~ Unknown Words
Shiloh
Hammer inviting me to meet his family kind of threw me for a loop. I knew it would most likely happen at some point, but never did I think it would be this soon. With his dad being sick, though, it makes sense he would bring me around sooner rather than later. After I got some laundry in, Hammer and I headed straight over to the hospital.
Now we’re in the parking lot and I can’t think about anything but how sweaty my hands are. Every bit of nervousness in my body is coming right out, from the sweaty hands to clearing my throat.
Hammer grabs my hand and I tear it away, wiping the sweat away on the leg of my pants. “You okay?”
“Yeah, just a bit nervous.” I’m honest with him because nothing good will come out of lying. When I think about it, Hammer’s proven himself to me so many times over the last couple of weeks. I won’t ever keep something from this man and I know it. He’s entirely trustworthy.
His mouth shifts into a smile. “Shi, you don’t have to be nervous. They’re not intense or nothin’, just a normal family.”
I crane my neck to the side a tad. Does he not realize how big of a deal this is? “I’m meeting your parents, Hammer. This is a huge deal. I’ve never met anyone’s parents before. Did you know that? I . . . I’ve never been in this serious of a relationship, and we’re moving so fast. It’s terrifying and exhilarating at the same time.” My mouth goes dry and my heart intensely beats within the confines of my chest.
Still, he stands beside me and smiles. “I promise you they’re great people.”
Without even thinking, I blurt out the first thing that comes to mind, “They raised you, so they must be.”
Hammer’s smile grows even larger and he wraps his arm around my back, walking with me through the parking garage until we get to the elevators. We take the elevator up to the third floor and walk over some sort of clear-glass bridge into the hospital. After we’re in the hospital, we go down the hall to the waiting room area, where a nurse sits behind a computer.
Hammer walks up to her, smiling brightly like he always does when he wants something. “Hey Rhonda, mind buzzing me through so I can go see my dad?”
Rhonda smirks at him and then looks at me. “Only if you tell me who this gem is. I don’t believe I’ve seen her here before.” Rhonda appears to be in her mid-fifties, has curly white hair, and has a pair of violet reading glasses with the little beaded things that hook to the ends of them. She’s adorable as can be.
“This right here is my girlfriend, Shiloh,” Hammer proudly tells her.
“Well, it’s nice to know there’s a woman in your life. I almost set you up with my granddaughter, seeing as your quite a respectable young man. In this day and age, it’s so hard to come by. I’ll buzz y’all through, but if anyone asks, I didn’t see Jada come through with none of those bags from the chicken place downtown, mkay?”
“Yes, ma’am,” Hammer laughs and urges me to walk with him as the double doors into the unit where his father’s hospital room is opens.
Hammer and I walk down the hallway, even as it veers slightly to the left a bit and he stops in front of room number 331. He opens the plastic container attached to the door and pulls out one of those gowns you see the doctor’s wearing when someone’s rushed in via an ambulance on Grey’s Anatomy.
He holds it out for me and ties it on my mid-back and behind my neck, and then I help him into his. “What’re these for?” I don’t know anything about the medical field, so hopefully, he can catch me up with what’s going on with his dad.
“To protect dad as much as we can. He’s had fevers for a while, so we wear these. This way, we can’t bring something else into him ‘cause our clothes are protected, and if he has something, we should be able to keep ourselves safe.”
“Okay,” I murmur as he puts a hand on the door.
“You ready for this?” I don’t know if he’s trying to give me a chance to walk away, to not put myself through any additional stress, but I am ready to meet them. I’m ready to know what a normal family is like, to know how people act who aren’t traumatized or have serious family issues.
I give him a nod and he pushes the door open, pulling me along with him. Upon entering the room, the scent of fried chicken wafts through the air. Not the crappy kind either, the kind you know was perfectly seasoned and is juicy under the crispy crust.
My eyes land on who I believe is his sister. She has long, wavy, black hair and her eyes are a deep chocolate just like his. She’s curvy but isn’t fat. Then again, she’s not skinny either. “Ma, this is Shiloh,” Hammer speaks to the woman I’m looking at, and for a moment, I’m in complete disbelief. This is his mom? Holy shit, she looks amazing!
“What a beautiful girl. My son hasn’t stopped talking about you for the last few weeks, so it’s great to finally have the pleasure of meeting you.” She walks over to me and extends a hand, and I meet it, shaking it firmly.
I’m still in such disbelief. His mom doesn’t look like she could be older than forty, quite honestly.
“So, this is the young woman you’ve been seeing?” A man’s voice rasps out from my right and I turn to see his dad. He’s wearing a hospital gown and has a couple blankets over his legs but seems to be keeping his spirits high.
“Yep, this is her.” Hammer’s voice booms through the room and as I stare at his dad’s smile, I see where he got it from.
“She’s a beauty. Come here so I can get a good look at ya. You like chicken? Jada, get this skinny thing some chicken. She needs to eat some more!” His dad yells over to another woman sitting on the other side of him. She’s curvy with curly hair, and I mean curly hair. I’m a little bit envious of women with natural curls. I have to sit with stuff in my hair overnight to even get remotely the same effect.
I take a seat over beside his father and he shifts in his seat. It causes me to look at him and I get a glimpse of his legs, seeing they’re swollen. He’s been here since he had a heart procedure that didn’t go as planned, and as he begins coughing, I worry Hammer doesn’t realize what’s going on.
My father died when I was very young because of heart failure, and while I didn’t understand what was happening back then, I can see it clear as day now. If Hammer doesn’t realize what’s happening to his dad, I’m just going to urge he spends more time with him over the next coming week, how stuff with the club can wait, and most importantly, his move to Los Angeles.
Crap.
I forgot about him moving . . . and it’ll bring up a conversation I don’t know if I’m prepared for. Billings became my home many years ago, and the only time I’ve ever left since has been for a weekend away, not long term.
I’m in love with Hammer and have no doubts about my feelings for him, but how am I supposed to leave?
Chapter Sixteen
If you fall in love with their soul before you touch their skin, it’s true love
~ Unknown
Hammer
Shiloh and I spent four hours at the hospital with my ma, dad, and sister. As we were getting ready to leave, they told me how Shi is a great catch, and my dad even said she’s a diamond-like my ma is and to not let her go. Now, I don’t plan on lettin’ her go, but I told them all I wouldn’t. She’s someone I plan on keeping close to me for years to come.
We got back to the club about an hour ago and Shiloh’s been on a sweeping spree, getting the cleaning done like she normally does at the clubhouse. I just watched her walk into the kitchen, so I’m sure she’s doin’ some deep cleanin’ in there too.
Zane comes up and takes a seat next to me on the sectional, eyes darting toward the kitchen and back to me. “You been spendin’ a lot of time with Shi lately. Got anything to tell me?”
I cackle at his questions. “Nothin’ you ha
ven’t already figured out. You’re not a dummy.”
“Depends on who you ask. Octavia and Inc tell me I act stupid from time to time.”
“Don’t we all?”
At that, we both laugh and he leans against the back of the couch, relaxing a little bit more. “Is she goin’ with you down to Los Angeles?” I should’ve expected this question, but I haven’t even talked to her about it. I don’t know if she wants to leave Billings, considerin’ it’s her second home and all.
“We haven’t talked about it yet.”
“You need to. Breaker’s askin’ me when you’ll be there, and I tell him after everything with your dad settles down. Family is above everything else, and I’ve told him that.”
One thing I respect more than anything when it comes to Zane is how determined he is to make sure we all know we’ll never have to make a choice many do. Your family, or the club. The Reapers Rejects MC are the first people to ever tell me to put my family first, sayin’ we can handle anything. Other club members aren’t as lucky. Some Prez’s eighty-six you for even needing to take time.
“Thanks for lettin’ him know what’s goin’ on and buyin’ me some time.”
“No thanks are needed. If it were me, I’d want to be here too.” Zane’s dad has been dead for a few years now and every one of us here feels the lack of his presence every day. I only hope Fist is lookin’ down and is proud of Zane for leadin’ the club through some hard times.
“I feel you there. So, we haven’t had a second to talk the last few days.”
“Something on your mind?” Zane asks.
“Yeah, wonderin’ if you found anythin’ else out after what Razor and I got for you.” Zane now knows the General was only a second in command, while the person in charge of the entire operation is someone known as the Commander.
Hammer (Reapers Rejects MC Book 18) Page 7