Loving His Forever

by LeAnn Ashers

  My phone buzzes in my pocket.

  Ethan: We are at the hospital too. We got Sydney, but we may need you.

  Me: You in the ER?

  He replies a second later.

  Ethan: Yeah.

  Me: OMW

  I put my phone back in my pocket then turn to Jessica, who is still staring at her baby. “Jessica, Ethan’s back. They have Sydney. I’m going to go see them. I’ll be back in a bit, okay?”

  “I’ll be fine. Go check on Syd.” She smiles up at me and then looks back down at her son.

  I walk to the door and see Torch still standing there. He’s talking on his phone. “ER?” I ask.

  He nods and motions for me to walk in front of him. It feels like the elevator takes forever. I’m anxious to see how Sydney is and make sure Ethan is okay.

  Once we make it to the first floor, we step out into the hallway and hear a blood-curdling scream that will haunt me for the rest of my life. I look up at Torch, who has the same expression on his face.

  Shaking, I walk slowly around the corner, spotting Ethan immediately. I take off running and tackle him in a hug. He lifts me completely off the ground and into his lap, where he holds me tightly against him.

  “What happened, Ethan?” I ask even though I’m terrified. I pray to God that scream wasn’t Sydney’s.

  “Kane tracked Sydney’s phone outside of town and inside of an old house. Me, Kane, Isaac, and Chase were going down the hallway with Kyle and the rest of the club behind us. It just so happened they were there to stop that trafficking ring. The janitor at the school who attacked Paisley is a part of that gang.” He stops and runs a shaky hand over his face. I know the next part is going to be the worst.

  “We made it to the basement. Sydney was there hanging by her arms from the ceiling. She is relatively unharmed, but this other girl isn’t.” He winces thinking about it. “She was hanging the same way Sydney was, but was whipped to the point her back is unrecognizable.”

  I stare at him in horror. That poor girl. I can’t imagine what she is feeling right now. I feel like I need to throw up.

  Another scream sounds from the hallway, then it stops. “I’m going to go see her.” I don’t wait for Ethan’s response as I sprint down the hallway toward the room I heard the scream come from.

  When I walk through the door, I see her sitting up with her arms wrapped around Isaac’s neck. He is holding her hips. Her back... there are no words. She will have scars for the rest of her life. That alone will haunt her every time she looks in the mirror.

  Isaac looks up and sees me in the door. He takes one hand from her hip and motions me over. I hesitantly walk over to the other side of the bed so she will be facing me. Pulling up a chair, I sit down in front of her. Her eyes take me in and widen in fear.

  “Shhh, I’m not going to hurt you,” I whisper to her, trying not to frighten her. Even though she is caked in dirt and blood, she is absolutely stunning. Her eyes are such a pretty blue they’re almost gray.

  “You’ll be okay, Emily. I will fucking make sure nothing ever touches you again. You can bet my life on that,” Isaac growls as he holds her hips tighter to him.

  I know in that moment she will be fine. If Isaac is one fourth of the man Ethan is, she will get through this; and I will be right alongside him, helping her.

  A nurse walks in with a needle. “I need to give her this so we can treat her.” She moves to stand beside me. Emily stiffens in fear and looks up at the nurse.

  “I won’t leave you, Emily, I promise,” Isaac promises her. I see her relax. She nods and closes her eyes.

  The nurse gives her the shot, and a few moments later, she is asleep. “If you would lay her down on the bed.”

  Isaac unfolds his powerful body from the bed with Emily in his arms. I notice how tiny she is. How can anyone hurt someone like that? Someone who looks so tiny and frail?

  He tucks her into the bed and covers her gently. I see the look of determination on his face. I look down at her. I want to cry, because she looks around twenty years old. More nurses come into the room and unlock the bed then push her out of the room.

  Isaac watches them leave. I can see it’s taking everything in him not to follow them. I move closer to him and touch his arm. He relaxes and looks at me. “She will be okay.”

  He looks defeated and mutters, “How?” under his breath.

  “Because you’ll make sure of that.” I smile at him and walk out of the door. Ethan and the rest of the MC are still in the waiting room. Looking in the room beside Emily’s, I see Sydney in bed with Kane.

  I go and stand at the foot of the bed. Kane has his eyes closed; the next second I have a gun pointed at my face. I jump back in shock and put my hands up. When he realizes it’s me, he puts the gun back down.

  Letting out a sigh of relief, I look over at Sydney to see bruises on her wrists, a bruise on her cheek, and a knot on her head. “How is she?”

  “She will be okay.” He nods and kisses the top of her head.

  “Text me when she wakes up?” I ask Kane. He nods, and I walk to the waiting room. I sit down in Ethan’s lap and let out a deep breath, feeling emotionally drained.

  “Jessica have her baby?” he asks me.

  “Yeah, he is close to nine pounds and twenty-three inches long. Hunter’s a monster.” I laugh and rest my head on his chest.

  “Jessica had her baby?”

  Looking up, I see Chase standing there shocked. “Yeah, just a little bit ago.”

  “What room is she in?”

  I smile to myself as I tell him the room and floor. He turns around and runs out of the room. “I guess I better check on Jessica too.”

  Ethan stands with me. I spot Kyle standing in the corner with Chrystal. “Jessica had her baby,” I tell Chrystal. I don’t think she knew.

  “She did?” she asks, shocked.

  “Yeah, she did. Want to go see her with us?”

  She nods and walks over to me. I notice the look Kyle gives Ethan. Watch my girl, or else. Ethan gives him a head nod and puts a hand at the small of my back, leading me toward the elevator.

  Once we get to Jessica’s room, I hear yelling and Jessica screaming. Ethan pushes Chrystal and me behind him so he will enter the room first.

  Jessica is holding her baby and has her body curled around him. Chase is fighting a man on the ground with a gun in his hand. Gasping, I grab onto Chrystal, who is holding me back just as tightly. Ethan charges into the room and snatches the gun from the man, then pulls out a set of handcuffs.

  Once the man is detained, I run over to Jessica, who is as pale as a ghost. “What happened?” I ask frantically.

  “That’s my ex. He is here to kill me and take Hunter,” she gasps.

  My mouth hits the floor. I look over at the man on the ground, who is glaring at Jessica.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Braelyn

  The next morning, I lie in bed with Ethan, emotionally exhausted from the events from yesterday. Sydney getting kidnapped and Jessica’s ex showing up have left my mind reeling.

  Ethan held me so tightly to him the whole night with his back facing the door while his gun was under his pillow.

  Groaning, I roll over and grab my phone that is lying next to the bed. The light momentarily blinds me as I look at the phone with one eye open.

  Jessica: He is in jail with a five-hundred-thousand-dollar bond. Hopefully, he stays there.

  Me: I hope so, girl, that man is nuts.

  Jessica: Chase hasn’t left my side.

  I can almost see her grinning from ear to ear right now.

  Me: Oh girl!

  I see Sydney sent me a text, so I open that one next.

  Hey, girl. I’m fine, but I think I’m going to lay low for a while, spend time with my kid and Kane. I need to wrap my head around everything that has happened. Love you, girl. xoxo.

  Me: Love you too. <3

  Then I see a text from Chase:

  Will you stop by Jessica’s and ge
t the car seat and diaper bag? Could you be a peach and pack up all her shit and dump it at my place?

  I laugh as I read the last bit, because it looks like Jessica is screwed now.

  “What is it?” Ethan asks and rolls over, wrapping an arm around my waist.

  Handing him my phone, I show him the text. He reads and starts laughing too. “Well, we gotta do what the man says.”

  Rolling my eyes, I crawl out of bed and go straight to Liam’s room. We need him to help getting everything packed up. I don’t like Jessica at her apartment anyway; it’s in a very bad neighborhood. Gang members hang out right by her building.

  I knock on his door and hear him yell, “Come in.” He’s sitting up in bed. “Will you help us pack up Jessica’s stuff and maybe get some of your MC buddies to bring trucks?”

  He nods and picks up his phone. “Thanks, Liam.”

  “Welcome, sis.”

  I get all gooey inside. He is too sweet. I head back to the bedroom to slip on some shorts and a tank, knowing I’m going to be doing manual labor all day long.

  “Baby, I will handle all the packing stuff. I’ll drop you off at the hospital, okay?” Ethan tells me and kisses the back of my neck.

  “You sure?”

  “Yeah, baby. Be with Jessica and Emily today. Isaac is still with her and needs to be relieved.”

  I nod, “Okay.” I turn around and wrap my arms around his neck, realizing once more how thankful I am for this man.

  “I love you, Ethan.” I kiss his chest, considering that’s all I can reach.

  “I love you too, Angel.” Both of his hands squeeze my butt cheeks.

  Laughing, I smack his chest and back out of his arms. “Liam is getting some of his MC buddies to help you.”

  “Thanks, babe.”

  Grabbing my mascara wand, I put on a light layer and call it quits, not feeling up to anything else. Then I brush my teeth. When I’m done, I pick up my pair of flip-flops and my keys off the top of the dresser by the door. Jessica gave me a key to her house.

  “What time you want the guys to be there?” Liam yells from down the hallway.

  I peek in the bathroom at Ethan and ask, “An hour? That will give you time to take me there and drop me back off.”

  “That’s fine.” He goes back to brushing his teeth.

  “An hour, Liam!” I yell and walk downstairs with Ethan following behind me.

  “I’ll be there in an hour as well, Liam,” Ethan tells Liam, who is walking out of his room with jeans and his prospect cut on. Awww. I smile at him. He narrows his eyes at me, knowing what I am thinking. Ethan leads me out to his truck and we drive into town.

  We drive to the east side of the city. Raleigh, Texas, is a slightly bigger town, but has small town values, and in the past ten years, it’s boomed and got bigger. Gangs started popping up on the east side of town, and the MC moved in five years ago.

  We pull up in front of Jessica’s apartment. Looking around the area, I spot some bad-looking men leaning against her building. They look at me through the car window. I duck out of view, grimacing.

  Ethan takes his gun out of the console and puts it in his hip holster, then covers it with his shirt. “Wait for me to come get you.”

  Nodding, I grab the car keys and phone off the seat. No way would I argue. I don’t know how Jessica can live here. I know she doesn’t have money issues; she makes almost as much as me.

  Ethan walks around the truck and stares down the men against the wall. They cockily cross their arms, while he opens my door and I step out. He shuts the door and clicks the clicker before he tucks me into his side and we walk up the sidewalk.

  As we pass the men, they whistle at me. I stiffen and grab ahold of Ethan’s shirt, gripping it tightly. “Come over here, baby, and I’ll show you a real man,” one of them taunts me and then grabs his dick for good measure.

  Ethan starts to pull away from me. I know he is going to go and beat the crap out of that man. “It’s not worth it,” I whisper to him.

  “Baby, they are disrespecting you, and I can’t let that shit slide.” He pulls my hands away from his shirt and thunders over to them. One of the men spots him and elbows the man who was taunting me.

  I wring my hands nervously as Ethan towers over the men.

  “Listen here, cocksuckers. If I hear one sexual thing said to her, I will personally chop off your dick and feed it to you. You hear me, fucker?” Ethan’s voice is hard and full of rage.

  The two guys look like they are about to crap their pants. The one who didn’t taunt me is the one who answers him. “We didn’t mean any trouble, man,” his voice stutters.

  “That’s the right answer. Go apologize to the lady. NOW!” he roars the last part, and his voice flares.

  They both hurry over to me. I brace myself. “Sorry,” they both mutter then go back to leaning against the wall.

  Ethan stalks back over to me and leads me up to Jessica’s apartment. “Ethan, you didn’t have to do that.”

  “Yes, I did, baby. No fucking asshole is going to disrespect you, let alone in front of me.” His voice is still hard with anger.

  Sighing, I take out my keys and unlock the door. I push it open and see the whole house barren. It looks like nobody really lives in it. There are two rooms down the hallway. I push open the first door to see Jessica’s bedroom. The only things personal are pictures on the dresser and clothes in the closet.

  I check the last room, the baby’s room. It’s decorated in grays and whites. It’s beautiful. Spotting the diaper bag, I grab it and the boppy pillow, because she is breastfeeding. Ethan grabs the car seat in the corner of the room still in the box.

  Next to the diaper bag is a pack of swaddle blankets. I push that in the diaper bag. Remembering Jessica had her bag also in her closet, I walk into her room and get it.

  “You ready?” Ethan yells from the living room.

  “Yeah!” I call back and walk out of the room.

  Then I hear the thunder of motorcycles outside of the apartment. Ethan walks out in front of me. I see Torch, Liam, and some other guys, who look meaner than hell.

  Ethan sets the car seat in the back of the truck, while I lag behind at the railing so I can give them the keys.

  “Come suck my dick, bitch!” The man from earlier stupidly taunts me again. I see one of the MC guys punch him in the face, knocking him straight out. His head hits the ground with a smack. The other guy takes off running.

  This guy is probably 6’6 and two hundred-fifty pounds of muscle; he’s huge. It says ‘Enforcer’ on his cut.

  Ethan walks over to him and does the man handshake thing. “Thanks, man.”

  He nods and takes the key from my hand, then goes up to Jessica’s apartment. Liam follows behind him. Ethan comes over and takes the two diaper bags and sets them in the backseat.

  On our way back home, we pass the guy who took off running; he is still running. Unable to stop myself, I roll down my window and yell. “Run, Forrest, run!”

  Ethan throws his head back and laughs holding his stomach. Joining him, I rest my head against the back of the seat. “Love you, Angel.” He kisses the top of my head and takes my hand in his.

  ~*~

  When we walk into Jessica’s hospital room, I see Chase is sitting in a chair, holding Hunter against his chest, while Jessica is sound asleep, curled into a ball.

  Chase’s eyes shoot open at hearing us enter. Ethan sets the car seat by the bathroom door, and I set the diaper bag onto the window seat together with the boppy pillow.

  “Chase,” Ethan says and motions him to come outside with him. I motion with my hands toward Hunter until Chase warily sets the baby in my arms and gives me the rundown on how to hold him, making sure I support his head.

  Once Ethan and Chase leave the room, I sit down in Chase’s seat and hold Hunter. His little face is all scrunched up in his sleep. I stick my fingertip in his little hand, and he squeezes. “Awww,” I say under my breath. He is too darn cute!


  “I like the look of a baby in your arms,” Ethan says, scaring me to death. Jumping, I look up at him and meet his heated eyes.

  “Stop the birth control, because you are getting knocked up,” he says with a growl, then he bends down and kisses me before he leaves without waiting for my answer.

  “Well, I guess you’re getting knocked up,” Jessica says sleepily.

  I shrug. “Guess so.”

  I wouldn’t mind being pregnant. I love kids and I love Ethan. We are getting married. I knew we would have babies eventually, but sooner doesn’t make a difference.

  “Give me my baby back,” Chase tells me.

  My eyes widen and I look at Jessica, shocked. She sighs and buries her head under the blanket.

  “What do you mean?” I ask him as he takes the baby from me.

  “I signed the birth certificate,” he says calmly. Too calmly. I’m sure I’m close to resembling a fish out of water.

  “What do you mean?” I ask again, completely and utterly confused.

  “What it means is, he convinced me it’s the best idea in case my ex gets out and tries to say Hunter is his. Chase being on the birth certificate may stop him,” Jessica says tiredly.

  Chase just sucked Jessica in! Unable to help myself, I burst out laughing. Chase shoots me a knowing grin. Oh man, he’s good.

  “What’s the matter?” Jessica asks and narrows her eyes at me.

  “Oh, nothing!” I sing and stand up.

  “Yes, there is!” her voice shrills.

  “What it means is, Hunter is my kid and you are my woman. You’re tied to me forever.” Chase grins from ear to ear while swaying back and forth with Hunter in his arms.

  “You mean you fucking tricked me?” Her voice has a deadly tinge to it. Oh boy.

  “Yeah.” He laughs and lays Hunter down in his little bed, pulling off the blanket and grabbing a diaper out of the carrier by the bed.

  “Once I have my strength back, I’m going to fucking kill you,” she grinds out. Chase leaves the baby in the bed and stalks over to Jessica. He grabs her face in his hands and pulls her close to his face so she is looking at him, then slams his mouth down onto hers. Holy shit, Batman.