“Let me make you dinner at my place tomorrow evening,” he whispered. “I can explain everything then.”
She didn’t want to accept. Not after tonight. Knox was a dirty asshole, willing to use her and anyone else to achieve his goals. But this had to end before Knox succeeded by accident or before he got himself killed. Or both.
So she nodded, her plan to stop this madness uppermost in her mind.
Knox escorted Brooks and Charlotte along the pathway to the club. Leaving the houses behind and entering the wooded area was dark but, in the distance, the noise of the party at the club livened up the night. Another curve and the lights of the parking lot beckoned ahead. Reaching the asphalt, he saw the sea of bikes and men with the word Probate on their vests walking the area.
Brooks halted at a tiny, second-hand Mazda, then rounded on his wife. “Charlotte, are you out of your mind?” he asked in a whisper-yell. “What in God’s name made you act the way you did? Confront Roxy like that?”
“That woman is a pariah,” Charlotte sneered. “She physically attacked me, in our home, Brooks. I just couldn’t control my feelings. Now, she’s caused me to lose Kendall’s friendship.”
She sounded genuinely hurt by that. Knox had to admit Kendall had surprised him. He’d thought her hatred for Outlaw would’ve outweighed any loyalty she might’ve had to the club. Still, Charlotte had suffered enough. He patted her shoulder. “It’s going to be all right,” he promised. “When the smoke settles, Kendall will call you again.” What more could he say? His scheme had caused tonight’s fiasco. Instead of getting Outlaw to incriminate himself, all he’d succeeded in doing was getting his ass beat by a woman, and severing the friendship between Kendall and Charlotte.
Brooks yanked open the passenger door. “I don’t know how to get through to you, Charlotte. Stop provoking Outlaw.”
She sniffled, but the shadows swallowed her expression. “I have my reasons, Brooks.”
“Which you’ve already stated,” Knox inserted, not wanting her despair over Kendall to cause her any remorse over her role in his failed plan. He’d gotten Charlotte to agree for the price of the designer outfit she was wearing. Maybe, he’d have to buy her another one to soothe her hurt feelings and to ensure her silence over the deal. “You need a reward for standing up for what was right, Charlotte. How about another shopping trip?”
“Knox, you don’t have to—” Brooks began.
“It’s my pleasure,” Knox interrupted. Or I’m fucked. Charlotte would confess everything and you’d run to Outlaw. “G’nite, kids. Drive carefully.”
Once Brooks and Charlotte were safely in their car, Knox walked to his.
Brooks hadn’t questioned Knox’s ability to afford Charlotte’s designer outfit that, for an ordinary legal assistant, would eat up one month’s pay.
As he was waved off club premises and the gate closed behind him, Knox decided Brooks’ reticence had more to do with his inability to focus on anything but pleasing Outlaw than it was a lack of interest on his part.
Poor bastard.
Chapter Twenty-Five
A knock on the bedroom door awakened Roxy the next morning and she grumbled in protest, not wanting to be disturbed.
“Roxy?” Kendall called on a loud whisper.
Raising her head, Roxy glanced at the clock on the nightstand. 8:52AM. Once the drama with Knox, Charlotte and Brooks had ended, the party resumed until after midnight. Then, Roxy had stayed behind to help Meggie and Bunny clean up. The strain of yesterday wore Roxy down. She’d intended to rest until ten, hours later than her normal time. That wasn’t to be.
Roxy got up and went to her door. When she opened it, she didn’t see Kendall so she stuck her head out and saw Kendall down the hall, near the staircase.
“I’m up, sugar,” Roxy called. “Get back here.”
Kendall didn’t hesitate to redirect her steps back to the room. After closing the door, Roxy went back to the bed then patted the spot beside her, clucking in sympathy at Kendall’s red, puffy eyes as she plopped next to her and hung her head.
“I can’t believe Charlotte,” she started, sniffling.
Roxy snorted. “I can.”
“She usually calls me every morning, but she didn’t this morning. I knew she wouldn’t. Or, maybe, I thought she would. I tried not to let it get to me. But it did, so I thought I’d visit you.”
“You could’ve called me,” Roxy pointed out.
“I did but you didn’t answer.”
“I was asleep.” She tried, and failed, not to sound grouchy. “I would’ve called you back when I woke up.”
Kendall wilted. “Mortician let me in.”
“It’s okay,” Roxy relented, squeezing Kendall’s hand. “I’ve been writing some recipes for you. Since you’re here, we can sit down and go over them.”
“You think I can’t cook either.”
“I didn’t say that, baby. I think you can learn how to cook for the crowd. This is a tough crew. Beat them at their own game. Next time they come over, surprise the fuck out of them with what you’ve whipped up.”
“I don’t know how to cook most things. I follow recipes but my food doesn’t seem to come out right.”
“First off, decide if you want to know how to cook. There’s nothing wrong with having no interest in domestic shit.”
“But Meggie—”
Roxy grabbed Kendall’s arm. “Stop right there. But Meggie my ass. No matter how Dinah was in the last several years of her life, at one time, she was there to teach her daughter. She taught Meggie to cook and keep house. The child just likes doing it. I think, though, she admired you and your career, so that motivated her to get into business with Zoann.”
“Meggie admired me?” Kendall asked, disbelief in her voice and hope in her eyes.
“She admires you,” Roxy said with certainty. “She just doesn’t like the bullshit you pull on a regular fucking basis. Stop being so fucking insecure and inferior. If you do that, you might realize you admire her, too. She’s a domestic goddess and you’re a career queen. You both learned a lot from each other. If you stop competing with the child for a minute and don’t feel as if you’re losing face, just admit you don’t want to cook when it’s your time. There’s nothing wrong with all of us pitching together to bring dishes over or you having that uppity bitch who works for you to cook, or just ordering food in. If you don’t want motherfuckers in your house, there’s nothing wrong with that either.”
Kendall blinked back tears and laid her hand against her belly. Her condition might be affecting her energy. Besides, her last pregnancy—the miscarriage—had to be on her mind, too, and she wouldn’t have an interest in learning to cook.
“It’s okay,” she soothed. “I know you must be worried about losing this baby like you lost the last one. Once you deliver, we can always talk about your kitchen skills.”
Kendall laid her head on Roxy’s shoulder. “Oh, Roxy,” she whispered. “I shouldn’t have done it.”
The words lost her. “Done what?” she asked, stroking Kendall’s hair.
“You know? What Christopher said I did. He had to have told you because I know he told Meggie.”
“The motherfucker didn’t tell me anything, Kendall,” Roxy said, losing patience by all the mystery.
“He didn’t?”
Roxy growled.
“Charlotte knew what I did. I told her after the fact. If you really don’t know and I tell you, you’ll hate me.”
“Now, you have my ass really curious,” Roxy said, gentling her tone. “What did you do that that Prissy Bitch knew about? And, of course, I could never hate you, so get that out of your mind.”
“I aborted my baby,” she said so softly Roxy barely heard her. “I was so angry with Johnnie for sending me away after I threatened to tell Meggie she killed Traveler and her mother betrayed the club. He’d been telling me to get rid of it and get back on my meds.” She hiccupped. “S-someh-how, Christopher f-found out what I d-did. Instea
d of killing me, he swore if I ever brought anything up to Meggie, he’d tell Johnnie. We all know Johnnie didn’t really want me to get rid of our baby. Besides, I did it out of revenge and he’d hate me.”
Roxy sighed. Of all the things she’d been expecting, Kendall’s confession hadn’t been it. On the other hand… “Baby, nothing your ass does shocks me. You have a crazy man as your husband so you got to be a little fucking off, too.”
“I do not! Johnnie’s brilliant.”
“Don’t mean a fucking thing. A lot of the evilest motherfuckers in the world, throughout history, were also some of the smartest motherfuckers of their time. Outlaw is brilliant but he’s fucking insane. However, he’s also got a strange honor about him. If he said he was keeping it between you and him, then he did. If Meggie knows, she’ll take that secret to her grave.”
“To protect Johnnie.”
“Does it matter?”
“I suppose it doesn’t.”
“Stop worrying. It’s over and done with. You can’t bring that baby back.”
“I keep wanting to ask Meggie, but then I tell myself if she doesn’t know, that’ll be one more thing to put her above me. She’d never dream of aborting Christopher’s baby for any reason.”
“No,” Roxy agreed. “She wouldn’t but neither would she hold it against you. She’s not like that. You are, so stop judging her, baby. We never know what the fuck you’re going to do. That’s just who you are. Instead of fretting about it, own it. It wasn’t right what you did. You shouldn’t have done it. But you did, so move forward and live your life. What you did last night, sticking up for the club, we all took note of that.”
She sat up and smoothed out her pants. “I’ll bet Christopher didn’t.”
“He hates you,” Roxy agreed. “That will never change, but I can guarantee he’s not going to forget how you stood up for Meggie or how you stood up to Knox.”
“Knox is an asshole. He’s trying to bring the club down. Or, maybe, it’s only Christopher. I don’t know.”
“I’m surprised you’re not dancing for joy. Outlaw goes to jail and Johnnie becomes president, that puts you in the position you’ve always wanted to be in.”
“I love Johnnie,” Kendall said. “If Christopher goes to jail, that’ll hurt my husband terribly because he loves Christopher. Not to mention, it would leave Meggie all alone.”
“Are you worried about her being alone for her or because of Johnnie?”
“Does it matter?” she asked, throwing Roxy’s earlier words back at her. “It’s more than that, anyway. Knox could be out to get Johnnie, too. Then, I’d be left all alone. Unlike if Christopher is sent to jail and I’d have to share Johnnie with Meggie, if the situation is reversed, Christopher would probably throw me off the premises.”
“You’d still be Johnnie’s old lady, so that wouldn’t happen.”
Kendall nodded and fell silent. Roxy let her think the conversation through. Talking alone didn’t work with Kendall. She had to mull things over and work things out in her head.
“Mortician told me about Duke,” Kendall said, a few minutes later. “I’m glad to see you recovered yourself this morning without letting either Duke or Charlotte get to you.”
It dawned on Roxy that her foul mouth had returned. It was second nature to her so it would take some time to change. “Bad habits are like bad pennies. They keep turning up. I’ll be okay.”
Kendall smiled. “You will be. I’m so proud of the effort you’re putting in to clean up your language.”
“Thanks, baby,” Roxy said, a little disheartened. She must be an embarrassment to all the girls here, not to mention her own daughters. Most especially Bailey, who was studying to become a psychologist. She didn’t need an ignorant mama bringing her down. “Anything else?”
“No,” Kendall said, getting to her feet. At the doorway, she stopped and turned. “Um, can I call you every morning? It’ll help me to start my day.”
“You sure can.”
Rushing to her, Kendall hugged Roxy tightly, then hurried away. Instead of heading downstairs, Roxy returned to bed, trying to get Duke’s words out of her head. For a time, Outlaw’s pep talk had lifted her spirits. Then, everything else had happened, including the fact that Knox had used her to try and trap Outlaw. If she were to believe Duke, Knox had every right to use her, because she was worthless and too ignorant for anything else.
Maybe, she could’ve put Duke’s words aside if Prissy Bitch Charlotte hadn’t come in with her harshness and Knox hadn’t gazed at her with such sympathy. Even Kendall had thrown fuel on the fire. Her well-meaning words upset Roxy.
Turning on her side, she drew her knees up. For months, the least little thing upset her, making her more emotional than usual. Another effect of the Tamoxifen. Perhaps, she was blowing everything out of proportion. Except perception was everything and first impressions were sometimes lasting ones. The impression she’d left of herself with Knox’s parents backed up each and every one of Duke’s claims.
“Mama?” Bailey called, knocking on the door as she opened it.
Roxy didn’t want to worry her daughter, so she sat up and got out of bed. “I was just going to brush my teeth and wash my face. Put my wig on. Give me a few minutes.”
“Lucas told me what Duke said,” Bailey started, halting Roxy in her tracks. “When I see him, I’m kicking his ass, then handing him to Lucas so he can kick his ass. You have nothing to say about it. Nobody talks about my momma and gets away with it.”
“Bailey, baby, I’m fine. Duke’s just a confused boy. You think I let that fool get to me? Not on your life,” she lied. “As for you and Mortician kicking his ass, I can’t allow that. That’s my child. I’m not sanctioning him to be hurt.”
“Fuck him,” Bailey snapped, shocking Roxy so much that she spun around.
“Did you just cuss?” She didn’t remember ever hearing her daughter use foul language.
“I did,” Bailey said without remorse. “And I do. That doesn’t change a thing about me. Cussing releases tension and anger.”
“I thought that was sex.”
“Fucking, you mean?”
Roxy glared at Bailey. “Stop making fun of me.”
“I’m not. I swear. I’m just showing you that Duke has the problem, not you. It doesn’t change who you are. It doesn’t make me any less proud of you. And, yeah, Duke’s getting his ass kicked. He’s your son but my baby brother who’s crossed a line.”
“With the way Duke is, if you lay a hand on him right now, he might hit you, baby. Then, I’d be in jail for fucking him up.”
“No, you wouldn’t. Lucas would do it for you if Duke hits me.”
Mortician would make paste out of him, a fate she didn’t want her son to suffer.
Roxy went back to the bed and sat. “I don’t know why this is affecting me so much.”
“Because the little asshole is your son, Momma,” Bailey said. “You don’t expect your own children to spew such bullshit at you.”
“He hurt me,” she admitted. “Then, Charlotte came with her shit. Knox sent me a pitying look. Kendall told me she’s proud of my effort.”
Bailey rolled her eyes, then took the spot next to Roxy. “Okay, Charlotte is stupid. Knox is a jerk. And Kendall is Kendall. In a category that defies words. She’s downstairs, pleased as punch that you’re letting her call you every morning. If she thought her words hurt you, she’d have a fit.”
“I made a fool out of myself when I met Knox’s parents.”
“Then apologize to them and you’ve done your part. That’s all you can do. If they don’t accept your apology, that’s on them.” Bailey squinted her eyes at Roxy. “Wait a minute. If this is bothering you so much, you must really like him.”
Bailey had been through all of Roxy’s relationships. She’d never disparaged her or resented her stepfathers. She’d just went with the flow. Roxy didn’t want her daughter to see her go for another man, whom everyone identified in a negative way.
“Oh my God! What is wrong with you, Roxanne Doucette Johnson Jones Rousseau?” Bailey hugged her. “I’m giving you twenty-four hours to wallow in the biggest pity party ever. You deserve it because the man-child you birthed is an asshole and the boy toy you want to do is a rat fink bastard who’s trying to send my husband up the river.”
Roxy swatted Bailey’s arm. “The boy toy I want to do?”
“Um, yeah, you’re right. The thought’s disgusting. Whatever you want with Knox. No one likes him.”
“I don’t want anything with him. He’s playing fucking games, sugar. He’s trying to play me.”
“As much as I don’t like him, I can tell that he likes you. I’m not a little girl like I was when you got with all those other guys. I can see that this man is into you. He might be too dumb to realize it, but it’s there. And, Roxanne Doucette Johnson Jones Rousseau, he fell for the woman you presented yourself to be. You, Momma. The woman who tells it like it is, in her own special way, that’s always made me admire her and proud to call her my mother.”
As much as Duke had torn her down yesterday, her Bailey had lifted her up today. Her words meant the world to Roxy and she hugged her, trying her best not to cry, but failing.
“I love you, Bailey.”
“I love you more, Momma.”
“Let me get dressed, then I’ll come and fix breakfast for me, you, and Kendall.”
“Okay. Can I call Meggie over? We need to finalize plans for Thanksgiving.”
“I’m going to New Orleans to spend it with your grandma.”
Disappointment marred Bailey’s face. “Really, Momma?”
“Yeah, I haven’t seen MeMe in a while. I’m going to spend two or three weeks there. Get her to some appointments. Stuff like that.”
“See Duke.”
Roxy nodded. “Maybe.”
“Why don’t you invite Knox to fly down for Thanksgiving?”
Death Dwellers Motorcycle Club:: Fifteen Bad Boy Biker Books Page 396