He gave his daughter an indulgent smile. Addie was the apple of his eye, he’d kill any motherfucker that hurt her or made her cry. He was worried though, about her pronunciation. She had a hard time with her r’s and he knew at some point they’d have to work on that, but right now the way she said them made his heart skip a beat. Reaching down, Tyler picked her up and put her on his knee.
“He will, but he has to eat everybody’s cookies, so that’s why we’re only leaving two.”
“Won’t he be full?” She asked, pushing her lips out.
Tyler almost groaned. He was stuffed from the dinner they’d had. As it was, he’d have to convince Meredith to eat one of the two cookies they’d set out for Santa. “I’m sure he will be, but he’s got a sweet tooth.”
“Is it made out of chocolate?” she wrinkled her nose and forehead as she looked up at her dad.
He tilted his head forward so their foreheads touched, chuckling at her innocent question, out of the mouths of babes. “Yes,” he laughed softly again. “It’s one of his special powers.”
She widened her eyes, gazing up at him with wonder in her expression. “Another special power is to know when you’re up past your bedtime. Which you are, because it’s ten o’clock,” he whispered to her in an urgent tone.
Addie scrambled from his lap, and hit the floor running. She grabbed his hand, pulling him along. “C’mon Daddy, I didn’t mean to.”
“He knows that, too,” Tyler assured her. They met Meredith in the hallway, and he caught his wife’s eye. “Addie’s gotta go to bed because Santa knows she’s been up past her bedtime.”
He gave her a wink as he passed his daughter off to her mom. Still laughing at her innocent words, he watched as they hurried down the hallway. God, but he loved her. She’d made his life even more complete than he’d ever thought it could be. Caelin, too. But Addie had proven to him he could be a dad, proven to him he had the ability to love a child and could be a man that could be gentle enough for a kid. She’d always hold a soft spot in his heart. Same as her mom.
*
“Seeing as how it’s Christmas Day now,” Tyler looked at the clock on the wall, seeing it read five minutes after midnight. “I think we can exchange gifts.”
Meredith stood, admiring their handiwork. They’d worked hard and she was proud of herself, proud of him, proud of the life they’d built together. She pulled her phone out of her pajama pants pocket and took a picture of the scene in front of her. She’d started it the year they’d gotten Addie, but this year truly warmed her heart. Last year, Caelin hadn’t really been able to appreciate his gifts, he’d been too young. She couldn’t wait to see what he did when he saw the tree in a few hours. But right now she wanted to spend some time with her husband.
“Sounds like a really good idea to me,” she gave him a small smile. “Do you mind if I grab a drink? It’s been a long day.”
“No, we’re two adults,” he walked over and rubbed his nose along her neck, moving her hair and giving her a lingering kiss there. “I think we can do anything we want.”
“Including go at it in front of the Christmas tree?” she questioned, her eyes bright, teasing him.
He encircled his arms around her waist. “If that’s what you wanna do, I’m all for it, but I gotta be honest – I’m tired as fuck, and it might not be that great.”
Her laugh pushed his hair back with the force of her breath. “I think you’re probably right about that. The cookies kinda pushed me to the limit.”
He groaned, remembering the sweetness of the sugar. Santa might have a sweet tooth, but Tyler Blackfoot did not.
“Be right back,” she told him as she turned and went to the kitchen.
As he heard her rifling around in their kitchen, he went to grab her gift. They weren’t big on gifts, the two of them, so he really hoped she liked what he’d picked out. Either way, there was absolutely no way he could back out now.
“Here ya go,” she came back into the room, carrying a lowball glass of bourbon for him and a glass of wine for her.
“I didn’t even ask for it.”
“What can I say? I could tell you needed it.”
Their relationship summed up in six words. She always knew exactly what he needed. Sitting the two glasses down, she held her finger up. “Now let me go get your gift,” her eyes twinkled as she saw the two boxes he’d sat on the coffee table. “Those are mine, right?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” he played along.
“Oh, I’ll find out soon enough,” she shook her ass as she turned and walked out of the room.
Once she was out of sight, Tyler shook the nerves out of his hands and rubbed them together in front of him. He hoped like hell she liked what he’d gotten her.
‡
Chapter Seven
Meredith grabbed her own two boxes, and brought them with her into the living room and set them down on the coffee table next to Tyler’s.
“You go first,” she pushed them towards him. “I wanna see your face when you open it.”
“If you insist,” he gave her an indulgent smile as he reached for the smaller of the two.
“You sure you wanna open the smaller one first? I think I’d go for the bigger one. More stuff,” she teased.
“It’s not about the size,” his voice was confident as he pushed his fingers through the wrapping paper. He was still hesitant to open gifts since he’d never really gotten any before he and Meredith were together. “It’s about what’s on the inside.”
She held her breath as he opened it, his eyes widening as he saw what lay inside.
“Mer…” he started to speak, but nothing came out.
“Jessica took it when she was messing around with the camera Layne got her over the summer. Do you remember? She was metering light or whatever?”
He did remember. Turning it around so she could see it. “I’ve never had a family picture before,” his voice was hoarse as he turned the picture back around, taking it in again. He and Meredith sat close together, his arm around her. Caelin sat in his lap, Addie sat in hers, and they were all grinning up at the camera. It was a real family photo. Another thing he’d never thought he’d have.
“I don’t know how you can top this,” he kept looking at the gift. For once he didn’t try to tamp down his emotions, he let her see how much he was affected by the thoughtful gesture. “Can we put it on the mantel?”
“We can put it wherever you want,” she reached over, grasping his hand.
He appreciated the gesture, it grounded him like nothing else could.
“Open your next one,” she tilted her head towards the one sitting on his left. “I hope this one isn’t a disappointment after that one,” she teased.
He gave her a look that said she was totally crazy. When he pulled back to the top to the box, a Holy Fuck, Babe escaped his mouth.
She blushed. “Do you like it?”
“Who in the fuck took these pictures of you?” he asked, as he opened the leather bound photo album of his wife wearing little more than bra and panties. Each shot was tastefully done and he loved the look in her eye as she looked at the camera.
“One of the reasons Layne got Jess the camera is so she can take her own pictures for book teasers she uses on her Facebook page. She’s taken pictures of most of us. She doesn’t use our faces, but I asked if she could take these pictures for me, for your gift. I think she did awesome.”
He cleared his throat. “I don’t think I’ve had a sexier gift in my life.”
She beamed. Those were exactly the words she’d wanted to hear.
*
Meredith opened the bigger box Tyler had set in front of her. “You might go for what’s inside the package, but I definitely go for size.”
He shook his head at her. “Can’t take you nowhere.”
“Sure can’t,” she giggled when she got the lid off.
“I hope those are acceptable,” he let his gaze wash over her. “I seem to recall you telling
me a week or so ago you needed more. I hope that means I can rip the rest of them off you.”
Inside the box were a variety of lacy, scraps of material that could be called panties in some circles. They ranged in cuts and colors. After the pictures she’d given him, this actually gave her self-confidence a bolster. “I think that could be arranged, Mr. Blackfoot. I do love when you go all Native American Warrior on me.”
His eyes flashed. “Whenever you need it, I’m your man.”
She didn’t even have to think about the truth of that statement.
“One more,” he pushed the other gift towards her, “Any guesses?”
“With you?” she asked, cocking a brow. “Never. You always keep me guessing.”
She dug her fingernails into the paper, ripping it open and pushing the top of the box back. When she did, she gasped as she saw a wooden box with a picture burned into the lid of Addie and Caelin.
“Did you do this?” She tried to talk around the lump in her throat.
“I can still be artistic when I wanna be.”
She had no doubt about that.
“Open it,” he encouraged her.
When she did with shaking fingers, she gasped again as she saw it was a jewelry box, and inside was a ring. It held the birthstones of their children and one for the month they were married.
“Since you don’t wear a wedding ring, I was hoping you’d wear this,” his voice was soft as he asked her the question.
The two of them loved their necklaces and had never felt they needed rings to express their love. But this, she would wear it, every day with pride.
Grabbing it up, she went over to his side of the coffee table, straddling his waist. “Put it on me?”
He groaned when she situated herself. “With pleasure.”
Their eyes connected as he slid it on her finger and she’d never loved him as much as she did in that moment.
He captured her lips in his, kissing her with all the emotion he had, and she groaned, twining her arms around his neck. As it got out of hand, and she started moving her hands up beneath his shirt, Tyler pulled back.
“As much as I’d love to do this; we have kids getting up in probably the next three to four hours.”
She groaned because she knew he was right. “Rain check?”
“Tomorrow night baby, that body is mine.”
She shivered, looking forward to it.
*
Three hours later as they were awoken by Addie’s shriek and the cry of Caelin wanting out of his crib to investigate, they were both glad they’d taken the time to sleep.
“You get breakfast, I’ll get them?” he nuzzled her neck. “And coffee. I’m gonna need to mainline coffee.”
She didn’t laugh, because she was going to need to mainline it too. But as she stood at the kitchen, waiting for breakfast to finish, and taking her first sip of coffee, she knew there was nowhere else she’d rather be. Tyler sat on the floor, playing with their kids, laughing at Caelin as he tried to get his toy to work, Addie in his lap, putting sticker earrings on his ears. Unable to resist the perfect scene before her, she ran to get her phone and took the picture.
No matter how hard the struggle was from day to day, these were the moments she knew awaited her. These moments were more than she’d ever hoped or prayed for, and they were all thanks to the love she and Tyler Blackfoot shared. And that, that was a miracle in and of itself as she remembered how they’d met.
Grabbing her iPhone, she walked over to him, to show him the picture. “You want me to send this to you?”
He grinned as he looked at it. “No, I’ll send it to myself.”
She watched as he did just that, and then grabbed it, ready to take another picture. When the lock screen appeared, she put in her passcode, only to find out it didn’t work. The memory of the first time they’d really spoken ran through her. She remembered with great clarity the way he’d changed her passcode when she’d gotten a photograph of evidence she shouldn’t have been privy to and she’d had to seek him out to get it fixed. She couldn’t help put poke him in the chest.
“You’re cute. Change it back.”
He laughed, juggling the kids in his lap. “I got you out of it, didn’t I?”
Neither one of them could argue with that.
Rooster & Roni
‡
Chapter One
“I’m tellin’ you, you’re insane,” Denise Walker told her sister-in-law, Sharon Hancock, as the two of them sat in the office at Walker’s Wheels. They were supposed to be going over inventory, but Sharon, known to everyone as Roni, was laying out all her troubles and Denise was telling her how crazy she was.
“I’m not,” Roni shook her head. “I think he misses it.”
The he in the conversation was Roni’s husband Rooster, member of the Heaven Hill MC, former Warren County Sheriff’s Deputy.
“What makes you think he misses it? I mean from what you’ve told me, there’s nothing screaming out at me that says we’re gonna lose Rooster to the other side.”
How did she explain this to someone who had the kind of relationship Denise did? Roni’s brother, Liam worshiped the ground Denise walked on; she would never be questioning her husband like this. Roni had to admit though, she’d never questioned her husband like this either, but she couldn’t deny in the past few weeks things had changed.
Because of the time of year, it being so close to Christmas, the shop wasn’t as busy as it normally was. People put off repairs to cars so they could pay for Christmas gifts, which meant Rooster’s paycheck sometimes suffered. Then they’d hit the Murphy’s Law trifecta when their water heater, washer and dryer, and heating unit had all gone out in the same week. Add to that the busy life with their toddler son Carter, they were beyond stressed sometimes.
And when they’d noticed their savings account dwindling and realized they wouldn’t have enough money to complete the washer and dryer purchase that this situation had even presented itself. Neither one of them wanted to ask the club for money, even though it would have been okay if they had. Neither wanted anyone to know they were running this tight. Other guys who needed the shifts just as badly as Rooster did would give up their rotation for him, and then Roni would feel guilty because they’d be taking away from another family who probably needed that income just as much as they did.
Then, out of nowhere, a call had come from an old cop friend, asking if Rooster would be interested in doing some private security during the holidays. Rooster had jumped at the chance and honestly, Roni had felt like it was an answer to a prayer. But the reality of it was different than she imagined it would be. Gone was the guy upset about the fact he couldn’t pay for things they needed as a family and in his place was someone who walked around with a smile on his face, especially when he wore his security uniform. Roni couldn’t help but wonder if maybe Rooster missed his old life and was sorry he’d given it up to be with her. The thought had crossed her mind more than once, and that’s why she’d voiced her concerns to Denise today.
“He’s happier than he’s been in a while, when he leaves the house to go do the stuff for the security team, he’s got a smile on his face. When he comes home he’s in a great mood…” she trailed off because she realized she sounded like a brat. The fact of the matter, was she was kind of pissed she wasn’t the one putting a smile on his face.
“What’s wrong with that?” Denise asked, tilting her head to the side.
“I’m gonna sound like such a bitch, but this is the truth. I want me and Carter to be the people putting the smile on his face; I want the club to make him happy. I worry maybe he missed the law enforcement side of things. He’s hanging out with people he knew from those days. What if he decides that’s what makes him happy and this life doesn’t anymore?” she pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and tried like hell to tell herself she was crazy, but in reality it didn’t feel that way. She was really worried about this.
“Roni,” Denise grasped her sister-i
n-law’s hand across the desk, giving her a patient look. “If you want to know how he’s feeling, you’ve got to ask him. Don’t make assumptions. You know how you’d feel if he started jumping to conclusions about you.”
Yeah, Roni did know how she’d feel. She’d say some smart-ass remark about how he couldn’t read her feelings without talking first, and then she’d set him down and let him have it with both barrels. Rooster though, he was the quiet one of them; he didn’t let much get to him and he sure as hell didn’t feel the need to fight it out the way she always seemed to. “I’m scared to ask,” Roni admitted. “What if I don’t like the answer?”
“And what if you do? What if the answer makes you love him even more? Maybe he’s just excited that he’s being able to provide his family with the things you need. All those appliances you mentioned falling apart. That’s not easy to replace, you said so yourself. What if he’s feeling like the best husband and father in the world because he’s found a way to handle your financial situation? Do you really wanna take that away from him?” Denise questioned. “I just think you’re looking for something that isn’t there, and you know I’m telling you the truth.”
Roni tried to tell herself Denise was right, she was looking for trouble that probably wasn’t even there. She knew that half the time she had ninety-nine problems and ninety-seven were all her imagination, but something about this felt off. “I just don’t know,” Roni put her hands in her hair and set her elbows on the edge of the desk. “I feel like he and I are drifting apart.”
“Because you’re not being honest with him,” Denise pointed out.
“But what if I really feel he’s the one not being honest with me?” she questioned.
“You’re never gonna know until you ask, and that’s not gonna happen until you get yourself out of your own head.”
Roni mulled the situation over, knowing that what her sister-in-law said was true. She couldn’t keep assuming things about Rooster, she couldn’t keep letting her imagination run wild with things she thought he was doing or thinking or feeling. It was time for the two of them to have a conversation. Lord, she dreaded that discussion. They’d been married for years and they hardly ever fought but when they did; it was a knock-down, drag-out fight to the finish. It tore both of them apart to argue, but sometimes they had to in order to get to the bottom of things.
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