“You all know that I’ve got a daughter, and that I’m protective of her. I’ve got--”
P-Nut stopped pacing and shot me a look of concern. “Nobody fucked with Eddie, did they? God damn it, I’ll kill a motherfucker--”
“Settle down, Nut. No. Eddie’s fine. Hear me out.”
He lit another cigarette, and went right back to pacing the floor.
“In the last month, I’ve been seeing a girl.” I figured saying I’d been seeing her would sound a lot better than saying we’d fucked twice. I scanned the men for reactions, and other than Nut’s pacing, everyone seemed pretty calm, so I continued. “And I liked spending time with her, but I knew it’d never amount to much with my rule about relationships and all.”
I paused, took a long pull on my vape, and then tilted my head toward the ceiling. After exhaling the smoke into the steel structure of the shop, I lowered my gaze and dropped the bomb.
“She’s pregnant.”
P-Nut stopped in his tracks and looked right at me. One of his eyebrows arched.
The other three men’s jaws dropped.
While Crip’s mouth twisted into a shitty smirk, I continued. “And, before any of you say anything slick, she’ll be moving in with me. We’re having the baby. Together.”
Crip rubbed his face with the palms of his hands and then crossed his arms. “Going domestic on us, huh?”
“Nope. Just doing what’s right.”
“It’s good you’re doing right by her,” Cholo said. “She’s good people. The two of you can come over and stare at the beach with Lex and me from the back deck. I mean it, Brother.”
Crip shot him a look. “You know this chick?”
Cholo nodded. “Works with Lex.”
I turned toward P-Nut. Standing in the same spot, he stood statue-still with his eyes fixed on the floor. Every few seconds, he’d blink.
“You alright, Nut?”
Without looking up, he nodded.
I nodded in return, giving him the time and space he needed to come to terms with the change. I looked at Pee bee. “Well?”
He shrugged and gave me his signature grin. “Tegan and I been going skin on skin for a bit. I can’t say shit.”
“I don’t even know how to operate a condom,” Crip said. “It’s just by the grace of God I don’t have a kid.”
I couldn’t believe it. I lowered my vape and glared. “So, that’s it? None of you fuckers are going to talk shit?”
P-Nut looked up. “What’d Eddie say?”
“Ain’t talked to her yet.”
“But you’re going to, right? Not just move the chick in?”
“Fuck no,” I said. “I’ll talk to Ed about it. Jesus, Nut, you know me better than that.”
He nodded, and then his eyes fell to the floor. After a long pause, he looked up and clapped his hands. “I’m good with it.”
I looked at the other three men and shook my head. “Nothing? Not one slick ass comment from the rest of you?”
“What’d you expect?” Crip asked with a dry laugh. “You’re an asshole. If anyone would have said anything, you’d have either threatened to fight ‘em, pulled your fucking gun, or called ‘em a no-good cocksucker.”
I shrugged, and then took a hit off my vape. “Probably right.”
“Right as fuck.” He chuckled and then extended his hand. “Congratulations. I know how much Eddie means to you. I hope this one is just as enjoyable.”
As the president of the MC, Crip was an arrogant prick. As a person, he was as solid as any man could be. The problem, if it was in fact a problem, was that he was almost always acting as the president of the club.
I shook his hand. “Appreciate ya.”
“What’s her name?” P-Nut asked.
“Sandy.”
“White? Black? Mexican?” He looked at Cholo and then at me. “Hispanic? Tall? Short? Blonde? Brunette? Is she thick? What the fuck’s she look like?” he asked in one breathless sentence.
“Blonde,” I said. “I don’t know. Five foot six or so. She’s a little thing with big boobs.”
He fumbled to get a cigarette from his pack. After lighting it and taking a drag, he exhaled the smoke to the side, and fixed his eyes on mine. “Cute as fuck? Like traffic-stoppin’ cute?”
Uncertainty washed over me. Concern came right behind it. I crossed my arms. “Yeah.”
“She work at the Main Attraction?”
It was a strip club most of the men went into, and I should have known it was going to come up sooner or later.
“She’s putting in her notice. But yeah. That’s her.”
“Texxxas,” he said. “That’s her stage name. Nice girl. You said Sandy, then said big tits, and my brain went ding ding.”
“Oh shit,” Crip said.
I turned toward him.
Pee Bee’s eyes were as wide as saucers.
I looked at Crip and lifted my chin slightly. “You know her?”
“Yep.”
I shifted my eyes to Pee Bee.
He grinned. “That’s an affirmative, Ghost Rider.”
Cholo shook his head. “Never been in the place. Just know her through Lex.”
“Any of you fuck with her?” I looked the men over, pushed my vape into my back pocket, and then crossed my arms. “Tell me now. I fucking mean it.”
Four heads shook side to side.
I pursed my lips and nodded. “Any of the other fellas? That you know of?”
Crip shook his head. “She’s all business. Doesn’t fuck with guys from the club. Least not that I know of.”
Hearing it was a relief. I hadn’t given any thought to the fact that the fellas might know her, but if I’d have taken a moment to think about it, I would have known. The club where she worked was a common hangout for the MC.
“Appreciate the honesty,” I said.
I let out a sigh. I was pleased that everything went as good as it did with the fellas. I had my doubts my luck was going to continue with my next stop, though.
Eddie was going to be a tough sell.
Chapter Fifteen
Sandy
Lex and I were sunbathing on her deck. The back of her house faced the ocean, and had an unobstructed view of the water, which placed what I expected to be an emotional conversation in a very relaxing setting.
She took a drink of tea, and then tilted her head toward me. “It’s really rare for a person to fall in love first and have sex later. Especially now. I mean, crap. Girls have apps on their phone to hook up with guys. Swipe right, swipe left. It’s crazy. They hook up, and if they like it, they do it again. If they get along after that, they end up hanging out for a few months while they continue to have sex, and then they fall in love. Falling in love is the last step for millennials.”
“Did you and Cholo fall in love first?”
She let out a sigh. “Yeah.”
I sat up in my lounge chair and pushed my sunglasses up the bridge of my nose. “I knew it! You were just trying to make me feel better.”
“I was not. It’s true,” she said. “You know, if you guys would have kept seeing each other, maybe you would have fallen in love. But, you got pregnant first. And, just like Adam says, it is what it is. You can’t change it, Sandy. You can only learn to live with it. I don’t know. Maybe be grateful that he’s not being a dick about it.”
“I am grateful.”
“You don’t sound like it.”
“I think I’m…I don’t know. Maybe I’m scared.”
I hated to admit it, but I was scared, and I knew it.
“Of what?”
“Failure. Of us not making it.”
She pulled off her sunglasses. “Because you didn’t fall in love first?”
I nodded. “Uh huh.”
She laughed and then raised her index finger. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have laughed. But that’s ridiculous.” She sat up and turned to face me. “Do you trust him?”
“I do.”
“Do you think he�
��ll cheat?”
“No, I don’t. He made that pretty clear. Until this.” I waved my hands over my stomach. “He didn’t do relationships. But he said he didn’t cheat, and never would. I believe him.”
“Okay. So, if you would have fallen in love with whoever – some other random guy – do you think that would have been an assurance that they’d be faithful? Because you fell in love first?”
I shrugged. “I guess not.”
“If Smokey doesn’t cheat, you guys can get through anything. Believe me.” She shook her head lightly. “The problem isn’t the lack of love. It really isn’t. It’s the baby. It’s being pregnant.”
“What do you mean?”
“If you weren’t pregnant, and you were seeing Smokey, you know, dating or whatever. And after a while he asked you to move in, would you be scared?”
My response was immediate, and without thought. “No.”
“Even if you weren’t in love?”
“Scared? No, I don’t think so. I’d probably just move in. I’d have nothing to lose. If it didn’t work out, I’d move out.”
“Okay. Now you’re pregnant. He asks you to move in, and you’re all flipping out over it. The difference is the baby. Act like you’re not pregnant. Move in, settle into place, and before you know it, you’ll be in love. Problem solved. But the lack of love doesn’t change a thing. He cares enough about you to take care of the baby, and not to cheat on you. You’re far better off than most women who are in love.”
As much as I hadn’t liked my friendships with girls in the past, I sure liked being friends with Lex. Being without a mother for so long, I’d forgotten how important the interaction with another girl could be. Throughout our friendship, her advice was well thought out and worthy of my consideration.
I sat up and smiled. “We can be pregnant together.”
She rubbed her belly. “We don’t have a choice.”
I relaxed into the lounge, put on my sunglasses, and gazed out at the horizon. “You’re right, we don’t.”
As I watched the waves repeatedly crash into the shore, I began to wonder if I would change things even if I could.
In no time, I decided I wouldn’t.
It was at that moment that I realized I was ready to begin my journey to fall in love with Grayson Edward Wallace.
Chapter Sixteen
Smokey
P-Nut and I had ridden to San Diego and were rolling along the Mission Valley Freeway in slow-moving traffic.
“Exit 3B to Friars,” I shouted.
With his helmet all but off his head, and the loose fitting strap dangling below his chin, he gave me a look through the yellow lenses of his glasses. “Where the fuck we going?”
“There’s a fucking mall there,” I shouted. “I need to get Eddie’s gift.”
He gave a nod, and within a few minutes, we got off the exit and rode to the mall. After following me into the parking garage, he looked at the various parked cars, which were all expensive imports, and then at me.
He tossed his helmet onto the concrete beside his bike and then looked up as a $250,000 Bentley Coupe passed by us.
“You sure we’re in the right place, Brother?”
I nodded. “We’re going to Tiffany & Company. I need to get Eddie a ring.”
He spit out a laugh and raised his leg over his seat. “Oh, hell yes. I’m gonna like this.”
“You need to behave,” I warned.
He straightened his kutte. “If there’s a hot bitch in there, I’m gonna try and fuck her.”
I climbed off my bike. “Damn it, Nut. Just. Just try and act accordingly.”
He flashed a cheesy grin. “Always do.”
We sauntered toward a plexiglass enclosed map that was on display in the courtyard, and studied it.
“Right around the corner.” He looked at me and raised his eyebrows. “By Louis Vuitton and Neiman Marcus. Yeah, this’ll be fun.”
“C’mon, Romeo,” I said with a roll of my eyes.
Dressed in jeans, boots, and our kuttes, we walked to the store amidst several stares and a few dropped jaws. Upon reaching it, I turned toward P-Nut.
“I meant what I said.”
“Best behavior.” He gave a nod. “But I’m on the prowl.”
Upon pushing the door open, we were met by a wide-eyed guard.
Dressed in a suit, and built like a linebacker, he gave an unassuming nod. “Welcome to Tiffany’s.”
“I’m looking for a ring for my daughter,” I said. “Diamond.”
“One of our associates will be with you promptly,” he said.
I offered a silent nod of appreciation.
“One of our associates,” Nut whispered mockingly.
I narrowed my eyes and shot him a glare. “I meant it.”
“Good afternoon, and welcome to Tiffany’s. I’m Jennis. How can I help you?” someone said from behind me.
Peering over my shoulder, P-Nut’s eyebrows raised slightly. “What’s your name again?”
“Jennis.”
“Spell it.”
I turned around. A tall, pale, and very thin woman dressed in a navy skirt and blazer stood with her hands dangling at her sides. Her hair hung past her shoulders and draped over her chest like a sheet of crimson silk.
“J, e, n, n, i, s,” she said.
“Oh, Jennis. Sorry, thought you said Janice,” P-Nut said. “We’re looking for a diamond ring.”
“I’m looking for a diamond ring,” I said.
She smiled and alternated glances between us. “An engagement ring? Or--”
“No,” P-Nut said before she finished.
“Yes,” I said.
She looked at him, and then at me. “Yes, or no?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
“No,” P-Nut said.
She grinned. “What’s the purpose of the ring?”
“To cause anyone who encounters the person wearing it to think she’s spoken for.”
“She would be your wife? Girlfriend?” She leaned forward and then glanced over each shoulder. “Sidepiece?”
P-Nut chuckled. “What do you know about sidepieces?”
She raised her delicate hand to her mouth and grinned a sly grin. “I’ll never tell.”
“I’m an expert at getting sexy redheads to talk--”
I elbowed P-Nut and stepped between them. “It’s for my daughter.”
She turned to the side and took a long stride toward one of the many display cases. “You want to scare off the--”
“I’ll scare them off once they come through the door,” I said. “I want this to minimize the amount of them I’ll have to scare.”
“We have a few pieces that may interest you. How old is she?”
“Seventeen.”
She stepped behind the case and turned to face us. “Oh, what a great age.”
“Yep,” P-Nut said. “Just a couple years older than you.”
Jesus H. Christ.
“Oh stop,” she said, doing the hand to the face thing again. “Please, you’re going to make me blush.”
P-Nut glanced over each shoulder, then reached for his zipper. “I’ll make you blush.”
I turned to the side and shot him a glare. “Damn it, Nut.”
“You guys are such fun.” She reached into the case and retrieved three rings. “We have the Infinity Line, the Legacy Line, and the--”
“I’m sorry,” I said upon seeing the rings. “I want a solitaire. Something big. Maybe a carat or two.”
Her thin lips formed a delicate “O”, and she scooped up the rings.
“You don’t want a solitaire for Eddie, Smoke. She’ll look like a seventeen-year-old...” He paused and twisted his mouth to the side.
I arched an eyebrow. “A seventeen-year-old what?”
He looked at Jennis.
Her eyebrows raised slowly, and then her head tilted to the side. “Courtesan?”
“Excuse me?”
She flipped her hair over her shoulder, lea
ned forward, and rested her hands against her hips. “One would assume she’s engaged. A young woman wearing such an engagement ring may be perceived as being a…” She let out a dramatic sigh. “Gold digger?”
P-Nut pursed his lips and nodded.
“Really?” I asked.
She shrugged.
“What do you suggest?”
“The Somerset, Schlumberger Daisy, maybe the Enchant Scroll.” She raised her index finger. “I’ll be right back.”
She grinned a shallow grin and disappeared behind another jewelry case at the front of the store.
P-Nut looked at me. “I’m gonna shove that chick so full of cock that it dislocates her hips.”
“No, you’re not.”
“The fuck you say. Who’s stopping me?”
“Leave her alone, Nut. I need to get this ring bought.”
“I ain’t talking about doing it now. Buy your ring and watch the master at work.”
I coughed a laugh. “The master?”
He nodded. “You know what they say about skinny red-heads, don’t ya?”
“I’m drawing a blank.”
“They’ve got tight pussies, and they dive on a cock like the homeless on a $100 bill.”
I shook my head. “Where do you come up with this shit?”
“Well-known fact, Brother.”
“Take a look at these.” She placed four rings in front of us. “The Somerset, Daisy, Enchant, and the Five-Row Metro.”
“Five-Row,” P-Nut said.
I reached for the ring she called the five-row. It had five rows of diamonds around the complete circumference of the ring, and looked elegant.
“I like this one.”
She tilted her head to the side and smiled. “It’s a beautiful ring.”
As I admired the ring, P-Nut took a step back, raised his hand to his chin, and studied her. Her focus alternated back and forth between me and him as I studied the ring and he studied her.
I imagined Eddie wearing the ring, and how it would look. I smiled and nodded. “I’ll take it.”
She gave a nod. “Very well.”
She looked at me and then glanced at P-Nut and grinned. “Do you have a question?”
His eyes looked up and down her wispy frame a few times. When he finished eye-fucking her, he fixed his eyes on hers. “Just thinking.”
F*CKERS (Biker MC Romance Book 7) Page 66