“Is that true?” I asked.
Carnie sighed and buried her face in the bed. “No,” she groaned.
“Then why don’t you tell him that so that way he doesn’t have to sit on the shitter to order pizza.” I pulled open the top drawer on the dresser and grabbed a handful of underwear.
“Because I don’t know how to tell him.”
I dropped the underwear in my suitcase. “Uh, try using the same words that you just used with me.”
“It’s not that easy, Wendy.”
“Yeah, it is,” I insisted. I turned back to the dresser and grabbed the remaining undergarments.
“No, it’s not, but you don’t understand that.”
I rolled my eyes and bit my tongue. I tended to do that a lot when Carnie talked to me lately. She acted like I didn’t understand anything since she started seriously dating Freak.
Drove me fucking batty.
“I wish you weren’t leaving,” she sighed wistfully.
I didn’t have to leave, but hanging around the clubhouse that I didn’t really have any connection to wasn’t working too well.
With Bobby out of the picture, I didn’t need to be watched by one of the Fallen Lords anymore. I was free to leave and get back to my life in Pines Peak. Though I couldn’t really call that much of a life.
“Pretty sure Wrecker wouldn’t be fan of me just leeching off the clubhouse and hanging around.” I dumped more clothes into my suitcase. “Pretty sure he smiled behind that massive beard of his when I said I was heading back home.”
“Nonsense,” Carnie scoffed.
It wasn’t nonsense. I couldn’t blame Wrecker for being irritated by all of the women and soon to be babies around the clubhouse. This was a motorcycle club, after all, not a catch-all for damsels in distress.
“Knock, knock!”
“Alice, I can see you in the doorway,” Carnie laughed. “You didn’t need to yell knock, knock.”
Alice shrugged. “It seemed fitting.” She stepped into the room with a pizza box in one hand a bottle of wine in the other. Who followed in behind her was surprising.
“Whoa,” Carnie gasped. She sprang up from the bed and stood next to me. “Alice, you have a girl following you.”
Alice laughed and handed me the bottle of wine. “How observant of you, Carn.” She looked at the girl beside her. “Ladies, this is Adley. She is Slayer’s daughter.”
My jaw hit the floor, and all air rushed from my lungs. “Daughter?” I wheezed.
“Holy h…cow,” Carnie quickly corrected herself. “Cow. Holy cow.”
“That’s exactly what Slayer looked like when he walked into the clubhouse,” Alice laughed. “We came here to help you pack while the guys do church.” Alice set the pizza box on the empty desk in the corner of the room and flipped back the top. “I’m also hungry.”
“Is that the pizza Slayer ordered from the bathroom?” Carnie asked.
Alice grabbed a slice and took a huge bite. “I wondered if you knew about that.”
Carnie rolled her eyes. “Freak thinks he pulled the wool over my eyes, but he was talking so loud on the phone and flushing the toilet every thirty seconds.”
Alice licked her lips. “Don’t let him know you know. It’ll be more fun this way.”
My eyes moved to Slayer’s daughter. She stood next to Alice, her hands hanging at her sides and her eyes to the floor. Her hair was light brown, clips on each side of her head holding it back, and it was a few inches shorter than mine.
I stepped toward her and held my hand out. “I’m Wendy.”
She meekly took my hand and shook it. “Adley.”
Alice squinted at Adley. “She was more feisty out in the common room.”
“Probably because Slayer was there,” I mumbled.
“I knew you knew his name!” Carnie shouted.
I rolled my eyes and made my way over to the pizza. “You keep that in this room, Carnie.” I plucked a sausage off the pizza and popped it into my mouth.
Alice plopped down on the bed and leaned back on one hand. “You Wilkes girls are a hoot. It’s good for me being pregnant that you too are so entertaining. The more days go by, the less energy I seem to have to keep Wrecker on his toes.” She sighed heavily. “Soon, my cow onesie isn’t going to fit anymore.”
“Buy a bigger size,” Carnie suggested.
Adley’s eyes grew wide as she listened to Alice talk.
Alice might have felt like she didn’t have much energy, but she was just as entertaining. The woman could tell a story and confuse the hell out of you with a few words. Thankfully, I had been around her for a bit and wasn’t as confused anymore. Somewhat.
“Help yourself to some pizza, Adley. I can grab a soda from the fridge for you,” I offered.
Alice slapped her forehead. “Jesus, why the hell didn’t I think of that?”
I laughed and dropped my half eaten slice on the lid of the box. “Hey, you at least remembered to bring wine for Carnie and me.”
“Which doesn’t make sense either seeing how I got a baby growing in me who can’t handle his booze yet.”
Only Alice would so eloquently say that the unborn baby can’t handle his booze. “I’ll grab you a soda, too.”
I jogged to the kitchen, grabbed two sodas and two wine glasses, then hightailed it back to my room.
Carnie had the wine bottle tipped back to her lips when I walked in, and Alice was cheering her on to chug.
Poor Adley was going to be scarred from hanging out with these two. “Use a glass, at least, Carnie,” I laughed. I handed her the wine glasses and nodded to the bottle. “Fill my glass before you chug it all.”
Carnie wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and scowled at me. “I just took a sip.”
I eyed her knowingly and handed the sodas to Alice and Adley. “Right, and you just had a couple of sips on your birthday.”
Carnie huffed and filled my glass.
I sat down on the floor in front of the bed with my wine and pizza.
Adley had grabbed a slice of pizza and was nibbling quietly. I wanted to know why she was here suddenly, but I didn’t want to make her any more uncomfortable than she obviously was.
“Are you excited to get back to Pines Peak?” Alice asked with her mouthful.
I shrugged. “I guess.”
There wasn’t really anything there for me to get back to. I didn’t have a job anymore. I lived with my mom and dad. My love life was nonexistent. Basically, what I had there was the same thing I had here other than I lived with my sister and her boyfriend's motorcycle club instead.
“Oh, please, you know you are excited to go home. It’s gonna be the holiday season soon and you’ll be elbow deep helping Mom and Aunt Elle cooking all day and night.”
“You look forward to doing that every year. I’d much rather make a couple dozen cookies and kick back with some spiked eggnog.” I shoved the last bite of my pizza into my mouth and sighed.
“My mom and I always made cookies together. Before she died, that is,” Adley mumbled softly.
“Well, you’re in luck, then,” Alice chirped. “It may not be as good as your mom, but Carnie is one hell of a cook. I’m sure you can do some baking with her.”
Carnie clapped her hands together. “Girl, yes! I have so many ideas that I want to do as soon as the holiday season hits.”
Carnie rambled on about all of the goodies she planned on baking while Alice gave her nod of approval or made a yacking sound if she didn’t like it.
Adley didn’t say much, but I could tell she was listening to every word Alice and Carnie said. I really don’t know anything about the girl, but I was confident if she was going to be at the clubhouse with all of the girls, she was going to be fine.
Though with Slayer being her dad, she was going to need a prayer or two.
*
Chapter Three
Slayer
“How do you not know you have a twelve-year-old?” Maniac asked.
I rested my head in my hands and massaged my temples. “I don’t fucking know. I don’t even remember who she says her mom is.” The name didn’t ring a bell with me at all. Hell, who knows if she had even told me her name.
“Classic,” Pipe chuckled.
I sat back in my chair and flipped him off. “This could have happened to any of us,” I pointed out. “Twelve fucking years ago, none of us were chained down with an ol’ lady.” Twelve years ago, pussy ran through the clubhouse like water and no man was ever thirsty.
“There isn’t much here besides legal shit. Looks like she was about to file all of this, and then, you would have been notified.” Wrecker closed the folder. “She died before that happened.”
“I don’t even know if I really am her dad, or of this chick just picked my name out of a hat of the guys she had been with.” I hate to say anything bad about the woman since I didn’t know her, but how the hell did she know that I was Adley’s father?
“She does have a letter here.” Wrecker held up a piece of paper with three paragraphs handwritten. “Says she’s sorry about having to do this, blah, blah, she knows it was you because you were the only guy she slept with, didn’t tell you because you didn’t seem like the type to want to be tied down, didn’t plan on telling you but she got sick so yada yada yada, please don’t blame Adley for her choices.” Wrecker folded the note in half and tossed it on top of the other papers. “The end.”
My head swam with everything he had just said. I didn’t even know where to start.
“Damn, brother, popped the chick’s cherry, and then, she doesn’t even tell you you’re a dad.” Clash shook his head and snickered. “That is a low blow.”
“Find out you’re the kid’s dad, and then, you be her dad.” Wrecker pushed the pile of papers toward me. “Crisis averted.” He stood up and nodded to Pipe. “Find out what Brinks is up to. I haven’t heard from him in a couple of days.”
“Wait, what?” I wailed. “That’s all you have to say?” I felt this needed more. More of what, I wasn’t sure, but I needed more than take the blood test and then be her dad.
Wrecker pointed at the papers. “Do blood work. Take it from there when you get the results.”
“And just what am I supposed to do until the results come back?”
How was he making this sound so simple? This was anything but simple.
“Look, Slayer. This isn’t a problem I can solve. Hell, I don’t even think it’s a problem.” He leaned forward and rested his hands on the table. “You aren’t the first guy to find out he’s got a kid out in the world he didn’t know about, and you ain’t gonna be the last.”
“What the hell am I going to do if it ends up that she isn't mine?” I insisted.
Did no one think that maybe this chick was lying and I wasn’t her baby daddy? I was careful. Every fucking time I had sex, I wrapped it up.
“If it turns out she isn’t yours, then I’ll help you figure that out because that does sound like a problem.” Wrecker stood up straight. “If you’re worried about the whole dad thing, talk to Nickel. He’s been doing it for a few months.”
I glanced at Nickel.
He shrugged. “It just comes natural, brother. You’re kind of behind the ball seeing as you missed the first twelve years of her life, but you’ll get it figured out.”
Maniac clapped me on the back. “Look at it this way, you can learn how to do the dad thing with Wrecker and me. In three months, there will be two more kids added to the club.”
Everyone gradually got up, talking and joking with each other. All I could do was sit there.
How could my life be going one way and, in an instant, everything changed?
“You’ll be fine, Slayer.”
I snapped out of my pity party and noticed Boink was the only one left in the room with me.
“You got no way of knowing that,” I muttered.
It was easy for Wrecker to tell me to just be a dad and these guys to tell me I was going to be fine. They weren’t the ones who were having to deal with this. They hadn’t had a twelve-year-old dropped on their doorstep and been told to take care of her.
All I had to worry about for the past thirty-five years was myself, and sometimes, I didn’t do that very well.
“How the hell am I going to be fine living in the clubhouse with a twelve-year-old, Boink? You really think this is the best place to raise a kid.”
He shrugged. “I mean, there could be worse places, but if you’re really against her living here, then find a place in town to live.”
“Because I can have a house to live in tomorrow. So easy,” I grumbled.
None of this was fucking easy.
Boink shook his head. “You got your head so far up your ass worrying about this that you aren’t thinking straight.” He sat back in his chair and sighed. “Oakley has houses all over the town, and I’m pretty damn sure not all of them are occupied.”
“You want me to move my daughter into a house owned by a drug lord?” Jesus Christ. Was Boink dipping into Oakley’s stash? “And what the hell am I supposed to do with her when I got shit I need to do for the club?” I demanded. “Plop her on the back of my bike like it’s a ten speed and take off with her?”
Boink rolled his eyes. “I’ve been to some of his houses, Slayer, and there ain’t no way in hell you can tell he owns them. Clean, updated, and big. Not like you’re going to have drug deals going down in the living room every night or something.” He leaned forward and rested his hands on the table. “If you’re not wanting to raise your daughter here, then I think one of his houses is the next best thing. And you know any of the girls will be more than willing to help out when you need them. You’re forgetting the club is a family, and we don’t leave our brothers out to dry when they need us.” He pushed his chair back and strolled out of the room.
I buried my head in hands and fought back the urge to scream.
Half an hour ago, I found out I have a daughter, and now, I was contemplating moving into a house owned by a known drug dealer.
I was going to be a great dad. Not.
*
Chapter Four
Wendy
Carnie rolled over onto her stomach and buried her face in the blanket. “Do you think we should check on her?” she mumbled. At least, I think that was what she said.
I dropped my pair of flip flops on the top of my suitcase and zipped it shut. “She’s pregnant. God knows how long it takes her to go to the bathroom,” I mumbled. I couldn’t even imagine what it was like to have a baby growing inside you.
Adley was lying on the floor in front of the TV with a pillow shoved under her head and her eyes glued on some movie about the kids of evil villains. I had gotten sucked into it a few times when they would break out into song, and I couldn’t help but think the songs were pretty catchy. I was completely out of touch with what was cool for kids even though I was only twenty-two.
Carnie slid off the bed and stood close next to me. “So, what are you thinking?”
I reared back a bit and looked her in the eye. “About what?”
She casually nodded toward Adley and lowered her voice. “About the twelve-year-old who is lying on the floor and her dad you can’t stand.”
“Should I be thinking about it?” I had been thinking about it, but it wasn’t just one thought.
How did he not know he had a kid?
Why did she suddenly appear now?
Was he actually going to take care of her?
Could he take care of her?
“Don’t you think it’s all just a bit crazy?” Carnie whispered.
It was extremely crazy, but I had learned from staying at the clubhouse for a bit that crazy things seemed to happen around here. More often than not. “I mean, I bet these guys lived rather, uh…”
How was I supposed to say the guys were manwhores without offending Carnie? She was with one of the manwhores now. Granted, they all seemed to be reformed, but still.
“They were gener
ous with their love meat.”
Carnie and I spun around, surprised to see Alice standing in the doorway of the bathroom with her hands resting on her baby bump.
“Shh,” Carnie hissed and nodded toward Adley.
Her eyes were still glued to the TV, and I didn’t think she had heard a word we said, let alone Alice talking about love meat.
I pointed at Alice. “Bingo. They liked to share their love sticks.”
Alice winked. “I like that better than love meat.” She pulled the bathroom door shut behind her and sighed. “The human body does some weird things when pregnant. I wouldn’t go in there for a little bit.”
I wrinkled my nose, and Carnie let out a bark of laughter.
“My God, girl,” Carnie howled. “The things that come out of your mouth.”
“Once Freaky Deaky gets you pregnant, you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about.” Alice flopped down on the bed and raised her arms over her head. “I think I got some major heartburn from that pizza, though I’m really craving some ice cream right now.”
“Hold up, hold it right up.” Carnie pointed to her stomach. “There is no way in hell I am going to be pregnant anytime soon. This belly is not ready for no baby.”
“Amen to that,” I mumbled. “Same over here.”
“Pretty sure you would need to have a man or a miracle for that to happen for you, Wendy,” Carnie snickered.
I rolled my eyes and dragged my suitcase over to the door. “I’m just fine with the way things are right now. No man means no headache.”
The door pushed open and banged into my butt.
“Ope, sorry.” The door shut and then reopened when my butt wasn’t in front of it.
“Try knocking,” I growled when I saw it was Slayer.
“How was I supposed to know your butt was in front of it, Wanda?” Slayer growled back.
My blood boiled at the fact he refused to say my name. Though, I refused to use his either. At least, to his face. “Knock, Sludge. That’s how you would have known.”
Slayer (Fallen Lords MC Book 8) Page 2