[Montgomery Ink 00.5 - 01.0] Box Set

by Carrie Ann Ryan

  As soon as the man left, Austin let out a breath. Jesus, he didn’t know what it was about that guy, but Austin was never fully calm around him. In fact, when Saint made an appointment—or showed up randomly as he was prone to do—Austin made sure he cleared out the place as much as possible. The man seemed to want privacy, and Austin didn’t want to step on his toes.

  “Is he gone?” Maya asked as she walked out from the back, her eyes on the door.

  “Yep. He paid up front, though I didn’t quote him. Let me go see how much he put down.”

  Maya sighed. “That man sure is built, and I wouldn’t mind taking a ride, but he scares me a bit too much, you know?”

  Austin repressed a shudder. “Never say anything about riding Saint or any other man again. We may be friends, but you’re also my sister. Oh, and if you touch Saint, or think about touching Saint, I’m sending you to a convent.”

  His sister snorted. “Yes, I can totally see me in a nun’s habit with my eyebrow piercing and ink. And anyway, I’m allowed to think of Saint in naughty ways without actually touching him. He's hot in a serial-killer kinda way. You see those blue eyes? Ice cold...but I'd sure like to warm them up. He looks like a buffer, hotter Spike.”

  “Spike?” Where the hell did his sister come up with this crap?

  She rolled her eyes before she turned away to get back to her station. “You know, Spike? From Buffy? All hot and spiky blond.”

  “So he’s Spike because of his hair?” He was so confused.

  “No, it’s more because of a thing with railroad spikes and blood I think. Anyway, Saint is hot, but I would never get involved with an MC. We’re a crazy enough family without that.”

  “Thank God,” he mumbled as he put the three grand Saint had left in the till. He’d paid way too much as usual, but Austin took it anyway. He’d tried to give some back last time and had almost wept at Saint’s look. He wasn’t less of a man to cry because of Saint.

  “So, what’s on the rest of the schedule today? Saint came in early this morning so we have the rest of the late afternoon and evening, right?”

  Austin nodded, fumbling with the computer yet again. “Yeah. I have another session this evening that should only take an hour. Saint’s ink took a long time this morning, and I don’t want to hurt my back by doing any more.”

  “Good to hear it,” Callie said as she walked in with a spring in her step.

  “What’s up with you?” Austin asked.

  “I just saw the hottest man ever outside. He looked just like Spike!”

  “No!” Austin and Maya yelled at the same time.

  Callie’s eyes widened, and she took a step back. The action forced a laugh out of Austin. “Sorry, honey. Don’t look at Spike again, okay? He’s not for you.”

  Callie raised a brow. “Really? Because he’s hot, and telling me I can’t have someone just makes me want him more. Or at least to try since, once I get to know someone, it’s all about what I want and not what others don’t want. Make sense?”

  “No,” Austin said, rubbing his temples. Jesus, Callie was just alike Miranda with a little Meghan and Maya thrown in. Whoever had the luck of having Callie as their woman in the future had a lot to handle.

  “Honey, don’t taunt Austin. Saint is bad news. He might be hot, but he scares even me. Okay?”

  Callie shrugged. “That’s fine. I wasn’t really going to chase after him and beg for a ride…on his bike.” She snorted as Austin clenched his jaw. “I like a man in a suit more than leather anyway.”

  “Really? You?” Maya asked, and Austin had to agree.

  “Sure. They can have ink, piercings, and other fun and tasty things under the suit. But there’s nothing like a man in a suit to rev my engines.”

  Austin closed his eyes and said a silent prayer. “Please stop talking about revving anything. And for the love of God, Maya, don’t encourage her. And don’t talk about riding. Please. I can’t take anymore. You two are killing me.”

  “Aww, poor Austin can’t handle his little sister having sex,” Callie said, teasing.

  “I swear I’m going to fire your ass, Callie.”

  “I’d like to see you try. You can’t get on without me.” With that, she pranced off to the back, humming a tune Austin didn’t recognize.

  “Why didn’t I get a nice apprentice who happens to have a dick and doesn’t bug the shit out of me?”

  Maya grinned. “Because Callie fucking rocks at ink, and she needed your help.”

  “True, but I don’t think I can take any more sex talk for the day.”

  “So I guess I shouldn’t ask how you and Sierra are doing?”

  Austin sighed then went to his station, pulling out his notepad. He still hadn’t finished Sierra’s sketch. She also hadn’t asked about it. Had she forgotten? Or maybe had second thoughts?

  For some reason he felt like if he finished this sketch, then a part of what he and Sierra had would be over. It didn’t make any sense, but Austin couldn’t quite place what was wrong there. It sucked to think that the initial burst of heat and attraction would be over and, in its place, a comfort he’d never had would remain.

  No, that wouldn’t be right. He still got hard and wanted to fuck her up against any wall or surface he could when he saw her. Maybe this was what a real serious relationship felt like. Something different, something comfortable.

  It didn’t make any sense then that he was still so fucking twitchy.

  “Uh, earth to Austin, you okay?”

  Austin shook his head, clearing out the thoughts that wouldn’t go away at Maya’s words. “I’m good. Just thinking too much.”

  Maya came up to him. “About what? I mentioned Sierra, and you got all serious. Is there something going on there you need to talk about? I might joke and tease with you, but you’re my big brother, and I love you. If you need to talk, I’m here.”

  Austin set the unfinished sketch on his pad down and sighed. “I don’t know, Maya. I just have an odd feeling, I guess.”

  She sat down on the bench next to his chair, her teeth nibbling at her lip. “You guys really work well together. I mean it’s like you guys fit, you know?”

  He nodded, knowing she was right. “I know that. It’s just…”

  “This all happened really fast?”

  He let out a breath, glad that Maya got the situation and him. “I feel like one minute we’re sniping at each other over Shannon and the next minute Sierra’s living with me and my kid.”

  “Insta-family.”

  “Fuck. Yeah. I guess. It’s not that I don’t want this to happen. I just didn’t think that it would happen within two months of actually knowing her.”

  “And having Leif show up out of the blue doesn’t help either.”

  “I don’t know what to do with him,” he whispered.

  Maya punched him in the shoulder. “You’re not thinking of trying to get rid of him or anything? Because if you do, I’ll not only kick your ass, I’ll take that kid from you so fast you won’t even have time to blink.”

  “What? No! That’s not what I meant. There’s not another alternative. There’s never been one. I’m not letting him go. I just don’t know what to do with him now that he’s here.”

  “Be his dad, Austin.”

  He growled, throwing his sketchpad across the room. “I fucking know that. I know I’m his dad, not that he actually says the words. No, he barely talks to me. Sure, he’ll talk to Mom and Sierra, but me? Nothing. I tried to talk to him, and it even worked a bit when we talked about tattoos, but that’s it. He just mumbles and looks like he’s ready to bolt at any moment. I don’t know what to fucking do.”

  Maya sighed as Callie came out of the back room. She bent over and picked up the sketchbook, holding it to her chest.

  “I don’t want to lose him, but do I really have him? I feel like I’m just standing here and making a home for him so he’s safe, but I’m only the landlord. He doesn’t need me.”

  “Oh, Austin, of course he n
eeds you,” Callie said.

  “Really? Because it sure doesn’t seem like it. He needs Sierra for sure, but he doesn’t need me.” As soon as he said it, he felt like an ass.

  “You can’t be jealous of your girlfriend, honey,” Maya said softly. The fact that she spoke softly and didn’t hit him spoke volumes.

  “God, I’m so fucking jealous, and I hate myself even more for it.”

  “He had Maggie before,” Callie added in, still clutching the sketchbook. “He had a mom and not a dad. Yeah, it sucks that he didn’t have it before, but he’s not used to men in his life. At least as far as I can tell. And, honey, there are a lot of male Montgomerys in the world. You all are a bit overwhelming.”

  “You need to talk to Sierra about this,” Maya added. “She’s not going to judge you, but if you keep it bottled up inside, you’re going to end up resenting her for being an awesome woman, who not only deals with your surly ass but opened her arms to a little boy she didn’t know without even blinking. Don’t just talk to me and Callie. Talk to your girlfriend. I know you love her.”

  “Who said anything about love?” he bit out.

  “Oh shut up,” Maya snapped. “You love her, and she loves you. Just because you might not have said the words to each other doesn’t make it any less true. Maybe if you actually said it, you’d get over whatever is blocking you from feeling settled with her.”

  God, he loved Sierra. He loved her more than he ever thought he could love someone else, but it all happened so fast. He thought he’d be ready for the emotion and all it meant when it finally came to him, but he didn’t know it would feel like getting hit in the head with a two-by-four. He’d wanted to settle down and find a wife and have a baby. Now he had a girlfriend who felt like she was already a permanent part of his life and a ten-year-old who wanted nothing to do with him.

  What the hell was he supposed to do with that?

  “I don’t know what to do, girls,” he finally said after he sat there silently.

  “Talk to her,” Callie said.

  The door opened, and Austin looked up to see a pale Sierra walk in with Leif in front of her. He opened his mouth to ask what was wrong then got a look at his son’s face.

  “What the hell happened?” Austin roared. “How the fuck did he get a black eye?”

  “Austin, please,” Sierra whispered, shaking her head.

  Austin stormed over to the pair, only to freeze, and Leif shrunk into Sierra. It was like a punch in the gut, and he wanted to scream. He swallowed hard, forcing his fists to relax.

  “What happened?” he asked, softer this time. He knelt before Leif and held out a hand. When Leif didn’t flinch, he took his son’s chin and tilted his head. “Ouch.”

  “Tell him, honey,” Sierra whispered.

  Leif shuffled his feet then sighed. “Some kid called me a bastard, so I hit him. I broke his nose, so his friend punched me in the eye.” He sniffed. “But the first kid bled a lot.”

  Pride and anger warred within him. If it had been only the two of them, he’d have said good job for hitting a kid who called him names, but he knew that wasn’t the right reaction.

  “Hell,” he whispered. “You get ice on that?” he asked, not knowing what else to day.

  “I did in the nurse’s office.”

  “Hey, buddy, let’s go get you an ice pack next door,” Maya said from behind him. He heard the edge to her voice, the one that spoke of punching people for hurting their blood, but he wasn’t sure if anyone else heard it.

  “Okay,” Leif said then turned to hug Sierra before walking away.

  He didn’t even bother telling Austin goodbye.

  Great.

  Just fucking great.

  Austin stood, running a hand over his beard. “What the fuck, Sierra? Why didn’t I get a call?”

  Sierra narrowed her eyes. “We tried. Your cell is off, and your work number keeps getting a busy signal. Don’t snap at me for being there when you couldn’t. That’s why we put my name and number on the emergency list.”

  He cursed and looked down at his phone. “Fuck. It must have accidently turned off.”

  “And someone knocked the phone off the cradle,” Callie said as she hung the work phone back up. “That really sucks.”

  “No shit.” It wasn’t lost on him that he hadn’t said thank you or even kissed Sierra, but he couldn’t. The fact that Leif had been hurt and he hadn’t been available made him sick. What kind of father was he? Maybe the kid was right for choosing Sierra over him.

  “If you’re done. I need to go back to work. I was at my accountant’s so that’s why I didn’t stop by here on my way over to the school if you were wondering. Oh, and your son has in-school suspension for two weeks, and you need to meet with the other boys’ families with the vice principal. I wrote it all down.” She took out a piece of paper from her purse and threw it at him. “I’m sorry you feel like I hid it from you but don’t yell at me for helping. Leif was scared, Austin, and I didn’t know what else to do.”

  Damn it. He felt like a heel. “Sierra…”

  “No, don’t. I need to go back to work, and then I’m heading to my place tonight. I need a breather, and frankly, it’s been so long since I slept in my own bed I don’t know if it’s even still there.”

  Panic hit him hard, and he took a step toward her. She held up a hand, stopping him. “Just one night, Austin,” she said, her voice shaky. “Tell Leif I will see him tomorrow.”

  She walked away, and Austin staggered back.

  “Go after her, you idiot,” Callie barked.

  “I can’t. She’ll just turn me away. I’ll make it up to her in the morning. I know I’m an idiot. I’m not going to lose her.”

  “You might have already done that,” Callie said sadly then walked away.

  Austin thought the same but pushed that away. He wasn’t going to lose her, but he knew he’d fucked up.

  Badly.

  With that thought, he turned back to Hailey’s to go see the son that didn’t want him. He wasn’t giving up on either of them.

  That didn’t mean it would be easy.

  Chapter Twenty-two

  Sierra’s stomach lurched again, and she forced herself not to freak out. She hadn’t exactly walked out on Austin the day before, but it was close enough to the truth that her palms went damp at the thought. Work waited for her, and the strained smile on her face hadn’t gotten past Becky, though her customers didn’t seem to notice she was breaking inside.

  That was something at least.

  Just a few more hours of work and she could go home—which home, well, she hadn’t decided yet.

  When she’d gotten the phone call from Leif’s school, she dropped everything, leaving her accountant with an understanding look on his face. Luckily, Sierra had almost been done with everything so she hadn’t missed out on much, but she’d still put Leif before her other responsibilities and dreams.

  Or at least the money side of her dreams.

  And she’d do it again too.

  The fact that Leif meant so much to her so quickly made things worse for her and Austin. She knew that, but now she’d just have to deal. The look on that little boy’s face when she’d walked into the office would be forever cemented on her mind.

  At first he’d looked so…disappointed. That hadn’t hurt her, not in the sense that she felt she wasn’t the one he’d wanted. Leif, despite the fact that he didn’t know how to communicate it, wanted his father to be there. Because of a set of circumstances that seemed to be out against them, Austin hadn’t been there.

  Leif had only looked that way for a moment before the relief had clearly hit him. At least he was happy to see her. The black eye had jolted her, but she’d pushed through, demanding to know what had happened and what would be done with the other boys. Bullying was not to be tolerated. Violence was not to be tolerated.

  Leif had learned a lesson, and she’d be damned if those other boys didn’t learn one as well. The school had been on her
side, but they needed Austin as well. He’d be there for the next meeting; she was certain of it. No amount of dead phones and odd occurrences would keep him away from Leif.

  From her, however? Well, that was another matter altogether.

  The look in his eyes when she’d told him how she’d gone instead…

  God, she wasn’t sure she’d ever get that out of her brain.

  It wasn’t rational for him to be jealous of her for how Leif connected with her so quickly, but that didn’t make it any less of a valid response. She knew something was bothering him, yet she hadn’t been able to fix it.

  Just as he’d been angry at her and the situation, she’d also been just as angry. So she lashed out and walked away, determined not to let Austin dig into her like he had before. He might have had second thoughts and regretted the way he treated her, but she was right in that she needed a night apart.

  Damn it, though, it had been tough.

  She hadn’t slept without him in a month, and his side of the bed had been so cold. Her apartment felt barren and small, empty without his presence. Empty without the heat and care that came from Austin being who he was.

  Although she’d told him it was only for a night, she was afraid it might be more. They hadn’t parted on good terms, and she wasn’t sure how he’d react to seeing her again. Frankly, she wasn’t sure how she would react at seeing him again.

  They’d fought before, sure. Both of them were strongly opinionated, and it was only a matter of time before they clashed, but this one…this one was big. This wasn’t something that could be brushed under the rug and forgotten. In fact, she wasn’t even sure how to talk about it. Throwing a secret love child into a situation would never end up on an easy road. The rough and tumble paths to find a way to live with Leif and find out how Austin and Sierra could have a future seemed almost overwhelming to her.

  They’d taken Leif in without a second thought, and now they were going to have to learn to find a way to cope with it. Letting the state have him had never been an option to Austin, and it sure hadn’t been to her, but having him blend into Austin’s family at the same time Sierra was trying to find a way to do the same wasn’t making things easy.