Second Chances (Steel Bandits MC Book 1)

by JC Belanger

  We both shake our head no and he leaves to go and get my daughter. My leg is bouncing so hard that the pens rattle on his desk. Scott reaches over and places his hand on my leg to still it. When the door opens again, my breath stops as I look over and see my angel. Scott’s eyes are huge as he gets his first look at his niece. CeCe sees me and starts kicking her little legs and cooing. Scott lets out a laugh and tells me that she looks exactly like me. I can’t help the pride I feel at that. Reaching out for her, I grab her just as she tries to leap into my arms. I cuddle her for a few minutes as Scott watches with longing in his eyes. I finally decide to be nice and let him hold her. Watching the tears come to his eyes as he holds my daughter is almost more than I can take. This is because of me. I took Scott getting to know CeCe away from him because I was too scared to fill them in on my secret.

  Mr. James hands Scott the car seat so that we can get her settled in the car, before we head to her former home. When we get the Quinn’s home, Mr. James stays with CeCe so that Scott and I can go into the home with officer and the fire chief. I had brought a few duffle bags, just in case we could get some of her belongings. As I begin filling the bags, Scott talks to the chief and learns what they believe happened. I see a few photo albums and I grab them so that CeCe can see who helped raise her when she is older.

  Scott comes over and grabs the bags before he says that we need to leave. He looks a little stressed but doesn’t say anything else. He keeps scanning the area like we are being watched. All I know is that I believe we have enough things for a six-month-old baby to fill her own apartment. I had no idea that babies needed this much stuff. I again start to feel overwhelmed with how much I don’t know about raising a baby. It’s a feeling that I’m sure I’ll be feeling a lot over the next few years.

  Once we are in the SUV heading back to the clubhouse, Scott calls Axel. I hear the worry in his voice when they begin to speak, but nothing can prepare me for what he is saying.

  “Prez, we have a problem,” Scott begins. “The fire chief was at the Quinn’s house with us to assure there was no safety issues. He was telling me that the police have made this a murder investigation. Evidently Mr. Quinn was not the squeaky-clean guy he pretended to be. The fire was not a gas leak it was a Molotov cocktail. It was tossed into his home office, where most of the damage to the home was. What makes them sure it was murder, is that Mr. and Mrs. Quinn were both shot in the head and their hands were tied behind their backs.”

  “Get back here now!” Axel roars at us. “Racer, Tigger, and Mikey are headed your way to escort you home. If you see anything out of the ordinary call me immediately.”

  “Will do Prez. We are about fifteen minutes from the clubhouse. Is asshole secured or at least gone?” he asks.

  “We had church while you were gone,” He tells us. “We came to a decision that I will tell you about when you get here. Trust me you will be happy with what your brothers decided. Anna, prepare yourself, the brothers are upset with what happened and they may try to overcompensate trying to make amends. Just remember we love you. You are our little sister too!”

  Tears are falling again as he tells me this. I can see now how much I messed up by not telling them what had happened. Even if I didn’t tell them the whole story, I could’ve told them that I was pregnant. I know they are going to spoil my angel so much, but that’s what being the princess is all about.

  Chapter Eight

  Taz

  Prez sent a few brothers out to meet Voodoo and Peaches, so I know that means there is trouble of some kind. I am pacing the common room waiting for them to arrive. I don’t know how I’m gonna do it, but I am gonna make Anna mine. She is everything I never knew I wanted and more. I am even excited to get to know her daughter. I don’t really care what anyone thinks or if they think I’m whipped. When I look at her, I see my future.

  I head to the door when I hear a car pull into the parking lot. My heart is racing because I am going to meet who I am counting on being my daughter someday. When I get outside, you can see the stress on Scott’s face. Looks like we will be having another church today after all. I go to help Peaches get CeCe inside. Before I can get there Scott has taken the baby holder thing from her and is heading inside. Anna is reaching into the backseat for some bags. I quickly get to her side, so I can take them from her. She has a huge smile on her face, but I can see the fear hiding in her eyes. Her gaze lingers on me and I can tell that she wants to see where this thing between us is going to go. At the same time, she knows she has to focus on learning how to be a good mother to CeCe. The decision has her torn and that’s the last thing I want to see. I’ll just have to prove to her that she can do both. And I’ll be there to help her along the way for every good and bad moment that she faces I want to be there and experience it with her.

  “Baby, it’s gonna be ok,” I tell her, placing my hand on her cheek just to feel her silky-smooth skin. “I will be here to help you in any way you need. Did everything go smooth this morning?”

  “At first it went amazing,” she says in her soft, lyrical voice. “Then Scott was talking to the fire chief and he said the Quinn’s were murdered. He drove us back here like the fires of hell were after us. It’s awful what happened to them, but what does that have to do with CeCe and I?”

  “I don’t know,” I say honestly, knowing that I need to find out more information about what happened to the Quinn’s before I can figure out the best way to protect my girls. “But we will find out. I promise you that I will do whatever is necessary to protect you and that princess.”

  Anna laughs softly when I call CeCe ‘princess’. I haven’t met her and I know that she’s going to be everyone’s princess here. Before either one of us can say another word, the clubhouse door opens and Tigger yells for us to get in there. Walking through the door after Anna, I see that Scott has CeCe sitting on the table in her seat thing waiting for his sister to get over there. Anna walks over and undoes the contraption that’s holding her in before handing the little girl to him.

  As I get my first good look of Anna’s daughter, my heart about stops in my chest. She looks like a miniature version of her mother. The little girl has what looks like the softest blond hair that’s curly and pressed down on one side from being in the seat. Her little cheeks are so chubby and the ones that everyone is going to want to pinch on a constant basis. When I look in her eyes, I see that they’re the biggest and brightest blue eyes I’ve ever seen in my life. CeCe’s eyes are so clear and big that they will pull everyone in to surround her and want to be in her life.

  Scott’s chest puffs up and he gets the biggest grin on his face as he turns to face the guys I the common room. “Everyone, this beautiful girl, who will not date until she’s at least thirty-five is Cecelia Rae. You best be on your best behavior around her cause her momma will kick my ass if her first word is a cuss word!”

  I laugh along with everyone else and watch with astonishment as these big tough bikers I call my brothers all gather around making faces at her to get her to smile. Axel walks up and puts a little leather jacket on her that has the Steel Wrenches logo on the back and her name on the front. How he got this done in such a short amount of time, I will never know. It is the closest she will come to having anything resembling a property rag unless she grows up to become an old lady. Axel takes her away from Scott and walks over to a table to sit down and play with her. She is loving being the center of attention and giggles with glee making the brothers laugh along with her.

  I stand next to Anna as I patiently wait for my turn to hold the baby. Instead of going over there and forcing my way in, I stay next to Anna’s side. It seems like she needs extra strength as the reality of her daughter being here with her sets in. This is one of the times that she’s going to learn I’m here to give her everything she wants, even if she doesn’t ask for it. As Anna looks up at me, I give her a wink before leaning down close to her ear. Whispering, I ask her to go get her daughter from Axel. He’ll be less likely to bite he
r head off then if one of us were to go over and try to take the little bundle from him.

  Anna laughs as she looks up at me before walking over to my Prez. They exchange a few words before he hesitantly passes the baby back over to her. As soon as she’s in her arms, I see God walking up to take the baby from her. So, she informs everyone that they need to wait a few minutes before taking her little girl away from her again.

  “She needs to have her diaper changed and she is probably getting hungry,” she says while trying not to laugh. “I promise I will let you hold her again after a while Axel.”

  “I am not sure I trust you to share her,” Axel says letting out a laugh. “She is the cutest baby I have ever seen. Go do what you need to. There is a highchair in the dining room for her. I can see that Taz thinks he is going to help. I need to see what I can find for him to do since I know he sent you to take her!”

  I watch as Anna walks to the couch. She goes to lay CeCe down to change her when I get to her, I tell her to go to my room. There’s no point changing her out here when I have a perfectly good room she can use to have privacy. Taking the diaper bag from her, I lead her out of the common room and down the hall to my door. Once she’s changed, I gently scoop the baby up in my arms. She immediately cuddles into me and my heart explodes with a feeling I’ve never experienced. This little girl is already wrapping me around her little finger with just one look and cuddle.

  Taking her into the kitchen, I gently place her in the highchair as Anna gets out some baby food. Since we don’t exactly know what she likes, there’s an assortment sitting on the table. CeCe really likes the cereal and Hawaiian Delight. She spits out the spinach as soon as she gets the taste of it in her mouth. I really don’t blame her with that one. Picking up the last jar of baby food, I laugh when I read the label. Turning the jar of peaches to face Anna, I watch as a blush creeps up her cheeks.

  Anna

  After Taz and I get her fed, Scott shows up with Gizmo and God to steal her away. I turn to Taz and ask him if I can take a short nap in his room, as I will never enter my so-called room again. After he agrees with a small smirk, I go to ask Scott if he would be ok if I lay down for a bit. He looks at me like I’m the craziest person on the plant before he tells me to go do what I need to do. I kiss my daughter on her head before walking into Taz’s room. It seems like as soon as my head hits the pillow, I fall into a deep, peaceful sleep. The exhaustion of the last few days has finally caught up with me as I crash.

  An hour or two later, I wake up confused and hot. There is a warm arm over my body. I begin to panic before I hear Taz tell me to stop thinking, cause it’s keeping him up. I calm my racing heart and with a slight grin tell him that nap time is over. I jump with a start as it hits me, I have my daughter here. Pushing at him I try to make him move. When that doesn’t affect him at all, I stand up and try to climb over him while saying the one word that I hope will do the trick. ‘CeCe’.

  Grinning at me he grabs me and flips me on back. His shirtless body hovers over me as I get lost in his eyes. He breaks out in that sexy smirk of his and says that we will go get her as soon as I pay the fee for using his bed. I give him my best, ‘have you lost your mind’ look, which he totally ignores and proceeds to nuzzle my neck.

  “What’s this ‘fee’ you are talking about?” I question, knowing full well what he wants.

  “It depends on how long you make me wait,” He growls. Which causes chills to run along my spine in the most delicious way. No guy has ever growled at me the way that Taz just did. “You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen,” he says with sincerity written across his face.

  I open my mouth to respond when suddenly his lips are on mine. My mind is lost in the loop of the best kiss of my life. His tongue is caressing mine as he slowly explores my mouth. Breathing becomes unnecessary as my body attempts to melt into his. Crying breaks into my fog and I realize that it’s CeCe. I slowly begin to pull away from him.

  “That will be continued. And next time, there will be no escape,” Taz pants.

  I quickly escape his hold and rush out of the room before I can agree to what he is saying. As I try to regain my bearings, I head to the common room so that I can get my daughter. When I walk in, she spots me and starts kicking her little legs and gets a huge smile on her face. I swear my heart melts into a puddle of happy goo. It’s the same thing every single time I see her smile. Now, I get to see that every single day.

  Chapter Nine

  Taz

  The next week seems to fall into a comfortable pattern; something that I didn’t exactly expect to happen because of a girl and baby. I spend my days at Steel Wrench’s working on amazing bikes and learning ways to do things that I haven’t tried before. Every single guy in this shop has no problem answering questions or helping me try to do something the way they do it. Before I came here, the guys in my club were only out for themselves. They didn’t care what you needed or if you were in trouble as long as it didn’t affect them. Here, there’s truly a sense of brotherhood. Each and every guy has no problem stepping up and doing whatever is necessary to make sure that every person involved in the club is safe and happy.

  My evenings are spent with my two favorite girls. I never really saw my life headed in this direction, but for the first time I am completely at peace and settling into a life of my choosing. There’s a simple routine that happens on a daily basis. Instead of being bored to death by having a routine and doing almost the same thing on a daily basis, I find that I’m the happiest I’ve ever been in my life. For someone that never thought I’d have anything remotely close to where I’m at now, I know that this is what I’ve been looking for all along. I have my brothers, my job, and my girls. What more could a guy want?

  Peaches and I take turns feeding our princess and then I get to give her a bath and put her in bed. It’s one of my favorite times of the day because CeCe is so trusting with the innocence only a small child possesses. Every memory that we get to make with her is a treasure I never thought I’d want. It’s amazing to be a part of her life and watch her grow and learn new things every single day. It’s like growing up all over again and seeing things in a new light as we watch CeCe’s reactions to new things she sees or does on a daily basis. Although my favorite time of the night is when Peaches meets me on the couch.

  I have been trying to make sure she is completely comfortable around me. There’s no way I’ll ever intentionally cause her any pain or to have flashbacks of the one and only time she’s ever been with a man. I want to teach her the way her body can respond to a man when he’s taking care of her and making sure that she’s getting the treatment she deserves. Anna deserves to have her body worshipped. The only thing I want her to remember when my hands are on her are good memories. My plan is to treat her body like the precious gift it is. I want to show her what it’s like to be with a man that doesn’t just take what he wants regardless of her wants and desires.

  Peaches comes into the living room and settles onto the couch with me. She is wearing what she calls a nightie. It’s black satin with feathers on it. The thing barely covers her and I can’t help the thoughts that start running through my head as I look at her. Especially when she slightly turns and I see that with one twist of my wrist would snap the strings in half with little effort. She is such a sexy thing without even trying, and I swear that she’s trying to kill me most nights.

  On the few rare occasions that I’ve seen Anna dress up to go somewhere, my heart almost stops beating. It was the day that she picked me up from the side of the road. After she left the clubhouse, she must have gone home before making her way to work. When she walked into the diner, I saw her wearing a tight-fitting pair of jeans with a form fitting t-shirt. Her hair was left down to curl halfway done her back. Anna was wearing hardly any make-up, but what she did have on accented her blue eyes and her full, kissable lips. Lord help everyone if CeCe grows up to look as good as her. I will be beating boys off with a baseball bat. And I’m sure that
Voodoo will be right behind me. He’s already decided that she’s not dating until she’s old enough to be considered a spinster.

  “Hey Taz,” Peaches coos at me as she slides even closer to me. “I have been thinking. I’ve loved every second we have spent together. I never expected this or you.”

  “Are you trying to get rid of me?” I tease her, wrapping my arms around her until she’s sitting in my lap. “I think that you need to come here and let me change your mind.”

  “You know that I’m not trying to get rid of you,” she giggles as I nuzzle her neck. “I am trying to tell you something else entirely,” she says as a blush creeps up her chest and neck before slowly sliding up her face.

  “Really? Well come here and tell me,” I say before I lean into her and whisper in her ear. “Tell me whatever you want. I’m just gonna explore while you talk.”

  “Oh! Um, I don’t,” She stutters as words fail her.

  I kiss my way from her ear to her neck making several passes. The sighs that come from her are the sexiest sounds I have ever heard. Who am I kidding? Everything about her is sexy. Kissing her shoulder, Anna tilts her head to one side giving me more room, and skin, to kiss. My hand slowly slides the straps of her nightie down her arms. To my great pleasure, the whole top drops to her waist. My eyes zero in on her rosy pink nipples that are straining for my attention. Leaning in, I take first one bud into my mouth, then the other making sure I don’t ignore the signs her body is sending me.