Angel's Halo: Forever Angel

by Terri Anne Browning

  My gut clenched. “You named our son Reid?”

  “It was the only way I thought he would ever have your last name,” she said, her shoulders lifting in a small shrug.

  I was glad the head of the bed was lifted so I didn’t have to look up at her. It seemed surreal just to be talking to her. That we were discussing her son—our son—blew my mind. I’d never thought about having kids. Lexa, Max, and whatever kids Matt ended up having could carry on our last name.

  I was a father.

  I was responsible for a little life I didn’t even know existed.

  Maybe I should have been pissed Jos kept him from me, but considering how badly I’d treated her that last morning, I was pretty sure I deserved it.

  “Do you have a picture?” I asked, my hands oddly sweaty.

  Her lashes lifted, revealing surprised eyes, but she pulled her phone from her jeans pocket and swiped her thumb over the screen a few times before offering it to me. “I took these last night while the boys were eating,” she said as my eyes landed on a picture of two little boys sitting in identical high chairs feeding each other spaghetti.

  I swiped through her collection of pictures, all of which were of my son. I traced his image with my thumb. There was no denying this kid was mine. He looked just like me, with the exception of those curls. That was all I could see of his mother in him until I found a picture of him smiling. The way his lips lifted reminded me of Jos.

  The next picture was a selfie of mother and son, and my heart turned over. “Will you print this picture off for me?” I asked her, unable to tear my gaze from the picture of Reid’s face squished to his mother’s cheek, giving her a sloppy kiss. The look on her face was full of love, reminding me of our very first night together and the way she’d looked up at me after I’d taken her virginity.

  “Um, yeah, sure. If you really want me to.”

  I nodded and finally looked up from the screen. “I would really appreciate it, Jos.”

  Her frown deepened. “Are you feeling okay?”

  Handing her back the phone, I didn’t answer. “They’re doing my surgery today?”

  Sliding the phone into her pocket, she nodded. “I spoke to Doc last night. They can still do the surgery this morning, but he wasn’t sure what time. Actually, the ortho surgeon here is better than the one in Eureka. He’s more experienced and better qualified. Maybe you won’t need a second surgery.”

  “Yeah, that’s good.” I closed my eyes, feeling the effects of the long ride from Eureka to Creswell Springs the night before. I was so damn tired, but at least my pain was completely manageable with the pain meds now.

  “Aggie was talking about making all your favorite foods last night. So as soon as you feel up to eating, just let me know, and I’ll tell her to get started on it.”

  Thinking of all the food I would have killed to eat right then, my stomach grumbled. “Tomorrow,” I told her, rubbing my four-fingered hand over my abdomen. “They told me last night I couldn’t have anything to eat or drink until after my surgery.”

  “Okay, tomorrow. Anything you want, I’ll get them to make it.”

  “I can’t have what I really want,” I muttered, looking straight at her. Her cheeks filled with pink, and I began to relax. “Come here.” Holding out my hand to her, I held my breath, waiting to see if she would take it.

  For the span of two heartbeats, she hesitated, before taking my hand and letting me tug her into bed beside me. Everything inside of me suddenly felt at peace, and I carefully shifted onto my side, not paying any attention to the pain in my back at the movement. Her arm went around my waist, her forehead pressing into my chest. I cupped her ass, squeezing it gently.

  “Don’t run away from me again,” I pleaded, my voice low and rough.

  She blew out a heavy exhale but nodded. “Okay.”

  “I won’t flirt with anyone but you from here on out. I’m sorry if it hurt you.”

  “Tanner—”

  I kissed the top of her head. “I’m sorry I was a dick to you two years ago. I didn’t mean anything I said that morning.”

  “Then why did you say it?” she whispered.

  “Because I was an idiot.”

  A soft snort left her. “True.”

  I smacked her on the ass, making her squeal, then giggle. The sound filled my soul, and I grinned down at her when she tipped her head back to look up at me. “I kind of have a thing for you, Jos.”

  Her eyes darkened. “I’ve kind of always had a thing for you, Tanner.”

  I lowered my head, kissing the corner of her mouth. “Will you give us a chance to see what this thing is?” I already knew what this thing was. I loved this woman with every cell in my body. But I needed time to show her that.

  “Are you sure you want to?” she asked hesitantly.

  “Never been surer of anything in my life, baby.” I skimmed my nose against hers, my breath teasing across her lips. “I’ve missed you so fucking much the last two years. Nearly dying showed me that I want to at least have the chance to build a future with you.”

  Her lashes lowered, and she inhaled slowly before blowing her breath out in a huff. When her eyes met mine again, she smiled. “Okay. We can try to see what this ‘thing’ between us is and where it could go.” She leaned in, her fingers cupping my chin. “But I swear on all that is holy, Tanner Reid, if you break my heart, I’ll gut you.”

  Heart full, I grinned down at her before kissing her.

  A tap on the door pulled us apart, and I glanced over at the entrance to the private room. Doc didn’t think I needed to be in ICU now, but he warned I might end up back there for a little while if my body didn’t handle the surgery well for my arm.

  I kept my good arm wrapped around Jos as the door cracked open, and Raider stuck his head inside. “Hey, Bates is being a little pissant. He wants to talk to you and take a statement. You up for that, or do you want me to sic Gracie on him?”

  The air in my lungs turned to ice, and my hand clenched into a fist on Jos’s back, instinctively pulling her in close.

  Bates.

  I’d forgotten about that motherfucker.

  “Get in here and lock the goddamn door!” I yelled.

  Raider didn’t question me. He moved so he was inside the room with us and used his back to hold the door shut since there wasn’t a damn lock.

  “What the hell, Tanner?” Jos squeaked when I sat up, looking around frantically for somewhere to hide her.

  “Something wrong, brother?” Raider asked, his voice calm as he watched me from across the room.

  “Bates is the one who took me to Fontana,” I whisper-shouted. “Help me hide Jos before that bastard sees her.”

  “Bates?” Raider’s entire face changed, and he pulled his gun from the holster hidden under his cut. “That motherfucker did this to you?”

  “Hide Jos!” I roared when he started to open the door.

  “He’s already fucking seen her,” Raider yelled back. “He’s been sniffing around the clubhouse for the past few weeks. He’s seen her plenty of times.”

  “Goddamn it,” I groaned. “Are you the only one here? Please tell me there are other brothers in the waiting room somewhere.”

  “Jet is talking to Bates at the nurses station. Colt is getting us some coffee, and Spider is watching the lobby,” he assured me.

  “The sheriff helped do this to you?” Jos breathed out raggedly. “He helped that monster hurt you?”

  “The bomb blast threw me between two cars and knocked me out,” I explained. “The next thing I knew, I was in some trunk. I passed out again from pain and then woke up to Bates and Fontana standing over me. He only stayed the first day. The rest was Fontana.”

  “He’s a dead man,” Raider seethed.

  “You can’t kill a cop.” Jos tried to rationalize. “Not somewhere there is an entire building full of witnesses.”

  I almost grinned down at her. The fire burning in
her eyes and making her shake was a hell of a turn-on, but I was too scared of Bates snatching her from me and taking her to Fontana. “You have to get out of here,” I told her, pushing her legs off the bed and urging her to stand. “Raider will take you back to the compound. Bates can’t see you with me.”

  She stood but glared down at me. “I’m not leaving until after your surgery.”

  “Jos, please,” I begged her unashamedly. “Fontana knows you’re the only thing that could even begin to crack me. He will use you to get to me, and Bates is his little bitch.”

  She grasped my four-fingered hand, squeezing lightly. “Calm down. Give me a second to think. Okay?”

  “Baby—”

  She covered my mouth with one hand. “Be quiet, Tanner. I’m thinking.”

  Chapter 12

  Raider

  It was amusing to watch Jos boss Tanner around. At first, I didn’t know what to make of those two together, but I could see now that Jos was what he needed.

  She dropped her hand from his mouth and turned to face me. “Here’s what we’re going to do for now. Tanner is going to pretend he doesn’t remember anything from when he was at Fontana’s. Nothing. Don’t even open your mouth, Tanner. Do you hear me?”

  “What the fuck are you doing, Joslyn?” he growled low. “Get the fuck out of here before he sees you.”

  “You don’t remember, do you understand?”

  “What’s that going to—”

  “If you remember nothing, you’re not a threat to him at the moment. Just play along until you guys can think of a better plan and take that piece of shit out.” She pushed him back against the mattress and pulled the covers up to his chest. “Act like you’re weak. Moans and groans are all that need to leave your mouth.”

  Her eyes landed on me. “Put the gun away, dumbass.”

  Fighting back a grin, I replaced my gun in the holster under my cut. “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Check to see if Jet is still talking to the sheriff. Tell him to come on in if he wants, but that Tanner isn’t in any shape to make a statement.”

  “Jos, leave before he sees you,” Tanner persisted, his eyes wild with panic.

  “Relax,” she commanded, making her sound just like Raven.

  I opened the door and looked down the corridor to where the nurses station was. My oldest brother was still standing there talking to Bates, his face tight with annoyance. The sheriff had his back to me, but I could tell by the set of his shoulders he wasn’t happy.

  Jet caught my gaze, and I motioned to send the dirty pig back. With a single nod, he said something to Bates that had him turning in my direction.

  Every instinct I had was screaming at me to pull my gun and put a bullet in that sonofabitch’s brain. Three weeks of grief over thinking we’d lost Tanner. Three weeks of my MC brother being tortured. All of that could have been avoided if it weren’t for this piece of shit.

  “Is he coming?” Jos whispered from right behind me.

  “On his way,” I told her as I stepped back in and closed the door. “What’s your plan, Jos? I need to know so I don’t fuck anything up.”

  “Just pretend you don’t know anything. Tanner has been so sick, he can barely talk. Act normal. I’m sure you and the other MC brothers will come up with some way to take Bates out, but this will give you some wiggle room so none of you end up on death row for killing a cop in front of witnesses.”

  I liked that she wasn’t blind to the fact that Bates needed to die. If anything, the rage simmering in her eyes told me she would have liked to put a bullet or two in the man herself.

  “You’re going to have to watch your back until Bates is taken out,” I advised, keeping my voice low so no one outside the room would hear.

  “I’ll worry about that later.”

  The door opened without warning, and Bates sauntered in like he owned the place, Jet right behind him. Bates’s jowly face seemed stressed as his beady eyes swept over the room and landed on Tanner.

  A pitiful moan left my MC brother, his eyelids fluttering as he shifted on the bed. “Jos,” he groaned. “Is someone else here?”

  She went back to his side, gently touching his brow. “It’s just the sheriff, honey. Are you up to talking to him?”

  “Not really,” he sighed tiredly.

  “I won’t take up much of your time,” Bates said, sounding concerned.

  “He really isn’t up for talking, Sheriff,” Jos told him, her lips pressed into a sad, grim line. Tears filled her eyes. “He’s not even coherent most of the time. I’ve tried to get him to tell me what happened, but he doesn’t seem to remember anything.”

  Jet nudged me from my left, his brows lifted. I gave a quick shake of my head, telling him to keep quiet.

  “I still need to speak to him, Miss Barker. The sooner I can get a statement, the quicker I can wrap up the investigation.”

  Two fat tears fell from Jos’s eyes, and she sniffled. “I understand. But please be brief.”

  Bates moved closer to the bed, and I had to clench my hands into fists to keep from grabbing him and throwing him out the window.

  He crossed to the same side of the bed where Jos was standing, and I could almost feel the tension coming off Tanner. She leaned down and kissed his cheek, and he began to relax a little. “Honey, just try to talk to the sheriff.”

  “Reid, we thought you died in the bomb that went off in your brother’s truck. We have a death certificate for you. How is it you’re alive?”

  “I…” Tanner shook his head, frowning like he was in pain and trying to capture a memory that wouldn’t come. “I don’t know. I remember starting Matt’s truck…then nothing.”

  “Where have you been all this time?”

  “A spa in the California vineyards,” Jet told him dryly. “Can’t you tell it did him some good? His skin looks so refreshed.”

  Bates flipped him off. “Reid?”

  “I don’t know,” Tanner muttered weakly. “It’s all blank.”

  “The doctor said you were in a hospital in Eureka. That’s where you were?”

  “I don’t know,” Tanner repeated, closing his eyes. “My head hurts, Jos. It hurts so bad.”

  She stroked her hand over his face still in need of a shave. “I’m sorry, sweetie. The sheriff will just have to wait.” She lifted her head to give the sheriff the look I saw Raven give anyone who displeased her. It wasn’t as fierce as my sister’s, but it did the trick. “Sheriff Bates, I’m sorry, but this will have to wait, after all. Tanner has a skull fracture. Doc thinks he might have amnesia. Maybe once the swelling has gone down, he will remember something that could help you.”

  “Right,” Bates muttered, but he was more relaxed than he had been when he’d first walked into the room. “I’ll be back in a few days, then. Keep me posted if he does remember something so we can get his statement.”

  Jos nodded solemnly. “Of course. I’ll make sure you’re the first to know.” She walked with him to the door. “I really appreciate you coming, Sheriff. I can relax a little knowing you’re trying to protect Tanner. He’s so weak right now. When he was in Eureka, he coded twice, and we nearly lost him. I hope you catch the monster who did this to him.”

  “Just doing my job, ma’am.” He gave her a stiff nod and headed for the elevators.

  She stood there, watching until he got on, then closed the door. Leaning back against it, she let out a small shriek of anger. “That smarmy motherfucker,” she hissed.

  “Care to tell me what the hell was going on with that little performance?” Jet demanded, glaring at all three of us. “If I didn’t know better, I swear I would have thought Tanner was close to death again.”

  I gave my brother a brief summary of what had happened, and I had to grab his shoulders to keep him from running after Bates. It wasn’t all that long ago that Jet had been on parole after going to prison for manslaughter. There would be no saving him if someone saw him killing Bates. I
couldn’t lose my brother again. Couldn’t let Flick and Raven lose him again.

  “Calm down. We’ll take care of Bates,” I promised him. “But we’ve got to do this smart. Jos bought us some time, so let’s use it. Call Bash. And maybe Gracie too. She needs to know what Bates did.”

  While Jet tried to calm himself enough to make the calls, a nurse came in to check on Tanner. She took his vitals, said the surgeon would be in to speak to him soon, and then left with the promise of more pain medication.

  By the time the doctor came in to talk to Tanner about the surgery they were going to perform on his arm, Colt and Spider had joined us, and Bash was walking through the door with Hawk and Gracie.

  Gracie’s brows lifted as soon as she saw me standing there. “You’re still here?”

  “Where else would I be…? Fuck!” Stabbing my fingers into my hair, I groaned and pulled out my phone as I sprinted out the door.

  It rang and rang until, finally, Quinn picked up. “I’m about to walk into the doctor’s office,” she said, not sounding mad like I was hoping. But from her tone, I knew she was disappointed. “Little John drove me since I know how much you hate me leaving the clubhouse by myself. I waited for you and even tried to call, but I guess you have bad service in the hospital.”

  “Baby, I’m on my way.” The damn elevator was taking too long, so I took the stairs, running like my life depended on it. “Something came up with Tanner and…” And I forgot. Fuck. I was the worst. Quinn was always on my mind, always, but this shit with Tanner had pushed everything to the side. Including my pregnant fiancée.

  “I understand,” she said softly, but I still heard the hurt.

  “I’ll be there in two minutes, I swear.” I hit the lobby, still running. “I love you. I’ll see you soon.”

  Luckily for me, her OB-GYN was in the same medical complex as the hospital. I ran across the parking lot to the medical facility, cursing my sorry ass the entire time.

  Sweat dripped down my back as I opened the door to her doctor’s office and nearly collided with her. Eyes wide, she stepped back so I didn’t send her crashing to the floor. “Are the hounds of hell chasing you?”