by Lane Hart
Medical bills for when she had cervical cancer, and then the loans she took out to get her master’s degree.
“On her measly salary, it’ll take the rest of her life to pay all of that back,” I say aloud, mostly to myself.
Reece arches an eyebrow and stares blankly at me.
“What?” I huff.
“Please tell me that you’re not thinking what I think you’re thinking.”
“It’s not like I don’t have plenty of money,” I respond defensively.
“You also have a kid and a sister,” he points out, as if they’re not constantly on my mind.
“I know that. And they’ll be taken care of if anything happens to me,” I say, since I’ve set up trust funds for both of them and there’s a million-dollar life insurance policy on me. Hell, I know that what I do with the MC is dangerous. And if something happened to me, Audrey would be a good mother to Ren since she’s helped me raise him from the day he was born. Not that I want to put her in that position, but she would gladly take on the responsibility if necessary, just like I took on becoming her guardian…
“You’ve lost it, brother,” Reece says.
“Look, I need all the help I can get in the custody case. And if I free Nova from her debt, I’m hoping she’ll free me from my hell on earth and persuade the judge to give me back my son.”
“So, you’re going to bribe her?” he asks.
“No,” I respond. “I’m just going to give her a gift…”
“A gift for what? Letting you spank her ass in front of the Kings? Fucking her to keep you distracted while your kid is away?” Reece shakes his head and says, “I may not know much about women, but I’m pretty sure they frown upon getting paid for sex, or as a bribe.”
“I’m not paying her for sex or bribing her,” I argue. “Just give me the damn account numbers and shit on the debts and drop it, okay? I know what I’m doing.”
“Do you really?” he asks. “Because if you actually like her and want her to stick around after the custody mess is over, you may want to rethink this whole idea of yours.”
“It’ll be fine,” I assure him. “And if anything, she’s using me for sex. I give her at least half a dozen orgasms a night.”
Reece snorts at that. “Women like her don’t use men for sex, brother. She could snap her fingers and find a man to take her right to bed. You should count yourself lucky that she’s choosing to come over to your place every night.”
“How would you know she’s coming over every night?” I bark at him, not liking the idea of Nova with any other man at all.
“You just told me,” he points out with a smirk before he pushes his chair back from the table and then gets up to walk out of the room.
Hell, I know a beautiful woman like Nova has plenty of other choices in men. And damned if I know why she keeps coming back to my place every night. I fuck her and feed her, not always in that order, and then she stays over. It’s nice not being alone in the too quiet and empty house without Ren running around.
And I can’t deny that having Nova take care of my needs on a daily basis is spoiling me. We’re good together, and not just in bed. Sometimes, I can even see us as a regular old married couple.
But then I remember Ren will be coming home soon.
He’s been through enough shit because of Marcie. I can’t take the chance of bringing another woman into his life who would have the potential to crush him if we break up.
No, I let him down once. I won’t make the same mistake twice.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Nova
War and I practically live together after the first court date. For me, he’s an escape from the loneliness of being in a new city. For him, well, I know I’m nothing more than a temporary escape from his worries. And while I could really get used to spending my days and nights with him, I know War would gladly give me up to get his son back.
I don’t blame him. Yet, I’m not letting my growing feelings for him influence the job I’ve been tasked with—determining if Ren should be returned to his father’s custody.
Over the past three weeks, I’ve talked to War’s neighbors, MC brothers, and even his sister by phone, concluding he appears to be the perfect father to Ren. There’s just one small thing that makes me hesitate writing all of that in my report. After getting a phone call from Carla in the District Attorney’s office yesterday before leaving work for the Fourth of July holiday, I decide to broach the subject with War.
“How attached are you to the MC?” I ask him while we lay in bed after sleeping in on my day off.
War’s fingertips, that had been stroking up and down my spine as I cuddled up to him, stop abruptly.
“What kind of question is that?” he eventually asks me.
“I was just wondering if you had considered giving up your membership in the club, you know, with everything that’s been going on.”
“I’m not sure I follow,” he tells me.
Raising up on my elbows to see his face better, I say, “You have to know that your involvement with the Savage Kings will go in my report. It’s already been brought up. How do you think the judge feels about that?”
War’s forehead creases. “The club doesn’t have anything to do with me being a good father to Ren.”
“Doesn’t it, though?” I ask.
“What are you talking about?”
“The MC was linked to several brutal crimes just a few months ago. The family of the president was attacked, right? So, what’s to say that some other enemy of the club won’t come after Ren?”
“I’ll never let that happen,” he grumbles.
“I’m sure that’s what your president thought too,” I point out.
“What happened with Kennedy was one man blackmailing Torin, not the club.”
“If you say so. But would the guy have come after him if he wasn’t in the club?”
War blinks at me silently for a moment before he gently pushes me off of him, so he can sit up on the side of the bed. “I’m done talking about this with you.”
“Does that mean that you wouldn’t consider giving up the MC to get your son back?” I ask him, as I take in the large black club tattoo inked on the majority of his muscular back.
“No,” War replies over his shoulder. “I shouldn’t have to give up anything to get Ren back because he’s my fucking son and I’m his father. He should be with me!”
“Not if he’s in danger, or you go to jail because of that damn club!”
“I’m not going to jail,” he says when he gets up from the bed and grabs a shirt to pull it over his head.
“How do you know that, War?” I ask, sitting up in bed and holding the sheets up to my bare breasts. “How can you be certain that you won’t end up behind bars for something you did with the club? Can you honestly tell me that there’s not even the smallest chance of that happening?”
Shaking his head while shoving his legs in a pair of jeans, he says, “What’s with you this morning? Are you PMSing or something?”
“Oh my god. You did not just say that to me,” I snap at him. “Not only is that comment sexist as shit, but in case you forgot, I had to have a hysterectomy because of cancer. Thank you so much for the reminder that I won’t ever have a period again, which means I’ll never have kids!”
“Jesus,” War mutters, scrubbing a hand over his face. “I think maybe we’ve been spending too much time together and should do our own thing today.”
“Sure,” I agree sarcastically. “You just let me know when you need something from me again, whether that’s dropping everything to take you to see your son, or letting you fuck me like I’m your very own personal anger management sex doll!”
“I haven’t heard any complaints,” he yells back at me. “In fact, all I hear every night is you begging me for more!”
“Because I know that’s what you need right now!” I tell him.
“You’re right. It is,” he agrees. “But when I get Ren back, and I wi
ll get him back, you and I are done.”
“Thanks for confirming what I already knew!” I shout at him as I get out of bed and start jerking on my clothes. “How about I go ahead and leave now, so that you can start pulling your head out of your ass to see exactly why you’re in this situation in the first fucking place!”
“Great,” War huffs while I dress with quick, angry movements. Coming to stand in front of me, he says, “Now that you’re done fucking me, you’re gonna go right back to screwing me over. Well, let me tell you something, darlin’, I don’t give two shits what your report says or what the judge orders. I’m going to get Ren back, and I will burn this entire world down if I have to, just to make sure that happens.”
“Thank you,” I tell him. “Thank you for showing me your true colors.”
Grabbing up his leather cut to slip it on, he grips the open sides of the collar and says, “My colors have always been right in front of you, in black and white. Don’t make the mistake of thinking I’m something else when I’m not.”
“I thought you were a father first,” I reply. “One who would do anything for his son.”
“I would!” he shouts at me.
“Then do it! Get out of the MC before you go down with it. Otherwise, your son is going to end up in the system and there won’t be a damn thing you can do about it from prison.”
“Get the fuck out of my house,” he growls.
“Gladly,” I tell him, grabbing my purse and heading out the door.
…
War
“Whoa, brother,” Torin says when he comes through the Savage Asylum and sees me sitting alone at the bar, nursing a beer. “I know it’s a holiday and all, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen you drinking before McDonald’s starts serving lunch.”
“It’s been a shitty morning,” I tell him.
“You’re not going to see Ren today?” he asks.
I shake my head. “No. I’ve already seen him three times this week. And Nova’s a fucking stickler for the goddamn rules.”
“Problems with your old lady?” he asks when he climbs up on the stool beside me.
“She’s not my old lady!”
“I’ve seen her around here a few times since the punishment spanking,” Torin points out. “Seems like you two are pretty close.”
“I was just trying to make the weeks go by faster, and she was there…”
“Yeah? That’s all she is?” he asks.
“I can’t have a woman coming and going once Ren gets home. He’s had to deal with enough shit with his mama.”
“So, you have to be alone…for Ren?” Torin asks.
“Yeah. And that’s fine. I’m used to it now. Or I was, before Nova had to remind me what I was missing.”
“Why can’t you keep seeing her on the side until you decide if she’s gonna stick around long-term?”
“Because this morning, she made it clear we’ll never work. I don’t even know if she’s gonna recommend I get Ren back. Out of the blue, she started talking shit about the MC, and saying I should consider giving it up if I want to be a good father.”
“Fuck that,” Torin grumbles. “That’s not what you want, is it?”
“Hell no,” I tell him. “I mean, if I had to choose, I would pick my kid, but my point is that I can handle both. I’ve been making it work for six years, keeping my family and the club separate.”
“You still haven’t told Audrey about the MC, have you?”
“Nope, and I’m not going to. She doesn’t need to know about this side of me,” I say. My sister looks up to me and thinks I walk on water for stepping up and raising her after our parents died. What would she say if she found out I don’t earn a living entirely legally? I mean, sure, most of the MC’s earnings come from the legit business investments, but we had to sell a lot of illegal weed and even some high-powered guns to get enough start-up capital.
“Sorry things with Nova are going sideways. But we’re here for you, man, whatever it takes. You know that, right?” Torin assures me.
“Yeah, yeah, I do,” I agree. These guys are like my family. After I lost my parents, I had just come back from overseas and felt isolated from the world, trying to figure out how to not only be a good role model, but to take care of Audrey the same way my parents would have. It wasn’t until Torin asked me to join the MC that I finally found a place I felt like I belonged again.
“You still coming over to the cookout this afternoon?” he asks.
“I’ll be there,” I agree, even though I had planned on Nova coming with me. And fuck, knowing she won’t hits me like a wrecking ball in my guts. I had no idea how attached I had gotten to having her always being around until she wasn’t.
…
I try to tell myself it’s best if I start getting used to being on my own again, but that shit is even harder to do when I get to Torin’s beach house a few hours later and see all the happy couples. Chase brought his wife, Sasha, Abe recently got married to Mercy, and then, of course, there’s Torin with Lexi and their one-year old kid, with another on the way.
“Look at you, Momma.” Dalton laughs, laying an uninvited hand on Lexi’s hugely swollen belly when we’re standing out next to the grill where Torin’s cooking. “You’re about to pop!”
I expect Torin to bark at him to keep his hands to himself, but before he says anything, Dalton’s palm jumps when the baby kicks, leaving a shocked look on his face.
Chuckling while snapping his grill tongs at Dalton, Torin says to him, “Baby girl isn’t going to put up with your shit, either.”
“Oh, good god.” Lexi struggles to get up from the porch swing, explaining, “She’s using my bladder as a trampoline again,” before she waddles inside the house.
Trying to keep myself busy and my mind off of missing my boy and Nova, I check the smoker to see how the ribs are coming along.
“I sort of regret never bringing Ren around to stuff like this,” I admit to Torin with a sigh. “I thought I was doing the right thing, keeping my family separate from the MC…”
“Don’t worry, brother. You’re gonna get your kid back. You hear me?” He gives my shoulder a reassuring squeeze.
“Yeah…yeah, I know I will,” I say, but I hope the court agrees to return him to me so it doesn’t come down to playing the outlaw card.
Dalton clears his throat and asks Torin, “Lexi’s due any day, right?” probably just to change the subject.
“Any day,” he replies. I hope it’s soon because Torin has been on pins and needles these last few weeks after what happened to Kennedy. I know he can’t wait to hold his baby girl and see that Lexi survived giving birth to another one of his enormous kids.
Echoing my thoughts, Dalton says, “I have no idea how that little woman deals with having your massive devil spawn kicking around. I would have C-sectioned myself by now.”
“Lexi’s a champ,” Torin replies. “I don’t know how she made it through morning sickness, backaches, and all the other mess that goes along with pregnancy. At least, she says this one is a lot easier than Liam.”
“It’s because you’re helping this time,” I tell him.
“Yeah, I hope that’s part of it,” Torin says. “I hate I missed out on so much before, but…”
“Hey, what did we talk about?” I interrupt before he goes down that dark hole of guilt and regret. I’m more familiar with the location than I would like to be… “No more thinking about before. You’re in a better place, Torin. A good place. A place you deserve.”
He waves his grill tongs at me, dismissing my words. “Yeah, yeah, I know. That’s not what I was getting at. I was going to say, before you got on your high horse, that I’m making up for all of it now. Lexi seems really happy with me, and the way things are going…”
“Ugh, Torin!” Lexi suddenly calls from inside the house where the sliding glass door is wide open. “Come here and look at this!”
“Uh-oh,” Torin says when he grins at us, like he already knows his kid
has been finger painting the walls with condiments again or something just as messy. He passes his utensils over to Dalton, who is still leaning on the rail nearby. “Here, make yourself useful, sunshine. Don’t burn my steaks or I’ll cut the next slab off your heinie,” Torin warns.
“My heinie?” Dalton roars in laughter. “Oh man, you gotta get back to hanging out at the clubhouse. This keeps up, you’re gonna have to buy a minivan soon!”
Torin glares at him before the two of us make our way back into the house. “Fucking minivans,” I hear him mutter, but I know he’ll suck it up and trade in the SUV for one if Lexi tells him too.
In their living room, all the women are gathered around the flat-screen. “What’s going on over here, ladies?” Torin asks.
“Look at this mess that’s on the way,” Lexi says, pointing at the television. “It’s probably going to hit us right about the time I go into labor, you wait and see!”
“What is it?” he asks, but I can already see the trouble heading our way.
Waving Torin over since I have a clear view of the weather forecast, I tell him, “We better enjoy the clear weather today.”
There’s a massive spiral of a hurricane spinning in the Atlantic and all of the path projection arrows are pointing right at the Carolina coast. The headline underneath is, “Monster category 5 hurricane gaining strength as it barrels toward the Carolina coast.”
“Hell, and things were settling down so nicely,” Torin mutters.
“Yeah, they were,” I agree. “But it looks like we’ve got one hell of a storm on the horizon.”
It’s unusual to see a storm that big so early in hurricane season, but not unheard of after such a warm winter.
My first thought is, I need to board up the house and then get Ren and Audrey inland ASAP.
But picking up Ren isn’t that simple now, is it?
“When is it supposed to hit?” I ask the women since they’ve been watching the report longer.
“Two or three days. It was supposed to hit Florida, but it turned north and is moving fast.”