“We’d like that, Mom, especially since you’ll be the only grandparent this baby has.” My dad died when I was a kid and Mom never remarried, and with Lilli’s parents both gone, Mom will be it on that front.
“I should be there in the next few days.”
“We’ll have your room ready, Mom. See you when you get here.” I disconnect the call and Lilli starts giggling.
“You do that to your mom too?” she finally stammers out.
“Yeah, I should probably do better there, huh?”
“Maybe? So, what are our plans for the rest of the day?”
“You’re resting.” I’m taking no chances where she’s concerned.
“I’ve got stuff to do for the businesses.”
“Which you can do in the comfort of our bed on the laptop, Lilli. I’ll drop you off then go grab your prescriptions. Once I’m back, we’ll do a little online house hunting.”
“You’re not gonna budge on this, are you?” she questions, her eyebrow raised.
“Not one single bit,” I emphatically state.
She sighs but I see the small smile on her face. Knowing that I put it there makes me grin; she’s finally getting it in her head that I’m going to put her first, always, even above the club.
Poseidon
The past four months have flown by. After visiting, Mom decided to relocate, so we spent countless hours finding the perfect place for all of us. When Lilli, with Specks’ help, located a farmhouse on fifteen acres that had one of those tiny houses on the property, I bought it. With the help of my brothers, we did a few renovations and got moved in about a month ago. I know that eventually, we’ll be moving the club because shit is just getting worse around here, but for the time being, we need our own space. Mom has settled in nicely and found a local company so she can still work as a traveling nurse. She fell in love with Lilli and they spend countless hours looking for things for the birth of our little girl.
That’s right, we’re having a girl. When we did the gender reveal, I thought Trident was going to give himself a heart attack laughing, the fucker. It didn’t help when we all came back after a run and Lilli had pink paint samples up on all the walls in the clubhouse, or when she had T-shirts printed, in hot pink no less, that said ‘I’m her favorite uncle’ for all the brothers. Somehow, I think that joke’s gonna backfire on her though.
As I sit at my desk going over some new contracts we’re thinking of bidding on, my phone rings and I see it’s Trident. “Yo, what’s up brother?” I ask once I’ve connected the call.
“She’s back, Poseidon, and I’m going to kill that motherfucker,” he growls out.
“That woman?” We’ve had prospects keeping an eye on one Lowell Jeffries, but the bastard is slicker than pig shit. I know from Trident that Jeffries’ wife has had several more ER visits, most with minimal injuries that are easily explained away. Apparently, the ‘car accident’ case was closed by the investigators due to lack of evidence. They gave some bullshit excuse that the ‘alleged boot prints’ resulted from the seatbelt, for fuck’s sake.
“Yeah. She’s in ICU, brother. It’s bad, really bad.”
“Do we need to step in?”
“I think so, yes, but I don’t wanna do anything that’ll bring blowback on the club.”
“Let me think about it and we’ll discuss it further in church.” I can hear how torn up he is over the situation.
You’ll figure it out, Winnie whispers. She hasn’t been as ‘chatty’ as she was in the past so I know that if she’s talking now, I need to pay attention.
“Thanks, brother,” he replies before disconnecting. My mind whirls over how we can get this woman, who is well-known because of her husband’s connections, out of his clutches.
I hear a knock and then see my woman’s face in the opened door. “You busy, handsome?” she questions.
“Never too busy for you. Come here,” I command, shifting my seat back so she can sit on my lap. I watch as she moves closer, then gently tug on her hand until I have her where I want her—in my arms. “You look beautiful, Lilli,” I tell her before I claim her lips with my own, my hand covering her baby bump.
“I look like I swallowed a watermelon, Jesse,” she retorts. “You could paint me yellow and stick me in the middle of the ocean as a buoy!”
I can’t help it; I start laughing because she looks so damn disgruntled over the situation. The pregnancy hasn’t been easy, and she’s spent a lot of it on bedrest. I’ve found that my woman doesn’t like being idle, not one bit, so despite the fact that her activities have been somewhat curtailed, she’s still managed to keep up with the businesses. The downside is that she’s gained about forty pounds and still has about six or so weeks to go, give or take. I know she doesn’t feel attractive despite my words to the contrary. To me, she’s the most beautiful thing on the planet and the fact that she’s pregnant with our child is mind-blowing.
“No, you don’t, pretty girl. You look like a woman who’s gonna have a baby. Our baby at that.”
She looks at me and asks, “What’s bothering you, Jesse? Anything I can do to help?”
“There’s a patient that Trident has seen multiple times now at the ER. He’s convinced that she’s being abused by her husband, pretty girl, and now, she’s back and in the ICU.”
“So y’all need to help her? What can I do? I’d love another woman around here.”
“It’s not that simple, sweetheart. He’s rising in the political arena so anything we might do as a club has to be done in such a way that it doesn’t create issues for us. Our businesses are legit, but someone with enough clout could cause us problems.” Some of our security gigs are a bit suspect as far as being truly legitimate, but we have those under control and the jobs that are less than legal are so far undercover that it’s unlikely they’d be found in any search that Jeffries fucker could do.
“Well, then we need to put our thinking caps on. Perhaps you and I need to have a private meeting in our old suite?” She grins at me and I can’t help the chuckle that bursts forth. Our sex life has been off the chain thanks to the pregnancy hormones that rule her right now. Not that I’ll complain; she’s the best partner I’ve ever had in my life.
“You want a meeting, my first lady?” I question, kissing her.
“Absolutely.”
Lilli
I’m glad we have the suite here for times like this. Because of my pregnancy, Jesse pretty much keeps me by his side, and has the prospects doing the inventories that I need to keep up with at the tattoo parlor, bar, and repair shop. We come to the clubhouse and I do what I’ve gotta do on my laptop while he handles club business. Despite my initial reticence about the ‘club girls’, other than the occasional run-in with that bitch, Jayna, the other two, Riah and Tessie, are far more welcoming. In fact, Riah is knitting stuff for the baby. She says that her grandma taught her when she was a little girl. Her story is sad, but it’s not mine to tell; suffice it to say, she’s content to be here, working around the clubhouse, and even if I don’t understand why she’s okay sleeping with various brothers, I won’t judge because I can’t say I wouldn’t have done the same thing if I were in her shoes. Tessie is just flat-out hysterical. She’s friendly, outgoing, and is always singing and dancing while she’s cleaning. Both of them treat Jesse as if he’s nothing more than a big brother, but that bitch, Jayna, is about ready to have a come to Jesus meeting with my fist.
I watch Jesse as he sleeps, grateful again that he came into my life. My body still sated, I don’t want to move and I grin when I think of the past few hours. We’re having to get a bit more creative now that Miss Winnie Grace has enlarged my body so much. Of course, Jesse doesn’t know about the name I want to use; I figure I’ll surprise him when she’s born. Thank goodness for that Kama Sutra as well as Jesse’s ingenuity.
“You want to stay here tonight or go home?” he asks, his voice still husky with sleep.
“I’m perfectly content to stay here tonight, handsome.
”
“Then that’s what we’ll do. Let’s go down and rustle up some food.” He helps me up and says, “Let’s grab a shower first, I’m feeling a bit sticky.”
I giggle because we definitely worked up a sweat. “I’m game and I’m glad you insisted that you need to help me now because my balance is definitely off.”
He makes short work of getting us both cleaned up and before I know it, we’re in comfy lounging clothes headed down to the kitchen. “Lilli, look what I made!” Tessie says as we walk in. I glance over to the stove and grin.
“Spaghetti? With homemade meatballs? Keep it up and the prospects will be out of a job,” I tease. She blushes but pulls down some plates and motions for us to sit. Jesse gets me settled then goes to the fridge and grabs us both something to drink. I miss caffeine so much, but even though the doctor said I could have a limited intake, our little miss becomes almost frenetic inside me and after several bruised ribs, I decided it wasn’t worth it. Instead, I’ve turned into something resembling a sloth.
“Yeah, I tried your recipe,” she replies as she places our meals in front of us. “The garlic bread should be out in a few minutes.”
“Well, aren’t you little miss domesticated?” Jayna sneers as she walks into the kitchen.
“No reason to be a bitch, Jayna,” I retort. I’m so tired of her attitude. Hell, I think even the guys are to the point where they avoid her. “If you don’t like the changes around here, you can always pack your thongs and hit the road.”
“You can’t talk to me like that,” she screeches.
“Yeah, she can, Jayna, and you need to show more respect to my old lady,” Jesse demands. “You seem to be the only one who hasn’t grasped the fact that shit has changed around here, for the better might I add, so maybe you do need to consider whether you’re a good fit now. Because from what I’m seeing and what the brothers are saying, I don’t see it.”
I have to hold back my grin when Brooks, who came in behind Jayna, starts nodding his head. “You ain’t even that good, girl. I can get better head from a comatose female than you give.” At his words, I lose it and start laughing; the look on her face is priceless. She looks almost constipated with her eyes squinted nearly shut and her lips pressed together.
“We can always take it to a vote in church, Jayna,” Jesse advises. My eyebrows raise at that; I didn’t know they could do such a thing, but because what goes on in there is club business, I’m pretty much clueless.
“No, no, that’s not necessary. I’ll...I’ll straighten up,” Jayna pleads. I’d feel sorry for her if she wasn’t such a bitch. When I see one of the other prospects, Dutch, walk in and give her a wide berth, my curiosity is aroused.
I lean over to Jesse and whisper, “I wonder what that’s all about,” as I nod my head in Dutch’s direction.
“Who the fuck knows. A lot of clubs don’t allow their prospects to utilize the club girls, but we do so maybe he’s had a run-in with her. I’ll find out and handle it, Lilli,” he advises.
“Good. Because I don’t want anyone in our family distressed, Jesse.” He grins at my use of the word ‘family’ but that’s what all of them have become to me. Even Riah and Tessie, although I never anticipated having sisters who wanted nothing more than to be club girls.
The other brothers, drawn to the kitchen by the smell, are soon sitting with us and I relax into Jesse’s side, content to listen to the camaraderie that’s flowing around me.
Poseidon
I see she’s waning again so once I’m finished eating, I draw her into my side and say, “Church in the morning, y’all. See you then.” She mumbles nonsensically and is unsteady on her feet, so I scoop her up and carry her back to our suite. As I settle us into the bed, I turn to her. “Lilli, I can’t imagine our lives being any more perfect than they are right now.”
“Everyone should want to have a hippo in their lives,” she teases.
“Most beautiful ‘hippo’ I’ve ever seen, pretty girl,” I retort, kissing her. “Now, let’s get some sleep.” She snuggles close and I feel her breath waft across my chest. “Love you, pretty girl,” I whisper.
“Love you too, Jesse,” she murmurs.
The insistent buzz of my phone wakes me. I ease away from Lilli and grab it before I head into the living area, closing the bedroom door behind me. “Trident? What the fuck, brother? Don’t you know what time it is?”
“Poseidon, I need to go off the grid for a bit. Okay to use your grandpa’s cabin for a while?” he asks.
“Whatever you need. What’s going on?”
“She’s getting released today and I’m getting her out of dodge,” he states.
“Does she know this?” I mean, as far as I’m aware, they’ve had limited conversations.
“Yeah, brother. I... we’ve talked a few times while she’s been here. I won’t go there, obviously, but I can’t in good conscience let her go back to him until we can figure out, as a club, how to get him out of her life.”
I close my eyes at his words. Somehow, this unknown woman is going to cause problems, but we’ll figure it out and, in the meantime, have his back while we do so. “Not gonna get in your business, brother. Just gotta ask, are you sure you know what the fuck you’re doing?”
“Not really, no, but I’ve never felt like this before,” he admits.
“You know where the key’s at. I’ll call the neighbor and have him get shit turned on for you.”
“Thanks, brother. I’m sending some info to Specks to check into. See if we can get anything on this Jeffries fucker.”
“Stay safe, Trident, and let me know if you need us. We’ve got your back.”
“Appreciate it, brother.” He disconnects the call. I grab a beer and sit down as I think over all the possible ramifications we might face as a club with what Trident’s planning to do. Looking at the time, I realize I might as well get up and start the day. I slip back into the bedroom and grab some clean clothes, glad that Lilli insisted that we keep some here, then re-cover her before kissing her shoulder, the only place that’s visible.
Once I’m done with my shower, I dress, shave and head downstairs to find some coffee. I see Dutch in the kitchen and decide to find out what was going on last night with his disdainful look toward Jayna. “Hey, Pres,” he says, pulling down another mug and filling it with coffee before he hands it to me.
“What’s going on, Dutch?” He’s a good kid and I think he’ll make a great addition to our brotherhood in a few more months. He and Asa alternate taking Lilli to the different businesses whenever I can’t do it, and whether they know it or not, her impressions of the both of them carry a lot of weight.
“Not much. Figured since I woke up early, I’d get shit ready for the day.”
“Noticed you seem to have an issue with Jayna. Care to explain?” She’s given Lilli so much shit, I’m about to ban her, but it’s something I need to talk over with the other brothers first. I’ve noticed that one of our girls, Riah, seems to be gravitating more toward him, but again, I try not to get involved in any of my brothers’ business if I can help it.
I watch as his face turns beet red. Not in embarrassment, but in rage. “That fucking bitch gave me the clap, Pres.”
My eyebrows raise at his vehemence. “I know you wrapped your shit, brother, right?”
“Fuck yeah, I never go ungloved. But she...she went down on me.”
“You got that shit taken care of, right?” I know it can cause major problems so I’m hoping he took care of the problem.
“Hell yeah.”
“Did she know?” That’s the sixty-four-thousand-dollar question because if she knew she had it and didn’t stay away from the brothers, she’s gone.
“Yeah. After I went to the doctor and found out what the hell was going on, I confronted her and she fucking laughed, Pres. She knew she had it when she went off with me. What kind of scheming, conniving cunt does that shit?”
“She’s gone, Dutch. Hate you went through that and
wish we’d have known sooner, but I’ll bring it up in church and we’ll spread the word so anyone else who has been with her can get themselves checked.” The joys of being president.
“Appreciate it, Pres. Sorry.”
“Nothing to be sorry about, Dutch.” I’m not happy that he didn’t say something sooner but beating him when he’s obviously still so fucked up about it isn’t my way. He nods and with a chin lift, leaves the kitchen. I sit heavily, my thoughts whirling at the possible consequences to my brothers. Maybe it’s time to re-evaluate even having club girls around; the men are more than capable of finding their own women. Riah and Tessie can stay on and instead of being available for the men, they can strictly take care of the clubhouse.
“What has you lost in thought, brother?” Loki asks, walking into the kitchen.
“Bullshit, brother, more bullshit to deal with is all.”
“Trident here?”
“He’ll be here for church but then he’s taking off for a bit. I’m sure he’ll explain when we open things up for new business.” He nods and proceeds to get his coffee. The man drinks more creamer than coffee, but who am I to judge how someone gets their caffeine? As the rest of the brothers pile in, I decide we might as well get this over with and whistle to get their attention. “Alright, brothers, let’s head in and get this going. We’ve all got shit to do so grab your coffee.”
Once we’re all seated around our table, Trident clears his throat. “Brother, I know it’s out of order from what we normally do, but I need to go first and then split.”
“You’ve got the floor, brother.”
He takes a deep shuddering breath before he says, “I’ve had a patient, a woman, come into the emergency room more times than I wanna talk about. She’s being abused by her husband. Today, she’s being released after being in ICU for a few days and I’ll be taking her up to Poseidon’s grandfather’s cabin for a while until we can figure out how to get her out of her marriage.”
Poseidon's Lady (Poseidon's Warriors MC) Page 16