I raised an eyebrow at Doom. We’d made the decision to keep the pregnancy on the downlow with the general public until we knew I was in the clear and the baby was healthy.
Andi widened her eyes at Aspen who looked confused, and I just wanted to crawl into a hole and die.
“Ah, thank you,” I said.
I was about to excuse myself to go to the restroom when a tall, very regal looking man walked in with a gorgeous brunette…whom I recognized.
“Oh, my word,” I breathed out. “Dr. Gunnach?”
“Lyric?”
I nodded and Samantha Gunnach pulled me in for a huge hug. “How are you?”
“Well, I’m incredible thanks to you.”
“Oh?”
“I’m pregnant.”
She clapped her hands, tears forming. “Oh, lovey, that’s amazing.” She hugged me again. “I’m so glad.”
“Dr. Warner told me it was impossible.”
“Did she?” She gave me a gentle smile. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there for that meeting. I was called away that morning with another emergency and had to head back to Scotland.”
“Yes, Dr. Warner mentioned that.”
“I did ask her to warn you that it would be unlikely you’d be able to conceive, but I never like to take away the option for a miracle to happen, because sometimes hope is a powerful healing tool.”
“Well, whatever you did surgically was all the hope I needed.”
“I’m so glad, Lyric. Truly.”
“Doom,” I said. “This is the surgeon who made our baby possible.”
Samantha reached out to shake his hand, but Doom pulled her in for a hug instead. “First and foremost, thank you for saving her life.”
“This is actually my sister,” Dalton said.
“Oh, wow,” I breathed out. “I’m sorry, would y’all give me a minute. I just need some air.”
“Of course,” Samantha said, and I headed for the door.
I walked down to where I could watch the water and took several deep breaths, trying to sort out exactly what I was feeling.
“She’s an old friend, and I treated her like shit,” Doom said.
“An old girlfriend,” I said to the water because I couldn’t look at him.
“Not really. We fucked, but there was nothing there, which she reminded me when she ended it. She’s good people, honey, and I ghosted her six years ago. Tonight, she told me her opinion on that.”
I finally faced him with a sigh. “Do you have feelings for her?”
“No.” He raised his hands in surrender. “Not now, not ever. We were really great friends and I fuckin’ blew it with her. I treated her like shit, as I’m sure you can imagine. I have some atoning to do, but tonight was a good start.”
I crossed my arms. “What kind of atoning?”
“She’ll probably make me give her a year of free oil changes or some shit like that.”
“So, nothing… personal.”
He smiled, closing the distance between us and sliding his hand to my neck, stroking my pulse. “Depends on what you mean by personal. She’s married, Angel. And really happy, as am I. If you don’t want me to have anything to do with her, I’ll cut all ties, but she’s no threat to you, and she’s a fuckin’ phenomenal friend. She’ll be the same to you.”
“I would never ask you to cut ties with a friend, Doom. I trust you. I was just a little shocked when we’d made the decision about keeping the baby secret for the moment and she blurted it out to a table full of strangers.”
“Yeah, I’m sorry about that.” He lifted my chin. “I haven’t been a good man, Angel. For a long time I’ve let people down. I want to make it right with the people who mean something to me.”
I wrapped my arms around his waist. “Baby, I’m all in. I’ll be by your side, at your back, under you, on your dick, whatever you need.”
He chuckled, leaning down to kiss me. “Love you.”
“Love you, too. Now feed us. Your baby’s hungry.”
Lyric
THE FOLLOWING WEDNESDAY, I had my first OB appointment, so Doom left work early and picked me up. We headed to the clinic and the doctor poked and prodded, checking my previous ultrasound the hospital in Portland had faxed over, declaring I was about nine weeks along. I already knew that, so we prepared for our little miracle to arrive in about seven months.
I couldn’t wait for all this crap with Garrett to be dealt with so I could go home. Doom had given me a concessional pass to check in once a week, just to make sure my house was still standing, and today was that day. He wanted to get in anyway and start measuring for the nursery.
I had no idea where to even start with what to buy for a nursery, but luckily, I had my sister and the club women to help me. Everything was starting to become real for me and I was finally allowing myself to get excited.
Our ‘detail’ today consisted of Rabbit and Dash, along with two agents Dalton had set up, who immediately cleared the back and side yards. Once they were satisfied no one was lurking, Rabbit stood with me in the foyer while Doom, Dash, and the agents checked every nook and cranny of my house.
“All clear,” Doom declared, jogging down my stairs, Dash following.
The agents walked out from different parts of the downstairs, agreeing, and then Doom and I were left alone.
The agents planned to walk the perimeter, while Dash and Rabbit hung out on the porch, so Doom and I could do what we needed and get out.
“I miss my house,” I said with a sigh.
“As soon as this shit’s sorted, you’ll be back in it,” Doom promised, leading me up the stairs. At the top, he faced me. “I’m gonna barrel over you if you don’t stop me.”
I grinned. “Yeah, I’m picking up on that.”
“I’m thinkin’ the baby’s room should be next to the master.”
“That room is currently full of everything I haven’t had a chance to—” He pushed open the door and I gasped. “Oh my god.” The room was empty. “Where is everything?”
“Sorted and stacked in the basement.”
“When?”
“When we came to get your office packed up. Olivia inventoried everything, then directed a few of the recruits to pack it up. If you want shit moved somewhere else, let me know and we’ll take care of it.”
“I swear, I feel like I’m gonna owe those women a kidney at this rate.”
He chuckled and pushed me gently further into the room. “Start thinking about colors and what you want in here.”
He pulled out a measuring tape and his phone and started taking notes.
“I don’t know the first thing about babies, Doom. I have no idea what we’re going to need.”
“That’s what a registry’s for,” he said distractedly. “We’ll hit a Target or that little boutique downtown and start throwing shit on it.”
I nodded, but the enormity of this responsibility was sinking in and I started to panic a little.
“Hey,” he said, gently, suddenly standing in front of me.
“Hmm?”
He lifted my chin and smiled. “You’ve got this. You’re gonna be a phenomenal mom, Lyric. Don’t start doubting yourself now.”
I dropped my face to his chest and wrapped my arms around his waist. “I just feel like I turned that side off when I thought it would never happen, you know?”
“You’re gonna rock this, you’ll see.”
“I hope so.”
He kissed me gently, then slid something out of his pocket and knelt in front of me. “Okay, Angel, rubber meets road time. Will you marry me?”
He held up the sweetest sapphire and diamond ring I’d ever seen and I smiled. “Yes. This is beautiful, where did you get it?”
“It was my great grandmother’s,” he said, sliding it on my finger, and standing. “Dad brought it over when he came for dinner. He knows how much you love antiques and since this belonged to his mother’s mother, he thought it should go to you.”
My eyes filled with tear
s as I nodded. “Oh my god, you Marxx men are… I don’t know… so incredibly irresistible.”
“You think so?” He smiled. “If you want something else, I’ll buy it for you, you just let me know.”
“No. I love it. It’s perfect. You’re perfect.” I stroked his beard. “I love you. And I love your dad. Thank you.”
He leaned down and kissed me. “We should get goin’. You’ve got a wedding to plan.”
I chuckled. “I have a case to prepare for.”
“You have a case to prep for and a wedding to plan.”
“Hold on,” I ordered. “You are going to help me with this wedding, right?”
“You tell me what you need and I’ll do it, Angel, but if you ask me about colors, my opinion will always be black.”
I laughed. “Okay, got it.”
“And I’m not wearin’ a tux.”
I wrinkled my nose. “But you’d look so hot in a tux.”
“Non-negotiable.”
“Kilt?”
“Not wearin’ a skirt, Lyric.”
“It’s not a skirt, Doom, it’s a kilt.”
He raised an eyebrow. “No.”
“Kimono?”
“Are you Japanese?” he challenged.
“I could be, somewhere in my history,” I said. “I don’t know. I haven’t done that DNA swab thingy yet.”
He shook his head. “No kimono.”
“Could we discuss lederhosen?”
“Jesus,” he hissed on a laugh. “No.”
“But you’d look so cute in those little shorts.”
Before he could comment, a deafening explosion sounded and I was suddenly thrown against the wall.
* * *
Doom
I turned to answer Lyric and was sent back to my heels by a shockwave that rippled through the room. My first instinct was that someone had driven into the house, but the ringing in my ears told me there had been an explosion.
I ran to Lyric and covered her body with mine.
“Are you okay?” I called out through the thick haze of smoke now filling the room.
“What was that?” she asked, and I struggled to hear her through the high-pitched squeal in my head.
“I have to get you out of here.” I helped Lyric to her feet and shielded her as I guided us to the hallway and to the kitchen. That’s when I saw the epicenter of the explosion. Something or someone had blown a hole through the roof of the garage and part of the kitchen.
“My beautiful house!” Lyric cried.
“Right now, my only concern is for you. Now, stay low. This could all be his way of drawing you out into the open,” I said.
“His way?” Lyric asked. “Do you mean, Garrett?”
“Who else is trying to kill you?”
“But he’s in jail,” Lyric said.
“I know, Angel. We can talk about this later. Right now, I need to get you out of this house, so please stay low and don’t make a move or a sound unless I say so.”
I felt her nod her head under my arm.
“Doom!” I heard Dash call out.
“We’re in here!” I replied. “What the fuck happened?”
“There was a drone. It dropped something on the house. Rabbit’s hurt!”
“We’re coming out. Make sure you have your eyes open and keep us covered,” I replied and carefully led Lyric out the front door. Dash and Rabbit were on the front porch, which like them, had clearly seen better days.
The entire right side of Rabbit’s body was covered in black soot, and most of his clothes on that side had disintegrated. He had what looked to me like serious burn marks on his neck, arm and upper thigh.
“I’m okay. Just a little crispy,” Rabbit replied.
“He was standing pretty close to the house when that thing hit us,” Dash said.
I scanned the area as we moved closer to the street but didn’t see anyone except for Lyric’s neighbors, who were now coming out of their houses to investigate the explosion. Whoever was operating the drone was long gone, if he was ever in the area to begin with. Who knows what this sick fuck had planned?
“We need to get him to a hospital, pronto,” I said to Dash.
“I’m okay,” Rabbit said. “Doc can patch me up.”
“You’re in shock, and we need to get you an ambulance before it wears off.” I pulled my phone from my pocket, but a neighbor must have already called 9-1-1 as the sound of approaching sirens filled the air.
Debris was scattered across the front lawn and a section of the rain gutter had been torn from the house, launched through the air, and was now imbedded in the front windshield of Lyric’s new Volvo.
“My car,” she cried.
I held Lyric tight. “It’s okay, Angel. I can fix your car, and Dad’ll get a crew on the house right away.”
“I don’t care about any of that right now. I just want our baby to be safe,” Lyric said with a sadness that both broke my heart and filled me with rage.
I looked down and locked eyes with her. “I promise you’ll never be unsafe again. I’m going to find whoever is helping Smalls and burn him to the ground. I’ll get to the bottom of how he was able to get to you this time and make sure it’s never able to happen again.”
My phone buzzed just as the first emergency vehicles began to arrive. It was Doc and I almost didn’t answer, given the situation, but he wasn’t the kind of guy to call just to chit chat, so I decided it was probably best to answer.
“Kind of in the shit right now, Doc. What’s up?”
“Hatch just called to give us a head’s up. The Spiders are making moves against the Dogs all over the country. Not just us, but the Presidents, Howlers, and anyone else that’s backing the Burning Saints. It looks like one of the Saints has already been taken out, so be careful…do I hear sirens?”
“I think Hatch was a little too late,” I said.
“What the fuck happened?” Doc demanded.
I filled him in on what I knew, growing angrier by the second.
“Goddammit. The women are locked down, right fuckin’ now!”
“Yeah, brother,” I agreed. “You gonna handle that?”
“Yeah. I’ll put the call out, then talk to Hatch and Minus.”
Minus was the president for the Burning Saints’ and coincidentally, Hatch’s brother-in-law.
“We’ll convene in an hour. All hands.”
“Okay,” I said, and hung up.
“Doom,” Lyric rasped.
“Yeah, baby?”
“I’m gonna—”
She pulled away and promptly puked all over the ground.
“Local PD’s gonna be here imminently,” Dash warned. “You need to get Lyric back to the compound. Gator’s takin’ care of Willow, so I’ll deal with Rabbit and Dalton’s men’ll deal with the cops.”
I nodded, and guided Lyric out to the street where I texted Mouse to come get us.
* * *
Lyric
Doom buckled me into the back of the car Mouse drove, then slid in beside me. We drove back to the compound in silence and Doom led me up to our room where I promptly rushed to the bathroom and threw up everything I’d eaten in the last year. Well, everything I hadn’t already puked up on my porch.
While I was losing my lunch, chaos was ensuing outside our bedroom. I could tell Doom was trying to keep it from me, but I could also tell he was as freaked as I was, he was just better at hiding it than me.
“Baby, Willow’s gonna hang with you for a bit while the brothers meet,” Doom said from the doorway.
“I’m okay, Doom. She doesn’t need to do that.”
“It’s not really up for discussion,” Willow called out, her sweet voice hiding the bossy lioness hidden inside.
Doom kissed the top of my head. “If you need me, I’m here, okay? But try not to need me for a bit. I’m going to send Doc up to check on you in a few.”
“Okay, honey,” I whispered, and he left me.
Once my stomach calmed, I brushed
my teeth and walked into my bedroom. Willow sat in the chair by the window, studying her phone. She smiled up at me and nodded toward the dresser. “I grabbed Sprite and saltines.”
“I love you,” I said.
“Are you okay?”
“I think so. Doc’s going to check me over in a few, but I don’t think anything’s hurt.”
“Well, Doom wants you in bed,” she said.
I rolled my eyes. “Of course he does.”
“Now,” she bossed.
I groaned. “I’m going.”
I slid under the covers and settled the pillows behind my back so Willow and I could at least visit for a while.
Doom
Two hours later…
“FIRST OF ALL, I want to let you all know Rabbit is gonna be okay,” Doc said. “He’s at Memorial and they happen to have one of the best burn units in the country.”
Despite his words of assurance, Doc looked like he’d aged five years over night.
“He’s got second, and third degree burns up and down his body and is going to require a series of grafts over the next six months. It’s gonna be rough, but we all know Rabbit is a tough kid.”
“The good news is, for once it wasn’t Dash who got hurt, so Willow doesn’t have to tear the club a new asshole once again,” I said to chuckles around the room.
“How are Lyric and the baby?” Alamo asked.
“Doing great. Resting safely upstairs,” I replied.
“Glad to hear it,” Alamo replied, and then the pleasantries were over.
Doc hit the gavel on the table and the room settled.
“Brothers, if you haven’t noticed, we’re now at war,” Doc said. “Over the past twenty-four hours, the Spiders have made it clear they’re out for blood. The blood of any Burning Saint, or a member of any club affiliated with them, and each of us needs to be on guard at all times, until the threat of the Spiders is eliminated.”
“Exactly how long are we supposed to fight the Burning Saints war for them?” Gator asked.
“It’s not their war. It’s all of ours. If the Spiders take control over Portland, Savannah will be next.”
“But we didn’t start shit with the Spiders, the Saints did,” Gator argued.
Quieting the Biker's Rage Page 14