“We’re just friends.”
She wiggles her brows. “Then you can ride that fine ass with no strings attached.”
“Sweet Jesus, who raised you?”
She wiggles her ass around. “I got it from my momma ...”
I laugh at her singing, and shake my head. “I’m not riding anything, I’m just going because I said I would and ...”
“You like him,” she finishes for me. “Admit it.”
“As friends, yes.”
“As kissing, sexing, dirty, filthy friends.”
I shake my head again. “Stop being such an animal.”
“I don’t know why you don’t just go for it. What can it hurt?”
I shoot her a look, and she loses her smile. “Right, sorry. I didn’t mean it like that. I just don’t want to see you unhappy for the rest of your life. I don’t want that ... that ... horrible human being to have ruined every good thing you have left.”
“I know,” I say softly. “I’m getting there. It’s going to take time. I can barely do anything without looking over my shoulder, expecting him to show up, to come back and make my life a misery once more.”
“He won’t find you. He’s probably dead in a ditch somewhere with the amount of drugs he’s taking.”
My heart twists. She’s probably right, and that’s a damned sad ending, because once, a long time ago, he was a good person.
“Yeah,” I say, tugging my shirt again.
“Stop tugging that shirt,” she slaps my hand away. “You look amazing.”
“Really?” I question, staring at myself in the mirror again.
“Yes, really.”
I’m wearing a nice pair of dark denim jeans and a black halter top that ties around my neck. It shows a little too much cleavage for my liking, but Shania insists it is in no way slutty. And I trust her. She knows how I feel about that stuff. My hair is down, flowing in loose curls around my shoulders, and I’ve decided only to wear some light mascara.
I don’t want to go overboard.
“Are you sure it isn’t too much?”
“Stop.” She sighs, shaking her head. “You look amazing.”
“She’s right, you do.”
I turn and see Rae standing at the door, a big smile on her face. It puts me into a state of shock, because I haven’t seen her smile for such a long time. She seems light, happy, airy. And because of that, my heart clenches. It twists angrily and pulls until I feel like I won’t be able to breathe.
“Thanks, Rae,” I manage, even though my voice is tight.
“I’m sure Jack will be super impressed,” she chirps, before skipping off with far too much ease for a pregnant woman.
“She’s being extra nice,” Shania murmurs.
I just stare at the door.
“Baylee?”
I look to Shania. “She’s using again.”
She looks confused, and shakes her head. “How can you be so sure?”
“Because, I’ve seen this before. They’re suddenly happy, and airy, and have all this energy because they’re high. Then comes the dark, angry moods when they come down ...”
“Oh,” she whispers, staring at the door now, too. “What are you going to do?”
My heart aches.
“I don’t know,” I say, and my voice shakes.
Dammit.
I don’t know.
~*~*~*~
“You look beautiful,” Jack says, taking my hand and leading me through the massive gates to the compound the bikers spend most of their time at.
I squirm, and say a soft, “Thank you.”
My eyes are focused on the massive sheds, the house that is lined with bikes, so many bikes. Smoke comes from behind the house, where I imagine they’re having a fire, and I can hear laughter and chatter. My feet stop moving and become fixed to the ground. God. I don’t know if I can do this.
What if they’re awful?
What if they’re rowdy, and crazy, just like York?
“Hey,” Jack says, stepping in front of me. “You look like you’re going to pass out, are you okay?”
I rub a shaky hand over my neck. “I’m just nervous and ...”
“Listen to me, I know it looks and sounds somewhat terrifying, but I promise you, I swear it, everyone you meet in there is fucking incredible and will make you feel right at home.”
I look into his eyes. He hasn’t lied to me yet. I don’t see why he would now.
“I’m sure that’s true. I’m just ... I’m not that good at meeting people these days.”
“Just take a breath, and trust me, okay?” he says, extending a hand.
I take it, without hesitation. I need his support. I need something to get me to take the steps into the compound. One by one, I do, following him around the back of the house where about thirty bikers and their wives are all sitting, some at tables, some around the fire, some in scattered chairs.
They’re all laughing and having a great time, by the looks of it.
“Jack, boy!”
I turn and see a huge, terrifyingly beautiful man striding towards us. He has dark hair, messy and falling over his forehead, only a slight amount of grey. His eyes are as blue as the sky and he’s wearing a leather jacket that clearly states he’s the President.
“Maddox,” Jack says, extending a hand to shake when the man, Maddox, gets closer. “Like you to meet my good friend Baylee. Baylee, this is my Uncle Maddox.”
I stare up at the man, who seems so much bigger up close. God. I wouldn’t want to get on his bad side. He’s scary. But there is a kindness in his eyes. The same kindness Jack has.
“Pleased to meet you, darlin’. Heard a lot about you.”
“You have?” I blurt, and then slap a hand over my mouth.
He laughs. “Yeah, I sure have. Glad you kept my boy here on his toes. Welcome to my club, I promise we don’t bite.”
I look up at him again. “I’m not so sure I believe you. No disrespect, but you’re the scariest looking man I’ve ever met.”
Jack laughs and Maddox winks at me. “I swear, I’m only scary when I don’t like someone, and I can tell already that I’m going to like you just fine. So, come on in.”
I give him a small smile, and he winks at me, making me feel a strange sense of security. He turns, and Jack and I follow him closer to the large group. It feels like all eyes are on me.
“There you are!”
A gorgeous, overly bubbly woman with dark hair and wild eyes comes running towards Jack. She throws herself into his arms, hugging him tightly.
“Mother, what have I told you about hugging me in front of the ladies?” Jack teases, hugging her back before letting her go.
“Be quiet,” she taps his shoulder, before turning to me. “You’re the only lady he’s ever brought home. Ohhhh, and you’re so pretty. Santana, quickly, come and see how pretty Baylee is.”
I flush and step closer to Jack.
“Thank you,” I say, smiling at her. “You’re very pretty, too.”
She smiles at me. I can see Jack in her. “I’m sorry, I’m so rude. I’m Jaylah, Jack’s amazing mother. Don’t listen to any of the stories he tells you about me; they’re all lies, I promise.”
My smile gets bigger, and I can see Jack staring down at me out of the corner of my eye, a soft expression on his face. “I promise I won’t believe a single thing he tells me.”
“I like you already.” She laughs.
A gorgeous woman, who looks like Pocahontas, steps up beside Jaylah. I know right away she must be Matilda’s mother, because the two of them hold strong resemblances.
“Hi there,” she smiles down at me. “I’m Santana, Maddox’s better half. You must be Baylee. Welcome to the club.”
She’s warm.
And kind.
And everything you’d imagine a mother could be.
“Thank you for having me tonight.”
She waves a hand. “Of course, gosh, we’ve been busting to meet you.”
I laugh softly. “I’ve heard.”
Jack stares at me again, his eyes dropping to my mouth.
“Boy has it bad.”
The deep, husky voice comes from my left, and I turn to see a tall, lean yet muscled, Native American man standing beside me. He’s gorgeous. Absolutely breathtaking in that flawless, perfect way. He’s clearly old enough to be my father, judging by the slight lines around his face and the wisdom in his eyes, but he holds his age so well, you’d guess him to be years younger.
“And this fine stallion of a man, is my father, Mack.”
This is Jack’s father?
Holy. Crap.
“Well,” I breathe before I realize what I’m saying. “Now I understand why Jack is so good looking.”
The second it comes out of my mouth, both hands fly up and my eyes get wide. Did I just say that? To a perfect stranger? Who the hell am I?
Jaylah and Santana laugh, finding it hilarious. “Ah, the Mack charm works again.”
“Great, now I’m in competition with my old man,” Jack mumbles.
“No. What. I didn’t ... I’m so sorry. That was so rude.”
Mack smiles down at me, and it makes him even better looking. “Been a while since I’ve had a good compliment, and my boy got one, too. I think you’re doing just fine.”
Jack grunts, and I look over to him, mouthing a sorry. He winks at me, letting me know he’s not at all worried by my little outburst towards his father.
“It’s really nice to meet you,” I say to Mack. “You have a great son. Even though he can be a stalker, and a little crazy ...”
Jack laughs.
Mack grins.
“He doesn’t get that from me, I can assure you, sweetheart. It’s all from his mother.”
Jaylah snorts, and then laughs at herself. “I was going to protest, but he’s right, Jack is all me. You wait until you meet his older brother. He has the same moody vibe going as his old man.”
Mack grins at her, and her cheeks flush.
That. That right there. That’s the way it should be. The way people in love should look at each other. Even after so long.
I think I’m going to like these people.
Very, very much.
CHAPTER 12
NOW – BAYLEE
“So, Baylee, what do you do for a living?” Santana asks, handing me another drink as she passes me by.
I’m not usually a big drinker, but tonight I’m being handed drinks every time I turn around, and after the first two, I loosened up enough to just keep accepting them and enjoying the company around me.
“I’m a waitress. I work two jobs, at present.”
She looks to me. “Two? Wow. That’s a lot for someone your age.”
“I have a dependant, I guess you could say. She’s a teen, and she’s pregnant, so I’m just doing what I can to get her through until she has her baby.”
Santana’s eyebrows shoot up. “You’re doing all that? You’re too young to be taking on those kinds of responsibilities. You should be out having fun.”
I smile and shrug. “Yeah, well, I guess life doesn’t always give us what we want.”
“Smart girl you got there,” Krypt, another one of the members I just met, says to Jack.
Jack looks to me. “Yeah, she’s smart. She’s also stubborn. Sometimes you have to put yourself before others.”
I roll my eyes at him, and he grins.
“So, this pregnant girl,” Ash, Krypt’s wife, says. “Is she really young?”
“She’s seventeen,” I say. “And she’s nearly ready to have her baby, so yeah, she’s young but she’s not unable to do it, you know?”
“I hear you,” Ash agrees. “But still, having a baby so young ... It won’t be easy.”
“She will probably adopt the baby out,” I say, taking another sip of my drink. “I think that’ll be kinder.”
Everyone nods in agreement.
“What about your parents, darlin’, where are they?” Maddox asks.
I glance at him and smile sadly. “I lost both my parents.”
“Oh,” he says, his voice dropping low. “Sorry to hear that. You got any brothers or sisters?”
I shake my head.
“Shame. Damn shame.”
“Where’s the party at?!”
We all turn to see Matilda, Molly, Roman, Quinn, Phoenix, and another young, attractive girl walking in.
“Trouble has arrived,” Krypt mumbles.
“Yo’, fam bam,” Matilda says, throwing herself onto Jack’s lap.
I smile, I can’t help it. I love how they all get along.
“Must you do that,” Jack mumbles, shoving her off. “I’m not your own personal chair.”
“You’re not?” she feigns a gasp. “Why Jack, I’m so incredibly sorry. You just looked so comfortable. Much like a chair indeed.”
He rolls his eyes and she winks at him, before turning to me. “Hey, chicky! You came!”
“I did,” I beam.
“Shift over, Jack, let us next to Baylee,” Molly says, squeezing herself between Jack and me, shoving him out of the way.
“Anytime you want to leave,” he says with a laugh, “feel free to turn around and do just that.”
She flips him the bird and looks to me. “He loves me. We’re like, best friends. He will never admit that, though.”
I laugh softly and meet Jack’s eyes. He winks at me, and my heart flutters.
“How’s things?” Quinn asks, flopping down on the other side of me.
“Share, Quinn,” Phoenix snaps, shoving his brother out of the way so he can sit next to me. “I want to talk to her, too.”
I laugh. I can’t help it. They’re so addictive.
“Baylee, I don’t think you have met Kaylee yet. This is Pippa and Tyke’s daughter,” Matilda says, and I glance at the gorgeous, tiny, quiet girl standing next to Roman.
“Hi,” I smile.
She smiles back, and gosh, she’s just ... darling. “Hey.”
“Hi, Roman.” I wave to the attractive man grinning at Molly.
“Hey there,” he says, nodding his head in my direction. “Feel free to kick her away if she’s being a pain in your ass, because believe me, she’s good at it.”
Molly laughs and flips him the bird, earning herself a wicked grin. Cute.
“I don’t mind.” I chuckle.
“So, now we’re all acquainted,” Jaylah says, standing. “Fill us in on the latest gossip.”
“You’re such a child, Mother,” Jack teases her.
She raises her brows. “It’s my job. I’m allowed to know what my children are up to. What about you two? How are things?”
She looks to Molly and Roman.
“Well, he still thinks he can walk into my house whenever he feels like it, he also steals all my beer, but he’s kind of cute so I’m starting accept that he’s simply weird and that’s okay,” Molly says and Roman laughs.
“Ditto, loser.”
I giggle again. They’re cute.
“Loser me again and see where it gets you,” Molly says, standing up and walking over, wrapping her arms around him.
He curls a hand around her waist and pulls her closer.
“Ew,” Matilda groans.
“Right there with you,” Quinn huffs.
“You’re only jealous because you can’t get any pussy,” Phoenix shoots at his brother.
“Phoenix!” about four different female voices say at once.
The men laugh.
Typical.
“Hey,” Jack says, standing and extending a hand. “Come with me. I want to show you something.”
“Ohhhh,” Molly teases. “They’re going to get it on!”
Jack rolls his eyes, flips her the bird, and takes my hand, pulling me away from the group.
“Where are we going?” I ask.
He grins down at me. “Just you wait and see.”
Well, okay then.
I’ll do just that.
~*~*~
*~
“Stop being a girl and climb it,” Jack says, staring down at me.
“I could die, Jack.” I laugh, feeling a little too lightheaded from the alcohol.
“You won’t die, I swear it. Just copy what I did.”
“You’re climbing onto the roof of a shed ... drunk ...”
He laughs. “That’s what makes it easy. Come on, up you come.”
“If I die,” I mumble, using the old pile of bricks to get myself off the ground, “you’ll pay.”
“Yeah, yeah, you’ll haunt me, I already know,” he teases, reaching down for me when I get my foot on a windowsill and push myself up higher.
I finally get high enough to grab his hand, and he pulls me up the rest of the way. The roof is flat on top, thank God, because I don’t think I could navigate an angled roof right now. I’m feeling more than tipsy. Jack keeps hold of my hand as he leads me towards the middle of the roof, then he pulls me to the left and I see a massive blanket and pillows laid out.
“You did that?” I breathe, staring at the set up.
“Yeah.” He tugs me again. “I used to come up here when I was a kid. One time, my mom couldn’t find me. They all freaked out. I was up here, curled in my sleeping bag.”
I laugh softly. “You have a thing for secret places, don’t you?”
“Yeah.” He chuckles. “I guess we all have to have spaces where we feel safe, or at the very least, can be alone.”
“You’re right about that.”
We reach the blankets, and I immediately drop to my knees and crawl over to one side, lying down on my back, resting my head on the pillow. Jack lies down beside me, and for a minute, we just lie there in silence, staring up at the stars. It’s a clear night, and they twinkle in the night sky, bright and illuminate.
“I can see why you used to come hide here,” I say quietly, not wanting to disturb the peace. “It’s lovely up here.”
“Yeah, it really is.”
“I wish I had a place like this,” I admit, most likely the alcohol in my system talking. “Sometimes I feel like I can’t escape. Like there isn’t a single place on earth I can go to get peace.”
“Can I ask you something?”
Jack rolls to his side and studies me with those incredible eyes.
“Yeah,” I say, staring at his lips, and wondering how it feels to kiss. It’s been so long since I’ve felt a real, warm, incredible kiss.