Total pages in book: 133
Estimated words: 132332 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 662(@200wpm)___ 529(@250wpm)___ 441(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 132332 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 662(@200wpm)___ 529(@250wpm)___ 441(@300wpm)
He shifts and glances out the door. “Yeah. Teller trusted him a lot.”
“I never understood why he and Rock were sent to prison or any of that stuff. But things went downhill after that, and I missed them.” I shrug. “I missed being around the club, period. But you know all that.”
He peers down at me and lifts an eyebrow. “And?”
“Fifteen years is a long time. Like, more than half of my life. I can’t imagine what starting over after losing so much time feels like. How hard it must be.”
“Club’s been doing everything we can to help him.”
“I know.” A warm sensation spreads through my chest.
“Well, as much as he’ll allow.” Blake strokes his hand over his beard. “He’s a grumpy son of a—”
“He’s got plenty of reasons to be angry.” I squint up at him. “Besides, can he really be grumpier than Wrath?”
“Definitely.”
Laughter spills out of both of us for a second, then Blake turns serious. “I wasn’t trying to upset you, beautiful. And I trust you can handle anything—”
“I know.” I squeeze him again. The annoyance of a few minutes ago is replaced with love. It means a lot that Blake wanted to warn me, even if it might have been uncomfortable for him.
“Cookies!” Alexa stomps her little feet against the kitchen tiles. “Aunty T!”
Laughing, I pull away from Blake. “Yup, we’re headed there in a minute.”
Alexa scowls up at us. A minute isn’t good enough. Blake leans over and scoops her into his arms, making her squeal with delight. “Settle down, Cookie Monster. The baked goods aren’t going anywhere.”
She narrows her eyes but Blake stares right back at her. After a second, she cups his cheeks and pops a loud kiss on his nose.
“Sure, Daddy gets nose kisses. I get attitude.” I lean in and kiss Alexa’s cheek. She grabs my hair in both hands and lands a sloppy kiss on my nose. “Aw, thank you.”
“Okay, coat.” Blake sets her down. “And boots. Meet me at the front door in five.”
Alexa races to find her things and get there first.
“Hey.” I grab Blake’s hand as he leaves to follow Alexa.
He raises his eyebrows.
“Thank you.”
“For?”
“Being you. Giving me a heads-up. Not letting me walk in blind.” I take a breath. “All of the above.”
“You and me.” He holds out his fist and I tap my knuckles against his. “We’re a team.”
“Team O’Callaghan,” I whisper.
“You know it.” He presses a quick kiss to my forehead and swats my behind. “Now, let’s move out before Cookie Monster has a meltdown.”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Teller
Except for a few bumps, Grinder’s return has gone better than any of us expected. Although, due to his parole restrictions and intense relationship with Serena, we don’t see him all that often. After church, he’s usually quick to hurry away from the clubhouse.
“If I’d been without pussy for fifteen years, I’d be nailing everything with legs,” Ravage says one afternoon as Grinder’s truck tears down the driveway. “Not settling down with the first hot chick who bounced on my dick.”
“You already nail anything that moves,” Dex points out. “I think you violated a girl’s sweater at the last party.”
Rav reaches down to scratch his balls. “It was something scratchy, for sure.”
I stand and distance myself from Rav’s ball-scratching hands. “This has been…disturbing. But I have my own hot chick waiting for me.”
“A miracle.” Rav wags a finger at me. “You better get on your knees and thank that woman for putting up with you.”
“I plan to.”
Dex holds out his fist. “Catch you later.”
I tap his knuckles and say my goodbyes.
As I’m trying to escape, I bump into Rock.
“Can we talk for a second?” he asks.
My gaze strays to the ATV I was planning to ride through the woods back to my house. “Yeah, sure.”
“Let’s get away from the clubhouse.” He tips his head in the direction of his cabin.
“All right.” I follow him onto the path leading to his place. He’s quiet, which isn’t so unusual. But the air around him weighs heavy around us.
By the time we’re seated at his kitchen table, I’m ready to come out of my skin. “What’s up, Rock?”
“Where we at with the DNA testing?” he asks. “Are we going in for a second round or not?”
Fuck. Right. One of my brilliant stalling tactics when we got the news was telling Rock I wanted to take another DNA test before we revealed our relationship to anyone. I thought it’d buy me some time to adjust but instead I’ve thrown myself into club business and tried to ignore the looming confrontation. I open my mouth to protest my need for more time, but he steamrolls right over me.
“It’s been months. The club’s in a good place. Heidi’s done with school. Blake’s out of the hospital. Wedding’s over. They’re not on the road with Rooster and Shelby anymore. What are we waiting for now?” His solemn tone is all curiosity and fatherly concern. No hint of the stern presidential lecture I expected.