“Sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“You just blind side me sometimes. The way you lived, it makes me want to fuck someone up. To drive down to the prison they’re all at and pound on every last one of them that made you feel worthless. Especially that piece of shit you called a mom.” He grinds the steering wheel beneath his fists.
“Second mom really. Although Gwen was never a mom to me. Can I be honest with you for a second?”
“You can always be honest with me.”
“Sometimes… sometimes I miss my real mom. She wasn’t one of the bad ones. She used to sneak me places so we could be by ourselves and I was free to be a child. She’d even sneak me some toys, which were illegal in the compound. Somehow she figured out how to make me secret cakes on my birthdays.”
“She sounds great, other than the fact that she let everyone treat you like shit.”
“In my heart, I know she was a prisoner in the lifestyle like I was. She never seemed to fit in and my father and Gwen were always on her to do better.”
“Have you ever thought about visiting her in prison? If what you’re saying is true she could be an innocent bystander.”
“I think about it every day. When I was a teenager she used to tell me stories of her family and of course she used to talk to me about Ashlyn. Someday I’ll get the courage to go and see her. You know, she sent me a letter the other day.”
“You didn’t say anything about it? What’d she write?”
“She wrote there was a lot she had to explain to me but she had to do it face-to-face. I don’t know how that’s possible, maybe she’s up for parole or something?”
“I’ll look into it for you baby.”
“Thanks, I just don’t ever want to be near my father or Gwen ever again. I think that’s my main reservation in going to see her.” He places his hand over my own and pulls it onto his thigh.
“Let’s talk about something else. We’re almost at our final destination and I want you to have a great time tonight.”
“How’s training going?”
“Fantastic.” He lifts my hand bringing it up to his lips.
We pull up to a house that I’ve seen before when Ash had to stop by and run the baby in. I’ve never been in because I had no reason to, why the hell did he bring me here? Surprise my butt.
“Your mom’s the surprise? Really Jayden? A little warning would have been nice.”
“Sunshine, would you have agreed to come here willingly? I’ve been hinting about bringing you to my moms for a few weeks now. Every time you get a look of pure horror on your face so I figured it’d be best for your anxiety to just show up.”
“Last night we…”
“Made mouth love to each other’s genitals, played a little sucky fucky, I was a cunning linguist and you Lewinski’d…” I slam my hand to his mouth.
“She’ll know and think I’m some common two-dollar whore!”
“They aren’t that common.”
“Shut it! Take me home!” I can’t meet her less than 24 hours after the things her son did to me… and I did to him.
“Too late.” He opens his door and jumps out. “Hey ma dukes!” He yells and I look to find her standing on her front porch watching us curiously.
“Crap on a cracker.” Jayden opens my door and I reluctantly step out. I’ve heard nothing but great things about Mrs. Cage from Ash. I’ve never met somebody’s parents before and our relationship is new, well I guess it isn’t new. We’ve been seeing each other for a while now. I can do this and decide to have a positive attitude. She doesn’t need to meet me when I’m a Debbie Downer.
Standing next to Jayden, he grabs my hand and walks me towards the house. Or he wanted to, but my legs decided not to work.
“I didn’t think you’d act this weird about it. Do you want me to take you home?”
“I don’t want to go home, but, my legs won’t work.” I point to them trying to show him the problem.
“Consider your blunder solved Cupcake.” He bends down and picks me up bridal style. How embarrassing!
“Put me down.”
“I’m at your service. Don’t ever say we don’t make a great team.” He flashes me a cocky grin.
When we get to where his mom’s standing I find her laughing. I guess having a son as crazy as Jayden, you have to take everything in stride. I’m sure nothing surprises her anymore.
“Mom, this is Sunshine. Sunshine, this is the best mom in the whole wide world.” He bends down and kisses his mom on the cheek.
“Always the charmer. Can you put the poor girl down so I can properly greet her?” His mom asks laughing.
He fakes me out and pretends to drop me causing me to squeal.
“Jayden Carlisle put that poor girl down right now.”
Once I’m on my feet she pulls me in for a hug. It’s a really nice hug. One that makes you feel warm and fuzzy and really gets you on that last final squeeze.
“It’s nice to meet you Mrs. Cage.”
“Oh, none of that. It’s Judy, sweetie.”
“Judy.” I confirm.
She throws her arm around me and leads me through the front doorway. It’s gorgeous and homey. Very country bumpkin for Massachusetts from what I’ve seen. Beautiful woodwork and cute little knick knacks adorn the walls.
“I’m just finishing up dinner. Jay sweetie, bring her to the dining room. The food will be out shortly.”
“Sure thing mom.” He grabs my hand and leads me away.
We get to a hallway filled with pictures of all four Cage boys. Of course, I need to investigate. There are lots of pictures of all them from infancy to now. There are a few that I have a hard time telling the twins apart. Holy cow they looked scary alike growing up.
“Which one are you in this one?” I look over at Jay and point to the picture.
“I’m on the right. Luckily for you now, we have different hair and when he’s wearing short sleeves, the tattoos are a dead giveaway.”
“And your beard. What’s this one? Prom?”
He looks down like he doesn’t want to explain the picture. He looks no older than 17 and rocking a tux.
“Is it Josh?”
“No, that’s me. But it’s not prom. Long story short, my mom overheard me saying how I was gonna bag a chick when I was younger. She made me go down to the girl’s house and apologize to both her and the girls mom for speaking in a derogatory way about her body. After that she put me in the school choir to keep me out of trouble. I fucking hated it, but it turned out that I could actually sing. Plus the choir chicks were hot. Mom didn’t know and chorus didn’t end up cramping my style.”
“So that was a recital? You are something else.”
“Don’t I know it.”
When we walk through the doorway to the dining room I’m startled when I see someone sitting at the table. She must know it when I take a sharp intake of air and clutch my hand to my chest.
“Sorry dear, I’m not mobile these days. I get somewhere and I have to keep my ass there.” She smiles.
“Granny!” Jayden rushes around the table and kisses her on the cheek. Could he seriously be any sweeter to these women?
“Now I have to introduce you to my new number one lady. Don’t fret though, you come in a close second. Granny, this is Georgie.”
“It’s nice to meet you dear. I’ve heard so much about you.” She smiles at me.
“I’ve heard a lot about you too. It’s great to meet you.”
After that the night passes in no time. It’s amazing how fast a dinner can go by when you actually care and want to hear about what people are saying. At the compound our meals were eaten in silence. No conversation or asking how our days were. These moments make me realize how much I missed out on in life. I’m so freaking happy to be here.
As we walk out the door with our arms loaded with Tupperware filled with food, we shout our goodbyes. It isn’t until five minutes into the ride home that I say something.
�
��Thank you.” I whisper.
“For what?”
“For… being you. Thank you for feeling comfortable enough to introduce me to the most important people in your life. It means a lot.”
He brings my hand to his mouth and kisses my knuckles. “You don’t have to thank me. My family is yours now baby.”
And I cry. Big gulping sobs of emotion are released and maybe a little snot. I can’t help it, sometimes he is so freaking sweet.
“Now let’s get home and get down to business woman!”
“You always know just what to say.” We laugh as we make our way home.
CHAPTER 18
Jayden
“You’re really going to make us hang at the bar all night? Can’t we go out to eat?”
“No.” I respond to the whining woman.
“But me and Savvy are there practically every day. Hell, Savvy’s there right now, her shifts off in an hour.” Ashlyn isn’t letting up.
We’re all going out as a group. My brothers called me and forced me into hanging out. I thought it was just going to be us but Ashlyn had other plans. She got Jack and his lady friend to babysit Mia so she could come out with us. They were already watching Danny so god help them tonight. I put up a fight saying it was guys’ night, but she yelled saying she’d tell Georgie about Cher and I lost all my fight. Fucking Ash. You make out with a cross dressing impersonator and you never live it down.
“Then we can keep her company too, Satan.” I huff. All I want is to hang out with my woman. It’s Saturday night and I know the college kids can get a little crazy and my possessive side needs to see that she’s okay.
“Josh, come on. Say something.” She chides my twin.
“Don’t drag me into this. I used to do the same thing. Shit, I still do. Let’s humor him and make sure his woman doesn’t need rescuing.” He throws his arms around her and she seems to give up.
“If everything’s okay can we go somewhere else? Actually, I think she’s off at nine. We can all head somewhere else.”
“Eight, she’s off at eight.” I mumble.
Ashlyn makes a hand gesture as if she’s cracking a whip. “Never thought I’d see the day Jayden Cage was whipped. It’s a beautiful thing.”
“I’d say something but I don’t want my twin to kick me in the nuts.”
“Whatever.” She sighs as we approach the bar.
Zander grabs the door and holds it open for us. For how early it is the place is already packed and I understand why when I see the sign for the band playing tonight. They’re actually really good. When Savvy sees us from across the room she rushes over to us saying she reserved us a booth in the back.
“I’ll meet you guys over there.”
As I walk away I can hear them making kissy noises. Juveniles.
When Georgie spots me her face lights up. She leans across the bar top to plant a kiss on my lips. “Missed you.”
“Missed you too baby. We have to get our schedules to sync up. Between work, the gym and your job I haven’t seen you in two fucking days.”
She smiles shyly. “I know. I’m off in two hours and we’re slammed. I’ll catch up with you when I get a spare second. She leans over and plants one more kiss on my lips and when she pulls back I grab the back of her head and crash her lips to mine again. “Not nearly enough.” I whisper on her lips. My tongue duels with hers for a minute before I let her get back to work. Out of the corner of my eye I notice a guy watching us. I fully turn my head so I can stare him down, getting the message across that she’s all mine. Any shot he thought he had up until this point is moot.
“Victor’s keeping me company, don’t worry. You’re the only one I have eyes for Mr. Cage.”
“Damn straight Sunshine. I’ll be right over there if you need me.”
When I get to the booth I see they ordered me a beer and I take it willingly. Stress isn’t a word I use often, but that’s become my life. Stress over work, stress over my fight, stress over the lack of hours in the day when I want to spend them all with Georgie. Maybe I am turning into a pussy?
After my first gulp my beers half gone. I need to relax and enjoy tonight. I’ve missed my brothers and maybe I’ve even missed their counterparts a little bit. I sit and enjoy some small talk with my family all while keeping an eye out for my girl with a full beer in my hand. When Ash leaves the booth for the bathroom I bring up something I’ve been dying to say to my brothers.
“I thought she’d never leave us alone, which brings me to a big fuck you I’ve been meaning to give you. Were you talking to Z about ass play in the not so distant past?” I give Josh the eye. The you know what the fuck I’m talking about eye.
“Hmmm, doesn’t ring a bell.” He looks everywhere but at me as I hear Z trying to hold in laughter.
“Assholes, Georgie overheard and thought I wanted my ass to be shredded. She had a fucking strap on at her house and was a breath away from shoving it up my derriere.”
Josh is laughing so hard he can barely breathe. “Oh, that’s classic.”
“Classic? Oh yeah, the ol’ girlfriend has a strap on to peg me all night long. Classic.”
“In all fairness, we had no clue she was listening.”
“I know you guys are obsessed with me, but you need to be mindful of your surroundings. My poor ass couldn’t take it if something happened. A finger sure, but a fucking dildo? Hell to the motherfucking no way.” I cringe just thinking about it.
“We’ll be sure to alert the masses if we’re about to talk about you from now on. You have to admit, that shits funny.”
“What the fuck ever you bastards.” I take a swig from my drink and enjoy some music from the live band.
A little while later I notice that douchebag still has his eyes on my lady and I’ve seen him pound back about five shots in the last hour. The looks he’s been giving her almost have me out of my seat ready to take an offensive approach.
“Calm down dude, she can handle her own. And if something happens Caesars right there and the bouncers are close by.”
I know Z’s trying to calm my nerves, but the fact he knows exactly who I’m worried about makes my spidey senses tingle even more. I have never doubted my spidey senses. Just look at what happened the night I found Georgie at ROW.
“Guys, I think I’m gonna go sit at the bar for the last half hour of her shift.”
“Don’t be silly Jay. She’s fine, I’ve seen her put men double that assholes size in their place. Plus, like Zander said, the bouncers are always nearby and can usually judge who’s going to be a problem.” Savvy tries to reassure me. She joined us ten minutes ago when she cut out for the night.
Listening to them, I decide to sit and watch. I watch when she brings him another shot and the way he grazes her arm before grabbing it. I watch how she pulls her arm back in disgust as the bastard smiles at her. I watch as she tries to walk away and he grabs her elbow causing her to wince. And that’s the last straw, I’m on my feet barreling towards the dead man who has his hands all over my girl.
When Georgie sees me coming, her eyes widen. They plead with me to let her deal with this, but I can’t. I want to bang on my motherfucking chest and kick the shit out of the guy that still has his hands on her delicate arm.
When I step up behind the asshole, I tap him on the back. He turns around and looks up at me, that’s right, he’s a little pip squeak. You can’t tell when he’s sitting, it’s comical.
“Wanna get your hands off my girlfriend?” My question leaves no argument.
“Dude, why are you cock blocking me? She’s totally into me!” He slurs his words.
My pulse quickens and my blood boils. I look around trying to reign in my temper and notice Josh and Zander standing up from the booth. They’ll be over here in a minute so I need to get my point across.
I bend down and get in his face. “Don’t touch what’s mine.”
The motherfucker gets chest-to-chest with me. But really, it’s chest-to-neck, and decides to run his mo
uth. “Don’t make me laugh. That gorgeous angel would never be with a Neanderthal like you bro. I saw her first. Back the fuck up and step off. She needs a real man.”
And that’s when I lunge for him.
***
Georgie
I can’t believe the nerve of this guy. Who does he think he is? The touch on my arm makes me cringe in disgust. After he finally take his shot after fondling my arm, I go to fill another drink. A squeezing pain just above my elbow shoots up my arm as I look back at the man responsible.
“Let go of me.”
“Don’t be like that angel. How about you give me your number, or better yet.” He leans in closer. “Let me take you out when you’re done here.” He flashes me a lopsided grin that he must think is sexy. It’s the complete opposite.
“Let go of me or I’m going to kick you out of here.” But he doesn’t let go. That’s when I notice Jayden making his way to the bar. That’s the last thing I need right now, I can handle my own. He looks angry and god knows what he’ll do. I try to plead to him with my eyes not to make a scene. My prayers fall on deaf ears.
Jayden taps him on the back and the moron finally let’s go of my arm. This situation needs to be deescalated before Jayden does something stupid. Then all hell breaks loose.
I don’t even know how it went from them talking to Jayden pummeling him so fast. But pummel he did. Hit him right in the center of his face and didn’t stop there. In an instant Jayden’s on top of the guy on the ground pounding on his face. I scream for him to stop and run around the bar trying to make my way to them. There are so many people so I have to fight my way through the crowd.
By the time I get through, everyone’s shouting and Josh and Zander are holding a seething Jayden back. Just barely. He looks like a caged animal trying to attack his prey.
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