“What do you mean?” Now I’m totally confused. I mean, she was running a fever, it was the middle of the night, what else was I supposed to do besides get her into the shower? And when she tried to climb out of the bed to go to the bathroom, was I just gonna let her fumble around and maybe hurt herself?
“Honey, she’s kind of a private person and you telling her that has her all kinds of freaked out.”
“I wasn’t gonna wake you up, Mom. You’re taking care of Amelia,” I growl out.
“I get that you don’t understand, Nick, but you need to make her realize how you feel, even if it’s early, so she gets why it was no big deal for you to do that,” Mom replies, ignoring my comment. “Knowing you, she was running a fever and you got her in the shower or something to help cool her down.”
“Yeah. I mean, it doesn’t escape me that she’s a female or anything, but that’s not where my head was at when we were in there. And was I supposed to just let her piss herself? What kind of man wouldn’t take care of his woman if she was that sick?”
“Lots of them,” my dad states, putting some eggs and a piece of lightly buttered toast on a plate and handing it to me. “Go feed your girl and explain that to her. Ben should be here shortly and will get her checked over.”
I take the plate and a glass of ginger ale that Mom has poured and head back into the bedroom. Time for the rubber to meet the road.
Reentering, I see that she’s still not looking at me. “Here,” I state, holding out the plate before I place the glass on the nightstand. “So, I’m sure you have questions, but they told me that Ben is on his way to check you over.”
“Who’s Ben?” Her tone is hesitant and cautious, but at least she’s speaking to me, so I’ll take what I can get at this point.
“Ben is my Aunt Ri’s husband. He’s a doctor and he came over and took care of you when I brought you here. You were pretty sick, baby, and I’m so sorry again that I didn’t get to you sooner.”
“Not your fault the power went out.” Good, more words from her. She still won’t look at me and her face is tinged red. I’d worry that her fever has returned except that she’s slowly eating and that’s something she hasn’t done for the past few days.
“No, it’s not but I should’ve thought about you sooner.”
“Why? I’m not your responsibility, Nick.”
“Did you miss the discussion we had about being a couple?”
“No, but,” she starts.
“There are no ‘buts’, Shayla. I plan to make you my old lady and that means it’s my job to protect and take care of you.”
“I’m not old, Nick.” God, this woman makes me laugh!
“No, baby, it’s a term that motorcycle clubs use. An old lady is the most important person in a biker’s life, like a wife is for regular people.”
“So you want me as your old lady? What happens when you find someone you want to make your wife?” If she hadn’t been so sick, I’d shake her for being dense, but I realize that all of this is new to her. All of it. The kissing, the touching, being in a relationship. Amelia notwithstanding, she’s fucking clueless.
“Not gonna happen,” I growl out.
She’s about to say something when Ben comes into the bedroom, his medical bag in hand. Seeing her sitting up, he grins and says, “Glad to see you’re feeling better, young lady. You definitely look better than you did three days ago.”
“Three days?” Her voice is filled with horror and she quickly glances over at me before saying, “Oh my God, Amelia!”
“Calm down, babe, Mom has been taking care of her while you’ve been sick.”
“That’s too much, that’s my job,” she mumbles as Ben starts checking her over.
“You sound much better, Shayla. Now we need to get you eating again. Jaycie says you had been doing well and it looks like this may have taken you in the opposite direction.” I look at her and my lips thin because she lost weight. Again. She was just starting to fill out and this set her back.
“Can you take this out? I’d like a shower,” she says, pointing to the IV.
“Don’t see why not since you’re awake and able to eat and drink on your own. The last of the IV antibiotics have finished. This was a bag of fluids to keep you from dehydrating.”
“Thank you.” I watch as he quickly and efficiently removes the needle and tubing, placing a small bandage over the area.
“You’re quite welcome. Now, you’re going to be weak, so I don’t want you to overdo it, young lady, you hear me?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Nick, let me know if she relapses,” he says to me.
“Will do. Thanks again, Ben. For everything.” The man came out in the middle of a fucking storm by snowmobile and got Shayla sorted. For that alone, he’ll have my gratitude.
Shayla
When Ben leaves, I glance at Nick from underneath my lashes. I still don’t know what to think about what he’s said, and I absolutely hate feeling stupid. He doesn’t treat me that way, though, and I file that information away to examine at a later date. “I want to take a shower,” I say, my voice small.
“There’s a bag of stuff over there. My folks went over yesterday and got the fridge cleaned out since the power came back on, and Mom packed up some clothes for you and Amelia.”
“Who…who watched Amelia?”
“My sister did because it’s still cold as fuck out and she doesn’t need to be out in it.”
I nod as I slide out of the bed. My goal is a shower. After that, I’ll deal with the other shit swirling in my head. “Taking a shower,” I mumble.
“Leave the door open in case you need help,” he replies.
“I’ll be fine, Nick,” I insist, rummaging through and grabbing clean underclothes and a fresh pair of pajamas.
“Leave it open, Shayla, or I’ll come in there and sit and watch while you take it. This is me compromising because if I had any say, that’s exactly what I’d be doing.”
“Fine. Whatever.” I see him grin at me out of the corner of my eye and want to throw something at him. Stupid bossy man!
Once in the bathroom, I get the shower ready, grateful to see it has a bench because right now, I feel like a newborn kitten, but damned if I’ll let him know that fact! It doesn’t take long to shampoo my hair and wash, and even though I grimace at the fact that my legs look scary, I quickly finish. I won’t give him the satisfaction of knowing how weak I am right now, so I push myself to dry off, get dressed, then brush my teeth before I grab a hairbrush and head back to the bed.
“C’mere,” he says, patting the space in front of him. Raising my eyebrow, I shake my head no. “Shayla, let me help you. Please.” Okay, the please did it because I don’t think that’s something he says very often.
When I climb onto the bed between his legs, he gently takes the brush away from me and then towels my hair a bit more. “I know you’re tired, baby, you’re shaking like a leaf.” He starts to brush my hair and I realize that his experience likely comes from having younger sisters, because he’s gentle about doing it, starting from the bottom and working his way up to remove the snarls and tangles.
“I want to see Amelia.”
“You will but first, we need to talk. I know it embarrassed the hell outta you that I helped you while you were sick. And while I’m well aware that you’re all woman, trust me when I say that I wasn’t thinking of you in that way. My only thought was to get your fever to break and to help you when you had to use the restroom.”
“It’s mortifying, Nick,” I whisper, my face heating up at his words.
“Why? You’re mine, Shayla, so who else should help you besides me? Mom was busy with Amelia. It’s how I was raised, to take care of those around me. You’re gonna have to get over it.”
I think about all the making out we did the night before I apparently got sick and blush even more. He made me feel things I didn’t think were possible outside of a romance novel and the fact he took care of me like I would Ame
lia makes me wonder if doing that has grossed him out.
“I see the wheels turning in your head,” he whispers in my ear, causing a shiver to run through me, “and you need to forget that line of thinking, whatever the fuck it is. I’m still attracted to you, still want you, and that’ll happen soon enough. But you…fuck, baby, you were so sick, I had to take care of you to make sure you’d be okay.”
“I don’t gross you out?” I ask.
“What the fuck? Why would you think that?”
“Because you had to, you know, take care of me,” I murmur.
“Shayla, look at me.” When I stubbornly refuse to turn my head, he takes my chin in his hand and turns me enough that he’s looking down at me. “Baby, I was older when the other kids started coming along, well, not the first few, but I was definitely in the house during times of sickness. Who do you think helped my mom when she had her hands full? No, it’s not the same in a lot of ways, but I knew what to do to help get your fever to break and I wasn’t gonna let you piss yourself.”
I can’t help it, I start giggling at his words. He’s so…damn, what’s the word I want? Fervent, yeah, that’s it. Almost like he’s afraid I’m gonna run out the door screaming. “I get it, Nick. And I’ll get over being embarrassed at some point.”
“C’mon, I’m gonna carry you out to the family room, then get Amelia. I’m sure she’s missing her mommy.”
“You don’t need to carry me,” I protest as he gets off the bed and scoops me up. His look shuts me up and I sigh instead. When he leans in and kisses my lips, I look at him in shock.
“Still want you with every fucking fiber of my being. Gonna wait. You need to get better and build your strength up. Doesn’t mean I’m not gonna touch you and kiss you.”
Well alrighty then, I suppose the big bad biker has spoken.
11
Nick
Once I get her settled in the recliner, I kiss her again, giving her a wink, then say, “I’ll be right back, gonna go get Amelia.” Her smile is enough to get my heart racing and I realize I’m well and truly fucked where she’s concerned. I don’t love her. We haven’t known each other long enough for that, but the attraction I have keeps growing and I realize that I’m heading down that road.
“Thank you.”
I nod and head to the kitchen where I know Mom is with the baby. When she sees me, she squeals and holds her arms up, something suspiciously like momma coming from her. “I just fed and changed her so there’s a good chance she’ll doze off,” Mom says.
“Thinking that’s what Shayla needs, to snuggle down with this little princess and take a nap, don’t you?” I ask. “I’ll be back to grab her something to drink.”
“I got it, Nick. Go take care of your girl.”
“I need to call Reese, let him know it may be a few more days before I can get back.”
“If you need to go, you go. We’ve got them,” Dad states, coming in the back door. “She’s gonna need a few more days now that she’s awake, but I’m sure there’s shit you gotta do for your club.”
I nod. The last time I texted Reese, he told me that the prospects had it under control out at the sanctuary, but I knew that my president relied on me to help his old lady. It sucked because I wanted to be here, with Shayla, but I had responsibilities.
“Mamamamama,” Amelia babbles when she sees Shayla, her arms outstretched. I watch my pretty girl turn into a stunning woman as her eyes light up and she holds her own arms wide.
“Oh, my sweet baby, have you been good?” she whispers, kissing and touching Amelia. I listen as the babbling continues and grin because it almost sounds as if she’s telling her mom everything she’s been doing. Shayla, of course, is used to this, because she keeps up a running commentary.
Soon enough, though, both quiet and I look over to see that she’s got Amelia snuggled into her side and they’re both sound asleep. I make sure they’re covered, then head outside to give Reese a call.
“Hey, man, it’s Nick.”
“Got caller ID, Nick, so I know.” Fucker. “When you headed back?”
“She woke up this morning, but my folks have her so if I need to, I’ll head back now.”
“Naw, tomorrow’s soon enough. Let me know when you head out, we need to have church. How’s Bosco doing for you?” I glance down at the dog at my side and grin even though Reese can’t see.
“Fucking good choice. He’s responding well to training and has even bonded with Shayla and the baby.”
“What are your plans where she’s concerned?” And there it is, the sixty-four-million-dollar question.
“Gonna make her my old lady,” I tell him.
“Figured as much. Means you’ll need someplace to live. No way she’s gonna wanna live at the clubhouse with a baby.”
I run my hand through my hair. “Yeah, I know. I’ll look for a place that’ll work but, in the meantime, guess I’ll be commuting. And if I have to, I’ll stay at the clubhouse. She’s interested in working at the sanctuary, but I know she needs this time to be independent.”
“Not a bad thing, all things considered.” I haven’t fully filled him in yet, figure I’ll do that before church, but he’s right. She needs to know she can do it ‘on her own’ even though I’ll be here.
“No, it’s not. I’ll hit you up when I take off in the morning.”
“Works for me. See ya then.”
I hang up and let the past few weeks run through my head. Ever since I saw her face in the window of her van, I feel like I’ve fallen down a rabbit hole of some sort. I never planned on having a permanent woman in my life, not after the hell I went through in high school. But Shayla defies every safeguard I put in place and I find I want to see where life takes us.
Shayla
Tiny hands patting my face wake me up and I look to see Amelia staring at me. “Hey, pretty girl, Momma’s sorry she’s been so sick,” I whisper. I love her baby smell and can’t imagine my life without her. It hasn’t been easy by a longshot, but I have a place of my own and a job now. I just hope it’s enough for Nick.
“You hungry?” he asks, coming into the family room.
“I could eat,” I reply. He’s so damned handsome it makes my chest hurt in a way I refuse to acknowledge.
“Let me get the little princess, then I’ll come back for you,” he says, picking her up and perching her on his hip. My words won’t come because when he got her, his hand brushed across my chest and my body reacted.
“I can walk, y’know,” I tell him.
“Maybe I like carrying you, ever think about that?” he inquires, winking at me. Within minutes, he’s back and before I can protest further, he has me in his arms and is walking towards the kitchen. I won’t lie, I love how his arms feel around me and he smells delicious. Shaking my head slightly at my thoughts, I sit when he finally puts me down.
“It all looks so good, Jaycie,” I say, glancing around the table.
“Thank Brody this time. He wanted to try something new before he put it on the menu at the diner. We’re his lucky guinea pigs.”
“Speaking of, when can I go back to work? I didn’t ask Ben.”
“Next week,” Brody states, passing around a huge bowl of mashed potatoes.
“I can’t go a week without working,” I reply. My bank account has improved, but a week without any income will hurt.
Nick glances at me before saying, “I told you, I’ve got you. You focus on getting your strength back.” I glare at him because I’ve worked hard to become independent. He leans in and kisses my nose and whispers, “Baby, I’ve got you, okay?”
“Nick,” I whisper, “you can’t do that.”
“Yeah I can. I’ve got y’all, Shay. Promise.” The look in his eyes is one I don’t quite understand, so I nod.
Conversation over dinner is filled with a lot of laughter. I can see the love and care each of them has for one another and long to have that in my life. My time with my grams is a faded memory, and of course, being in a g
roup home was more utilitarian than loving. Although without my house mother, I wouldn’t know how to cook or clean or even sew, so I send up a mental thanks that she took the time to teach me those things.
* * *
Once dinner is done, I give Amelia her bath and get her settled for the night before I head into Nick’s room. He’s already in bed with his back against the headboard when I come in. “Hey, baby.”
“Hey, Nick.”
“She asleep?”
“Yeah, I think your sister wore her out because she was nearly out during her bath.”
“Go get ready for bed, I need to talk to you before we sleep.”
“Okay.” I grab my pajamas and head into the bathroom to do my nightly routine. Once I’m done, I come back out to see that he’s turned off the lights except for the one on his side of the bed, leaving the room in a soft glow. He pats the bed next to him, so I crawl in and he pulls me into his side.
“Gotta leave in the morning, baby. Reese needs me and we’ve got church.”
“Okay.”
“I’ll be back up as soon as I can but will call you every night, okay?”
I nod to show I understand even though I dread him leaving. I’m not in love with him, it’s way too soon for that, but I enjoy him being around. He’s such a contradiction to me because he looks the part of a badass biker, but his treatment of me is nothing short of beautiful. “We’ll be okay, Nick.”
“I won’t. I’ve gotten used to sleeping beside you, baby. And it goes without saying, being able to take care of you and Meli.”
“Meli?”
“She’s kinda small still to fit Amelia and Meli fits, don’t you think?”
“I like it.”
“Good, because the kids have been calling her that already.”
I can’t help it, I start giggling. His siblings are something else. Most have Brody’s hair color but where he’s calm and collected, they embrace that whole ‘red hair’ personality. Lots of verbal sparring goes on, but it’s never mean-spirited.
Nick: Black Tuxedos MC Page 8
