“It’s okay, we have a while. I’m going to try to give him a partial bath in a bit before I feed him again and put him to bed.”
“A partial bath?” He appeared confused.
“Yeah, remember the nurse told us we shouldn’t get his belly-button stump wet? It shouldn’t be much longer now. It’s healing up nicely.”
“That’s right.” He ran his hand through his hair. It left it sticking up in a sexy disarray that was driving me to distraction. “Oh! Here.” He handed me his phone.
“What’s this?” I asked quizzically as I took it and looked at the screen.
“Pick one out,” he said gruffly.
“Huh?” I realized it was a site with bassinets pulled up. “Gunny,” I started in a pleading tone as I tried to hand the phone back.
“No. You pick one or I will,” he demanded with a frown, and I was reminded of how he pissed me off so easily.
“You’re being ridiculous,” I tried again.
“I’m being serious. It’s been a week of him sleeping in a laundry basket. Longer than I intended to put up with it. So that’s enough. Pick. One.” The phone was thrust under my nose, and I snatched it from his hand.
“Ugh, you’re so frustrating,” I growled and pouted. Because I had a feeling he wouldn’t let this go, I didn’t even look, I simply pointed. “There.”
He took the phone back and looked at what I’d chosen. Then he nodded and left the room. “Oh, my God, he pisses me off.”
Like clockwork, Tristan started to fuss. He was pretty much eating every two hours. It amazed me that I could possibly be producing anything to fill his little belly, but he seemed content after eating.
Lying on my side on the bed was my favorite feeding position. It allowed me to snuggle with him as he ate and still watch his precious movements. He not only fascinated me; my heart swelled every minute he was alive. The amount of love I had for this tiny human was insane.
The heavy knock on the front door made me realize I’d dozed off. Blinking the sleep from my eyes, I carefully rolled over to allow Tristan to nurse from the other side. The even murmur of voices from the living room told me it was someone Gunny knew, since they were talking so long.
The door closed again, and I heard a vehicle start up and drive off.
“Hey, are you about done?” When I glanced in his direction, I had to pull my lips between my teeth to keep from laughing. He was standing in the doorway, but he was looking toward the closed curtains. I wasn’t an idiot. I knew it was because he avoided looking at my boobs when I fed our son.
It was so funny to me, because he’d seen them up close and personal. Yet he acted like he’d never seen a set of tits before. To see the big, burly guy get embarrassed and fidgety because my boob was out was hilarious. It made me imagine chasing him with them both out to see if he’d actually run from me.
“Yeah, why? What’s up?” Tristan had begun to play with the nipple, no longer actually nursing, so I tucked it away and burped him. At the massive belch that escaped him, Gunny’s incredulous gaze fell on his son.
“Jesus,” he drawled in wonder.
It was impossible not to laugh after that. His mouth quirked, and he turned to grab a large box from the hallway. My mouth fell open at what was an expensive playpen/bassinet combo. I knew how expensive they were, because I’d looked at them before.
“Oh, my God. Gunny, I didn’t realize I pointed at that one!” It made me feel bad.
Except he only shrugged. “It wasn’t that bad. Besides, it makes sense. Once he outgrows the bassinet part, you’ll have a corral for him so you can do stuff and he stays safe.”
“A corral? He’s not a horse, Gunny,” I replied with a chuckle.
“Well, same concept.” No more words left him as he pulled everything from the box, set it up, then propped his fists on his hips as he surveyed his handiwork proudly. Never in a million years would I have thought a tatted-up biker setting up baby stuff would be sexy—but holy hell.
“How did you get it here so fast? I thought you were ordering whatever it was I picked out.”
He shook his head.
“Radar happened to be at the store when I sent out the group text that I was going to go get one and asked about the best place to buy one. He offered to pick it up and drop it off.” It was said with such nonchalance that my mouth hung open.
“You bikers sit and talk about baby shit?” I asked, dumbfounded. The image in my head of a bunch of bikers comparing baby stuff was hilariously shocking.
“Well, not literally. Actually, that might be a lie. Anyway, several of them have had kids, so I figured they might know.” He suddenly seemed uncomfortable. If I wasn’t mistaken, his cheeks even looked a little flushed. The white T-shirt he wore set off the red on his neck, confirming it.
“Hmm” was all I could get out without cracking up.
Yeah, it was getting harder and harder to look at him like he was an asshole.
“Keep”—Blacktop Mojo
“Tell Daddy bye,” Avery said as she held Tristan’s chubby hand up to wave at me. The past month at home had gone by too fucking fast. Usually, I couldn’t wait to get the fuck out of there, memories and disappointment nipping at my goddamn heels the whole way. Not this time.
Tristan was nearly a month old already. Every day had flown by faster as I approached the one where I’d have to head back to the coast. The days when Avery was at work or school, I’d spent with my son.
Every little thing he did amazed me. It was weird, because becoming a dad had never really been on my radar since Samantha had tried to fuck me over. Now I couldn’t imagine my life without him in it. How did that happen so quickly?
What really sucked was that I’d miss his one-month birthday because I’d be off-shore.
That had me pausing. Who would’ve thought that I’d be thinking about one-month birthdays and shit?
Hell, if someone had told me I’d be feeling this way the day I left the rig to come home, I’d have laughed in their face. It was hard to believe a month ago I didn’t know I had a baby on the way, and now I was dreading leaving my son for twenty-eight days.
“You sure you’re okay with Mattie babysitting him?” I asked for about the fiftieth time since we decided we’d pay Mattie to take care of him while Avery was at school and the diner.
“Yes. She has a good head on her shoulders and she’s really good with him. I’m just glad she’s willing and that she’s out of school for the summer. I’m also thankful that this summer is the last of my classes before I’ll graduate,” she said with a smile as she patted Tristan’s butt and rocked from side to side.
“Well, Smoke won’t let her work anywhere else. He’s so fucking protective of her.” I grinned.
“Hmm, imagine that,” she said with a smirk. Her storm cloud eyes twinkled, and I had that weird feeling I kept getting around her. The one I kept trying to ignore.
“Here. Let me hold him once more before I go.” I dropped my bag and reached for him. She handed him over, and I greedily snuggled him close. It was hard to tell if he was going to have her smoky eyes or my lighter ones, but either way, he stared into mine like he could see my soul. Hell, maybe he could.
“Hey, buddy. You be good for your mama, you hear? No back talking, no parties, and no girls in your room.” I wiggled his little fist that was curled tight around my fingertip. “No flirting with Mattie, because she’s too old for you.”
The melodic laughter that came from Avery had me looking at her from the corner of my eye. Hiding my grin, I kissed my son and inhaled deeply from the crook of his neck. Not that I’d needed the proof, but the paternity test had come back definitive that he was indeed my son. Even though I’d known it in my heart, that day marked a strange sense of pride. A caveman-like roar had silently ricocheted within me.
He was my son.
“You better get your butt on the road,” Avery chided. Reluctantly, I handed Tristan back to her. Our skin brushed as she took him from me, and a t
ingle shot through me.
“Promise me you’ll answer when I call to video chat? I want to see him every day. I don’t want to miss anything.” My brow furrowed as I thought about all I’d miss anyway. It didn’t sit well with me.
“Yes. If you are able to call at night, I absolutely will.” She’d at least agreed to only work day shifts on the days she didn’t have class. The primitive side of me didn’t want her working at all. Not because I wanted to control her, but because I wanted Tristan to have one of us in his life at all times. It was bad enough I’d be gone a month at a time.
“I will.” My feet were heavy, and I procrastinated as I stared at my boy. For the first time since I’d taken the off-shore job, I experienced crushing regret as I prepared to head down to the coast.
“Get going before you have to rush. The last thing I want to do is explain to him that his dad isn’t in his life because of a traffic accident.” She raised a dark brow at me, and I rolled my eyes.
“I’ll be fine.” Glancing at my watch, I realized I really did need to get my ass in gear. “If your car gives you any trouble, you know to call Smoke. Right?”
I could’ve told her to call Truth, but the thought that he might hit on her didn’t sit well with me.
“Yes,” she patiently replied.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to take it and you keep my truck? It’s more reliable,” I argued. It was the same argument I’d made since we picked up her piece of shit car that I’d sunk more money into than it was worth. I’d never tell her that though.
“Oh my God! Go! We’ll be fine. We’ve got the guys and their women. We’ll be fine. I’ve even talked to Raiven on the phone, and once she’s feeling better, she said she’d help out with Tristan if I ever needed her to.” At Raiven’s name, I waited for the stab that sliced me open. Except it was merely a faint ache. Thank fucking God. I attributed it to the fact that Tristan was keeping my heart and mind wrapped up in him.
“That poor family has been passing whatever that crud is that they’ve had back and forth. Lock is starting to get sick now too. Makes me kind of glad I’m heading out. Maybe you should wait a while to go over there,” I teased with a laugh.
“Yeah, I’m not trying to get sick.” She wrinkled her nose, pushing her freckles together. Staring at her, I had the strangest urge to trail my lips over them.
Shaking off the odd feeling, I cleared my throat. “Okay, I’m out. I’ll talk to you both soon.”
One last kiss to my son’s dark, downy head, and I was out the door. Everything in me screamed to go back, but I kept driving. I had a job to do. Hopefully time would go by quickly and I’d be back home again before I knew it.
“Oh my God! Look at how strong he is! That’s my boy, there.” I grinned as Avery showed me how Tristan had started to lift his shoulders during tummy time. The last three weeks had been the longest of my life. Worse than any of my deployments in the Marine Corps.
“He’s thirteen pounds now. The doctor said he’s doing really good.” Avery was lying on the floor next to Tristan. It was evident she had no idea her cleavage was on full display. I’d had to inconspicuously adjust my junk once already because it was pressing painfully against my zipper.
“That’s awesome. Hey, buddy, Daddy misses you. Are you being a good boy like you promised?” I knew he had no idea I was talking to him, but it made me feel more connected to be able to see him every day. He got tired and laid his head down, so Avery rolled him to his back and held the phone screen in front of him. Stuffing a fist awkwardly in his mouth, he wasn’t paying any attention to the screen or me, but I was absorbing every movement he made like a sponge.
After a couple of minutes, Avery filled the screen, her eyes beautiful and bright, and her hair like a dark, silky curtain around her. Thankfully, I couldn’t see her tits anymore. “Well, I need to get him ready for bed.” She paused as worry creased her brow. “Are you sure you guys are going to be okay out there? They said tropical storm Penelope was upgraded to a hurricane and might end up really nasty by the time it gets close to you.”
“Naw. We’ll be fine. Won’t be the first, nor the last wet weather out here. If they think it’s going to get that bad, they’ll bring us in.” I tried to calm her fears and act like it was no big deal. But it did have everyone talking. They were discussing evacuating most of the crew if it kept building in intensity as it got closer. Then again, it could fizzle out the closer it got. We never really knew.
They had reduced output, and several of the other platforms had been evacuated. The wind and rain we could handle; it was the cresting waves that could get dangerous. If I was honest, I really believed they should evacuate us out, but it wasn’t my call.
“Avery, before you go, I need to tell you something.” I sighed.
“What?” Her expression went guarded.
“I need you to promise me that if you ever feel uncomfortable, you’ll call Smoke immediately.” Running my thumb along the edge of my laptop, I didn’t meet her eyes.
“What are you talking about?” she asked with a confused tip of her head.
“Nothing had happened for a while, so I didn’t want to worry you, but there’s a guy that has beef with our club. We don’t know why, but he keeps fucking with everyone, and he’s starting to mess with their families too.” Lock had messaged me while I was working. I’d contacted him as soon as I had a break. What he’d told me made me want to walk out and head home.
“Like how?” Her tone became wary. Then she started chewing on the inside of her cheek.
“Someone slashed Raiven’s tires while she was at work. No one else’s vehicles were messed with.”
“Yeah, but that could’ve been anyone. Possibly random,” she argued in disbelief.
“I wish I could say it was. Except the same thing happened to Nova and Gwen too.” Frustrated and worried, I dragged a hand down my face.
“Did anyone call the cops? Surely they can look into it. Everyone has cameras these days. Surely they can check those and see the person who did it.” She was looking at me like she couldn’t believe none of us had thought of that.
“Avery, they’ve already looked at all the footage around. Whoever did it knew where the cameras were and avoided being seen. The only clue that shows up is that it was likely a man, but no recognizable features.” I wasn’t going to tell her we don’t call the fucking cops and that we had our own way of finding shit out.
“Should I be scared?” She looked nervous, and I hated that with me being miles out on the gulf.
“No, just be cognizant of your surroundings. Pay attention to things when you go out. Don’t walk out to your car alone after work. Things like that.” I tried to reassure her. Especially considering she was already worried about me with that hurricane making the headlines.
“Okay. Well, you be safe too. We’ll talk to you tomorrow night.” She gave me a sad little smile and had Tristan wave goodbye, then pretend he was blowing me a kiss. He was a chunky bundle of beautiful, and I fucking missed him something fierce.
“Thanks, Avery. You too. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” We ended the call, and I sat there feeling melancholy as fuck.
I climbed into bed and tried to sleep. All night, I tossed and turned because of nightmares that I didn’t make it home again.
Three days later, we were in T time, transition time, and shutting everything down. The hurricane was heading straight for us. Avery had been freaking out when I spoke with her the night before. I’d asked Lock to go make sure she was okay, and he promised me he would.
It was a fast-moving hurricane by that time. They were only anticipating it lasting a few days, so we were doing a “soft” shutdown. All nonessential personnel would be flown back to shore. In the meantime, we were tying down equipment and preparing the rig for the storm. I was scheduled to be on the same flight as Walter, and we’d be leaving early in the morning. The helicopters would run from sunrise to sunset.
About a quarter of the crew would stay on
the rig. I actually felt sorry for them, because, I have to admit, being in the middle of the Gulf during a hurricane scared me more than any time I’d gone to combat in the Marine Corps.
“I’ve got it!” I said as one of the guys tossed a heavy-duty ratchet strap over to me. I was cranking it down when I heard the shouts. It happened so fast that I barely had time to turn and see the pipe coming straight for me. All I could do was throw up my arms and brace for the hit. There was a loud crack as the pipe hit my arms and tossed me across the deck about twenty feet. My hard hat went flying, my head hit the platform, and I swear to fucking Christ I saw stars before blackness engulfed my vision.
By the time I came to, the pain in my left arm was excruciating and my head was pounding.
“Easy, son,” Walter said as I tried to fight the hands that were strapping me to a board. Panic flooded my senses, and I tried to look around, but my head was secured.
“Walter! What the fuck happened?” I asked through clenched teeth. The pain was nearly making me black out again.
“Freak accident. But don’t you worry, they’re gonna get you to shore and get you fixed up. I’ll see you tomorrow when I fly out of here. Okay?” His weathered face was all I could see as he leaned over me. He remained calm, but I could see the worry in his light brown eyes.
They must’ve given me something, or the pain took over, because I don’t remember any of the flight, nor being taken to the hospital. Everything was a blank until I woke up to see Lock and Smoke by my bedside.
Groggy, I blinked to clear my vision. “Hey,” I croaked, and they both jumped up from where they were sitting.
“Goddamn, son, you scared the shit out of us.” Smoke scrubbed a hand over his face.
“Son.” I tried to chuckle, but everything hurt. “Aww, fuck!” I groaned.
“Yeah, you’re gonna feel that shit for a while.” Lock held my right hand in a firm grip. “They had to use all kinds of hardware to put your arm back together.”
Jax and Jokers: A Demented Sons MC Texas Novel Page 12
