by Harley Wylde
“He’s nearly dead, Steel,” Demon murmured. “Finish it now and you can catch up to your daughter. Maybe clean up first. You look like the villain in a slasher flick.”
I jammed the blade through Patrick’s temple, snuffing out his pathetic life. His mother wailed and hurled curses at me, but she wasn’t my problem. Not anymore. I’d let the others have her, do whatever they wanted as long as her death wasn’t quick. The unholy light in Demon’s eyes told me he’d see to Cait and Sean Mulligan, and probably find a great deal of pleasure in their suffering. He’d damn well earned his name.
I used the bathroom to clean as much of the blood off me as I could, enough so it wasn’t noticeable and wouldn’t draw attention. I walked down the long drive to my bike. Once I hit the highway, I opened her up and broke every traffic law known to man in order to catch up to Coral. It only took me fifteen minutes before I saw them ahead of me. I passed Brick and Crow, who’d taken up the rear, then slowed so I could pull up next to the truck. Little Coral was in the backseat. The moment she saw me, relief lit her features and she waved. I smiled and waved back, then remained where I was until Matt pulled off for a quick stop.
I had my daughter. The Mulligans were finished. Now it was time to get on with our lives, celebrate our little family, and make some happy memories. And I knew just where to start…
Chapter Thirteen
Rachel
Steel hadn’t called or messaged me, and then I’d realized he probably didn’t know the number to the phone I’d been given. Even though he’d arranged for me to have one, Slash had delivered it. There was a chance the VP of the club had texted the number to my husband, but no guarantee. My fingers shook as I pulled up his name under contacts and send a quick text. If he was busy, or in danger, I didn’t want to distract him. I hope you’re safe.
My phone chimed almost immediately with a reply.
I’m good, and so is Coral. On our way home. Right after, I received a picture of him leaning in close to Coral, both of them smiling. My little girl was safe. Steel was safe. I placed a hand over my belly. Soon, my family would be back together.
My heart soared at the news, and I couldn’t help but smile. He’d gotten our daughter back! They were coming home to me. I sank onto the couch in the living room and stared at the TV. Now that I wasn’t a big ball of nerves and anxiety, I could relax a little. Meiling and China had been the last to leave earlier. They’d put a romantic comedy on, claiming I needed something lighthearted. That was hours ago, but whatever app they’d used kept playing more and more movies. Even though my family was safe, I still couldn’t focus on much of anything. My thoughts were racing and I had a nervous energy I couldn’t shake.
I stood and paced the living room. I knew exactly what I needed to do. Coral and Steel might be hungry when they arrived. The meal I’d made before had dried out, probably from cooking it too long while I worried over Coral. I checked the kitchen and frowned when I realized I was lacking the ingredients for what I wanted to make. I didn’t think cooking was an emergency, but I called Slash anyway. Making something for Steel and Coral would keep me busy, help pass the time, and they might appreciate my efforts when they got here.
“Everything okay?” he asked when he picked up.
“Steel texted me. He’s on his way home with Coral.”
“So you’re calling because you just like the sound of my voice? Needed to share the good news? Both?” he asked, his voice tinged with humor.
“I want to cook and bake,” I blurted. “I need ingredients from the store.”
“Tell you what. Whatever you’re baking, make extra for me and I’ll go get whatever the hell you need. Make a list and I’ll come get it.”
“Thank you! Front door’s unlocked.”
He growled and I knew I’d made a mistake admitting that last part, but I’d heard several bikes drive past every hour since Steel left. I knew they were keeping an eye on me. Once the Mulligans had Coral, they had no use for me anyway. I’d just been in the way.
I hung up and raced to find a pen and paper. Once the list was made, I set it on the kitchen counter. When I’d met the VP earlier, he hadn’t been quite what I’d expected, not after meeting Grizzly. I didn’t know what his true hair color was, as he’d dyed it a dark blue with green tips. It seemed odd for a biker, especially one who looked like he was in his late thirties or early forties, but then I’d realized he had a good sense of humor and was a bit playful. The colored hair suited his personality from what little I’d seen so far.
Slash stepped into the kitchen. “Little girl, your man is going to paddle your ass when he finds out you left the door unlocked while all this shit is going on.”
“I know you’ve had people watching the house. Besides, it wasn’t me they wanted. Only Coral.”
Slash ran a hand over his hair, disrupting the spiky strands and making them stick out like a porcupine’s quills. “Got it ready?”
I handed the list over. “You don’t seem like the type to be VP of a motorcycle club.”
His eyebrows lifted and he studied me until I squirmed. It seemed I’d said the wrong thing. Had I insulted him?
“So, it’s like this. My dad was a real asshole. Part of an outlaw club that was into heavy shit. Murder. Rape. Nothing was out of bounds with them. Had kids from a bunch of different women. He’d get them pregnant and ditch them. Thankfully, the bastard is dead now after he tried to hurt my sister, Josie. But growing up on the wrong side of town, and having that bad blood in my veins, I did some stupid shit when I was younger. Spent some time in prison.”
“But you’ve changed?” I asked.
“Maybe a little.” He held his thumb and forefinger a small space apart. “The point is this club saved me. Grizzly saved me. Gave me a spot, taught me to control my anger. When he needed a VP, he told me I was taking it. Didn’t ask. Just said it was mine. I would do anything for this club, and anything for the Pres. They’re my family. My life. And that now includes you.”
“I get the feeling the guys here aren’t as scary as I’d first thought. Grizzly included.”
Slash winked. “Only nice to the pretty girls. Unless it’s Guardian and Dagger. Before they married Zoe, they were nice to the pretty boys too.”
I snorted, then nearly doubled over laughing. When I was able to catch my breath, I put my arms around Slash and gave him a quick hug. He hesitated a moment before wrapping his arm around my waist and giving me a slight squeeze.
“Thank you,” I said. “For everything. But especially for making me laugh. I needed it.”
He held up the list. “Back in a bit.”
While I waited, I tidied the house, made sure all the laundry was caught up, and I set out all the cooking utensils I’d need. I called the vet to check on Victoria. Even though she wasn’t out of the woods, they seemed confident she’d be okay. I truly hoped so or my little girl was going to be heartbroken. I was starting to think she loved that dog more than me.
By the time Slash came back, I’d cleaned the house twice, taken stock of any supplies running low, and paced until I’d nearly worn a groove in the floor. He stuck around only long enough to ensure I was okay. I set out all the ingredients I’d need for the desserts first, since I’d promised Slash I’d make him some too, and put everything else away until I needed it.
I hadn’t had a lot of opportunities to cook from scratch over the years, but following a recipe came easily to me, even when it involved baking. I made the pie filling, then rolled out the crust. I worked the dough around the pan and trimmed off the excess. After I smoothed the filling inside it, I rolled out more dough and cut it into strips for a lattice top. I made two apple and two cherry pies, thankful the oven was big enough to bake them all at once.
I cleaned up my mess, then pulled out the ingredients for a lasagna. Except it seemed Slash was sneaky and hadn’t bought only what I needed. No, he’d doubled it. I smiled, thinking it was likely his way of giving me a hint. It seemed he didn’t just want pie,
he wanted lasagna too. It made me wonder if the single men here ever got a decent home-cooked meal, unless they knew how to make one themselves.
A glance at the clock told me it wasn’t too late to call my new friends. With Zoe being pregnant, I knew she might be more tired than usual. I decided to call Lilian instead. The fact she’d lived here before pairing off with Dragon might have factored into my decision a little. She didn’t answer by the fifth ring and I hung up, not wanting to wake them if they were asleep already. Instead, I called Elena.
When she picked up, I heard a baby crying in the background.
“Um, bad timing?” I asked.
She laughed softly. “It’s fine. Valeria is mad because her daddy put her down and she wants to be held. She’ll get over it. Preferably before we go deaf.”
I remembered those days. “I had a quick question. Slash ran to the store for me and asked for a pie as repayment. When I went to make a lasagna for Steel and Coral, I realized Slash had doubled the ingredients I’d asked for.”
Elena snorted. “That man’s about as subtle as a bull in a china shop.”
“It made me think… there are a lot of single guys here. If they don’t make their own meals, how often do they get home-cooked food? Not something from a box or frozen, but freshly made?”
“Never?” Elena asked. “I honestly hadn’t put much thought into it. I know whenever we’ve had any sort of family gathering the men descend on the food like locusts.”
“I realize we’re all moms and exhausted on the best of days, but would you and the others be interested in doing a food rotation of sorts? Maybe twice a week we could make a few pans of something like pasta or a casserole and leave it at the clubhouse for the guys who don’t have a woman at home?” I asked. “Or even just once a week. I thought it might be a nice gesture.”
“Mm-hm. And would this nice gesture by any chance be an attempt at showing them how much nicer their lives would be if they settled down and stopped bringing those club whores around?”
I bit my lip. It hadn’t been my intention, not consciously, but I had to admit I liked the idea of not having those women around anymore. Or at least not as often. What if Coral wandered down by the clubhouse when she got a little older and saw those women? I wasn’t ready for those sorts of questions, not until she was at least fifteen or sixteen. I knew it was doubtful I’d be able to keep her blinded that long, but I could hope.
“I’ll talk to the others,” Elena said. “I have a feeling they won’t mind. We could even pair up. With there being six of us now, seven counting China, if two of us made something complementary and took it over once a week, we not only wouldn’t have to make so much by ourselves each time, but every few weeks the guys would get a different type of food. Although, I’m not sure how much cooking China does. I don’t want to leave her out, though, assuming she wants to do this with us.”
“Just let me know and we can set up a rotation or something. I think it would be fun, and I’m betting the club would love it.”
“Maybe you should have married Slash instead,” Elena said. “You’d be great as an old lady for the VP or Pres.”
“I think Steel is all I can handle.”
After I hung up, I got to work on the two lasagnas, thankful Steel had two pans I could use. If I’d known Slash wanted one too, I’d have asked him to get a disposable one at the store. The last thing I wanted to do was track him down to get a dish back. I pulled the pies from the oven and set them aside to cool, then finished layering the lasagnas and slid them into the oven.
The sound of a motorcycle pulling up out front had me racing for the door. They shouldn’t be here already, should they? My heart pounded as I yanked the door open and tears pricked my eyes as I watched Steel get off his bike. I ran for him, but he held up his hands before I could throw myself into his arms.
“Easy, beautiful. I’m a little messy even though I cleaned up a bit before I headed home. Let me shower and change. Matt isn’t far behind me with Coral.”
My gaze skimmed over him, and I didn’t notice it at first. Gradually, the darker spots on his cut came into focus, and when he shifted, I saw droplets of blood on his shirt. “Steel… is that…”
“Blood? Yeah, darlin’. It is. Not mine, and not Coral’s.”
My shoulders sagged in relief. “Good.”
He kissed my cheek as he walked past me into the house. I hurried to catch up and started the shower for him while he undressed. I eyed the clothes on the floor and the cut he’d set on the counter. I had no idea how to get blood out of leather. The shirt would come clean easy enough with some stain remover.
Steel tapped on the glass of the shower door. “Just leave it. I’ll handle all that when I get out. Don’t want that asshole’s blood touching you.”
“He’s… dead?” I asked.
“You really want to know?”
I gave a quick nod.
“Made sure he won’t hurt anyone else. Demon and the others remained behind to handle Cait and Sean Mulligan, and clean the place up when they’re done. No one is coming for Coral, or you. If there’s any backlash from them disappearing, we’ll deal with it.”
“Oh, God. I hadn’t even thought… can they trace their deaths back here?” I asked.
“Not after Wire and Outlaw are finished. They’re erasing any footage from the security feeds, setting off a virus to wipe out any systems that had access to it, and are going to make it look like the Mulligans left the country.”
I started to ask if they could really do all that, but then I remembered how easily Outlaw had married us. It made me grateful he used his powers for good and not evil. Steel stepped out of the shower and I handed him a towel, biting down on my lips as I watched the water droplets run down his body. His cock twitched and started to grow. My breath caught and I took an involuntary step closer.
Steel chuckled and covered himself with the towel. “Much as I love that look on your face, and want to do whatever just crossed your mind, Coral will be here any minute. We don’t have time, beautiful. But later? That’s a different story.”
He pulled me to him, kissing me breathless. The front door slammed, breaking us apart, and I staggered away from him, feeling drunk and entirely too warm. My lips tingled and I knew my nipples were hard. I tried to get myself back together by the time I reached the front entry. Matt was leaning against the wall, but I didn’t see Coral.
“She’s looking for Victoria,” he said softly.
My heart ached. “I’ll go find her and explain.”
“Think Steel already did, but…” He shrugged.
I found Coral in her room, holding the toy she’d picked out for Victoria. Tears fell down her cheeks as she looked up at me. “It’s my fault she’s not here.”
“Oh, sweetheart. No! It’s not your fault, not even a little.” I knelt in front of her, taking her into my arms. “She wanted to protect you because of how much she loved you. I spoke with the vet just a little bit ago and they said she’s doing well. I bet we can go see her tomorrow even if she can’t come home yet.”
“That’s what Daddy said, but I hoped he was wrong and she was home waiting on me.”
I felt Steel’s presence before he stepped into the room. He hugged Coral and kissed the top of her head. “Your mom is right. We can go visit tomorrow, and you can tell her how much you miss her and love her. I’m sure that’s just what she needs to hear in order to get better faster.”
“Are the two of you hungry? I have a lasagna in the oven and made some pie for dessert.”
At the word “pie,” Steel smirked at me, making my cheeks heat.
“I’d love some pie,” he said.
His shoulder shook with silent laughter as Coral broke free and raced toward the kitchen. I leaned in closer to him. “That was terrible! One day she’s going to know what you mean.”
“But that’s not today, beautiful. We have a little more time before I have to find creative ways to get you all hot and bothered when the k
ids are around.”
My eyes went wide and I placed a hand on my belly. “Did you tell her?”
“Figured you’d want to do that together. Come on, before that little monkey climbs the counter and eats all the dessert.”
“She better not. Two of those are for Slash since he went to get the ingredients for me.”
We found Coral peering over the counter at the pies. Before we ate, I decided it was time she found out about the baby growing inside me. It had just been us for so long, and she’d only had a daddy for such a short time, I worried she wouldn’t be all that happy about the news.
“Coral, you know how you used to ask for a little brother or sister?” I asked.
“Yeah. I used to ask for a daddy too, but now I have one.” Her eyes went wide. “Am I getting a sister too?”
I glanced at Steel, who was fighting not to smile. “Well, I don’t know if it will be a brother or sister, but there’s a baby growing in mommy’s tummy, just like you did. You’ll have to teach them how to do all the important stuff only a big sister knows how to do.”
Coral squealed, jumped out of her seat, and ran three laps around the kitchen table. Steel lost his battle and burst out laughing as I watched my daughter. It had gone better than expected. I only hoped she was this excited after the baby arrived and took up so much of our time.
Epilogue
Steel -- One Month Later
Dropping my daughter off at school still filled me with a joy I’d thought to never experience, even though I’d been doing it for a few weeks now. She always kissed my cheek before she got out of the SUV I’d bought for Rachel, then waved as she entered the school building. Despite her trouble making friends in the past, she’d made several at her new school. My girl was happy and thriving. She was going to be over the moon excited when she found out I’d already made plans for her summer break. One that included a trip to a certain location managed by a great big mouse. Rachel had confessed Coral had asked to go several times, but she’d never been able to afford it. While my wife was skeptical about going when our other kid would only be a few months old, I knew we’d be fine.
