The Restart and the Remedy (Aces High MC - Dakotas Book 3)

by Christine Michelle

  “You think it’s a boy?”

  I scrunched my shoulders up high and then dropped them. “I have a feeling, but I’ve been wrong before, so if you care to place bets, now would probably be a great time,” I laughed.

  Doc continued shaking his head at me as he chuckled. “You know, it’s crazy that Rabbit took an instant dislike to you for whatever reason, because you remind me of him, always turning everything into a joke.” With a raised eyebrow, and a stern look, I conveyed that we were not supposed to be discussing people who hated me. “Sorry,” Doc amended. “Okay, last period?”

  “Aug. 23rd and before you ask, I usually have a pretty regular period on about a 26 day cycle.”

  Doc grinned up from the little chart he held in his hand. “That’s the kind of patient I like, the ones who know the answers to the questions before the questions are even asked.”

  “I aim to please,” I teased, then realized what that sounded like. “But, uh, not like that. So, don’t get your hopes up, Doc. There will be no dirty doctor being played down here while I’m present. I know I advocated for bikers to do that, but…”

  Doc slapped his knee and burst out laughing again. “Oh, Myra, you don’t even know how good you are for my soul right now.” He patted my knee and offered up a genuine smile before turning his focus back to the chart that would tell him my due date. “Looks like you’ll be expecting that bouncing baby boy to come out around May 23rd.”

  “Bouncing baby boy?”

  “I sense the mother’s intuition is strong with you, no way am I betting against a woman who not only knew right away when her last period was, but how long her cycle actually lasted. Honestly, that’s a rarity among women around here.”

  “We can try using the Fetal Doppler to see if we can hear a heartbeat yet, but honestly, at just over 7 weeks, it could go either way. I don’t want you to be disappointed if-”

  I cut Doc off. “Once I take my NCLEX, I’ll be a full grown, official nurse. I understand that it might be too early to easily find the heartbeat.”

  Doc’s smile was infectious. “Sorry, I’m used to…” he waved his hand to indicate the building we were in. “I’m a bit jaded in my old age.” Doc was not an old man. If he was 40, I would be surprised.

  “How did you end up involved in a motorcycle club?” I asked. Curiosity about how men found their way to the life always fascinated me.

  “I came from a poor family, had mediocre grades because I couldn’t get a decent meal, or a moment of peace to study. I went into the military, started as a corpsman and worked my way through school, then got tapped for a program, sent to medical school, did my time to pay off that training, and got out when I was wounded in a bombing on the ship I was stationed on.”

  My jaw dropped, but Doc continued on with his story. “I suppose I had a bit of a fatalist attitude after that, and probably a death wish too. Did a lot of stupid shit. After physical therapy to get everything working right, I started riding. Ended up at a rally, picking a fight with the wrong motherfuckers on the anniversary of the bombing. Iceman was there, stepped in and brought me home with him. The rest, as they say, is history. The brotherhood gave me something back that I didn’t realize I’d been missing. These boys healed the broken pieces of my soul and I’ve been working on the survivor’s guilt ever since.”

  “I’m glad you found what you needed,” I told him.

  “Me too, Myra. Now, shirt up, so I can get to that belly.”

  Doc slipped the cool gel on my belly and started moving the doppler around to try to find a heartbeat. He picked up mine immediately, but we both waited to see if we’d be able to hear my little one’s too. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to find it. Not for lack of trying on his part. He patted my thigh as he removed the little wand from my belly. “Sorry, hon. If I had a transvaginal ultrasound working around here, I’d hook it up and we’d definitely be able to find that heartbeat, but it’s not something readily available. I’ll try to make sure we have a working machine for later on in your pregnancy, because paying cash, those exams are going to be super expensive for you.”

  “Thank you for trying though,” I told him. I tried not to let my disappointment show, but that was tough. I was pregnant and the hormones were no joke to deal with, so the tears started. “I’m sorry, it’s not like I didn’t know the likelihood,” I explained.

  Doc smiled as he handed me tissues. “You’ll be all right, Myra. So will that baby. I know you’ve been through some things with an MC before, but honey, the people here are all pretty great.” He rolled his eyes after saying that. “Not that Rabbit gave you a shining example, but I promise his issues are solely his and if he doesn’t get over them soon, I’ll personally put a boot up his ass.”

  “Okay, Doc. Can you do me a favor?”

  “What’s that?”

  “When you lodge that boot up there, can you give it a little sideways twist for me?” I asked in an innocent tone as Doc laughed.

  “You bet. If he gives you any further trouble, you let me know and Uncle Doc will be there to handle him.” He patted my belly as he wiped the gel remnants away.

  “Uncle Doc?”

  “Yeah, girl! That kid needs family at his back. I’m signing up for the top spot around here. I’ll be the favorite, I just know it.” I don’t know what possessed me, but I leaned forward, reached out, and hugged Doc so hard, I thought one of us might break.

  “I’ll be your family too, Doc. Whenever you need a hug, come get one.” I don’t know what made me say it, but I just had a feeling that the man was going through something else, and whatever it was weighed heavily on him. Call it a hunch or some of the super-hormone, mommy intuition he spoke of, but I just knew he needed it.

  “You are a gem, Myra. Never let anyone tell you otherwise,” he told me as he turned his back, presumably to put the doppler away, but I didn’t miss the way he swiped at his eyes either. “You remember how to get back topside?” He asked me.

  “Of course,” I assured him.

  “Go on up, I’ll get you some appointments set up with a friend of mine who owes me a favor.”

  “Don’t go using up your favors for me,” I told him.

  “Honey, if I can’t use my favors up to help out a beautiful soul in need, then what’s the point in collecting them?”

  “You’re quickly becoming my favorite person, Doc.”

  “Right back at you, girl.”

  Once I got back up to the main floor, I noticed that Rabbit was standing over by the bar watching Charlie work. When she went to move a few bottles on the higher shelf above her head, as she restocked the liquor, Rabbit hopped over the counter and took them from her. “I’ve got this. Don’t want you straining your back or nothing.” His words were teasing, but it was sweet to see a man jump up to help a woman out without needing to be asked. Then again, this was Rabbit, so maybe he had another agenda. Everyone kept telling me he was a super nice guy, but I had yet to see it. I was really sorry for him that Chastity had apparently fucked him over, but boo-freaking-hoo. That didn’t give him license to be a dick to other people. I’d been fucked over too, and I certainly wasn’t behaving that way. That would make me a hypocrite.

  I silently moved to the end of the bar to wait for Cherry, who I didn’t see right away, but was supposed to be my ride back home once my exam with Doc was done. A man tapped me on my shoulder and I turned to him with a smile on my face. It was clear that he was a prospect because the front of his kutte held no identifiers and the back of it simply had the “PROSPECT” rocker below the Aces High MC logo of a skull in a top hat, sitting on top of four aces, while smoking a cigarette. Or was that a joint? Hmmm, something I could ask Spinner or Doc.

  “Hi,” I called out to the man who was just grinning at me.

  “Haven’t seen you around before. Anything I can get for you? A drink, appetizer, a little of me, or a whole lot if you have the time?” He winked as I laughed at his horribly cheesy pickup line. Granted, I knew that the men aroun
d the club didn’t really have to try that hard since they were used to the easy-access club girls acting like they fell for those ridiculous lines. I was just about to tell him that I was waiting on my friend when Rabbit was suddenly there, just behind the bar, snarling at the prospect.

  “BRATs are off limits to prospects, asshole,” he hissed at the man.

  “But she’s not-”

  Rabbit interrupted him before he could explain that he didn’t think I was BRAT. “You forget your place, Prospect? I said BRATs are off limits.”

  I glanced down at myself. I was wearing yoga pants and an oversized t-shirt with some pink and white tennis shoes. My look didn’t exactly scream ‘girl of the hour’. Still, I stood from the stool, mouthed, “Sorry,” to the prospect who looked quite pissed off, and then I made my way out of the clubhouse. I heard Charlie yelling at Rabbit from behind me and then Cherry joining in. Either she’d find me in the parking lot, or I’d talk someone else into giving me a ride away from this place. What I wasn’t going to do is stand idle while Rabbit lobbed more insults my way. The bastard!

  Chapter 6 – Rabbit

  Cherry came out of nowhere and slapped me while Charlie had me distracted with her shrieking. I didn’t know what the hell crawled up either of their asses because I was too busy having an epic stare down with the prospect in front of me. The bastard had been trying to hit on the new girl and she hadn’t even been certified safe yet. Not to mention, I didn’t know why everyone had a problem about me reminding him that he couldn’t go there until he earned a full patch.

  “What the fuck is wrong with you?” Cherry’s voice finally permeated.

  “What’s wrong with me? What’s wrong with you? You just fucking hit me. You might be my brother’s woman, but you have to know that was completely out of line.”

  “No! You know what’s out of fucking line, Rabbit? The way you’ve been treating my friend. She’s done nothing to you. As I heard it, she did you a favor by allowing you to ride to Rosy’s with her that night you were walking the damn streets, naked as a jaybird. And you return the favor by insinuating – and not just once – that she’s some sort of whore for the club?”

  “Well, she is,” I insisted. That time, Charlie hit me and the prospect just stood there watching with his big Cro Magnon brow all furrowed and furious with me, arms crossed over his chest, and nostrils flared like he was going to come for me.

  “She is my friend, and I am pretty much the only person she has to count on in this world right now. So help me God, if you just pushed her away and sent her running again, I will drag you to the town square, tack you up to a cross, naked, and let women from the whole state, and maybe a few more besides, take turns throwing rocks at your junk!”

  Not gonna lie, I covered said junk and glanced around to see if anyone would help me. More importantly, I took note of all the people who might actually help Cherry instead as she stormed off to go after her friend.

  “What the fuck?” I asked again, hands still covering the goods.

  “Rabbit, I have never been disappointed in you since the day we met, but today, you actually jumped into the top spot on my shit list,” Charlie informed me.

  “Why?” I asked again.

  “Because that woman is no whore, and you should be ashamed of yourself,” the prospect was the one to respond.

  “She was just here to see Doc for her eval,” I said.

  “No,” Doc’s angry voice came from just the other side of the bar. “She was here so I could check on her health because she has no insurance that she can use without it being tracked.” He used a come-hither motion with his fingers, indicating I should move in closer. Like a complete dumbass, I did, thinking he was going to tell me something in confidence. He didn’t. The motherfucker hit me. “That was for the prospect, because I imagine he was wanting to do that and knew he’d lose his chances at a patch if he did.”

  “Mother fuck me running,” I spat out as I swiped at the blood pouring out of my nose. “You just hit me,” I growled.

  “I’m going to do it again too,” Doc slung the words back as he got ready to hop over the bar.

  “Doc, out in the lot!” Rage’s booming voice commanded. Doc’s narrowed eyes landed on me as he tried to shake off his anger. Not that I understood where it was coming from. “You will apologize to that woman, and so help me, if you make her uncomfortable in this clubhouse again, we’re going to have more than words next time.”

  “You fucking hit me,” I reminded him. “That was more than just words.”

  “Nope. That was just me getting started on the lecture.” Rage grabbed hold of Doc then and started guiding him toward the door. As they moved across the room, he looked back over his shoulder at Charlie.

  “Explain shit to him so he understands what he just did.”

  Charlie nodded and waited for the med to get out. Then she turned back to me. I didn’t think she was waiting on privacy though, the woman had been trying to cool her own temper.

  “I honestly can’t believe you would treat any woman that way, even if she was here to be a BRAT.” Charlie shook her head then, disappointment brimming hot and angry in her eyes. “The fact that she’s here to become a nurse, and work with your brother until she can take her test, just makes it worse. She’s probably someone who would be an asset to have around the club, especially since Doc has been worn thin lately.”

  “What? I need someone to actually explain what the hell she’s doing here then, because I overheard her talking about how she left her man in the dust and wasn’t going to look back.”

  “Did you now?” Charlie asked in that voice laden with sarcasm that told me I’d probably misunderstood what I’d overheard. “She did leave her man in the dust. Although, it didn’t quite look like a bitch sporting a pink bob, waving at you from the cab of another man’s truck, which is what I’m sure you were picturing.” Well, she had me there, not that I was admitting to that out loud. “I’ll tell you what I know, and even I don’t know the whole story because Cherry thought Myra should be able to tell it, or not, as she saw fit.

  “Myra has only had one boyfriend. They were club kids together and apparently their families made it impossible for them to not end up together. She thought he invited her to brunch to finally pop the question. He had her meet him at a café so his whore, who he was choosing over her, was there to watch him dump her. And this was after he had been actively trying to get Myra pregnant. They’ve been together for a long time, since she was 16. He had apparently been cheating on her that whole time and worse, her family knew about it.”

  “What the fuck?”

  “Suddenly that question takes on new meaning. So, you have been treating a 24-year-old woman, who has only had one man in her life, and is pregnant by him, and was dumped by him and betrayed by that same man and her family, as if she was a whore coming to work for the club. And you did it all because you overheard her say she left her man in the dust and was never looking back? Would you fucking look back on someone like that Rabbit?” Charlie huffed and puffed for a minute, gathering herself and trying to dissipate the anger she felt toward me. Anger, I realized, that I completely deserved.

  “Fuck!”

  “Yeah, fuck! You owe that woman a huge apology. And Rabbit?” she asked as I started to walk off.

  “What?”

  “Lose the chip on your shoulder. It’s getting annoying and making me not like you very much anymore.”

  I hung my head and left the clubhouse. What could I say? I was ashamed of my own actions now that I knew what had been going on. Truth be told, I shouldn’t have had to know any of that. The old me – the me before Chastity ripped me to shreds – would have never treated one of the club girls like that, even if she said she’d left her man somewhere. I took a ride out to the house I had built but refused to live in. It was where I planned to raise my family one day, where I planned to bring the woman I was in love with to settle down. I walked through the empty place, taking in all the extras
I’d packed into the place, the detailed trim work of the cabinetry, the marble countertops, and the reclaimed barnwood door that slid away to reveal the walk-in pantry in the kitchen. The one that still remained untouched with empty shelves.

  The thought of having Chastity move in and sully this place with her memories made me glad that she had never stepped foot inside the walls. I could continue to wallow in what I’d once thought of as a lost opportunity, or I could see things for what they really were. She did me a favor by leaving before she could taint everything. Having a child with her would have been awful, and I might as well look into adoption and single parenting for all the help she would have been with a child. I knew that. Somewhere deep down, I understood that she wasn’t the right person, and still, I’d wanted something bad enough that I’d been willing to delude myself into thinking what I had would be enough.

  I moved upstairs and walked through the hall, into what should be the master suite. It was just more empty space. Once I passed the giant sunken tub and free-standing shower that could easily fit five or more grown adults, I turned to the mirror and took a good, hard look at myself. There have been times where looking in the mirror meant there was room for improving on myself. This was one of those times, but it was so much more. The man staring back at me wasn’t the person I wanted to be. He had been acting out, taking his anger out on the wrong people, and doing shit he normally wouldn’t have done. It was then that I knew what needed to change.

  “One big fuck you to the world party this weekend to get it all out of my system, and then I’m grabbing my life back by the nuts and getting my shit together,” I told my reflection. It was rare that I let myself go completely wild. Some might say the crap I’d been pulling by sleeping with whatever women were available, whether they were single or not, had been me being wild. That wasn’t wrong, in a way, but it was just a shot in the dark at all the things I normally kept in check. I didn’t drink, do drugs, or indulge with the club girls. It wasn’t because I thought they were beneath me, it had always been for the sole reason that I didn’t want the future love of my life to ever have to walk into the clubhouse and look a woman in the eye who had me as a staple to her bedroom diet.