by K. J. Dahlen
Deke just glared at his father. “Have you never heard of those handy little rain coats for guys that prevent your little swimmers from attaching to women’s bits that eventually form a tiny human being? Most guys use them.”
Sam flushed at the disgust in his son’s voice. “I told you I went a little crazy after you walked away from me. I drank too much and I went out looking for trouble and I usually found it. Whether it was a fight or a willing woman, I just didn’t care. I’m not proud of the way it was back then, but I did take care of my responsibility if I knew about them. I always sent Junie and Stacy money to take care of the kids.”
Deke just glared at his father. “What is my other sister’s name?”
“Adriana. Her name is Adriana. She lives with her mom in Saratoga Springs.”
Deke frowned. Saratoga Springs wasn’t that far away from Troy.
Sam saw as Deke worked things out in his mind. “Yeah boy, I followed you all the way here. When you and Gator left that day, you were so angry with me. I didn’t want you to do something stupid. I had to know you were going to be okay. I tried to stay away but I couldn’t stay away too long. I kept checking up on you, just to see how things were going. I met Stacy on one of those trips down here. She was a good woman. She still is. When she ended up pregnant, she didn’t rant and rave at me. She didn’t demand that I marry her either. All she asked was that I stay away from the kid. She knew all about you and Quinn. All she asked was that I provide for my daughter and I have. I also told her if she ever needed me, I’d be there for them both. I didn’t willingly disown the kid. Not that it matters to anyone now.”
Deke gazed at him for a full few minutes. “Let’s get things settled here first,” he finally spoke. “We can worry about Adriana later.” He paused then had to ask, “Is there anything else you need to tell me or is this it?”
Sam shrugged. “That’s it as far as I know.”
“Good, it better be.” Deke growled.
“I need you both to know something here,” Mountain grumbled. “I glad Sam is confessing everything to you but that doesn’t mean a thing to me. I came here to be with my daughter and the baby. I left a good life behind for something better here with her. I’m not going anywhere either.”
“Melora said her and Izzy are getting a house together somewhere in town,” Sam informed them.
“That’s fine but they won’t be alone. I’ll be there with them,” Mountain stated firmly. “Me and the guys that came up here with me. We’re going to open a hot rod shop.”
Sam snorted. “Hot Rods? This is a motorcycle club not a hot rod club.”
“Who says we can’t be both?” Mountain challenged as he crossed his arms over his large chest. “Your guys have a custom motorcycle shop going, why can’t we open a custom shop for hot rods?”
“Are you and your guys planning to join us then?” Deke wanted to know.
“We hope to, if you’ll have us.” Mountain nodded.
Deke reached out and shook his hand. “We’d be honored to have you. I’ve heard nothing but good things about you all and our club wants you.”
Mountain shook Deke’s hand and said, “The club will get the normal ten per cent associated with the connection.”
“Then let’s hope people like hot rods as well as they like custom bikes.” Deke grinned.
“They’re gonna love the ones we build.” Mountain chuckled.
Sam kept his expression blank as the two men shook hands and laughed. He didn’t care if the Mountain man built tinker toys. He wasn’t going to let him or anyone else get between him and Melora.
~* * * *~
The next afternoon found Deke and Cassie, Sam and Melora in a doctor’s office waiting for their turn to be called into the back rooms.
A few minutes after they arrived, Mountain joined them. He sat a distance away but he was still there.
Melora felt a little nervous as she rubbed her hands together.
Sam noticed and her took her hands in his and whispered, “It’ll be okay sweetheart.”
Melora nodded and tried to calm herself. Then she found her father staring back at her. When he smiled, she felt his support and calmed down. She leaned forward and rested her head on Sam’s shoulder. “I know it’ll be fine. I know every woman goes through this but this is my first time and I’m allowed to be a little nervous.”
“Hey, this is my first time too.” Sam nodded. “I’ve never been through this part of having a kid either.”
“Thank you for being here with me,” she whispered. “It does help.”
Sam nodded over at Mountain. “It helps that he’s here too huh?”
“Yeah, it does,” Melora admitted. “He did give up everything back where he came from to come here and help out.”
“I know but you have a support system already with me and Deke.”
“It doesn’t hurt to have him around.”
“As long as you know I’m not going to stop being there for you and the baby as well,” Sam assured her again. “I still want you to marry me Silk, and give the baby my name.”
She paused at the nickname and looked away. “And I told you I wouldn’t marry you just for the baby.”
“I know what you said but I’m not giving up,” Sam stated with his jaw firm.
“Melora Shaw,” a nurse called out.
Melora and Sam stood up and headed toward the hall. Melora grabbed Sam’s hand and wouldn’t let go.
As they were motioned into the exam room, they were met by Dr. Simon Peters. He stood and shook Sam’s hand and waved his hand for Melora to take a seat. “So I understand your friends with Cassie Tory.”
“Actually, she’s my daughter in law,” Sam told the doctor.
“Ahh, I understand. Well, what can I do for you today?”
“I’m pregnant and Cassie recommended you as a doctor,” Melora explained. “I don’t have a regular one in this area.”
Dr. Peters gazed at Melora then looked to Sam. “And you’re here because…?”
“It’s my kid,” Sam told him.
“Aren’t you a little old for this part?”
Sam kept his expression blank. “It doesn’t make a difference, I’m still the father.”
Dr. Peters turned to Melora and asked, “Well ok then, so how far along do you think you are?”
“I’m not really sure,” Melora admitted. “I haven’t had my period in over four months.”
“Well, shall we find out?” he asked and motioned for Melora to get up on the exam table. When she got settled, he flipped up her shirt and squirted gel on her belly. Grabbing a wand, he began moving it around her lower abdomen. When he found the correct spot, he pointed out the baby. “There it is.”
Both Melora and Sam watched as the baby became clear. They could see the head and arms and as Dr. Peters moved the wand around, they could see the whole body all the way down to the baby’s feet.
Melora was in awe. This was her child and she couldn’t believe it was so real. Tears rolled down her cheeks and she turned to see Sam’s expression.
Sam was staring at the monitor in awe as well.
Melora reached out and took his hand.
Sam squeezed her fingers but couldn’t take his eyes off the baby.
“Would you like to know what it is?” Dr. Peters asked.
“Yes,” Melora whispered as she stared at the screen.
“It’s a boy,” he announced. “And you seem to be around eighteen weeks along by the size of the baby.” He pressed a few buttons and some pictures began spitting out of the machine. When he handed them to Melora and Sam, he told them, “My nurse will take some blood today and I’d like to see you again in a month.”
Sam helped her sit up. Then he slid down into the chair next to the table and picked up the photo again. He couldn’t take his eyes off the picture of his son. Although he had grown and almost grown children this was the first time, he’d seen a picture of one of them while still in their mother’s womb.
Dr. Peters had to chuckle as he watched the two of them staring at the sonogram photos. “I’ll leave you two alone with your son.”
After the doctor left the room, Melora studied the expression on Sam’s face. If she was thrilled, he seemed to be over the moon. “So…” She moistened her lips with her tongue. “Are you okay?”
Sam nodded. “Yeah, I’m ok.” Looking up at her he said, “This is all new to me. It’s like this is the first time for me, you know?”
Melora chuckled. “Yeah, I guess it is isn’t it?” She paused then asked, “So are you happy it’s a boy?”
Sam nodded. “It wouldn’t have mattered as long as both you and the baby are ok.”
A nurse came in and took some blood then gave Melora a prescription for prenatal vitamins and an appointment card.
When they left the office and went back to the waiting room, Mountain got to his feet. Melora handed him the picture and Mountain stared at it for a moment before he smiled.
“It’s gonna be a boy,” she told her father.
“A boy huh?” Mountain grunted. “Good I can teach him how to work on hot rods when he gets older.”
Sam frowned. “There you go with that hot rods crap again. I’m gonna teach him how to build a bike when he gets older.”
“Oh, both of you stop…..” Melora laughed as Cassie and Deke joined them. She passed the pictures to them and Deke slapped his dad on the back when they found out the baby was a boy.
“No fair,” Cassie whined. “We won’t find out for at least another month what we’re having.”
“Sweetheart,” Deke wrapped his arms around her. “It won’t matter, boy or girl we’ll love it anyway.”
Cassie smiled and hugged him back.
“Let’s get out of here,” Melora stated. “I have a lot to do now. The biggest thing to do is to find a place to live. Then I have a baby to get ready for. I have to buy a crib and all that other stuff.”
Sam and Mountain just stared at her.
“Ahh, sweetheart…” Mountain stammered.
“What?” Melora asked as she looked from one to the other of them.
“We have some time before the baby comes to get settled,” Mountain told her. “The boys and I have to find a place to set up shop and buy the tools and supplies we need to earn a living. I have some money set aside and we’ll get everything you need for the baby but it’s going to take some time.”
“The shop is on you.” She raised her chin up. “I have my own money.”
“But how?” Cassie asked. “You haven’t worked since you got here.”
Melora shrugged. “I have been working the whole time and I have some money set aside.”
“What have you been doing?” Deke asked with a curious expression on his face.
Melora shrugged and flushed. “I write books.”
“You’re published?” Sam asked in surprise.
Melora nodded. “I write under a pen name.”
Cassie began shaking her head. “No, you aren’t her—are you?”
“Who?” Deke asked with a frown.
“Danielle Shane,” Cassie whispered.
Melora smiled. “Yup.”
Cassie squealed and grabbed her in a big hug. “You little shit! Oh, my God!”
Sam frowned and looked a bit lost. Rubbing his hand along his jaw he asked, “Who is Danielle Shane?”
“Only the biggest romance writer I know,” Cassie explained with excitement. “Peaches and I love her books. We’ve even got Marnie and Reva reading them. Every woman knows the name Danielle Shane.” Cassie stared at her for a moment. “I can’t believe you’ve been living with us all this time and we didn’t know who you were!”
Melora shrugged. “I’m just me, nobody special.”
“You are someone special.” Sam growled. “You’re special to me.”
“To me too,” Mountain assured her.
“Okay, okay.” Melora chuckled. “I’m super special…Can we go home now?”
Sam wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “Come on, let’s go home.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
When they got back to the clubhouse there was more than one surprise waiting for them. Four large trailers sat in the dooryard, all bearing Iowa license plates. When Melora got out of Sam’s truck, Mountain was right beside her.
When Deke and Cassie joined them Deke stated, “I wonder what the hell is going on here?”
Then the front door opened and four very large men came out followed by Gator, Wiley, Deacon and some of the other men. The men came to stand behind and around Deke and Cassie while the four new men stood on their own.
“What the hell?” Mountain whispered in shock.
Deke whipped his head around and stared at the other man. “Do you know these guys?”
“They’re my brothers.” Mountain nodded.
“Your brothers?” Melora whispered. “You mean I have uncles?”
One of the men stepped forward and held out his hand to Mountain. “Well hell, Talon, you look great.”
Mountain laughed out loud and grabbed his brother pulling him into a big bear hug. “Chance, you old sonofabitch! How the hell are you guys?”
The others grabbed him, hugging him close for a minute before Mountain turned to Deke. “These are my brothers Chance, Byron, Bowie and Dante.” Turning back to his brothers, he introduced everyone. “This is Deke, Cassie, Sam and my daughter Melora. I’m sure the others have introduced themselves by now.”
Chance nodded. “Yeah, they did.” He turned to Melora. “So this is your daughter huh? She’s beautiful, must take after her mother.” He chuckled while staring at her light silky looking hair. Her coloring was definitely Morgan, as all the men standing there shared the white hair and violet eyes the same as Melora did.
Mountain laughed along with his brothers then asked, “What brings you guys all this way and why the trucks?”
Chance glanced over at his other brothers briefly then turned to Mountain. “We decided to join you out here. We’ve all been apart for too long. When you called us a couple months ago to tell us you found your daughter, we decided to sell the farm and come out here to be with you guys. We sort of figured you’d move out here, if this was where your daughter was staying.”
“Dad would have wanted all of us together,” Bowie added. “So, when you called us a few days ago to tell us you were moving out here and why, we just packed up and hit the road. We kind of liked the idea of having a garage and building hot rods. It’ll be just like when we were growing up.” He snickered. “We all wanted to see you become a grandpa too. Man are you getting old, brother.”
“That is if you want us to.” Dante shrugged.
“Yeah, I do. It sounds great to me.” Mountain grinned. “The Morgan Brothers are back together again.” He paused then said, “If I’m getting older, so are the rest of you. You aren’t that much younger than me.”
“If we don’t kill each other first,” Chance said. “We haven’t always seen eye to eye on the small things.”
“That was when we were young and dumber.” Mountain shrugged.
“Are they all going to join the club as well?” Gator asked.
“If you’ll have us,” Dante said. “We did bring our bikes.”
Mountain’s smile widened.
No one present had ever seen the huge man grin so much.
“This group doesn’t much care for the idea of hot rods in their town. They prefer the two wheeled kind of vehicle.”
“Well, we’ll just have to convert them then won’t we?” Dante grinned.
“Yeah, good luck with that.” Sam scoffed.
“Oh, I have to tell you guys, the Morgan name and legacy will live on. She’s having a boy,” Mountain announced.
“That kid is a Tory all the way.” Sam growled.
Deke just rolled his eyes then grabbing Cassie and Melora by the arms, he led them inside. “Too much blond testosterone out here.”
Cassie and Melora giggled as they went ins
ide. “I think I need a drink,” Melora stated.
“I think I’ll join you.” Cassie nodded.
Reva came out of the kitchen with a pot of tea and two cups just as Peaches came out with a plate of sandwiches. When they sat down, the others filed in and made their way over to the bar. Deacon grabbed a bunch of beers and handed them out.
While they were busy at the bar Cassie caught Peaches’ eye and said, “Someone has been hiding a secret.”
“And what would that be?” Peaches asked.
“Who she really is.” Cassie said motioning her head toward Melora.
“And who is she?”
“Danielle Shane,” Cassie announced proudly.
“What?” Peaches squealed. “Are you kidding me?”
“Nope.” Cassie shook her head. “She’s Danielle Shane.”
“We should have known that when she wrote another story using the character we loved.” Peaches grinned. “Great story by the way.”
“Thanks.” Melora smiled. “You guys gave me the idea, so it’s all your fault.”
“I’ll take the blame.” Peaches shrugged then smiled.
“Me too. I love your books.” Cassie grinned.
“Where did Izzy go?” Melora asked. “I thought she’d be here.”
“She went looking for houses today,” Reva answered. “Also, she said something about baby shopping.”
