Sketch: A Steel Paragons MC Novel (The Coast: Book 12)

by Eve R. Hart

  “It is now. It’s yours. All yours.”

  “Mine?” There was excitement in his eyes.

  I nodded because I could see how happy it made him as the whole thing sunk in.

  “Is that peach pie?” he asked, and I knew he was trying to cover up the emotions that were bubbling just under the surface.

  “Would it be anything else?”

  Then he was running toward me. His arms went around my waist and he lifted me up. He held me so tight and I hugged him back the same.

  “I love the shit outta you,” he whispered as he put me down.

  “I love you too. Now make a wish!”

  I reached for the pie and held it up in front of his face.

  His eyes lit up seeing the unicorn candle there. Like a kid, finally getting the thing he’d wanted all his life.

  It made my heart soar.

  All I wanted to do was love him and take care of him and make him happy.

  Nothing had ever felt so right before.

  It was moments like this that I lived for, seeing that little boy in him get to have the things he should have had all along.

  His hands slapped together and he rubbed them back and forth a few times. Then his eyes fell closed and I waited.

  And waited.

  And waited.

  The pie started to feel heavy and my arms were telling me it was time to put it down.

  “Sketch,” I whispered, surprised that the lot was still quiet. I was sure these guys would have gotten impatient by now and yelled at him to hurry up.

  “Hold on, woman, I’m almost done. Got a lot of wishing to make up for.”

  I laughed and did my best to keep the pie steady.

  “Nah,” he said, his eyes opening and his head shaking. “Got every-fuckin’-thing I ever wanted already.”

  He smiled at me and I melted.

  Someone took the pie out of my hands, candles still lit but it didn’t matter. I couldn’t take my eyes off of my man.

  Then Sketch was holding me tight and the world faded away.

  “Hold up!” he yelled, violently pulling away from me.

  Iron had been the one to take the pie, I assumed since he was currently the one holding onto it.

  Sketch leaned over and blew out the candles with one quick breath.

  The lot filled with cheers and the party officially got underway.

  “What did you wish for?” I asked because I couldn’t hold myself back.

  “I’ll tell you when it comes true.”

  He shot me a smirk and I knew this would haunt me for years to come.

  “Think we can slip off so I can get my own special piece of peach pie?” he asked playfully.

  I laughed and swatted his chest.

  “They all worked hard for this, you have to stay,” I told him. “But I do have a special present for you to unwrap later.”

  I walked off, leaving him with whatever image he had floating around in his head.

  Knowing him, it probably wasn’t far off from what I had planned. It might not have been big or exciting for some, but he liked it when I wore simple lace lingerie. He liked seeing just a peek at the goods under my property leather before he stripped me down. And honestly, I loved it too. It was just enough to make me feel wild and like I was the sexiest thing in the world. I suppose it was more that look he held in his eyes every time I gave myself to him.

  I hoped he’d never change. Yes, he kept me young and playful. But that wasn’t the only thing.

  I truly loved Sketch.

  Every single thing about him.

  Sketch

  Sitting at the table never got old.

  I felt like a kid about to unwrap a new toy every single time I sat down in my chair.

  Yeah, my chair.

  I always got here early, didn’t want to let anyone down. That and, I liked to take a moment to soak it all in. I liked watching my brothers filter into the room and send me respectful chin nods. Ones that I always sent back. I liked watching them all look at me as if I belonged here. I just liked it all, really.

  “Alright,” Iron said, getting down to business.

  Shit was changing.

  It had been talked about before I’d even had this chair, but back then, it had just been an idea.

  Now, it was a plan, and that plan was in motion.

  The whole table had been in agreement, including me.

  Shit might have been dangerous but we’d been living like that since the beginning. It was what I’d signed up for, just like everyone else. So I didn’t think that shit should change.

  That said, some of the other chapters didn’t feel the same way. From what I’d gathered, they’d been trying to move things in a different direction for a while now. But I liked that they weren’t taking the option away from us. So, that was all good.

  Things were just shifting.

  And I could respect that.

  “So, it’s official,” Iron said. “We are now leading and overseeing all the weapon trades. Moon Hill is out. West Tennessee is out. Still working with Gray Fort and the South Carolina chapter. From now on, any new chapters that come about have the option to run or not. If and when that happens, we’ll be the ones to set them all up. We’re still one club, same by-laws apply. Now there will be a subsection for our chapters. Don’t know how it will work, but we’re all gonna work together to make it go smooth.”

  Fuck yeah!

  Hoots went up around the room, and I was one of them.

  “I know this was what we all wanted, but we have to be ready for anythin’ and everythin’ that might come about. It’s on us now. We can’t fuck up.”

  In all honesty, we probably would. Shit happened. But the thing was, we always handled our shit. So I wasn’t worried by Prez’s words. It wasn’t like we all didn’t know this anyway.

  “Sketch,” he said and I blinked up at him. I’d been payin’ attention, I swear! I sat up straighter and looked him in the eyes so he knew I was listenin’ to every word. “Going to need more from you.”

  “Whatever you need,” I told him with a short nod.

  “You’ll be Knight’s second.”

  What the fuck?!

  Holy shit!

  There were so many things running through my brain. He was giving me more responsibility. I mean, Knight had that SAA shit on lockdown, but I definitely would be there to help with whatever he needed me to.

  “We’ve talked about it, and you’ll be in charge of gettin’ outgoing shipments together and makin’ sure everything is all set to go.”

  “Thank you,” I said and then shook my head. I just thanked the man for giving me more work. Shit was gonna be on my shoulders now. Was I ready for that? Did they really think I could handle it?

  They must have if they were givin’ it to me.

  I wouldn’t let them down, no fuckin’ way in hell.

  Iron chuckled at me and sent me a chin jerk.

  Lake, who was sitting beside me, patted me on the back.

  And everything was okay.

  “You good with that?” Iron asked me.

  “Hell yeah!” I said with conviction.

  Hear that, con-vic-tion.

  I might have been picking up some new words from my woman. And I was putting them to good use.

  No, I wasn’t changin’, just growing a little.

  Only a little though, don’t worry.

  “Alright,” Prez said and moved on. “We wanted it. We got it. So, let’s prove that we can handle it.”

  Sketch

  Many years had passed since I ended Monty for what he’d done.

  The club rolled on. Things were looking like normal again, but I could still tell some of us had been forever changed by that day.

  I think I saw things that others might not have.

  Like that look behind Cami’s eyes.

  It had dulled over the years but we both knew she’d never be able to go back. She’d never be the same again. I knew she worried about Brand before, bu
t now, she worried a bit more. Since I was around her a lot, I saw it even when she tried to hide it. But despite all that, she’d stayed by his side. She was still here for the club no matter what we needed. She hadn’t pushed us away, so I supposed that meant something. Not to mention the fact that she still was close to me despite the fact that I’d killed a guy right in front of her. I guess deep down she got it— that I wouldn’t have done it if I didn’t have to. That we’d protect her, no matter what. I could only hope knowing that had helped her move on from the whole thing.

  And Claire, I wasn’t sure what I could say about her. She was happy but she was changed too. She was a little less shy, so maybe it hadn’t been all for the bad. Still, it wasn’t like I wanted her walking around all badass and offin’ people. I didn’t think she would, but killing someone wasn’t something you could ever wash off. It changed who you are no matter the reasons behind it. At the end of the day, she might have been happy that it was over and everyone was safe, but that only went so deep. She’d always had a haunted look in her eyes. That was something that wouldn’t ever go away. Only now, there was something darker in that look. It was there no matter what. When she smiled. When she laughed. Even when she held Beau. It was always there.

  I didn’t know how to help them.

  Which made me feel even worse.

  Not that it was all about me.

  But I did take a lot of the blame, I’d hold onto that for a damn lifetime.

  Brand and Cable became more protective of their women. They both thought they were clueless on how to help get Cami and Claire through it, but what they couldn’t see was that just being there and giving them a good life was all the girls needed.

  I had really come to realize that love was a powerful thing.

  Probably had a lot to do with the woman that made my life worth living.

  Anyway.

  The club spent a long time mending and doing its best to move on.

  And things were starting to look up finally.

  Life fuckin’ gave us limes and you know what the fuck we did? We made margaritas.

  Yeah, that was what being a Steel Paragon was all about.

  I finally fucking got it and you bet your ass that I was holding onto it.

  A lot of things were still the same.

  We still carried on like normal, having cookouts and all that shit. Parties still raged on after the sun went down. Fuckin’ was all around too, so there was that.

  I didn’t need any of that anymore. Well, the cookouts, yeah, because food. And family, okay, I’ll admit it. But the parties, the random women, the finding someone to take the heat off of me… that was all in the past for me.

  Only person I needed was my Lis. She satisfied my every need.

  She hadn’t left me.

  I think it took me a little over a year of being together when I’d finally stopped waiting for that moment to come. She’d been understanding and patient with me, even when I got fuckin’ clingy and shit. Yeah, me, can you believe it? But I did, because I knew when you had a good thing, you had to hold onto it. And I was holding onto my bitch real fuckin’ tight.

  So here we were, end of summer, family-friendly party.

  The meat was cookin’ on the grill, the smell making my stomach talk. The big table near the grill was all set up with goodies like potato salad, veggies, and desserts. Guess what, Melissa had made a couple of peach pies. She did that shit every time for me and I knew she did it on purpose. I’d hidden one in the back of the fridge so I could have it all to myself. But don’t tell anyone.

  Everyone was here and happiness filled the air.

  Kids were running around like crazy. I’d like to tell you that there were too many to name, but that’d be a lie. I’d never forget all those kids’ names and I was proud of it.

  I was real fuckin’ happy, in case you couldn’t tell.

  Lis caught my eye and smiled.

  I’d been sitting up on one of the picnic tables kind of on the outskirts of things. Only now, it wasn’t because I felt like an outsider. Nah, that shit was behind me. I did it now so I could see everything at once. So I could take a moment and just let my heart swell with all the beauty around me.

  And now the most beautiful of them all was coming toward me.

  Melissa took a seat next to me, feet planted on the bench seat as she leaned back on her hands.

  For a long moment, she stayed quiet, almost like she knew I needed this time. Or maybe she was seeing the same thing I was and falling in love with it all over again. Kinda hard not to when you had a club this good.

  She took in a deep breath.

  That caught my attention.

  I turned my head to look at her, but she didn’t give me her gaze.

  See, I knew women. And that one thing was tellin’ me that she was about to say something I needed to pay real close attention to.

  “I’m well over forty,” she said calmly. Like the kind of calm right before shit gets crazy, you know?

  “Yeah, I know baby, we just celebrated your—”

  “Don’t say it, Sketch. Never reveal a woman’s age.”

  I laughed. Right, my bad. That was a really important thing that I’d learned since being with her.

  So instead, I said the shit I always said.

  “You know that shit don’t mean nothing to me, baby. Age is just a number. I’ll love you forever, no matter how old you get.”

  This caused her to cut her eyes at me and yeah, I laughed again.

  You know deep down she loved that shit.

  ‘Cause she loved me.

  “My point isn’t how much older I am than you,” she said in a tone that was calm but somehow I felt like I needed to be slapped upside the head.

  “Oh… so then what is your point?”

  Okay, I was feeling really clueless right about now. And that left me lost on how to comfort her or give her what she was needing. All I could tell was that she needed something or else she wouldn’t be sitting here like this carrying on the way she was.

  “My point is… when a woman is over forty, having a baby becomes more risky.”

  The fuck did she just say?

  “Lis, are you tellin’ me you got a baby in that belly?”

  “Yes, Sketch, I’m trying to tell you that I’m pregnant.”

  “And it’s mine?!”

  I realized how that came out and I swear I didn’t mean it that way. No, I didn’t think she’d cheat on me. Hell, fuckin’ no! She loved me that much, believe it or not. Well, I don’t care if you do or not, I believe it. I knew it in my heart.

  I was simply in shock that she was giving me news like this. Good news. Like, I never thought I’d have these feelings inside of me hearing that I’d gotten someone knocked up. But I’ll be damned, I was about to burst with happiness.

  Luckily, she knew me well by now. She didn’t get offended, instead, she only laughed at my dumb ass.

  “Yes, Sketch, it’s yours. Are you okay with it?”

  Even if I wasn’t, it was a little late to fix that now.

  But I was so far beyond okay that I didn’t even think I could explain it.

  “Fuck yeah,” I nearly yelled. As it was, I caught the attention of a few people. So, I decided to let the world know— or at least our world. “I knocked my woman up! Wishes really do come true, y’all!”

  “Sketch,” Lis scolded, but there was humor in her tone. Now that I’d set her at ease, I could see how happy she was about it too.

  Her eyes went wide when she realized what I’d said.

  Yeah, it had been the one wish that I felt weird askin’ for, but mostly ‘cause I wasn’t sure if it was too much. I wanted it to come true, but then what if it never did? I kinda felt like I might be disappointed in the end if it didn’t. But then I realized there was no way I could be disappointed. My life was perfect, and anything else that came along was just extra. So then, I ended up doing that same wish every year after she’d given me my first own birthday.

>   And look where it got me.

  The lot lit up with cheers and hoots and all kinds of hollering. And there were a few faces frozen in shock, but whatever.

  “I love the shit outta you,” I told her as I pulled her into my lap. My hand went to rest on her stomach, and though I couldn’t feel nothing different, I still beamed with pride.

  “I love you, too, Sketch. Forever.”

  Yep. For-fuckin’-ever.

  And then we kissed.

  The Motherfuckin’ End

  Acknowledgements

  I hope you enjoyed Sketch. I know I threw a lot at you. I’m sad to see the end of this generation. Thank you for being there and reading the boys’ stories. Thank you for your support and taking this journey with me. Don’t worry, everyone will be back, just a bit older. I hope you are as excited as I am as what the future might bring.

  I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for Chloé. Like for real. On good days and bad days, she’s always there. So a million and one thanks to her.

  If it wasn’t for Jordan some of the stories might get boring. She’s always tossing horrible ideas out and sometimes they stick in my head. She’s my biggest cheerleader and one of the coolest people I know.

  Need to give a huge thanks to my girls. Beth, Krissy, Sanjana, Shanna, Brittany, KC, Julie, Shari, and Tina. Thank you so much!

  The support of my family is everything. I’m so lucky for my hubby and kids.

  About the Author

  Eve R. Hart does her best writing while downing coffee and munching on chips and salsa. Her days are filled with lightsaber fights, saving the Lego city, and tea parties with her kids. By night, she switches out her cape for heels and writes steamy love scenes.

  She lives on the coast of North Carolina with her husband and three children. When she needs a break from everything she loves nothing more than to sit down and play video games with her husband. She also enjoys cooking, baking, and singing Disney songs while driving.

  Find Her

  Facebook: www.facebook.com/EveRHartAuthor/

  Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/EveRHartAuthor