“I see your point, Brother. But who the fuck knew she had the juice to find out about the check either.” Jules scrubbed a hand over his face.
“Yeah. There is that,” Crow agreed. “She seem pissed?”
“Hard to tell. Wasn’t really looking at her face when she said that.” Jules grinned. “I was wrong about her tits. Bitch has a nice rack.”
“You call her a bitch again and I’m gonna take a slice outta your tongue,” Crow shot back. “Stop talking about her tits. And definitely stop looking at them.”
“I’ll stop talking about ‘em, but I ain’t gonna promise to stop looking, Brother.” Jules smirked.
“I should just shoot you now,” Crow muttered. Then he paused and added, “What’s your best guess? You think her family has someone monitoring the wires? Thought you said they were small time now?”
“Fucking Italians. Gianni said the Pignatelli boys cut way down on the bookie business, but who knows what else they got going on. He probably didn’t tell me everything. Those damn wops stick together. They are always messing things up for a brother,” Jules said.
Crow looked at Jules and knew that he was thinking about Glory again. He looked so miserable taking that walk down memory lane that Crow felt sorry for him.
“See that redhead by the wall? Nothing Italian happening there and she’s been trying to catch your eye for the past half hour.”
Jules followed Crow’s gesture and saw a decent looking redhead with big tits and tight everything else. She gave him a toothy smile.
“Been a while since I had a redhead. We done here?”
“Yeah, we’re done. Go get her,” Crow said with amusement.
Jules got up and walked toward the redhead with the come-hither smile.
Chapter 25
“There is something about a man in uniform…” Charity sighed as they walked past the information tables set up by different branches of the military, the little troop of kids mobbed in front of them.
“Jett said his daddy died?” Charity’s eyes hit the wedding ring that hung by the chain on Melissa’s neck.
“He was an Air Force pilot.”
“I’m sorry. That must suck.” Charity put a hand on her new friend’s shoulder.
“And Rosie said her daddy didn’t die?” Melissa steered the conversation away from herself.
“Well…not that anybody knows for certain. But I’m pretty sure my dad shot him.” Charity winced.
“You mean like in a shot him dead kind of way?” Melissa asked incredulously.
“I mean like in a my father was seriously pissed off and sporting his gun when he left the house and no one has seen the guy since kind of way. But I guess that doesn’t necessarily mean…” Charity chewed on her bottom lip.
“Wow,” Melissa said with wide eyes.
“Yeah. You could say that. It's a long story, but basically I got knocked up by my college professor. How clichéd is that? I spend two semesters at a private college and fuck my married economics instructor. I was just looking for some strange, you know?” Charity smiled. “Big biker daughter rebellion. Funny isn't it? I act out by fucking a guy with a Ph.D. Christ, the man wore bowties. Couldn't get farther away from what I grew up with than that. I'm pretty sure that if you put all of my dad’s crew together you couldn’t come up with a high school diploma. But I have to admit that once I got to really know that doctorate asshole, he made the dumbest guy in dad's crew look like a genius. The professor didn't know crap about anything that didn't come out of a textbook. Couldn't even change his own flat tire. He put a lot of pressure on me to have an abortion. I thought that he was just a little freaked out and eventually would come around. I thought that right up until the day he almost choked me to death. The bastard threatened that if I didn't get rid of the baby that he would find a way to get rid of both of us."
Charity paused at the wide-eyed look on Melissa’s face and then continued, “No one had ever threatened or laid a hand on me before. I know what people see when they look at my dad, but he isn't like that with us. Not at all. So when this guy went at me like that, it really scared me. I had bruise marks on my neck. I went to my mom, who, of course, went to my dad, who, of course, took care of that. I had to drop out of college. Dad's actually pretty strict considering the lifestyle. Mom usually runs interference for us, but even she couldn't make him budge. He wouldn't pay for school anymore and that first year after I had Rosie, Dad kept me under lock and key. I couldn't go anywhere without one of the prospects up my ass. It was damn humiliating. Dad even had them follow me along on trips to the grocery store and doctor's visits. He was making a point that I couldn't be trusted to my own judgment. That hurt. My dad can be a real sonofabitch, but it still sucked to think I had disappointed him.”
“So Rosie’s father just disappeared?” Melissa asked in fascination.
“Uh-huh. I never saw or heard from him again. Professor dickhead was just an adjunct, so he wasn’t going to be returning to the college after the summer break anyway, but still… he just kind of disappeared off the face of the earth. I like to think that Dad rode him out of town, but I don’t know. The good thing is I got Rosie out of it, and she is worth everything.” Charity sighed.
“I feel the same way about Jett. He makes it all worthwhile. I know my situation was a bit different than yours. Jesse was thrilled when he heard I was pregnant—we just didn’t have enough time together,” Melissa said.
“I know this might sound crazy, but I envy you,” Charity said wistfully. “I mean it sucks that Jett’s father died and all, but at least you had that time with a man who really loved you.”
“Yeah. I did. It was hard though. Jett and I …we were alone a lot.” Melissa found that she wanted to be honest with Charity as much as with herself. “What they say about war changing a man? That’s true. It wasn’t easy with Jesse gone all the time, but it wasn’t easy when he came home either and sometimes I wonder if we would have …”
“Mellie?” A thundering voice rang out from the crowd and stopped Melissa mid-sentence.
A hot searing pain coursed through her body. It had been years since Melissa had heard that childhood nickname. The carnival noises fell away under the loud, rapid beating of her heart.
“Damn, Mel, is that you?”
Melissa turned to face the man with light hair and dark eyes who’d yelled out to her from the Air Force recruiting station. He jumped over the table with an easy leap and made his way towards her, looking at once so familiar and so out of place that her mind couldn't make immediate sense out of it. But when it finally did, her first instinct was to run in another direction.
She wasn’t ready for this.
Not today.
She had wanted this one simple happy day with her son at the carnival.
Was that too much to ask?
Apparently so. Because once again fate stepped in to wreak havoc on her plans. Automatically Melissa stepped forward to take Jett's hand. At the feel of her son's small palm in hers, the haze slowly cleared and lifted.
“Tommy?” Melissa cried out as felt herself being pulled into a big bear hug.
“Geez! Ouch! Mom, you're squishing me!” Melissa realized that her son had just been squeezed between herself and the officer that held her in his arms.
Tommy pulled away from her suddenly and looked down at Jett. Then his eyes widened and volleyed back to Melissa.
“Is this…?”
“Yes. This is Jett,” Melissa said with a gentle smile.
“Hey, Jett.” He bent down to the boy's level. “You don't remember me, but I sure remember you. Your dad was my best friend. He talked about you all the time. Last time I saw you, you were just a little guy. Now look at you.”
“Do you fly airplanes too?” Jett’s eyes widened and he stood a little taller.
“I used to. I used to fly with your dad.” Tommy’s tone was quiet as he looked intently at the little boy. “You look just like him.”
Melissa bit her lower lip a
nd nodded in agreement. Her emotions sat tangled in a sort of bittersweet joy at seeing Tommy again. She had always known that the day would come. Now that the moment had arrived, she felt ashamed that her first instinct had been to escape the chance meeting. Tommy stood up and smiled widely at the two women.
“Charity, this is Tommy Hinks. Jesse, Tommy and I were kids together in the same neighborhood,” Melissa explained.
“Same neighborhood? How about same sandbox?” Tommy winked at Charity. “Ask Melissa about the time we were in sixth grade and the three of us got caught skipping school together. Or whose car she borrowed…and totaled… the day after she got her driver’s license.”
“That accident was not my fault.” Melissa rolled her eyes and grinned at the old familiar taunt.
As a small silence settled between them, Charity spoke,
“Very cool coincidence meeting up like this. How about I give you two a few minutes? Go have coffee or something. I'll take the littles over to the rides.”
Melissa knew Tommy was taking in the Hells Saints support T-shirt tied high and provocatively under Charity's breasts. If the military officer considered the tight, low-riding jeans and the large tattoo on the side of her ribcage inappropriate, he didn't show it. Tommy thanked Charity with a polite that’s real nice of you, Ma’am and Melissa was surprised to see the biker babe flush pink in response.
“I got this. Go catch up. The kids will be fine with me. I'm just gonna walk them over to the rides. I’ll text Skye and have her meet me over there for back up,” Charity assured her.
“Are you sure?” Melissa asked.
“Honey, I’m more than sure. Take your time.” Charity flashed Tommy a shy smile. “Nice to meet you.”
“Same here.” Tommy grinned back. “And thanks. I won’t keep her long.”
Then he bent down to Jett once more.
“I’m going to talk to your mom for a little while. But I’ll see you again soon, okay?”
Melissa kissed her son on the cheek and reminded him to be good. When Charity and the kids headed off to kiddie land, Tommy grabbed Melissa's hand, tucked it under his arm and steered her through the crowds. Then he sat her down at an out-of-the-way picnic table and was back in five with two hot coffees and half a dozen glazed donuts. Melissa couldn't help but laugh as she watched him take a giant bite out of the donut, lean back, close his eyes and chew happily.
Just as Tommy went for a second donut, the movement caused his unbuttoned shirt sleeve to move up slightly, revealing heavily scarred ropes of burn tissue on his arm.
“Is that from…?” Melissa stumbled over the question.
“Yeah. Left arm, left leg, half of my chest and all of my stomach. Bastards got me good. It looks like shit and it hurt like hell.” Tommy’s eyes dipped down to the wedding band that hung around Melissa’s neck and said pointedly, “But it could have been a whole lot worse.”
“How long have you been back?” Melissa saw Tommy’s eyes grow sad with recognition at the sight of the ring and her heart broke for him.
“About a year. Did the whole burn unit, surgery, recovery, rehab gig. I took the long way home.” Tommy gave her a small sad smile. “Now I’m doing this recruitment shit. Wearing long sleeves in this heat is a bitch, though. Personally, I don’t give a fuck about the scars, but I don’t want to scare off any future airmen.”
“I’m sorry,” Melissa’s voice reflected her guilty feeling. “I know that I should have been in touch. I could have visited or called. Sent a card or a fruit basket…something.
“You had your own stuff to deal with. And Mel, I don’t blame you if you hate me. I know it’s on me… the way he died.” Tommy's voice grew tight with misery.
“Oh, my God, Tommy. No. No! I don’t think that. I never thought that. Jesus, Tommy! How can you have even thought for a minute that I blamed you.” Melissa reached out to reassure him. Then she took a deep sigh.
“But I guess I would have thought the same thing if I was you. I’m the one who should be apologizing to you for not being there to see you through the hell you must have been through. But honestly, I wasn’t so great for a long time. Jesse’s death set me on a downward tailspin. I should have come to see you, but I just couldn't make myself do it. But not because I was angry. Because I was sad and afraid and just felt so lost. I’m really, really sorry. I don’t blame you. No one blames you.”
“How can you not blame me?” Tommy asked, his eyes filled with sorrow, his voice rife with guilt. “I was his wingman, Mel. It was my job was to protect him. Jesus, we'd flown over a dozen missions just like that one. It was supposed to be an easy in and out. I've gone over the whole thing a hundred times in my mind. I don’t know what happened, but by the time I realized we were in trouble, it was too late.”
“And you paid the price for that,” Melissa said with sadness. “Just like he did.”
“Yeah. Well. Not quite.” Tommy met her eyes. “I came home.”
“And thank God you did.” Melissa moved closer to her childhood friend then and wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. She took in a deep breath and inhaled the soft, musky, clean scent of him.
No tobacco, no leather, no wind.
Just good, solid, American-made cotton and after-shave.
He smelled like times gone by. Like freshly washed laundry and sunflowers.
He smelled like home.
He smelled like Jesse.
The two friends held on to each other, silently cocooned in memories of years gone by. Melissa pulled away first and said, “No more sad stuff for now, okay?”
“You got a deal.” Tommy’s voice echoed with relief. “You look great by the way, Mel. You really do! So how about telling me how you and Jett ended up here in this crazy small town carnival? The last I heard you were still hanging around Boston. I want to hear it all. And then you can tell me how it’s possible that your kid is not two years old anymore either?”
As they began to talk the years and the scars fell away, and they were just two people catching up and sharing their stories the way longtime friends do. Melissa filled Tommy in on Jett’s asthma and what had prompted the move to the little cottage in the seaside town. She told him about the massage business and the woes of running a small start-up, trying hard to fill him in on everything that had happened in the last few years since Jesse's death.
Well, not everything.
And Tommy returned the favor, but she knew he withheld things, too, instead regaling her with hilarious stories of recruitments gone wrong. When Melissa looked at her watch again, a wave of guilt swept over her. Almost an hour had passed since Charity had taken Jett and the little crew off to the amusement rides.
“Oh god, I didn't realize we'd been talking for so long. I have to go check on my son.” Melissa started to clean up the empty coffee cups.
“Been great seeing you, Mel. I can’t believe I ran into you like this today. I’ve actually been looking for you for a while,” Tommy said.
“You’ve been looking for me? How come you didn’t ask my family? Or Jesse’s? They knew where I was.” Melissa frowned as she gathered up the stirrers and napkins to put in the trash.
“I did ask. More than once.”
His tone made her stop what she was doing and look questioningly at him. Tommy held her stare.
“I swear no one ever let me know that you were looking for me.” Melissa frowned. “I have no idea why they didn’t. Tommy, why wouldn’t they have told me?”
Tommy shrugged his shoulders. “Not sure they thought it would be good for you to see me.”
“That’s ridiculous. My dad and grandfather know you, they know your family, I don’t understand…”
“It’s okay. I got you now. Give me your phone so we can exchange numbers.” Something dark flashed across Tommy’s face, but in an instant it was gone.
“Why were you looking for me, Tommy?” Warning roiled in her gut.
“I …” Tommy started.
“Melissa!” Melissa turned a
s a shout came to her from the crowd for the second time that day. This time it was Skye who rushed towards her.
“I’ve been looking all over for you. The bumper cars. Jett wasn’t strapped in…” Skye put her hands on bent knees trying to catch her breath.
“Come on!” Tommy grabbed Melissa’s hand and they took off towards the ride, not waiting for Skye to lead the way.
Chapter 26
Right after Crow talked with Jules, he went in search of Melissa. He hoped that she wasn't too pissed at him for running that check on her. He should have known her that her family would have had someone on that. Yeah. Dumbass move on his part. He'd just have to find a way to make it up to her. Crow grinned thinking of all the ways he'd like to try.
Crow saw Skye and Charity up ahead. They had their backs turned toward him and their attention on the dozen or so bumper cars filled with the Hells Saints kids. He scanned the perimeter and was surprised and disappointed not to see Melissa. Crow was about to turn back when he saw Jett in one of the cars. Puzzled, he scanned the area one more time quickly, then his eyes settled on Jett again.
The attendant was just getting off the floor after having snapped on the kid’s individual safety straps. Crow saw it the same time that Charity did. The attendant had missed Jett. Charity waved her hand crazily from the railing and yelled to get his attention. The worker glanced briefly at Charity but ignored her frantic stop gestures. In a bored motion, he flipped the on shift to the ride. The bumper cars began to move just as Crow hopped over the barrier and ran to Jett’s car. He was within a foot of him when Jett’s bumper car got hit hard from behind and the little boy’s face was slammed hard against the steel steering wheel.
Crow filled with a rage that was only eclipsed by the sheer panic he felt in the thirty seconds it took for him to reach the child. Blood streamed down Jett's chin, and his big gray eyes were double their size. Crow swept Jett into his strong arms just as Jett reached up for him.
Then Crow looked past the bumper cars swerving all around them to the attendant who was looking dully at Charity as she was yelling and pointing to the lever that would turn off the juice to the ride.
Taming Crow (Hells Saints Motorcycle Club) Page 15
