by Addison Jane
Lee looked a little disappointed, his eyes flicking almost longingly to where Keva was on the stage currently climbing the pole.
Mason’s eyes stayed on me like he couldn’t care less about the other women around him.
I took the lead and Wreck followed behind us as I directed them through the club, pointing out preferable spots for them to stand or place themselves while they were on duty.
There was always a man needed by the stage to protect the girls from any grabby hands that were too eager to touch.
“If one of the boys needs to move from there, someone needs to take his place immediately. I don’t care who,” I explained as we pulled up next to the stage. “Your priority is them,” I told the men, pointing to the girls who were up there practicing their dance routines. They gave a smile and a wave and Lee’s eyes brightened instantly.
Narrowing my eyes at him, I continued my speech about how to remove anyone you think might be getting too eager or too drunk, where they were to be taken, and how to let the other bouncers know not to let them back in.
We continued out the back, Mason was silent but the way he watched me, I knew he was taking in every word that I said. I was already sure that he would be joining the team and I may even approach him about looking at joining the club depending on the outcome of his checks.
When we got to the four private rooms that we had out the back, I let them take a look inside each.
“We aren’t a brothel, the girls know damn well that these rooms aren’t for sexual contact and it better be kept that way. Each is monitored by cameras, so if you’re watching and there’s something going on that you know is wrong, you get the girl out as quickly as possible.”
Mason nodded, but Lee’s eyes still wandered as though we were on some fucking Disneyland tour and the information I was telling him wasn’t important. I started to grow impatient. This wasn’t a playground. We offered protection for these girls, and if something happened and my men failed, that came back on me.
“Get him out of here,” I told Wreck, fed up with the fucking blasé attitude coming from this kid.
He looked up when I spoke. “Hey man, sorry, I’m listening.”
“You’re not fucking listening,” I snapped, stepping forward. “You’re using my time to have a fucking perve and get your rocks off.”
He held his hands up. “Man, I’m just appreciating the sexy bitches you have here, that ain’t a crime.”
I threw my fist, connecting with his jaw. He fell backward with a thump and groan onto the carpet, holding his face. “Get him out of my sight,” I growled.
Wreck instantly stepped in and dragged the kid moaning in pain back down the hallway.
I snapped my head to Mason who seemed completely unfazed. “We gonna have any problems?”
He shook his head, a small smirk appearing in the corner of his mouth. “I got a woman at home and a little boy. If you hadn’t have done that, I was about to.”
“Good.” I liked him. “Be here tomorrow, 7:00 p.m. One of my boys will show you where you need to be on the floor.”
He stuck his hand out and I took it. “No problem.”
He nodded to Wreck as he stepped back through the door and then he was gone. Wreck followed me back out to the bar where Dena the bartender handed me a beer with a soft smile.
“So what’s your issue?” Wreck asked, taking a seat on the stool beside me.
I turned just a little so he could see me scowling at him but all he did was laugh. “All that guy wanted was pussy, and he wasn’t gonna fucking get it here.”
Wreck shook his head. “Agreed! The kid was like a horny teenager watching porno, but that wasn’t what I was talking about.”
I clenched my teeth, squeezing the cold bottle in my hand. “Doctor told us that the likelihood of Harm getting pregnant is practically slim to none.” I then went on and tried to explain what Doctor Parish had told us, about the risks and possibilities. My body was numb by the time I’d finished.
Wreck nodded. Him and his Old Lady Del, and my best friend Tally were the only ones who knew about the two pregnancies we had already been through. And that was only because Del was a nurse, and when Harmony had started noticing something was wrong she was the first person we called.
We were lucky really. Both times we’d known pretty early and managed to get a handle on things before the pregnancy had progressed too far and lead to a situation that could have been potentially deadly.
Unfortunately, we weren’t lucky enough, and now here we were struggling with the loss of two children and fighting to have another.
“Harmony seemed okay when she walked into the club just before we left.” Wreck frowned.
I nodded. “That’s how she feels like she has to be.” I shook my head. “No one would have even guessed that she’d gone through what she had over the last six months. I mean, I know those two babies were small, basically non-existent…”
“But they were yours… and hers. They were your babies,” he answered in understanding.
My throat closed tightly and I struggled to swallow.
Yeah. They were mine and I felt like I’d failed to protect them, and her.
“Harmony is too proud for her own good sometimes,” I choked out. “She puts it all on her shoulders, taking the blame and the pressure for things she can’t control.”
“So make sure she knows now… you’re in this together. Take control.”
I turned to look at him, my eyebrows raised. He rolled his eyes. “I’m just saying, brother. You take the control out of her hands, and then she doesn’t feel the pressure to be perfect.”
My mind ticked over. Maybe he was right. If Harmony were to get pregnant again, she would feel like if anything happened that it would be on her. The stress would get to her and the need to create this life would consume her.
I fucking loved that woman with everything inside me.
I wanted her to be happy. It made me ache to see her so broken, so worn down.
She held me up when I needed it, she stood beside me when things got hard and she asked for nothing in return.
Now it was my time to do the same for her.
I’d been trying my best to stay out of Kit’s way for three days, keeping myself busy with my music students and even picking up a few extra hours at the local high school where I work assisting the music teacher. With their summer production coming up, they welcomed my offer of help with open arms.
I’d just gotten home from the school as Kit called his men in for an impromptu Church. I didn’t have a chance to ask him if everything was okay, he’d simply kissed me on the cheek and told me we would talk when he was done.
I felt selfish.
I’d kept to myself these last few days, wallowing in my own pity and blocking everyone out. Kit was feeling this just like I was, but unlike him, I didn’t have the responsibility of running a club like he did. Yet, he still managed to fight through the pain I knew we were both struggling with and continued to support his men and organize everything.
Wake up, Harmony.
The pain was still raw, but I needed to be the Old Lady that Kit saw in me since the day we met. The one who had his back and supported him through the shit-storm. I wasn’t sure why he’d called the boys all in, but I knew it must have been important.
I made a decision, walking over to the bar and pulling out beers that I knew the boys would either want or need as always after they exited that room. I popped several caps and lined them up along the bar. A few minutes later, a chorus of footsteps came out the door and as predicted, headed straight for me.
“Thanks, Harm.” Tally nodded as he took one and threw it back. One by one they each came by and collected their drinks before dispersing throughout the room.
Kit was the last to come over, scrubbing at his hair with his hand. He dropped onto the stool opposite where I was standing but didn’t look up at me. I leant over the small bar, pressing my lips to his cheek. His hand reached up, wrapping
around the back of my neck and holding me in place as he pressed his mouth to mine.
I relaxed into it. I would never get bored of kissing this man. Every single time our bodies touched it was like the first. Tingles spread through me and a familiar ache settled in my stomach. The need for him. He pulled back so there was barely enough room for us to breathe.
“You all right?” I whispered, tilting my head forward so my forehead touched his.
“Yeah,” he answered. “Just bullshit I didn’t need right now.”
Kit didn’t tell me every detail of what went on in the club. I didn’t ask him to either.
I’d learned that it was important for me, and everyone here, to trust him. He had our best interests at heart. He wanted to protect us, keep us safe and happy and together like a family. I knew that he would do anything within his power, for any one of his family, to keep them that way.
While the club still dabbled in illegal trades, a lot of their business was aboveboard. They were taking on new and lucrative ventures in order to protect what had been created here, but that didn’t mean we never had trouble.
Every single one of us had our demons, pasts that we thought we had left behind. Mine had come back to haunt me not so long ago, and it was the brothers who kept me from the hell I’d found myself mixed up in. They’d never judged me, just put themselves in harm’s way to find me and pull me back. There were no questions, no doubts. They did it because we were family, and I would do the same for any of them, in a heartbeat.
All this meant that we were never really free of drama. However, it was a part of the lifestyle, and if you couldn’t handle it, the best thing to do was to get out before you got in too deep.
“Come,” Kit said, nodding to the door that led to the barbecue area.
I swallowed tightly but moved around the bar. He took my hand in his, leading us outside. It was hot, but there was a cool breeze swirling and it felt divine against my skin. He wrapped his arms around me from behind as we looked out onto the expansive backyard behind the warehouse that the brothers had converted into their clubhouse.
“Mansel picked up a shipment from us this morning,” he started after a few minutes of silence. “He barely made it a few miles out of town before their tires were shot out and they spun out and hit a power pole.”
I gasped, swinging around and looking up at him. “Is Mansel all right?” I liked Mansel. He was a pure gentleman that enjoyed dealing on the dark side of the law. I didn’t ask what the shipment was, I didn’t really need to. With his line of work, I knew it wasn’t just car parts from Oz’s garage.
Kit nodded. “Him and the driver were knocked out on impact, and they’re in the hospital.”
“And the shipment?”
He clenched his jaw. “Gone.”
I knew he was angry, having no doubt that this meant money lost. And not only that, a possible war beginning.
“Mansel’s driver said he woke up in time to see two motorcycles and a large truck pulling away from them,” he told me through tight lips.
I narrowed my eyes. “He doesn’t think it was you does he?”
“Hell no.” He shook his head, his arms tightening around me. “This was a loss for both of us. It’s gonna hurt. But you and I both know there aren’t any bikers around here, and most definitely no clubs.”
I took this onboard—he was right. The bikers that did frequent Troy and the surrounding towns were old men with midlife crises. Any clubs who came through, more often than not, had the intelligence to forewarn the brothers to avoid the beginnings of a shit-storm.
“No patches?” I asked curiously.
“He’s not sure. He was pretty dazed and had a wicked concussion,” Kit answered with a heavy sigh.
“You’re worried something’s starting?”
He looked over my head, his eyes running along the fence line of the property. “Maybe, at this point we’re just going to see how much we can find out and keep alert.”
A chill ran through me.
Kit felt it, his eyes flicking back to mine. “I fucking love you.”
I let out a small laugh. “Do you have to say it like that?”
He smirked, and my body melted into his. “I think it emphasizes the love part.”
I shook my head as I smiled and pressed my cheek against his leather-clad chest. “I fucking love you too, caveman.”
“Good. Because I want to do the surrogacy.” His answer made me go rigid in surprise. I pulled back and he only allowed me an inch of space, holding me tightly so I couldn’t run. “I gave you time. Now we talk.”
I snorted. “Oh really?”
His face grew hard and determined. “You’re my woman aren’t you?”
“Kit—”
“Are you or are you not, my woman?” he demanded again.
I knew what he wanted to hear, and I gave it to him, like always. Because it was true. So fucking true. “Yes. I’m yours.”
He nodded sharply. “Then we are in this together, Harmony. Stop pushing me out. You let me in and we make this decision.”
“Sounds like you’ve already made it,” I snapped back.
He laughed. “Yeah, well, I’m sorry if I’m a selfish bastard who wants to connect myself to you forever. I want to marry you and have fucking babies with you. I want us to be a family.”
“That better not have been a proposal,” I grumbled. “‘Cause it sucked.”
His hand reached out and caressed my cheek gently. “Baby, when I propose, you’ll know… the whole fucking world will know. I’ll make sure of it. But right now, we focus on our baby.”
I traced the lines of his leather, wondering how I was so lucky. “You’ve really thought about this?” I asked.
It had been the only thing on my mind since we’d left the doctor’s office. I’d even done some research and discussed it with Del, who had helped more than one baby be delivered by surrogate during her time at the hospital. Everything I read, or heard, or saw, pointed to it.
“Losing you is not an option,” Kit said sternly, using his finger to raise my chin so our eyes met. “We are going to have a family. But we’re going to do it so that I know that you’re safe.”
I nodded. “Okay.”
His stormy dark eyes widened. “Okay?”
I laughed, hitting him in the chest with my palm.
“I was really expecting to have to work harder than this. I was even prepared to beg.”
I stepped back with a wide grin. “I’d actually like to see that.”
“Fuck no.” He came forward, lifting me into his arms and swinging me around. “We’re gonna have a fucking baby.”
I giggled, clutching on to him like he was my lifeline. He was. He was everything and we were about to share the love that was between us with another human.
I knew the process could be long—finding someone, getting an egg, hoping that it grew. Nevertheless, it didn’t matter how long it was going to take, we were taking the first step and eventually we would have what we wanted.
“Kit?” I looked up as saw Lift standing in the doorway. “Mansel’s awake and he wants you to go speak with him.”
Kit nodded. “Meet me outside in five and we’ll head up to the hospital.”
Lift gave him a thumbs-up and headed back in.
I wrapped my arms around Kit’s slim waist, looking up at him. “Be safe.”
He smirked. “Always, baby. Mom asked us to come around for dinner tonight. We need to tell them what’s going on.”
I opened my mouth but he swallowed my objections, pressing his lips to mine and instantly making me forget what I was about to say as our tongues battled for dominance. Kit pressed his hips forward, and I moaned into his mouth. I wanted to rub myself against him like I was in heat but I held back, knowing that he wasn’t about to give me what I wanted.
With a pinch of my ass, he pulled away and began walking backward with a silent smirk.
“Asshole,” I muttered.
“Love you,”
he countered, and I just shook my head and smiled.
“Love you, too.”
“So you have no idea who it could have been?” I asked, sitting back in the small uncomfortable hospital chair with my arms folded.
Mansel shook his head. “Brother, if I knew, they’d already be dead.” His brow was creased and his shoulders square despite the fact he had one arm in a sling due to a broken collarbone and bruises and cuts all over him. Mansel was pissed. More than pissed, he was fucking furious.
I blew out a harsh breath. “Man, if this came from something on our side, I’m sorry. I have no idea, though.”
He waved my apology off with his good arm. “Doesn’t matter whose side it came from. No one comes after me without serious repercussions.”
Mansel wasn’t a big guy, he could hold his own in a fight, but what he had over most other people, was respect. He didn’t fuck around. He was a straight up, no bullshit, loyal motherfucker. He had the backing of not just our club, but clubs all over, contacts in the mafia and links to high-end businessmen.
He may deal in some dodgy shit, but Mansel never opened his mouth. He had men spread through the entire United States, but he was the King.
“We’ll sort this shit out,” I told him.
He nodded. “We will. Whoever this was, they don’t know who they’re fucking with.”
“Your boy said he saw bikes and maybe patches?” I enquired, leaning forward and bracing my elbows on my knees.
“Yeah. He can’t be sure, and he had no idea what they were, though. He took a pretty hard hit to the head.”
“The cops been in?”
He snorted. “Yup. Told them I wasn’t happy that the custom pieces for my Impala had been taken. My poor baby was about to be finished, man.” He grinned now and I laughed.
“We’ll do our best to find you some more pieces in the meantime.”
He shook his head. “Man, don’t stress. We’re good. But when we find them, you got my back?”
I smirked. “I got your back.”
“Now get outta here,” he ordered. “It’s almost time for my fucking sponge bath.”
