by Alexa Rynn
But some things you just couldn’t control.
I forced my eyes to look into his. Ugh, he was so gorgeous. “No, it’s okay. This is something I should do on my own.” I inhaled deeply and gave his hand one last squeeze before I opened the car door and let my feet hit the pavement.
“I’ll be right here if you need me,” Shooter told me, leaning back in his seat.
I gave him a small smile and shut the door behind me, turning away from him to face the house in front of me. It was large and brown, stones lined the walk up, a long porch ran up and down the distance of the entire side of the house and a swing hung from one of the rafters, slowing rocking back and forth in the wind. It occurred to me that I could have grown up here, I could have run around that very porch, or sat on that very swing.
It looked like a nice place to grow up.
I neared the front steps at a snail's pace, dragging it out as long as possible. Once I got to the door I turned back around and looked at Shooter, he nodded from the drivers seat encouragingly and I faced the door again, pulling my hand back and ringing the bell.
I could hear the sound of footsteps running toward the door right away, they sounded frantic, like if they didn’t hurry up they might miss their chance altogether. A second later the door swung open and a small boy in a baseball uniform stood in front of me, a frantic look on his face.
“Oh,” he said, startled. “You aren’t Jake.”
The first thing I noticed about him were his eyes; they looked exactly like mine. I opened my mouth to speak but no words came out, I was too stunned by his presence. It had never occurred to me that I might have any siblings, was it possible that this was… my brother?
The boy had a baseball in his hand and he started tossing it up into the air casually and catching it, suddenly not in as much of a hurry as he was a second ago. “Who are you?” he asked, tilting his head to the side and letting his brown curls fall into his place.
I swallowed. “Is… is your mom home?”
The little boy’s eyes grew wide and he dropped the ball into the middle of the hallway and then jumped backward, slamming the door in my face hard. A second later I heard the lock click over on the door and the sound of footsteps running back down the hall.
I sighed and turned around to look at Shooter. I held my hands up in the air and shrugged. He raised his dark eyebrows at me and I sighed, swinging back around and ringing the bell a few more times.
Nothing happened. No sounds from inside, no more movement, nothing. I leaned forward and tried again but still got nothing. I could feel dread starting to creep up inside of me, so far this wasn’t going very well.
I sighed and reached out to try again. This was ridiculous; clearly, this kid wasn’t home alone. Did my mother somehow know it was me? Was she hiding from me or something? The thought made me feel sick.
Before I had a chance to knock again the door swung open again and a man charged out toward me. His face beat red, anger written over his features, and his fists balled up at the sides. He looked like he was about to explode as he emerged from the front door. “What?” he barked. “What do you people want?”
I stepped backward and almost stumbled, startled by his anger.
“What the fuck do you people want? When is this going to stop, huh?” He moved closer to me, waving his fist back and forth. “If you show up at my front door again, I’m going to have you arrested! You must be proud of yourself, scaring the shit out of an eleven-year-old boy, huh?”
I continued to move backward down the steps. “I… this was a mistake.” I turned around and started to head back to the car where Shooter was waiting for me. Clearly, my mother didn’t want to be found, not if she was involved with a man like this.
“You’re damn right it was a mistake,” the man snapped. He reached out and grabbed me by the arm before I had a chance to get very far and swung me around to face him. “You don’t come back here again! Do you hear me?”
Shooter was there so fast that I had barely heard him come up behind me but there he was pulling this guy off me and pressing him up against the porch, holding onto him by the neck. “You don’t touch her! You don’t ever touch her!” He pulled him closer to him and then threw him across the porch like a rag doll.
I looked at him, stunned. I had never seen so much anger on his face before. I didn’t know what surprised me more, the fact that Shooter had just thrown a man across the porch just because he had put his hands on me or that it didn’t bother me at all. I had always thought any type of danger or aggression by a Red Sin member would freak me out… but Shooter didn’t freak me out.
I realized suddenly that I wasn’t alone, that I might not ever be alone again. It was a crazy thought… we had only slept together once, we had only just met. How could I even be thinking about forever? Yet, there it was.
Shooter moved toward the man again but I stepped forward, putting my arm on his shoulder and pulling him toward me. “Hey, hey, no, it’s okay.” Shooter spun around, anger on his face but he softened when he met my eyes.
“It’s okay,” I told him. “I’m okay.”
The man got up, suddenly backing down. “Look I don’t want any trouble.”
“I bet you don’t,” Shooter growled, taking a step toward him.
“I don’t!” The man pleaded. “You just have to stop showing up here! I don’t know where she is, okay? I haven’t heard from her, I told you if I did I would let you guys know. Please… I… I have a son!” He looked sad all of a sudden, almost pitiful, and fear laced under his tone.
“Look,” I told him, stepping closer to him. “I think that there’s been some confusion. We’re looking for someone named Morgan, Morgan Carter?” I glanced at the house in back of him. “This was listed as her last known address.”
“I know that’s who you’re looking for! She’s not here! I swear!”
I opened my mouth, trying to form the words, but nothing came out.
Shooter sighed and ran his hands through his hair. “She’s looking for her because she’s her mother,” he said slowly, finding the words that I wasn’t able to and then shooting me a look to make sure he hadn’t overstepped.
He hadn’t and I flashed him a smile in reassurance.
The man’s eyes grew wide as he took me in, my eyes and hair, the features on my face. “You’re… you’re Morgan’s daughter?” He took a step closer to me; like he couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
Shooter moved closer to me protectively. “Isn’t that what I just said?”
“Do you know where she is?” The man asked me.
“I was kind of hoping you could tell us that.” I half smiled.
A look of sadness came into his eyes. “She’s gone… she left about a year ago. I just came home one day and she was gone. Michael was at a neighbor's and her phone was off. It was like she just… disappeared.” He got a faraway look in his eyes and then snapped out of it, looking back and forth between the two of us. “I’m John, Morgan was my finance…”
“Was?” Shooter asked.
“I don’t know where she is, no one does, I think she was running from something because people keep showing up here asking for her, demanding to know where she is. I don’t know who she pissed off but they seem pretty dangerous… that’s why Michael ran before, no one's asked about her in a few months but he’s trained to say nothing when they do…” John trailed off. He seemed shocked by the whole situation.
Well, that made two of us.
“Is he… is he Morgan’s son?” I asked beyond a dry throat.
“Yes,” John told us.
“So that would make him…” Shooter trailed off.
“My brother,” I finished. “Or half brother.”
John blew out some air and started to pace back and forth. “I can’t believe this, I just can’t. I know this shouldn’t surprise me; she lied about so many other things, why wouldn’t she lie about not having any other children? I mean; look at you; you’re the spitting image
of her.”
It stung that my mother had lied about me. It was like she was ashamed of me or something but I had always wondered if I looked like her or not. I wanted to ask him if he had any pictures of her, I wanted to ask him about my brother, I wanted to ask him a million questions running through my mind but I was too shocked to get anything out.
Part of me felt bad for him. He had been left just like me.
How many other people had my mother walked out on?
A car honked from the middle of the driveway and all three of us jumped; startled by the sudden interruption. John shook his head, trying to snap himself out of it. “Right, baseball camp, right.” He shook his head again. “We have… we have to go. We have a baseball camp this week; Michael has been looking forward to it for months. I can’t… I’ll have to talk to him about all of this. He’s had a tough year as it is… I have to make sure he understands what’s going on.”
“If you don’t want me to be a part of his life…” I couldn’t bring myself to finish the sentence. Of course, I would understand it. He was just a kid but I really hoped it wouldn’t be the case. I’d never had a brother… I’d never had anything before.
“Of course, I want you to be a part of his life!” John said. “He’s your brother! I just need… I just need to explain it to him the right way. We will be back next Monday… will you be around next week?” He reached into his wallet and produced a business card. “Call me next week, okay? I just need… I need a little bit of time. He’s going to have a lot of questions, just like I’m sure you do.”
I looked down at the card, running my fingers back and forth over the thick paper. I had come all this way for answers and now I had them. My mother was a leaver; she always had been and she always would be.
I didn’t have a mother.
But I had a father who loved me no matter what.
And now I had Shooter.
And a brother.
And, somehow, that was better.
Chapter Eight
SHOOTER
I pulled Bella closer to me and wrapped my arms around her. We’d driven all through the night to get home by the next night. Bella hadn’t wanted to sleep at a hotel again, wishing instead to get right home to her dad. She insisted she had to tell him what was going on right away and that she wanted to sleep in her own bed anyway. And while part of me was hoping for another repeat in a hotel bed I had chosen to support her decision.
Besides, I would have Bella’s body again soon enough.
The smell of lasagna filled the living room and my stomach started to grumble. Bella had gone out to the store as soon as we got home and bought all the stuff to make her father’s favorite meal for Mother’s day. She said after our trip she had realized that her dad had been both to her and that was all she needed. It was cooking now and by the smell of it getting close to being ready.
“You sure you’re okay?” I asked her.
She nodded under my grip. “Yeah, in a way it’s better, you know? At least now I know it wasn’t just me she left. I don’t have to wonder if there was something wrong with me… it’s just who she is, she’s a leaver.”
I ran my hands over her hair. “There’s definitely nothing wrong with you.”
“I can’t believe I have a brother, it’s so weird. I want so many answers now, you know? It’s going to be a long week… waiting around to reach out and find out when I can get back up there and actually meet him.”
“True,” I told her. “But you know I’ll be here for you when it’s time to deal with all that.” I leaned in closer to her and started to suck on her neck. “Besides, I can think of a few things to do that will pass the time for the next week.”
“Mm, oh yeah?” She looked up and let me kiss her.
I slipped my tongue in her mouth right away.
Ugh, I was already hard.
I grinned at her and grabbed her hand, shoving it on top of my cock.
I had just started to inch the zipper down when the front door swung open and a bunch of loud footsteps snapped us out of it. At first, I thought it was Bella’s dad but when I looked up I was greeted with the sight of Amber.
Her eyes traveled back and forth between the two of us, shock was written all over her face. “What… what the hell is going on here, Bella?” she asked, placing her hand on one hip. “So, this is where you’ve been for days? With him?”
“You two should talk,” I said, leaning in and kissing Bella on the cheek. “I’ll be upstairs if you need me, okay?” She nodded and I gave her hand one more squeeze before I left the two of them to talk.
I wasn’t worried about Amber bullying Bella anymore, we had talked a little bit more about it on the way home and Bella knew what she had to do, she knew it was time for her to stand up for herself once and for all.
My phone vibrated when I reached the guest room and I glanced down, seeing Cutter’s name across the screen. I answered right away, it had been a while since I heard from him and I was dying to know what was going on with my brothers back home.
“Brother,” I said into the receiver. “Nice to see your name pop up.”
Cutter inhaled and let out a light chuckle. “What did you think I forgot about you?” The sound of music played softly in the background and a horn sounded somewhere in the distance, it sounded like he was in the car.
“I was beginning to wonder, to be honest,” I told him, faking hurt.
“Oh, God, don’t tell me you’re going all soft on me, one group of pussies is all I can deal with at a time.” The sound of his car speeding up filled the speakers. “You have no idea the amount of stress I’ve been under over here, and now I’m running to meet Grace at the doctor but I wanted to call you myself and let you know that I personally made sure your situation was taking care of, you’re all set to come home to us whenever you’re ready.”
It was the news I had been waiting for all weekend but somehow it didn’t hold the effect I thought it would anymore. I had just started whatever the hell it was I had going on with Bella, I couldn’t leave her now; I didn’t want to leave her now. I had never felt this way about a woman before and as much as I hated to admit it; it meant something.
“About that,” I paused, “do you think the club would be okay if I didn’t rush back? I’ve got… I’ve got a few things I need to sort out first.” It was a lot to ask, I knew it was and I wasn’t sure he would even be okay with it but I was hoping he would cut me a break. The club was important to me and it always would be, if Cutter didn’t want me hanging around here any longer then I would find a way to deal with it. Hopefully, Bella would be open to coming with me.
Now that I had her there was no way I was giving her up.
“Ohhhh,” Cutter said, drawing out the end of the word. “Some things to sort out, huh? I know that tone, this has to do with a bitch, doesn’t it?”
I huffed. “Not just any bitch.”
“Clearly,” Cutter laughed. “Okay, do what you have to do, hit me up next week, okay?” I heard his car door slam shut behind him as he got out. “Some shit is going on with Blaze but I’ll hold my dad off your ass for as long as possible, not that he’s my favorite person right now, fucking douchebag,” he mumbled.
“Thanks, Cutter, really bro.”
The line went dead and I tossed my phone onto the bed. I couldn’t believe I was actually putting the club on hold for Bella… I had never met a girl who made me want to do anything like that before. But somehow with her it wasn’t even a debate, it wasn’t even a question, it was just something I wanted to do.
Somehow, I felt like Bella was always something I would want to do.
She was mine.
All mine.
For good.
My cock started to twitch at the thought.
Fuck, it was going to be a long night.
***
BELLA
Amber looked like she was going to explode. She paced back and forth in my living room with wide eyes and then turned to me placing her
hands on her hips. “How could you do this to me? How? You knew how I felt about him when I saw him that night and you just… you just had to sneak in and grab him for yourself, didn’t you?”
I rolled my eyes and sighed, I was growing tired of the same conversation. Amber had been saying the same things since Shooter left us alone minutes earlier. She honestly had the nerve to act like I had taken Shooter from her, which was crazy. He hadn't been hers and it wasn’t like I wanted him to be at my house when I got home the other night… he just had been.
“This just makes perfect sense, you’ve always been jealous of me. You’ve always wanted to take what was mine; I just never thought that you would go this low. You knew, Bella, you knew that I was waiting for something extraordinary and the second it walks into town you just had to try and take it for yourself, didn’t you?” Her eyes were wide and on fire.
“Enough!” I snapped, standing up from the couch. “Enough! I’m sick of this, Amber, I didn’t try to take him… it just… it just happened! A real friend would be happy for me but you aren’t! You never care about anyone but yourself but that’s going to change now or… or…”
“Or what?” she challenged me, shock written on her face.
“Or I don’t want us to be friends anymore,” I finished.
Amber’s mouth hung open but she recovered fast, snapping it back shut and laughing loudly. “And what makes you think I would even want to be your friend after what you did to me, Bella?” She stomped past me toward the front door and swung around, calling over her shoulder. “Just don’t come crawling back to me when he gets bored and leaves your ass, Bella, because a guy like that needs extraordinary and you? Well, you’re average.”
And then she was gone.
A few days ago her words might have bothered me but not anymore. I didn’t care what Amber thought about me, she knew nothing about Shooter and me and even if she was right, it didn’t change the fact that she was a shitty friend who I needed to get out of my life.
