I should never have been able to be taken.
Third Street never should have had the balls to try to step to us, even if they were hired to do so.
And a goddamn one-percent club never should have felt comfortable not only moving into our territory, but stealing from us, making veiled threats to us, informing us that we would just have to get used to their presence.
None of this shit should have happened.
Yet here we fucking were.
And, what's more, they were right.
We would have to get used to them in some fashion or another if they had gotten in, gotten a building, got their club going, started to build allies, stolen our business.
It was another couple hours later when all the men were back, when everyone was comparing notes on what we had learned.
It was about then, too, that I heard the gates opening, accounting for our only missing member.
Colson.
"Did I read this text right?" he asked, rushing in. "There is a new club in town? And they want what is ours?"
"Not just want it," I clarified. "Have already actively started to take it."
"What the hell is going on?" he asked, casting a bewildered gaze around the room.
To that, I let out a mirthless laugh.
"Welcome to the new Navesink Bank," Fallon said, shaking his head. "I have a feeling it is going to be a bumpy ride."
EPILOGUE
Eva - 3 Days
Well, we got the first lie out of the way.
The one where he claimed "these are extreme circumstances, the club is never like this." And then all hell broke loose in a matter of days.
I guess I couldn't hold it against him too much since no one knew that the days of calm and certainty in Navesink Bank were far behind them.
Besides, if I was going into this with any naiveté about what it may entail, then I didn't belong with Colson to begin with.
And, hey, I lied to him once already too.
When I told him his scrambled eggs were good. The man needed to learn to season things correctly. But we would get there.
My only real holdup at the moment was the whole "I need to explain this to my kid without being a complete hypocrite for not letting him join a gang" thing.
And the longer I put it off, the more time he had to build solid arguments that I couldn't topple with a simple "Well, that is just how it is, kid, like it or lump it." Yes, I had become a "like it or lump it" parent, and I was somehow okay with that. Let's face it, I gave away my "cool card" the first time I changed Jacob's diaper and got peed on in the face. Somehow, I would have to learn to live with this sad fact.
Colson was bringing Jacob back from the gym where he was having his first official ass-kicking. I mean... martial arts lesson. I had spent the entire time standing in my kitchen, having a conversation with my coffee, working out the talking points I planned to bring up to Jacob as soon as he got home. And showered. The shower was nonnegotiable. I'd learned many moons ago how rank teenage boys got when they worked out.
That gave me ten extra minutes to figure out how to make "gangs are bad but outlaw bikers are good" sound less ridiculous.
"You sound like a crazy person," Gus told me, making me jolt, turning to find her standing in the doorway to the kitchen.
It had been so long since there had been anyone else in our lives that I had forgotten all about Gus hanging around, helping out with my mom.
Apparently, West was busy with the clusterfuck at the club, so she was bored. It was probably selfish of me to capitalize on that boredom, but I comforted myself with the knowledge that I hadn't asked it of her. She'd offered. And my mom got a kick out of her. So I was happy to accept.
"I am preparing for my son calling me a hypocrite."
"You know what's fun about kids?"
"What?"
"That they're underage and can't do shit about it even if they did think you were a hypocrite. And they're practically useless. So they depend on you for everything. So they will have to get over themselves sooner or later."
"That's not a bad point."
"And now that running off to Third Street isn't a concern, what is he going to do? Blast some music?"
"The music can get annoying."
"So cut off the internet," she said, eyes dancing. "No one has CDs anymore. So he would have no music. No streaming stations for shows or movies. No video games. In a short couple of hours, he will be begging you for forgiveness even though he was right in the first place."
"You, Gus, are an evil, evil woman," I told her.
"I know, right? I can't wait to have kids and make them hate me," she said, smirking. "Speaking of the crotch-fruit," she said, nodding toward the driveway where Colson's SUV was pulling in.
Jelly jumped out first.
"How about I go next door and corrupt Colson's little angel for an hour while you go a few rounds with your kid? Though, from the looks of him, he won't be putting up much of a fight. I think I can smell him through the walls," she declared, wrinkling her nose, then rushing out of the room and the house, grabbing Jelena's hand, and leading her up to her house while Colson looked on in horror. Which seemed an appropriate reaction.
"Should I be worried?" he asked, coming in, watching Gus close his front door before pressing a kiss to my temple.
"Probably," I said, nodding. "Hey, bud..."
"I need to shower," Jacob said, rushing past me.
"Oh, yes you do," I said, wrinkling my nose. "How did it go?" I asked Colson.
"Well, he is more than a little humiliated that Jelena knocked him on his ass more than a handful of times," Colson said, shrugging.
"What I am hearing is his spirit is shattered, so it is the perfect time to talk to him about bikers and gangs and his very promising career as a cardiac surgeon."
"Why cardiac surgeon?" Colson asked, following me into the kitchen.
"Because they make over four-hundred grand a year. Neurosurgeons make the most at like six-hundred-k. But that might be a little too far reaching for a kid who once told me he couldn't go to school because his frontal loaf was hurting."
"It is smart to have reasonable goals," Colson agreed, eyes dancing.
"Exactly, plus, the cardiac surgeon thing works with my lecture about wanting to join a gang and how that was like tearing his mother's heart out. I'm still working at it, but it's going to be good."
"Given this a lot of thought, huh?" he asked, coming up to me, putting his hands on my hips, making a little shiver move through me.
"Yes."
"Then I feel like a dick because I already had that talk with him."
"What? When?"
"On the way to the gym before we grabbed Jelly."
"How did he take it?"
"Well. I think after the shock of hearing about Miguel, he came to see what we were all saying. And he really took to the guys at the club. So I think he was receptive to what I had to say."
"Did he call you a hypocrite?"
"Nope."
"He totally would have called me a hypocrite," I said, my eyes going to slits, making Colson smile.
"Then it was good that I had that particular talk with him. I didn't mean to overstep, babe. If I did, I'm sorry. It was just a good moment for me to get into it with him."
"Oh, God. No, please. Overstep anytime you want if it helps him become a good man."
"You calling me a good man?" he asked, eyes going gooey.
"Fine, yes, you're pretty awesome. Even if you are a weird flosser."
He snorted at that. "My dentist told me to put toothpaste on my floss."
"It's still weird," I insisted. "Thank you, though, for having that talk with Jacob. I think he is really looking for that male guidance. And, hey, anytime you don't want to have an uncomfortable talk with Jelena, send her my way."
"She's coming to you when she gets cramps. I think I scarred her for life about the period talk."
"Yeah, send her my way. I have the happy pills and chocol
ate bars."
"Yeah, I know. I saw your nightstand," he teased.
"Do you have to work tonight?"
"No."
"It's my night off. Maybe we can explore some other items from that nightstand together. Ones that require batteries..."
"I think we can arrange that."
Fifteen minutes later, I had a freshly showered kid actually helping me in the kitchen, and a man setting the table when the front door opened and Gus walked in, throwing up her hands.
"I tried!" she declared, sighing.
"Tried what?"
"To get her to watch smutty TV with me. But noooo. She had homework to do," Gus declared, moving into the room as Colson chuckled. "Speaking of smut," she said, her gaze falling on Jacob. "I saw your browser history," she declared, making Jacob's eyes turn into saucers as his cheeks went red. "Oh, my God. No, I didn't. But you totally just gave yourself away," she said, laughing. "Okay. I think I have done enough damage here today," she added, beaming with satisfaction. "I will be back the day after tomorrow to see what other shit I can stir up. Bye!"
I was left there smiling as well.
"Told you she was a lunatic," Colson told me, coming into the kitchen as my son rushed away, embarrassed.
"I know. I love her."
I had a feeling Gus and I were going to be good friends.
And me and Colson?
Oh, I had a feeling we were going to be something even better.
Colson - 3 months
"Do we really need the popcorn on top of all of this?" I asked, getting a scathing glare from Eva who was trying to fit the nachos, brownies, hot pretzels—complete with three different dips that were somehow meant to match different moods—as well as curly fries and waffle fries—which she forced me to admit were entirely different things despite being made of the exact same ingredients—onto a tray to bring over to the living room. She already had bottles of drinks shoved into the pockets of her massive—as promised—sweatpants.
We were finally having our first technical date.
The stars had sort of just aligned for it.
I wasn't working.
She wasn't working.
Thad and Freddie decided to take Jelena to a weekend "girls trip" to go to a spa.
And it also so happened to be the weekend that Jacob's biological dad had come to scoop him up.
Jacob hadn't been keen on the idea when his father first punted it at him a couple weeks before. There was bitterness there for him not being around, not being a part of his daily life. Especially so because his father had married and had kids who he did see daily. But after a couple heart-to-hearts about it, I had convinced Jacob that it was the more mature move to spend some time with his father, to explain how he was feeling, to hash things out.
Eventually, he agreed.
And, what's more, he even seemed happy to go, talking about how he wanted to tell his dad how his martial arts classes were going, and about 'volunteering' (which was the word we'd all decided on) at the club, and about Jelly who he'd formed a friendship with. It was built on music and horror movies I didn't approve of, but the two of them had gotten along well because of all that. And because them getting along was becoming more and more important to me as Eva and I got more and more serious, I let it slide, reminding myself that if I forbid the movies, they would just sneak them in somehow.
"Did you really just ask me that?" Eva said, giving me small eyes as she dramatically ripped open the plastic packaging on the bag of popcorn. "It's like you don't know me at all," she added, tossing it into the microwave. "We always need popcorn. I wait all year for Christmas when those massive tins of popcorn hit the store shelves. You know... sweet, sweet caramel, butter, and everyone's favorite... cheese."
"Babe, you're delusional if you think cheese is better than caramel."
"Oh, God. Did we just break up?" she asked, hand slapping to her heart.
"You're not thinking about this the right way."
"How's that?"
"If I happen to get a tub of multiple popcorns for Christmas, I could give you all my cheese ones."
"Well, not if I have to trade you my caramel. It might be the inferior flavor, but I still want to eat it."
"Okay. You get all the popcorn. I will starve."
"That's all I'm saying," Eva agreed, smiling, turning to grab the popcorn and tossing it into a bowl. "Okay. I think we are all set."
"For the apocalypse? Yeah, I think so," I agreed, following her to my living room couch. She'd decided the date had to be at my house. Because of the wider couch, the bigger TV, and the much more comfortable bed.
"Okay. Pick the movie. I will put a dent in all of this," she said, already digging into the nachos.
"Give me a genre at least."
"We've already established I will eat all of this, fall into a food coma, and miss two-thirds of the movie. Surprise me," she said, giving me a big, happy smile.
She was in full dress-down mode in her sweatpants and my hoodie with fuzzy socks, her hair pulled up, and not a stitch of makeup on her face.
I wasn't sure I'd ever seen a more beautiful woman.
Even with the nacho cheese at the corner of her mouth.
I picked a movie.
We—but mostly Eva—plowed through the food.
Then, as promised, she passed out on me before we even got to the major plot twist.
It was the best fucking date I'd ever had in my life.
Eva - 3 months
"Oh, Daddy-O!" Gus called, giggling as she threw open Colson's door. "I have brought Mama Dukes home!"
"You had fun, I see," Colson said, coming out of the kitchen to look at the two of us, bleary-eyed, buzzing from our night out.
"Your lady friend is a cheap date," Gus declared. "Two drinks... wasted."
"Did you go dancing?" he asked.
"Oh! She tore up the dance floor. Have you ever seen your girl back her ass up? I'm straight and I wanted to smack that ass around a bit."
"You didn't drive, did you?" Colson asked, brows furrowing.
"Daddy Reign came to pick us up!" Gus declared, beaming at the idea. "I was trying to get a hold of West, and he answered. Felt pretty important to get the president to be our desig—designat—"
"Designated," Reign supplied, coming in behind us, smiling.
"Yeah, that word. Hey, do you have any macaroni and cheese?" Gus asked, pushing past Colson to go into his kitchen.
"I feel like a teenager who went out and partied and their parents found out and dragged them home," I said, slow-blinking up at Reign.
"Thanks for driving her home," Colson said, sharing a knowing smile with Reign.
"Knew you were here with her mom and Jelly. Had nothing else going on."
"How's Jacob?" Colson asked.
"Oh!" I said, slapping my hand into Reign's chest. "Jacob. My son. He can't see me like this," I added in a hushed whisper to Reign. There was a loud chorus of clanging sounds and cursing in the kitchen. "Oh, I should help," I declared, moving to walk past Colson who snagged me and tucked me under his arm instead.
"Think one drunk woman in the kitchen is enough, babe."
"Jacob's fine. Brooks is enjoying having him around some nights to give him a break from all the cleaning." There was more slamming noises in the kitchen, making Reign wince. "I better go get that one home to her man before she burns your place down," Reign said, moving into the kitchen. When he came back out, Gus was thrown over his once-bad shoulder, her arms thrown wide.
"Weee!" she cheered as Reign carried her through to the foyer. "See you at church tomorrow, Colson. Eva, babe, your shoe is missing."
"Oh no!" I gasped, looking down at my foot. "Those were my good ballet flats."
"Babe, you superglued the sole on before you left," Colson reminded me, trying to steer me toward the living room. "It's not exactly a loss."
"Hey, wait! Mac and cheese sounds good," I told him, angling my head up, giving him my best pouty face.
"Then I
guess we have to get you some mac and cheese," he agreed, leading me into the kitchen, hopping me up on the counter while he cleaned up Gus's mess before starting to make food.
"Hey, Dad, what's all that—oh," Jelena said, giving me a smile.
"Jelly!" I gushed, holding my arms out to her. She shot her father a curious look before walking to me. "You are so beautiful. Do you know that?" I asked, framing her face with my hands. "I didn't believe that when I was your age. But you need to believe that, okay? It's very important."
"Okay," she agreed, looking over at Colson. "Is she drunk?" she asked in a hushed whisper.
"Oh. You shouldn't be seeing me like this," I declared, grimacing. "Drinking is bad. Very bad. The devil's juice. I feel absolutely terrible," I told her, voice grave.
"Really?" she asked, smiling.
"No," I told her, whispering. "Not really. I feel a-mazing. But don't tell your dad I said that."
"I'm standing right here, babe," Colson said, smiling. "And you aren't actually whispering. "It's fine, by the way. Jelly's seen drunk adults before."
"Have you ever seen your dad drunk?" I asked.
"No. He doesn't drink much."
"We should get him drunk. I want to see you drunk," I told him. "It's only fair now that you've seen me drunk."
"Not gonna happen, babe."
"He also refuses to do funny videos with me."
"Ew. Killjoy," I said, rolling my eyes.
"I know, right?"
"You two ever gonna stop ganging up on me?" Colson asked, putting the pasta in the pot.
"Nope," we both said at the same time.
"Didn't think so. Jelly, it's getting late, baby girl," he said, jerking his chin toward the stairs.
"Fiiiiine," Jelly said, giving me a smile before heading up to bed.
"I love Jelly," I declared, nodding.
"I'm happy to hear that. She loves you too."
"I know. She told me," I said, lips curving up.
"She did?" he asked, turning back, gaze thoughtful. "When?"
"Two weeks ago. When we went out to lunch after ballet class. She told me when we got back into the car."
Colson (The Henchmen MC Book 20) Page 20
