I made sure of it.
This is my last job, I made sure to have the rumor spread. I am still a Nomad, but I am no longer a gun for hire. Helping clubs out with minor issues will be my main focus, but I will no longer be killing anyone, unless one of mine gets hurt.
Jenn has also been in my dreams a lot over the last three months and she has told me on many occasions that she is disappointed in me, with the man I have become and that is what led me to my decision to take a step back.
I am on my way back to my old club for some downtime, this old fucker needs to rest up. My back and shoulders hurt like a bitch, my beard needs a good fucking trim because it is almost touching my chest, and do not get me started on my hair.
Pulling into the clubhouse, the prospect pulls the gate open, my old Pres, Bucky, is standing there waiting for me, Drake, and Ice close by. They smile at me as I get out of the truck and they surround me, giving me hugs and pats on the back, you know in a manly way.
“Hey, fuckface. How was the ride?” Bucky asks when he pulls away.
I smile at him and sling my arm around his neck.
“It was good. Needed.,” is all I say.
We walk into the clubhouse and I have to squint as my eyes adjust to the dim lighting, completely forgetting how dark it gets in here. They don’t have full lights, they have lamps plotted around the main room, with some random novelty lights and twinkly lights that the Old Ladies added over the years.
The pool table is currently being used as a fuck bed, as one of the members fucks a clubwhore over it, while she sucks another guy off.
“Nothing changes I see,” I state and nod in the three’s direction. Bucky laughs and smiles at me.
“Nope, not much. Some changes have taken over though.”
“Oh yeah?” I ask and take the glass of whiskey handed to me by some dolled up chick with big tits. “Thanks, darlin’.”
“You’re welcome, baby. Let me know if I can get you anything else.” With a nod she walks off to serve someone else.
“That’s Lacey. She is new.” He winks at me. “She wants to give all of the boys a ride, even the taken ones but that’s the new deal around here. The brothers that got themselves an Old Lady, no longer fuck around on them. Some shit went down and all of the Old Ladies put their foot down, it seemed to have worked.”
I give him a tight smile, because I know he wants me to try her out, but I know that my cock won’t work for her, or any woman that isn’t Eden. Bucky never fucked around on his Old Lady, hell he values his life.
“Not interested, brother.”
14
His eyes go wide with shock, then a knowing smile crosses his face and I shake my head at him letting him know I don’t want to talk about this shit.
“Don’t give me that bullshit look, brother. Get your ass into my office now, so we can talk.”
“Lacey, bottle.” He points to the bottle of whiskey.
Sighing, I drop my head and pull in a deep breath before I follow the old badger to his office. As I walk the hallway behind him, I see photos of past and present members and their families.
My heart stutters in my chest when I come across a photo of Jenn, she is sitting on my bike sideways, with me straddling it. Bucky, his Old Lady, and Drake are standing with us, huge smiles on our faces. It was the day that I proposed to Jenn at a bike showdown in Daytona.
Seeing my woman looking vibrant and happy makes my chest ache. I reach up and run my fist over my sternum to ease the pain, but nothing works. My throat tightens when I see what Jenn is wearing, my hand braces on the wall beside the photo, keeping me from crumbling to the floor.
She is in black jeans with knee-high boots which was her signature style, but her top is white, with the slogan, ‘Eden the place of pleasure. Enjoy that bitch’, across her chest in black cursive and block lettering.
“Jonny. Jon, you okay, brother?” I can hear Bucky talking to me, but I can’t focus, as my breathing comes harder and harder.
“Fuck, someone come and help me move him.”
I feel someone grip my shoulder and start dragging me away, I look over my shoulder to get one last look at the photos before everything goes black.
Blinking the darkness away, I turn my head to see Drake sitting in a chair, scrolling through his phone. He looks tired, older than the last time I saw him, which was going on three years ago.
Being back here hurt like a bitch so I only come when I need to.
“Look who’s awake. You lazy fuck.” He smarts off, smiling at me and tucking his phone away.
“Fuck off.” I sit up and lean back against the headboard, sighing when my back clicks. “How long have I been out? What happened?”
Drake leans forward settling his elbows on his knees, cupping his hands together, looking at me before he answers.
“You have been out for close to five hours. You were looking at the photo of the day you proposed to Jenn and your breathing got all fucked up. You freaked Pres out and then you passed out,” he explains.
“Shit.” Scrubbing my hands over my face, I sigh again and look to my longtime friend.
“I met someone,” is all I say. Drake cocks an eyebrow at me, waiting for me to carry on. “Fuck. She is amazing, feisty, and sassy as fuck, man. She got right under my skin.”
I tell him everything that has happened between Eden and me, I don’t leave any of the details out. His face morphs from interest to surprise to sympathy and back to shock when I tell him that I left her again, and three months ago.
“You dumb ass motherfucker. You had a second chance at finding someone to spend the rest of your life with and you threw her away like trash.” He sighs and gets to his feet, and starts to pace at the foot of the bed.
Did I forget to mention that Drake is Jenn’s older brother?
“Jonny, brother, she would want you to find someone again. She knew how much love you had to offer, and she wanted you to share it. To find a woman just like her but in a different way, someone who could call you on your shit and put you straight.”
“Oh, Eden can believe me,” I tell him, and he stops to look at me.
“See that, right there. Tells me everything I need to know.” He points at my face.
“What?” Frowning at him, he smiles at me.
“That smile, when you said her name. you need to go and get your woman, brother.” I shake my head at him, and he slaps my foot that is under the blanket.
“Yes. I will say this once and once only. Jenn and I approve, you have our blessing. Go and find your Eden.” Something clicks in my head, and I think of the box.
“You planted the box in my saddlebags.” It is not a question, but he nods.
“She said that you would find it when the time was right, and it looks like she is right. My sister is still controlling you from beyond the grave, got to love her for that.”
“I will always love Jenn, brother,” I tell him, my voice holding no room for argument.
“I know. And I know that you love this Eden chick too, but you need to get back to her on your hands and knees and grovel, brother.” He comes around to me and gives me a hug before walking to the door, then stopping to say one last piece.
“You bring her here to meet the family, got it. I want to meet the woman that tamed the Nomad.” He leaves with a smile on his face.
Everything that has just happened sinks in and for once I let what he is saying wash over me. He said that both he and Jenn approve of Eden, maybe it is time that I approve and let her in once and for all.
15
Pulling in a deep breath I push open the door of the Road Hound fully prepared to be thrown out on my ass. Music plays through the speakers, smoke fills the air, and chatter is loud, but stops when the door behind me slams shut.
Everyone turns to look at me, it is like a scene out of an old western movie when a stranger walks into a saloon.
Ignoring the glares I make my way over to the bar, and disappointment settles in my gut when I see tha
t Eden isn’t behind it.
“You aren’t welcome here, boy,” comes a gruff voice from behind me. I turn and look over my shoulder to see one of the old-timers, glaring at me with two of his buddies standing close behind him.
“Oh yeah. Why is that?” I goad, stroking my hand over my beard, wondering if Eden spilled the beans on us.
Judging from their stance I can only imagine what she actually told them. Mirroring their stance I glare back, showing them that I will not back down from my mission.
The front man speaks up, “You left her high and dry and a man that does that to any woman is a worthless piece of shit in my book.”
“It has nothing to do with you. Now, where is Eden?” I snap back.
This guy is pissing me off, my skin itches to know where she is. Is she okay? Did something happen to her?
“Like fuck would I ever tell you where she is. She is better off without you; you dick. She has us to support her, she doesn’t need the likes of you, a fucking Nomad that can’t stay still longer than getting his dick wet.”
Support her? What the fuck?
Looking around the room I see that everyone is now on their feet, watching how this is playing out in front of them. Clearly, they think the world of Eden, respect her, and will protect her to the end, but she is my woman, and I will be the one protecting her from now on, not that I would turn away any extra protection, but they will know that I come first in her life.
“Someone had better start fucking talking and tell me where my woman is!” I bellow. My fists clench at my sides and my skin burns with anger because these pricks are keeping my woman from me.
“Your woman?” comes the voice I longed to hear for three long months.
Spinning around to face her, the air gets sucked out of my lungs when I see her standing before me in a sweet as fuck summer dress, but it is not only the dress that gets me, it is the small baby bump she is sporting.
“Y-you are . . . you are.” I can’t speak, the words keep getting stuck in my throat.
“Pregnant. Yes, I am.” Her arms wrap around her baby bump, and I swear to fuck my knees buckle.
Is it mine? Did she fuck someone so close to me leaving and got pregnant?
So many questions and scenarios rush through my mind. I can’t breathe, I can’t speak.
We stand locked in a stare, neither of us saying anything. My gaze drops to her bump, then back up to her face. Anger, vulnerability, and pain lashes across her face. She doesn’t speak, just spins on her heels, and leaves the room, down the hallway, no doubt going to her office.
I stand there for all of three seconds before I snap out of it and chase her down. The angry voices behind me are ignored as I run down the hallway and up the stairs to her office.
I reach the door just as it closes in my face. Chuckling I push it open. I see Eden sitting on her chair, glaring at me, but she can’t hide the emotions that are visible there.
Closing the door behind me I step more into the room, not once taking my eyes off the woman that holds my heart.
Once I talked to Drake I went to Jenn’s grave and we had a little chat. I poured everything out to her like I did with Drake and I have to admit it felt good. A weight was lifted off my shoulders. Jenn is gone and nothing I can do will bring her back, but Eden is here, alive and living her life and I want to live it with her.
“Be honest with me. Is it mine?” I ask and take the seat on the other side of the desk.
“Why do you want to know? Do you even really care, Jonny?”
“I deserve those questions, babe. If I explain a few things will you tell me if the baby is mine?” She gives me a silent nod.
“I was married, she was the love of my life but she got shot and killed, over someone looking at another person the wrong way.”
Eden gasps and covers her mouth with her hand, tears filling her eyes. I fill her in on all the gory details of my life after Jenn, becoming a Nomad. About hunting the fuckers down that killed my wife, to being a gun for hire on some occasions but that I mainly just help clubs out when they are in a bind or need an extra hand.
She listens to everything I tell her, adding in my fucked up, alcohol fueled fucks that I had for years but for over a year before seeing her and feeling her, I stopped. Nameless faces weren’t cutting it for me anymore, so I stopped.
I even told her about the bracelets and the note in my saddlebags, and the sun hitting Jenn’s seat when I read the note. It was like she was there giving me her blessing.
“When we first fucked, I knew that you were different, but I pushed the feelings away, because the guilt hit me hard. Then I left and came back, and we fell into a routine and it felt good, but I was still weighed down, then you got hurt that night of the fight and I knew then that I loved you and my heart cracked wide open, so my flight beat my fight that night.
I wish I could take it back, because if this is my baby then I have missed three months of you growing, and your body changing. It took me going back to my old club and seeing an old photo of the day I proposed to Jenn and seeing what she was wearing, for me to realize a few things. She was wearing a camisole with ‘Eden - the place of pleasure. Enjoy that bitch’ written across her chest. You see, Jenn called all of her girls ‘bitches’. I couldn’t breathe at what was staring me in the face. It was like she was giving me another blessing to be with you. Anyway, I started breathing weird and I passed out.”
She gasps again, and I chuckle, feeling like a fucking idiot for doing it.
“You passed out?”
16
I nod my head at her question and round the desk, and crouch down in front of her. I take her hands in mine, holding firm when she tries to pull away.
“I spoke to Drake, who is a brother of mine from the old club, but he is also Jenn’s brother. We talked and he told me that both he and Jenn would want me to be happy.” She scoffs, and I chuckle at her.
“Maybe I don’t want to be with you, Jonny. You left me, again. This time I was pregnant, and I know that you didn’t know that little fact, but here I am pregnant with your baby and you keep disappearing on me. I am sorry but I can’t have a man like that ‘round me or the baby. I want a man that will support us both, love us both. I don’t need much, but fucking hell I demand respect and loyalty and I don’t think you have either to give me, or this baby. You told me that you would never give up your Nomad patch.” She points to the patch on my cut. “So, I don’t think there is anything else to say.”
“Oh, but baby, there is plenty more to say.”
I pick her up and sit her on the desk as I sit in her chair, I part her legs and move into the space. She doesn’t stop me or move away, and I see that as a win in my books.
“I will never give up my Nomad patch, no. I will always be there to help a brother out when he needs it, but baby, you and our baby will always come first.” I lean forward and kiss her bump through the material, but it isn’t enough, so I push up her dress and come face to face with her stomach that is keeping my baby safe.
My baby.
Smiling against her skin, I lay a kiss there before looking up at Eden, who looks down at me with soft eyes. Yeah, she may be pissed at me for leaving but she won’t refuse me now. She wants this with me as much as I want it with her.
With my arms around her back, cradling her ass, I move forward, with my height we are almost eye to eye. I watch as her eyes roam over my face, my beard, and my hair. Before I left the club, one of the Old Lady’s cut my hair, so it is now shaved short at the sides and back with a fade up, and the top of my hair was trimmed but long enough for me to slick it back.
My beard has been trimmed neatly, but it still has that bush feel and look to it that I know Eden loves to tug on and feel between her thighs when I eat her pussy.
“I love you, Eden. I will love this baby, whether it is mine or not. The baby will be mine because he or she is an extension of you. Being a Nomad was right for me for so many years but now, you are what’s right for me.
This baby is what’s right for me. If we have nothing planned, and the job will only take a day or two I will help a brother out, maybe, if possible, you and the kid can travel with me.”
I cringe at the last part because the thought just hit me that I need to buy a fucking cage to cart my woman and kid around.
“The baby is yours,” she says, and I kid you not, the weight of an eighteen-wheeler just lifted from my chest and I sag forward. “It will take more than a few words to win me over Jonny, way more, but I do love you too.”
Her words have me reaching into the pocket of my cut and pulling out the black velvet box that Jenn left for me.
“Here.” I hand it to Eden and watch as she pops it open and pulls out the two bracelets. I watch in total fascination as she places one around my wrist and then hands me the other one, for me to place on her, so I do.
“I love you, Jonny,” she says, cupping my jaw and leaning down to kiss me.
“I fucking love you too, Eden. I will make it up to you, I swear it.”
And make it up to her I do for many, many years. The fear of losing her and our baby like I did Jenn will never leave me, but it will also fuel my protectiveness over them. I will stop at nothing to keep them both safe.
My woman. My kid. My woman. My Nomad life.
Is all connected, it is something that started with hate and revenge, but it ended with love and a new road to ride.
Epilogue
Eden
“I fucking hate you and your monstrous cock,” I bellow into the hospital room. “You will never fuck me again, do you hear me, never. Our son will be an only child,” I cry on another contraction.
Jonny chuckles from the side of the bed where he is holding my hand, not once complaining how I am crushing his fingers. Not that I care right now, this baby malarkey is a killer.
Twisted Steel: An MC Anthology: Second Edition Page 84
