Neither Black Nor White (Iron Dogz MC, #6)

by René Van Dalen

  It was time to change the topic of conversation.

  “So, my dad was the bastard son of David Maingarde. Did he know?”

  Orca grinned. “Yes, he did, but he despised his biological father for abandoning his mother. Katherine, your grandmother, met and married Duncan Campbell and they had a son together, your uncle Duane. Duncan was a good man and he raised Dev as if he was his own. He had a heart attack about three years ago but Katherine, your grandmother, is still alive and feisty as hell. You not only have a grandmother, you have aunts and uncles and cousins, sweetheart. We’ll have to be careful how we tell your grandmother to not upset her too much but she’s a strong as hell old woman, she’ll cope. And then she’ll start trying to run your life the same way she tries with your cousins. They complain about her matchmaking shit all the time.” He smiled at my shocked reaction.

  I was so used to only having my girls that to suddenly have a huge family felt strange and weird.

  “I know you want to talk to my old lady some more, Prez, but I can see from the way she’s sitting in that chair that she’s in pain. I need to get her home and in bed. Today has been one hell of a day for her.” Kid’s hand closed over mine and gave a soft squeeze.

  “She looks a bit pale under the bruising, you’re right, VP. Take her home and get her comfortable but I’m going to need you back here. We’ve got shit to sort before this night is out.” Orca was suddenly the president of the club and power radiated off him.

  And Kid changed as well, he became the hard man I had met in Joburg. A man that would stand side by side with my uncle (holy shit!) and rule the men and women gathered on the other side of the door.

  I have been given so much information by Orca and it buzzed around inside my head like a swarm of bees. Mainly I needed to know if they had ever found my parents’ bodies. I needed Star. And therefore I needed to get home.

  “Thank you for explaining some of what the asshole said down there. I would love to come back and chat when I’m not so damned creaky and slow.”

  “Slow!” The man in the chair next to mine suddenly laughed. “Sweetheart, there was nothing slow about the way you took care of the club whore. It was beautiful and long overdue.” He turned to Orca and winked. “It’s going to be fun to watch this new chapter unfold, my friend.”

  Orca laughed and shook his head. “I can see you’re going to stir shit up just to watch her take care of it, aren’t you?”

  Hook shrugged and made an innocent face then smirked and winked. “Maybe.”

  “Fuck. I thought I left the meddling miennies back in Joburg.” Kid sighed as he helped me up.

  Damn, I ached and by the sudden narrowing of his eyes he knew it.

  “I’ll be back later, Prez. We can talk about how to handle this shit with the brothers then.”

  After hugs and cheek kisses (weird!) Kid and I left.

  Not even an hour later I was in one of his tees and a pair of panties tucked up in my bed. He wanted me to take one of my pain pills but I stalled, explaining I had to eat something first.

  That would give me time to set Star on a thorough background check of my newly acquired family.

  I had family. Real, honest to God, family.

  Not long after eating and talking to Star and my girls I was doped up and fast asleep.

  No nightmares came calling.

  CHAPTER THIRTY EIGHT

  Dominick

  Almost six weeks and still no trace of Winifred Harrison. She had gone underground but he wasn’t going to stop looking. He was sure that’s what she wanted, for him to stop looking. It wasn’t going to happen. He wasn’t the only one looking for the bitch. The taskforce was on her trail as well. Not that they were very pleased with him right now, but who the hell cared.

  If they rewound time he knew he would make the very same decisions again.

  Tonight he had a party to attend and not the usual socialite bullshit but a full on biker bash. That’s what Cuba had called it when she phoned him to inform him he would be attending and to leave his suits at home. She mildly threatened to come over and help him dress if he was unsure of what to wear.

  He grinned as he signed the last of the contracts his assistant had left on his desk. He had read through each one carefully before signing. The assistant before this one had tried to sneak some of Winifred’s crooked dealings across his desk more than once before he fired her. Checking his watch after locking the contracts away he knew he had enough time to get to his penthouse, shower, get dressed and pick Pixie up.

  After years of being careful not to spend too much time with his sister he was finally free to really get to know her. They had been spending a lot of time together after he had explained his behaviour towards her. His sister was sweet, funny and an extremely savvy business woman. He looked forward to attending the party with her. She knew the biker world and would ensure he didn’t offend anyone.

  Closing and locking his office door behind him he nodded at Gideon. It was time to go and party with some bikers. He didn’t know how Gideon was going to handle it because his best friend and bodyguard was a bit uptight.

  The night was going to be interesting to say the least.

  Kid

  Looking around the duplex he still found it hard to believe that he now shared it with his woman. Her touch could be seen everywhere. It no longer looked like a bachelor hangout with only couches and a huge ass tv on the wall. There were curtains and blinds and throws draped over the backs of the couches and a bookcase covered the entire wall around their tv. His girl had started to fill it with books and framed photographs of the two of them and things she found on the beach.

  One of the blank walls had been turned into a photo gallery with framed photos of their family and friends and it grew by the week. Pride of place was given to a photograph of her parents on their wedding day on the beach. His woman was a mix of both her parents but her eyes were exactly the same shade as her mother’s.

  He could see a time when she was going to run out of space and he would have to find a way to give her more. Many a time he had found her just sitting on the couch staring at that wall and he would join her, holding her as they took in the large family they now had.

  Something he hadn’t known about her, his girl was a beachcomber and brought back anything she found interesting and turned it into something even more interesting. They had mobiles made out of driftwood, shells, sea glass and shit she found interesting adorning their downstairs patio and hanging from the rafters of their upstairs deck. More than one of the other women who saw her mobiles asked her to make them one but she would only do it if they went beachcombing with her. It meant that many a Saturday morning she was on one of the beaches with a posse of women and kids picking up shit to turn into the crap they had all over the place. Not only here at their duplex at the clubhouse but at their place at the compound as well.

  From the start he had promised Noe he would not ask her to move, they would live in both places and go between the two. So far it had worked out well for them.

  Tonight was going to be a very special night and he had only taken Cuba into his confidence because he knew she was like a secret-keeping vault.

  He was claiming his woman in front of his club tonight and Pixie was attending the party and was ready to put his ink on her. He could hardly wait to see his mark on her skin.

  Fuck. He was nervous. He knew she loved him, she told him every chance she got, but still, it was a huge step for her. It meant split loyalties and that wasn’t going to be easy.

  There would be times she would know things about the club she couldn’t share with her crew and other times she would be doing jobs she couldn’t share with him and the club. Not only was his woman still working with Bruno she was now working with Dom as well.

  The fact that she worked with Dom worried him because he was now the head of the Syndicate in Africa and that did not sit well with Hawk. His president hadn’t said anything yet but he knew it was coming. When the time came
he would insist on Face, because it would be Face talking to them and not his Noe, being at the meeting to field any questions he might have.

  Right now his girl was having tea with her grandmother, something the old lady had insisted on after she met her. Noe and Katherine had clicked instantly, both feisty women who took no shit from anyone. They were frequently joined by Noe’s cousin and Katherine’s namesake, Kat and he did not want to know what the hell those three got up to.

  Traditionally a man would approach a woman’s father for permission to marry her, but as her father wasn’t with them anymore he had gone to Katherine. After a long talk filled with threats to his manhood she had given him her blessing and extorted a promise that they would start working on giving her a great grandchild. Fuck.

  She would be in attendance tonight. Her son Jury and his wife Marlene were picking her up from the retirement village where she lived and bringing her to the club.

  The kutte he had made for Noe was in the safe in Orca’s office as well as the engagement ring in its black velvet box. He couldn’t fucking wait to make her his in every way.

  Four hours later

  The entertainment area outside the clubhouse was full to capacity with his brothers, their women and children and their guests. They had eaten and the tables had been cleared and he knew the time had come to move on to the most important part of the night.

  Looking over at Orca he nodded. His prez grinned and winked then tapped the box on the table in front of him. He hadn’t even noticed that it was there. He looked around and found his woman laughing with Cuba and Kat and walked over to them.

  “Sorry to interrupt ladies but I need my woman for a minute or so.”

  Cuba immediately shrugged and then winked. “Sure thing, Kid.”

  Grabbing Noe’s hand he drew her into the centre of the dance floor and he knew she thought he wanted to dance with her. Suddenly the music stopped and Orca walked up to them with a mic in his hand.

  “Give us the floor for a minute, brothers.”

  As if by magic the floor cleared and the rumble of voices fell silent.

  “Tonight is a very important night for the Cape Town chapter of the Iron Dogz MC. Tonight we welcome back a lost family member, the daughter of our brother Dev “Thorn” Thornton and his old lady Hillary. Not only is she their daughter she is also my niece and the niece of our brother Jury. And we all know what that makes her don’t we brothers?”

  Laughter sounded and many voices shouted the answer at him. “Club Princess!”

  His woman’s eyes went large as she turned her head to look at him and he smiled and winked.

  “I want us to give our newest Princess a proper Iron Dogz welcome.” Orca shouted and suddenly the night was filled with wild howls as the men followed their president’s example. Kid did the same, howling his welcome up into the starlit sky.

  Holding his hands up to calm the crowd Orca continued to the part that had Kid’s hands sweating.

  “Our new VP will be taking over from me now. Kid come on over here, brother.”

  Nervous jitters shivered through his body as he led Noe over to Orca who handed him the mic. Drawing in a deep breath he turned and faced his confused and slightly worried woman.

  “Tonight, here in front of my National President, my President, my brothers and our families I ask you, Noelle Thornton, to be my old lady, to take my patch and my ink.”

  A silence heavy with anticipation hung over the avidly watching guests as his woman gave that tiny little smile of hers.

  “Yes, I’d be honoured to wear your patch and ink.” Her answer had another spate of howls filling the air.

  Orca handed him his old lady’s kutte and he helped her to slip it on then drew her into his arms and kissed her hard and deep. Lifting his head he pushed her slightly away from him then slowly circled her and swiped a hand over his name on her back. Property of Kid. He never thought he would ever give that to a woman. Moving until he was back in front of her he dropped to a knee and laughed when she gaped down at him in shock.

  “Noe, my angel-eyes, my life, will you marry me?” This time his voice was for the two of them, no one else, and was soft and filled with the love he felt for her and only her.

  He watched as her bottom lip wobbled and she bit it before she whispered back while nodding. “Yes, baby, I will.”

  Pulling the ring Orca had slipped him he held out his hand for hers and she put a shaking hand in his. Before he slipped his ring on he kissed her finger then slid the ring on. It fitted perfectly and his old lady grinned then dived into his arms, almost taking him down to the floor.

  Laughter, whistles and howls rang out around them as he held her in his arms and looked deep into her eyes.

  “I love you, angel-eyes, from this life into the next I will always be with you. And tonight you’re getting my ink to show the world you are mine.” He promised.

  “I love you, baby, from this life into the next I will always be with you.” She repeated his promise and then she gave him a very, very sly smile. “About that ink...”

  Narrowing his eyes at her in question she kissed him softly then kissed up his cheek to his ear.

  “It will have to wait...I’m pregnant.” She whispered and Kid froze then jerked his head back and looked at her, his woman, his old lady and soon to be wife and mother of his child. Slipping his arms under her legs he lifted her up against his chest and stood, holding her like a bride being carried over the threshold.

  Dropping his head back he howled his news to the stars. “We’re pregnant!”

  Answering howls ripped through the night and they were instantly mobbed by well-wishers.

  But Kid refused to let her go.

  He held her and their child in his arms and felt the years of being alone and angry melt away. Since the woman in his arms had come into his life it had changed drastically. He had gone from an embittered unsmiling man to a man so in love with his woman that he fucking smiled every single day.

  Now he knew how Hawk, Ice, Beast, Wolf and Scar felt. Happy, content, fulfilled and in a few months’ time he would know what it felt like to be a father.

  He couldn’t fucking wait to share that experience with his wife, because that’s what she would be when their baby was born. His wife. They were getting it done as soon as possible.

  But right now all he wanted was to celebrate with his angel-eyes. Just them. In their bed with the world shut out.

  He started walking and a path lined with his laughing and cheering brothers and their families opened up for them.

  Hawk and DC were waiting as they left the party area.

  Hawk grinned. “I know all you want to do is get out of here and celebrate with your old lady, brother. We just wanted to wish you both well and share our happiness with your good news. I’m sorry we can’t stay longer but we need to get back to Joburg. We’re catching the late night flight out. Please know, anything you need, you reach out and we’ll be there. I can’t talk now but I’ll call during the week then we can talk.”

  Bending he set his old lady’s feet on the ground and held her as she stood. DC was on her almost immediately and they hugged and whispered to each other. He couldn’t hear what was being said but to be honest he wasn’t really listening. He was looking at his Prez and best friend.

  “I’m going to fucking miss you, you fucker.” Hawk growled as he dragged him into his arms.

  “Going to fucking miss you too, my brother.” Kid growled back.

  They hugged long and hard before Hawk slapped him on his back and he did the same then they both stepped back.

  Hawk hugged Noe before pulling his old lady into his side. “We need to get out of here if we want to make our flight. I’ll be in contact, brother.”

  And with that his best friend turned and holding on to his old lady walked away towards the front of the compound where a cage was most probably waiting to take them to the airport.

  “You’re going to miss him, aren’t you?”

&
nbsp; “Ja, baby, I am. We’ve been through good times and bad together and always had each other’s backs. And now I live here on the southern tip of the country while he’s all the way up north. It’s going to be strange not to be able to see him every day.”

  Shaking the melancholy off he dipped and scooped his old lady up in his arms and started running. Their duplex wasn’t that far away and shortly after he was running up the stairs to their bedroom.

  Once inside he carefully laid her out on the bed and just stood there looking at her. She was the most beautiful creature he had ever seen. And she was all his.

  He slowly undressed her and then pulled off his own clothes. Before joining her he slipped hangers through their kuttes and hung them side by side in their big cupboard. Seeing them like that made him smile and when he turned around his girl was smiling as well.

  Crawling onto the bed with his cock hard and aching for his old lady he moved up and over her caging her with his body. She skated her finger lightly over his shoulders, his biceps and back up and over his pecs and down his abdomen.

  “I have never seen a more beautiful sight than you on our bed, angel-eyes. You are my every dream, my every fantasy made real. I swear to you I will always be true to you and our children.” Moving down her body he kissed her belly where his child was growing.

  “Tonight I want to make love to you, soft and slow the way I learned to be with you. No pain, no roughness, no toys, just you and me coming together to celebrate the life we have made.” He whispered against her mound, kissing the diamond glittering there. One of his gifts when she had her piercings redone. Moving further down he licked over her clit and curled his tongue around the diamond headed bar then looked up her body and felt contentment fill him. His diamonds decorated her body from her clit up to her nipples and ears and now finally on her finger.

  Carefully opening the petals of her sex he breathed in deep and groaned. “I so love the smell of my little pussy. It smells of arousal and tonight there’s a faint scent of wildflowers or something. It’s fucking unbelievably sexy.” With that he dropped his head and licked her from the bottom to the top and once there he gave the bar a flick with his tongue, making her groan.