“What?” she asked.
“All those things my father threatened me about, I never really questioned how he would have information on the club. He must be paying someone else from another club.” I gasped, handing Mad to her and storming inside.
I paused in the hallway, afraid of interrupting their meeting. I knew there were all kinds of rules that I didn’t yet understand. I wanted to respect that but I also needed to get to Axel.
I settled on texting him while pacing restlessly.
I heard the door open a second later and he stepped out, eyeing me warily. “Yeah, babe?”
“My father,” I blurted, my hands on my hips. “He must have someone on the inside of another club! I didn’t even think of it until now. That’s how he had all the information about you before Mad was born. That must be who was looking for me now,” I exclaimed in desperation.
“Uh, yeah, babe, I figured that was the case,” he replied as though I were completely daft.
“You did?” I asked, shocked.
He had the gall the chuckle. “Baby, I appreciate that you thought you were bringing me late breaking news but it’s pretty damn obvious. We’re just trying to figure out who to throttle.” He cocked his head toward the closed door.
“Oh,” I replied lamely.
“Christ, you’re cute.” He chuckled again, pulling me closer and pressing his full lips to mine.
“I thought I was helping,” I mumbled against his mouth.
“You can help me when Mad goes down for a nap,” he grinned between kisses.
Heat pooled between my legs at the very thought. “I can do that,” I whispered, my fingers tangling up into his thick hair and pulling slightly.
“Hey, love birds, save it,” I heard Cal bark as Wes chortled in the background.
“I’ll let you get back then,” I blushed.
“Okay, darlin’, see you in a few.”
“Yeah,” I agreed.
I grumbled my way back to Kat and Maddox. Apparently, my detective skills needed some serious help.
******
“Brake! Christ, babe,” Axel half chuckled half groaned.
“I’m braking,” I replied impatiently. “You’re not very good at this. For such a badass, you’re kind of a pussy,” I taunted before I had to bite back a laugh as he shot me a glare.
We’d dropped Mad off at Scarlet and Cole’s for our date. Axel had insisted we start with a driving lesson, which is how we’d found ourselves in an abandoned parking lot in his F-150. His giant F-150.
“Couldn’t I learn in Kat’s old Corolla or something? This is ridiculous,” I complained. “I feel like I’m driving a small country.”
“You’ll need an SUV for getting up the mountain in the winter, and anything after this will feel like a piece of cake.”
I shot him a glare. “Is this how you’re gonna teach Mad everything? The hardest way possible first?”
He shrugged. “Maybe.”
“Great,” I muttered.
“Let’s practice parking,” he suggested warily.
By the time we got to the restaurant, I was ready for a drink. He decided on a steakhouse just outside of town that Scar had mentioned more than once was amazing.
We sat at the bar while we waited for our table. I ordered a cosmopolitan while he sipped at a beer.
“I gotta head out of town later this week.” He looked over at me with an appraising stare as though gauging my reaction.
“What? Why?” I asked with a mixture of disappointment at being away from him and straight anxiety about him being gone.
He hesitated and I narrowed my eyes. “Ax, remember what I said? I want to know what’s going on.”
He sighed and ran a hand over his beard. “A few of us are riding out to take a meet with the Black Riders. Henry and a few of his guys are comin’ too. We’re trying to get to the bottom of this shit and we will.” I’ll be back as soon as I can. While I’m gone, you and Mad can stay with Sal.”
It irritated me that he hadn’t even asked me what I’d prefer.
“Actually, I’d rather not change Mad’s surroundings again so soon. He’s just starting to get used to your place and I like my sleep,” I grumbled.
“I’d rather you were in town while I’m gone. The house is too isolated,” he countered as he shook his head.
“Well, these are the types of conversations we should have before you make up your mind.” I rolled my eyes.
“I’m not going to fuck around with your safety. You can be a pain in my ass all you want,” he retorted.
“We still should talk about it first, geez!” I exclaimed. “I’ve taken orders all my life. I’m not about to do that again.”
He gave me a look like he didn’t know what the hell to do with me. He probably didn’t. It occurred to me that while he was more experienced than I was in most ways, he’d never had a relationship like this before. We both had a learning curve to climb together.
“Listen,” I began, my tone much softer. “You think I won’t do what’s best for Mad? All I’m asking is to be a part of the decision making process. I trust you to take care of us. But I need to be in charge of my own life. I need to have a say,” I told him firmly.
He looked at me for a moment longer. “Fine,” he agreed somewhat reluctantly. “Now, can we stop fucking fighting on our first date?” he demanded.
“It’s our second date,” I corrected him.
“Christ!” He threw up his hands in the air in exasperation.
I couldn’t help it, I burst out laughing.
He pulled my stool closer to his, tilting me toward him so he could kiss me.
“Didn’t know you had so much sass, but I like it,” he admitted, his forehead pressed to mine.
“You bring it out in me,” I shrugged with a smile.
Chapter 9
The next evening, the club was packed with members and their families. Everyone was there, and at first, I was overwhelmed. Those I hadn’t seen wanted to welcome me home and to meet Maddox.
It was a lot of attention all at once.
In particular, Axel’s brother Ryker wanted to spend time with his nephew. You could certainly see the family resemblance between brothers. They were of similar height and build. Ry’s hair was a bit lighter and his eyes were green rather than grey. In personality, they couldn’t be more different. Where Axel was gruff and serious – most of the time anyway – Ry was a bit of a joker. He liked to lighten the mood whenever possible.
Maddox was passed around like a hot potato and I was moved by this positive change to his life. He’d gone from really only having me, to this large, boisterous group of extended family.
I sat with the girls, congratulating Ettie on her recent marriage to Mack as my eyes swept the space constantly ensuring I knew where Maddox was.
Like Scar and Kat, Ettie had her own battle scars from being kidnapped the previous year. I marveled at the strength and determination of the women around me. It gave me hope I’d get past my own situation and come out the other side better for it.
We’d been hanging out for a few hours when I watched warily as some of the club chicks perused the crowd as though seeking out any of the unattached men. The pickings were slimmer these days and I watched one woman, Bonnie I think was her name, zero in on Axel. My stomach dropped as I watched her approach with a sly smile. He didn’t return it and their conversation was brief as she came flouncing back toward where I was sitting with her friend in tow.