“Oh, fuck,” Cleo said from behind me. “Your mother is going to love her.”
I didn’t know what had gotten into me.
I was not acting correctly.
But the man just got on my nerves.
Maybe it was because he reminded me of Murphy. Maybe it was because I knew that I was going to be starting my period any second, and that usually made me way bitchier than usual. Or, it could be that I had wanted a goddamn candy bar in that gas station, and I’d walked out without one.
Whatever the reason, I needed to be nicer.
But I just couldn’t.
“I know.” The old man patted his belly. “And yes, for your information, I can mount my bike. The moment I can’t, I’ll probably be dead anyway.”
I tilted my head.
“Dixie,” Zach said with amusement lacing his tone. “This is my girl, Crockett. Dixie is the oldest man in the Dixie Wardens MC. He’s actually part of who this club was first named after. Another founder, Warden, was club president. Warden died a long time ago. Dixie’s obviously still kickin’… and spittin’.”
I looked at Dixie. “Dixie is an unusual name.”
He shrugged. “It was actually Dixon once upon a time. My wife shortened it to Dixie, and then it all went to hell from there.”
I tilted my head. “Why Dixie?”
Zach groaned. “Don’t answer her.”
“It’s actually a two-part name.” Dixie’s old eyes gleamed.
“Drop it,” Cleo grumbled as he walked toward the bike that didn’t look like it was made for an older man. “Trust me.”
I hurried after him, but the man of the hour continued to talk as if Zach hadn’t even spoken.
“Come on.” Dixie stiffly walked toward the three-wheeled bike that was beside Cleo’s bike. “I need to go sit down in my chair. My bones hurt from riding this far out. If you ever get curious about the name, though…”
I was curious.
Even despite both Zach and Cleo saying to ‘leave it be.’
I was never one to leave it be.
I was curious by nature.
“What’s the other name?” I asked before I could stop myself.
The older man’s eyes gleamed as there was a collective groan from the two people that looked so alike it was eerie.
“Dixie. Dixie Normus.”
That’s when I burst out laughing.
Dick’s enormous.
“Oh, my God.”
I was still laughing when we arrived at our final destination.
My legs felt jittery as we pulled up to Zach’s parents’ house.
And it wasn’t wholly because I’d just spent the better part of three hours on the back of Zach’s bike.
It was partly due to me not having ever met parents before.
Especially not parents that belonged to a man that I was in love with.
Though Cleo seemed cool, I had a feeling that he hadn’t approved of me quite yet.
And wouldn’t until he got his wife’s opinion of me.
I should not have been worried.
Because the moment that I met Rue, all that self-doubt flew out the window.
She came running out of the house like her feet were on fire.
She flew down the stairs, down the length of the path, and went directly for her son that was just climbing off the motorcycle from in front of me.
I put my hand up against Zach’s back when she hit him, helping keep him steady when he took a step backward in response to her exuberance.
Once he got his footing, I let him go and stood up myself, stretching out sore muscles as I did.
When I turned around, it was to see Cleo staring at his wife and son with a look of… devotion in his eyes.
His eyes flicked to me, and something passed between us.
He knew that I loved his son, because the same look he was wearing was in my eyes, too.
He nodded once and started forward, wrapping both of his people in his arms and dropping his forehead to rest on top of his wife’s.
They were like that for a couple of long seconds before Rue wiggled out from between the two hulking figures and twirled around until she found me.
“So you’re it, huh?”
I swallowed hard. “I’m it.”
• • •
“I would have thought that he would’ve gotten the same type of greeting from his father.” I paused. “But then I think about how Zach didn’t ever say a word to me for six months, and then I see it.”
Rue looked at me with laughter in her eyes. “They’re out there bonding right now. They just show it differently than the rest.”
I watched the two of them standing next to the grill, beers in hand, looking at the meat sizzle.
They weren’t turned toward each other, but they were shoulder to shoulder.
Standing like they were, you couldn’t see a difference in their ages due to their dress.
Cleo had a black ball cap on his head, hiding his salt and pepper hair. Zach had a shaggy red one that had seen better days.
Clothes covered them from shoulders to feet, and from the back, you could only see their identical heights, their identical builds, and the way that they held themselves.
They looked like twins.
It was actually kind of cute.
The only difference was that Zach was wearing a cut that declared him a Souls Chapel Revenant, and Cleo was wearing one that denoted him a Dixie Warden.
“They look so alike,” I found myself saying.
“They do,” Rue confirmed. “I thought when he was a baby, he resembled me a lot. But then he grew into the exact replica of Cleo. I sometimes wonder if my genes are half his, and not wholly Cleo’s only. Their looks. Their mannerisms. Their personalities. It’s eerie how freakin’ similar they are.”
Cleo reached forward and cut a piece of bratwurst in half, spearing one end with a knife.
He handed that end to Zach before spearing the other half back on a knife and taking an instant bite.
Zach and he both took huge bites, then did that mouth breathing thing as you dance around when you realize it’s too hot. But you don’t want to spit it out and waste it.
It was hilarious because as they did it, they looked exactly the same.
Mouth breathing and jigging and all.
CHAPTER 17
Optimal amount you should spend on your bottle of wine: 30 minutes.
-Crockett to Zach
CROCKETT
Zach’s parents were… great.
There were no other words.
Though Cleo, Zach’s father, was a little gruff around the edges, and possibly scary as hell if he wanted to be, he was still so good to Zach that it made my heart hurt.
After dinner, when Cleo had seen Zach, he’d ignored me entirely and pulled his son into a bone-jarring hug that made me smile wide. As if he was still surprised to find him in his home.
And then Zach had moved near his mother and me to chat, and Cleo had just looked on as if his heart was finally where he could keep an eye on it.
Now, a couple of hours later, we were in Cleo and Rue’s kitchen, and I was sitting at the bar top with Rue while Zach and Cleo cleaned up from dinner. I’d just changed into leggings and a comfy t-shirt because I was still stuffed to the brim.
“So you’re a runner?” Rue asked me.
I licked my lips, having to practically force my eyes away from the man show in front of me, to turn to his mother.