Oh no.
“Dylan?” I whisper, saying his name for the first time aloud in months.
“Fuck, what are you doing here?” he demands, his gaze narrowing on me.
“She’s my sister,” my brother says, coming to my rescue.
“What the fuck? How come we didn’t know you had a brother?” Dylan demands, his voice taking on a tone of its own. I haven’t seen him since the funeral. I’ve avoided him as much as possible, because I carry the burden of Derick’s death with me just as much as I do his child.
“Derick knew about my brother,” I utter the painful words and lift my gaze to meet Lex’s. “Lex, this is Derick’s brother, Dylan.”
“Oh fuck, does he know?” Lex asks, blurting out a question I wish he’d kept to himself.
“Know what?” Dylan tenses.
Closing my eyes, I take a deep breath and open my eyes to meet Dylan’s, placing my hands at the small bump I’m sporting. “I’m pregnant.”
“Fuck, fuck, fuck. Why didn’t you tell me before now?” he growls, closing the space as much as my brother allows him to.
“Umm, I . . . I don’t know,” I whisper quietly, slumping my shoulders in defeat.
“Look, we’ll get back to this later. Anabelle, sit down and tell me what you mean by asking if Gadget checked your name,” Lex commands, keeping his voice calm as he can.
I nod and take a seat, because I’m getting lightheaded. Alexis comes to my side and takes my hand in hers.
“Uncle Justin had asked me to sign papers. Said the properties were given to me by Mom and Dad. I didn’t think to ask you about it. I figured he’d already talked to you. That’s what he’d told me at least,” I inform them. “W–Why would he take Mackenzie?”
Almost immediately after I ask the question, the answer hits me clear as day, and I feel sick to my stomach at how much of an idiot I am. “It was him, wasn’t it? The one who hurt her.”
“Yeah, Anabelle, it was him. Later on, we’ll talk about it. For now, I need you to try and relax so we can find Mackenzie. Can you do that for me?”
I don’t give Lex a verbal response. Instead, I nod and move my eyes to meet Dylan’s anger filled ones. It’s a look that communicates we would be speaking later about this. Once Mackenzie is back, safe and sound.
Groaning through the contraction, I fight the need to demand getting an epidural. I refuse to get it. This is my punishment for everything I’ve done. It’s also a blessing to the life I’m bringing into the world.
Dylan stands next to me. Since he’d found out I was pregnant with his brother’s child, the man has been with me every step of the way the past two months. Not that he’s doing it for me. Nope. He’s made sure I know where I stand with him. He doesn’t want anything to do with me other than to be able to help raise my son.
My guilt holds too deeply to argue with him. I wouldn’t have denied him seeing his nephew, but I don’t need help. I can do this on my own. I have to.
“Anabelle, it’s time to start pushing,” my doctor announces and starts instructing me on what to do.
Dylan moves to take my hand, but I pull it away. I don’t deserve his comfort or anything else from him. I don’t deserve anything, but his hatred. This doesn’t stop Dylan from reaching out and taking my hand to hold it firmly in his.
For the next God knows how long, I push until finally there’s a baby’s welcoming cries. Tears fill my eyes, and I look to see the doctor place my son on my chest. I tilt my head back to see Dylan is staring at the little boy on my chest in wonder.
I might have Dylan’s hatred, but my son has his heart. That’s worth being around my son’s uncle and taking his heated words. Because now we both have a part of Derick in our lives again.
Derick’s son.
Chapter One
K-9
Present Day
“Big brother, there’s no way anyone can keep from wanting Anabelle, including you. She’s amazing like that, and you know it.” My brother’s amused voice wakes me from a dead sleep. I sit up, breathing raggedly. Sweat drips down my face.
Glancing around the darkened room, I get control of my breathing. Throwing the blanket off my waist, I swing my legs over the side of the bed, placing my feet on the floor. I lean into them and scrub my face with both hands.
Fuck me.
I haven’t had a dream about Derick in years. Those dreams were mixed with those from when I was on active duty. Derick had died nearly four years ago when some asshole shot him in the middle of a robbery. His girlfriend, Anabelle, would have been killed if it weren’t for my brother being a hero and stepping in front of her.
“She’s my best friend, Dy. I would do anything for her.” Derick said those words to me not days before when we were talking about Anabelle, and he had told me that as much as he loved her, she wasn’t the one for him, and he wasn’t the one for her. The two of them would always be best friends, no matter what.
Only days later, that all changed, and he was gone, then so was Anabelle. She all but disappeared from my family’s life for six months. The day I saw her again, I found out a secret she was keeping from my parents and me. Anabelle, at the time, had been pregnant with my brother’s kid. It pissed me off on more levels than one.
My brothers from the club, along with the ones from the Army, know me as a jokester. They also know I take my family seriously. There’s a time for fun and games, then there’s time for not fuckin’ around.
It’s why Anabelle’s deceit in keeping the fact she was carrying my nephew from me left a bitter taste in my mouth. I can hold a grudge, and I’ve been doing so for years now.
Every time I see the woman, she feels my anger toward her. If it weren’t for the fact, she’s a good mom, I would hate her. It’s almost like since losing Derick, she’s lost her backbone. I can spew hateful words in her direction, and she doesn’t fight back. It’s how I ended up being in the delivery room the night Derick Alexander Jackson came into this world. Since then, I’ve been a fixture in my little buddy’s life.
I didn’t expect Anabelle to give her son my brother’s name, but she did. During the first few months of little D’s life, I spent a hell of a lot of time at the house she lives in with her brother and the rest of his band. Lex, Chaz, Hunter, and Tanner are all members of the band Demons Among Us. They all live in the same house, more like a mansion. They each have their own wing with their women and families. The guys are also members of the club after the whole ordeal with Lex’s Uncle.
After about six months, I started taking my nephew with me for a day or two at a time. Anabelle keeps him on a schedule she likes to stick to. It’s something I respect, and I figure she’ll ask me if she wants me to take him any other time. Her brother tells us all at the club she’s stubborn, refusing any help besides one of them watching little D while she was in class. Any other time she does everything on her own.
Glancing at the time, I decide to get up. Derick would be up soon, ready for a day of fun. It’s supposed to be a good day for going to the beach. A few of my brothers are joining me down there at the house our VP, Horse, and his ol’ lady Kenny own.