"Ladies." Kathy's friendly tone included them both in her response.
"What time is it?" I asked.
Ellie glanced down at her watch. "Five till one."
I rolled my eyes and snorted. They were supposed to relieve me at one. "Thanks for the early break."
Ellie giggled but ignored me. "They look like they're getting ready for a nap." She looked at JoJo. "Should we leave them or take them inside?"
"I say we leave them. By the time we get them inside and set up they'll have got their second wind."
Someone began to cry on the playground, drawing our attention. Kathy immediately got to her feet. "That one is mine. See you ladies around." She rushed to the playground, where her youngest was crying. The other mother had already made her way there and was examining his knee.
"She has three boys," Ellie murmured in awe, stepping away from the playpen.
"Four. Don't forget her husband. Men are just big boys," JoJo joked, following Ellie over to where I was sitting. Her gaze flickered briefly toward the picnic tables. "I don't know who thought it would be a good idea to put the smokers next to the playground," she complained.
I took a quick look. Goldie and Cherry had both lit up a cigarette and were puffing away. They were close, and judging from their smirks, they'd heard what JoJo had said. "At least they have clothes on now," I murmured low, remembering the way Goldie had been dressed that morning.
"Yeah, we heard about that. Demon was pissed when he found out. He has strict rules about the club whores not running around half-naked when we're on lockdown."
I glared at JoJo. "A bikini top that barely covers your nipples and boy shorts up the crack of your ass is not half-naked. She may as well have been nude."
"I'm surprised he even allows them to be here when the wives and families are here."
"They’re considered club property, honey," I reminded Ellie. "And the club protects their own." I knew that Ellie and JoJo understood what the deal was. Hell, they'd both been old ladies long before I’d come on the scene.
I heard the sound of snickering behind me, and I knew that I should stop before my mouth got me into trouble.
"That's right, bitch," I heard Goldie say behind me.
JoJo gasped, but I chose to ignore Goldie.
"I belong to the club more than you do now. You're not even an old lady anymore."
It hadn't taken her long to find out about me and Sax.
"Enough," JoJo warned, shooting Goldie a scowl. "Holly is family. You have a problem with anyone being here, you take it up with Demon." She gave an evil grin. "Or better yet, take it up with Sax, since he's VP."
I rolled my eyes and barely held back a groan. JoJo was a sweetheart for coming to my defense, but I wasn't sure that mentioning Sax was a good idea.
"When I'm with Sax we don't talk."
I winced, literally winced, at Goldie’s response.
"We're too busy sucking and fucking."
"I seriously doubt that," Ellie countered assuredly. "Sax has been in love with Holly for years. I can't see him wasting his time on a skank like you."
Goldie threw her head back and laughed loudly. "Love and sex are two different things. And Sax is an animal in bed. He was in my bed last night."
My cheeks were burning as I kept my back to her. "Yes, you already made that clear this morning."
JoJo and Ellie reacted with the same stunned, open-mouth, round-eyed expressions. Goldie shrugged with a cunning gleam in her eyes.
"I'll have him in my bed again tonight, too…" She paused for effect. "Or maybe I'll let him fuck me on his bike. That was our favorite place when we were on the road on the way here."
Sax and I had fucked many times on his bike. The idea that he'd had another woman on the back of his bike, and the visual of them together turned my stomach. Finally, I'd had enough, and I turned to face the bitch. "You're a beautiful woman, Goldie. Your insecurities and bitchiness takes away from that. You should have more respect for yourself than to be with someone who only wants to fuck you. You haven't been at the clubhouse long, and yet you've already turned into a slutty whore who only wants to sink her claws into a biker and stir up trouble."
I heard JoJo and Ellie snort behind me.
"You're the jealous bitch making a fool out of yourself with a man who doesn't want you anymore." She took a puff of her cigarette and blew it out in one long stream.
"For your information, Holly is the one who broke it off with Sax."
I knew Ellie was just trying to help.
Goldie shrugged with indifference. "And she fucked up by having another man's brat."
Thank God for her sake that she hadn't said bastard. I resisted the urge to get up and slap Goldie's face. She was trying to provoke me into a reaction, and I wasn't going to give her the satisfaction. I glanced down at Ava and smiled. Looking at her made everything okay, made me feel good inside. Even Goldie's harsh, hateful words didn't hurt as much.
"I'm going back to check on Snake." They were the first words Cherry had spoken since she and Goldie had walked up. She'd been with the MC long enough to know to keep her mouth shut and mind her own business.
"Wait for me!" Goldie got up and quickly followed Cherry. "Maybe I'll find Sax and suck his big cock." Her laughter drifted away the further she walked.
I clenched my teeth.
"Honey--" JoJo reached over and touched my arm. "You know these bitches talk trash half the time. They're the jealous ones, because they know they're not good enough to be old ladies."
I smiled at her attempt to make me feel better. "I'm good," I lied. "I just didn't realize that staying part of the club after I broke up with Sax was going to mean so much drama."
Ava began to stir. It was time for me to take her inside to change and feed her.
"Why don't you leave her?" Ellie suggested as I got up and reached for Ava's diaper bag.
"She's going to want some food in a few minutes. I've got some applesauce and cereal in the kitchen. Maybe you can take her for a little while tonight while I get my shower?"
"Sure, honey. We're going to watch some Disney movies tonight with the rest of the kids, see how long they can occupy our little monsters."
"If they're the cartoons they might hold Ava's interest for a little while." I scooped my daughter up and gave her a kiss. "See you guys later."
As I walked toward the front of the building, my attention was drawn to a buzzing noise coming from the direction of the warehouse. Reid was spray painting the side of a van. Noticing me looking his way, he gave a wave, but continued working. As I continued walking, I thought to myself that he must have been doing work for someone outside of the club, because I'd never seen anyone in the club driving a white van.
Chapter 19
Sax
Fuck. The three hours of sleep that I'd managed to grab after church weren’t nearly enough, but it would have to do if I wanted to sleep tonight. I'd made it by on less with a little help from a hot shower and some booze. With a solid plan in place for tomorrow night, I couldn't wait for the shit with the Knights to be done. Taking out one of their main avenues of revenue, along with more of their brothers, was getting us closer to wiping the fuckers off the map.