Holly’s Valentine Vow (Steel Raiders MC)

Chapter 1

Chapter One

Holly

“Mama?” Mina asks as I fix their breakfast.

“Yeah, sweetie?” I reply, flipping the pancakes I’m making her and Ruby for breakfast.

“When are we shopping for our princess dresses?” she questions.

“Princess dresses?” I repeat her question back to her.

“For our wedding!” she exclaims.

I start laughing because ever since Christmas morning when Rebel asked me to marry him, the girls have been hounding me about what they’re going to wear, when will we shop, all the things. Honestly, I’m perfectly content to have the wedding here at the farm, then hold the reception at the clubhouse. I don’t need anything fancy at all as long as at the end of the day, Rebel and I are husband and wife.

“Well, I suppose we could go today,” I muse. “But first, you girls need to eat, then get cleaned up.”

I have some work to do for clients, but I’ve gotten used to doing it during the week when they’re at daycare. However, W-2s need to be sent out for those clients, as well as 1099s, so I’ve been tirelessly working whenever I have a spare minute. With tax season pretty much on top of me, I’ll be burning the candle at both ends of the stick, that’s for sure. Thankfully, I have awesome grandparents, and Rebel, so at least I’m not alone any longer and can take care of everyone. Except the bar, there’s no way I’ll be able to work there, so Rebel has one of the brothers taking my shifts for the time being. I enjoy working there, although I’ve started cutting back a little bit on those hours since Myra is no longer in our lives, and I don’t have to worry about her trying to bleed me dry. Still, if I can find a dress today, then the girls will be content to play in their playroom while I get some stuff taken care of before Rebel gets here tonight.

He’s been gone for a few days on a club run of some sort; I don’t ask because even though they’re a legit club, I honestly don’t need to know. I trust him and know he won’t stray.

“Can Grammy come?” Ruby asks as she takes a sip of her orange juice.

“I don’t see why not,” I reply.

“Why not what?” Grammy asks as she walks through the back door into the kitchen.

“Grammy! Do you want to shop with us to find our princess dresses?” Mina asks with pleading eyes.

“Well, of course I do! Then I thought you girls might want to come and spend the night with me and Pappy. He bought a movie he thought you two would like,” she says, winking at me.

I mouth ‘thank you’ at her as I quickly cut up the pancakes, add some syrup then put the girls’ plates in front of them. “Do you want some?” I ask Grammy as I return to the stove.

“Child, I ate ages ago with Pappy.”

“What’s he doing today?” I question.

“Playing cards with his buddies.” I giggle as she rolls her eyes.

“I’m sure everything that needs doing is all done,” I remind her. “Besides, aren’t the two of you supposed to be slowing down?”

“Psssh, you act like we’re in our dotage or something,” she chides.

“What’s dotage?” Mina asks, stuffing a fork full of the fluffy goodness into her mouth.

“It means your mother thinks Pappy and I are getting old,” Grammy whispers, conspiratorially grinning at me.

“Mama! That’s not nice,” Ruby says, chiming in.

Shaking my head, I fix my own plate and sit down at the table so I can eat. “Y’all aren’t getting old, Grammy, you’re already there,” I coyishly remind her. “Both of you have milestone birthdays this year, remember? Seventy?”

“Child, seventy is the new fifty, haven’t you heard?” she teases.

“In who’s universe?” I question, holding back a giggle.

“Mine, naturally.”

Shaking my head, I look at both girls and say, “Let’s get finished up if we’re going to go shopping.”

“Oh, Mama, you look like a queen,” Mina says, staring up at me with starry eyes in the dress I found for them. “Surrounded by two pretty little princesses,” I reply, praising them.

The girls’ dresses are replicas of the one I found, just shorter. It might be a little chilly for our wedding, but as Grammy has reminded me, that’s what God made tights for. While mine has more embellishments, I find myself getting teary eyed when I look down at their little faces staring up at me. They’re long-sleeved and fall to just above their calves, with a skirt full of tulle so it puffs out.

“Ma’am, we have tiny shrugs they can wear,” the saleswoman says. “Your grandmother mentioned y’all would be having an outdoor wedding.”

“We are, but now I’m wondering if we should find somewhere else,” I reply. “But I’ve always dreamed of getting married at the farm.”

It’s always been my sanctuary, ever since they took me in as a little girl. I learned at their feet how to work hard, and what a good relationship looks like. Granted, I missed the mark with Devin, but I hit it out of the park with Rebel, which makes me smile.

“Holly, your Pappy is already working on that with Rebel,” Grammy states. “The gazebo will be the perfect setting for the two of you to say your vows, and since it’ll just be us, the girls, and his club, it’s not like we have to have a lot of extras. Pappy is running lines to the gazebo, so it’ll be heated for the time we need to stand out there, and Rebel is keeping an eye on the weather.”

Part of me, even knowing it would be too cold for my girls, wishes we’d have a pretty snowfall; that would make it picture perfect. I keep my thoughts to myself, however, and just smile. Looking at the clerk, I ask, “Do you have the shrugs here so they can try them on?”

“Yes, ma’am,” she replies. “I also have a shawl that will work with your dress as well, would you like me to get that as well?”

“Please,” I say, turning to look at myself in the mirror. While the girls have long sleeves, mine are uncovered. As I stare, I find myself unconsciously picking apart every little thing I don’t like about my reflection.

“Holly, stop that this instant!” Grammy whisper-shouts at me, as she catches my eye.

“What?” I ask, trying to sound innocent but failing based on the look she gives me.

Reprimanding me, she hisses, “I know what you’re doing. Don’t give that asshole any more space in your head, do you hear me? Rebel loves you, warts and all.”

I sigh at her words because he does. The poor man had no clue what he was getting into when he decided I was his. I’ve got enough baggage to fill a Samsonite store and then some. Although… he’s worked wonders helping me unpack a good deal of it, something that makes me love him that much more.

The clerk comes back with her arms full, a smile gracing her face as she kneels in front of my babies. “I found these in the back,” she softly says, placing tiny tiaras on each of their heads before she helps them into the fuzzy shrugs.

“Oh, Mama,” Mina whispers, her hands running up and down her arms as she stares at herself in the mirror. “It’s so soft.”

“You both look so pretty,” I tell them, crouching in front of them.

“We have crowns, Mama,” Ruby says, reaching up and lightly touching the one on top of her curls. “Do you think Daddy will like them?”

My heart warms because after Rebel proposed, both girls decided to start calling him ‘Daddy’. The first time they did it, I watched his eyes get glassy before he got down in front of them and pulled them into his arms and told them he would be proud to be their daddy.

“I think he’s going to love them,” I state. Looking up at the clerk, I say, “We’ll take it all. Let me get you my card.”

Grammy pulls out her wallet and states, “Nope, me and Pappy have this, Holly.”

Rolling my eyes, I glare at her, but it doesn’t really work since she’s never fazed when I try it. “Grammy,” I hiss. “I have the money to get me and the girls our dresses!”

“And Pappy and I are covering them for you,” she chides. “We’re paying for the wedding, Holly, and I won’t have you arguing about it.”

“Grammy,” I drawl out. “Why?”

“Because you’re ours, sweetheart. Long ago, Pappy started putting money back for the day his girl got married. Well, that day is here, so let’s spend his dough, shall we?”

I start giggling, because Pappy has been putting money back for this and that since I was born, according to Grammy. “Fine, you’re going to do what you wanna do anyhow, right?” I tease.

“Always have, always will,” she retorts. “Come on, girls, let’s get you two changed out of these pretty dresses so we can get them bagged so they don’t get dirty and head home. I think we’re gonna make homemade pizzas tonight.”

“Can we make cookies?” Ruby asks, her little face hopeful.

“Do we ever not make cookies?” Grammy replies. “I have the makings for some oatmeal raisin cookies, as well as peanut butter.”

“I love peanut butter cookies,” Mina says, her voice almost reverent as she follows behind my grandmother to the changing room.

“They’re absolutely adorable,” the clerk says as she follows me to the one I’m using so she can unzip the back of my dress.

“They are, but with all three of them together, I’m definitely being kept on my toes,” I reply, deliberately misunderstanding her as I toss Grammy into the mix.

“Ah, I see what you did there. She’s your grandmother, right?” she asks as she carefully takes the dress and slips it into the garment bag.

“Yeah,” I say, smiling at her. “She’s the best thing that ever happened to me when I was a little girl.”

“Cherish her, because I miss mine every single day,” she states, her face showing her sorrow. “I’ll meet y’all up front.”

Before she can walk out, I grab her hand and squeeze it. “Thank you for your help today.”

“It was definitely my pleasure,” she says, squeezing it back.