Chapter 7
SEVEN
PIPER
Ivy & Piper’s Guide to Life Rule Number Thirty:
Friends don’t let friends keep secrets.
Motorcycles, Mobsters, & Mayhem Event 2025
I wove through the vehicles parked in front of the valet and past a group of readers and authors getting their nicotine fix before the event. Their loud voices and boisterous laughter echoed off the walls of the hotel, assaulting my already frayed nerves.
It had been one year, nine months, and twenty-seven days since I’d woken up alone on a hotel room couch.
No note. No explanation. Nothing.
Since then, I’d often fantasized about what I would say to Dane if I ever saw him again. I envisioned boldly walking up to him and asking, Why did you say you wanted to make it real and then leave without a word? Who the fuck does that?
The daydreams varied, but most ended with me slapping the ever-loving shit out of him before waltzing off with my head held high, like a badass.
Now, faced with the reality of possibly seeing him again, my bravado crumbled. I couldn’t do it. I wasn’t ready to confront him over his actions if it meant seeing the rejection in his eyes when he learned the truth about our night together.
I’d spent most of the night and part of the morning with my head in the toilet, and exhaustion weighed on me like a lead blanket.
As I approached the entrance, I white-knuckled the strap of my purse, my palms growing clammy. The urge to flee back to my car and speed away from the entire asinine plan was overwhelming.
But my mama hadn’t raised a coward.
An idiot, maybe. But not a coward.
So, with my heart pounding out a staccato rhythm, I took a deep breath and entered the lobby like a woman walking to her own execution, wincing when I caught sight of my haggard reflection in an ornate mirror.
Awesome. I looked as wrecked as I felt.
Dark smudges stained the pale skin beneath my green eyes, mocking my futile attempts to conceal them with makeup. The long, wispy bangs I spontaneously gave myself a few days ago looked less trendy and more like a cry for help.
Long months of worry and anxiety had taken a physical toll on me as much as an emotional one. Last night was just another in a long line of sleepless nights spent tossing in rumpled sheets and second-guessing my decision to come. The uncertainty was etched into the lines of my face and the hollows of my cheeks, and I couldn’t even remember the last time I’d managed to get four hours of solid, uninterrupted sleep. And the long hours I’d been putting in at the bakery lately weren’t doing me any favors either.
On cue, my phone vibrated, pulling me away from the mirror and the shell of a woman who was, as Garth would say, much too young to feel this damn old.
Thinking it might be my mother, I hurriedly snatched it out of my purse, only to see it was a text from my boss, Derek. My jaw tightened as I read his message, another thinly-veiled demand masquerading as a request.
Derek: Got a last-minute order, and Terri called in sick. I need you to come in this afternoon. You know how it is .
Frustration simmered beneath my skin, a slow burn that threatened to ignite into a full-blown inferno. I requested the day off six months in advance and had already put in nearly fifty hours this week.
My thumbs hovered over the screen, itching to unleash a scathing reply to tell Derek exactly where he could shove his last-minute summons. But I resisted, knowing it was a battle I couldn’t win.
Not if I wanted to keep my job anyway. I desperately needed to keep my job.
With a growl, I dropped the phone back into my purse and smoothed a hand over my long-sleeved dress.
The entire hotel bustled with activity, the sounds of book carts being wheeled toward the ballrooms echoing off the marble floors.
I scanned the crowded lobby, searching for familiar faces while simultaneously hoping to avoid them. My pulse kicked up a notch at every glimpse of dark hair or broad shoulders, and I was convinced it was him.
“Piper!” Ivy’s voice cut through the chaos, and I turned to see her waving frantically near the back of a growing line.
I forced my lips into what I hoped was a convincing smile and made my way to her, my pulse racing. Every step closer to the ballroom felt like it was bringing me closer to my doom.
What if Dane was already inside?
What if he saw me first?
Or worse, what if he didn’t come at all?
As I approached, I noticed Ivy didn’t look much better than I did. A slight tremor ran through her body, and her wide blue eyes seemed to dart nervously around the room.
“Hey,” I said, feeling the tension in her shoulders as I pulled her into a quick hug. “Sorry, I’m late. Traffic was?—”
“Don’t apologize!” she interjected a little too loudly. “You’re here now, and that’s all that matters.”
We pulled apart, and I peered into her overly bright eyes with a frown. “You okay?”
“Me? I’m fine!” She let out a startled shriek and spun around, startling the poor woman in line behind us.
“Sorry!” the woman exclaimed, jerking her hand back. “I was just trying to let you know the line was moving. ”
“Thank you,” I told her. After inching forward to close the gap, I turned to Ivy with a raised brow. “Are you sure you’re okay? You seem…on edge.”
“Just excited and maybe a tad bit overcaffeinated,” she insisted, squaring her shoulders with a brittle laugh. “This is fun. I can’t remember the last time we had a weekend with just us.”
Before I could press further, a familiar figure emerged from the ballroom, and my stomach dropped.
GQ moved with the casual grace of a man used to commanding the attention of women everywhere. But now, the sight of him sent a jolt of panic through my veins because where he was, Dane couldn’t be far behind.
Panic clawed its way up my throat, bitter and sharp. Without thinking, I grabbed Ivy’s hand and squeezed.
“Piper, what?—”
“We have to go,” I hissed, my voice trembling. “I can’t—I can’t do this. I can’t be here.”
She searched my face, her eyes softening with understanding. “Okay, sweetie. Why don’t you wait for me by the entrance, and I’ll be right there.”
I nodded gratefully and made my way back through the crowded lobby, my heart pounding in my ears.
Once I reached the relative safety of the hotel entrance, I pulled out my phone with shaking hands. I needed a distraction, something to ground me before I completely lost it.
Me: Just checking in. How are y’all doing?
The reply came through almost immediately.
Mom: We’re perfectly fine and having fun like you should be, missy.
I stared at the screen, the words blurring as tears pricked the corners of my eyes. If my mother knew why I was here, she would have told me not to come. She would have said it wasn’t worth the risk, the pain .
But I had to know, didn’t I?
I had to see Dane one last time, even if it shattered me.
Ivy’s soothing voice broke through my spiraling thoughts. “Hey, I found a volunteer to hold our spot. Let’s get you some air.”
“You know I hate when you use your therapy voice,” I grumbled, as she took my hand and led me outside.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
The cool air was a welcome relief against my flushed skin. I took a deep breath, willing my racing heart to slow.
“I know it’s hard being away from her and doing something for yourself,” she said, breaking the silence. “Just know it’s completely normal?—”
“That’s what you think this is—separation anxiety?” I huffed out an annoyed breath and shook my head. “I work all the damn time and only see her three, maybe four hours a day. Sorry, Doctor, but any separation anxiety I may have had is long gone.”
“Is it something at work then?” she asked, her voice taking on a dangerous edge. “Or Derek? I swear to all that is good and holy, Piper. All I need is five minutes and a hammer, and that fucking creeper wouldn’t bother you anymore.”
I choked on a laugh and deadpanned, “A hammer? That’s not very love and light of you. Have you asked yourself if this is coming from a place of healing?”
“Screw healing,” she growled, balling her hand into a fist. “Sometimes, karma takes too long, and it’s up to us to teach the dickheads of the world a lesson.”
The reaction was overkill, even for someone as fiercely protective of her friends as she was. I studied her face, noting the tightness around her eyes and how her gaze continuously shifted from one end of the hotel to the other as if she were searching for an unseen threat.
“I’m good,” I said, knowing better than to press her over it. Getting Ivy to open up was like trying to break into Fort Knox armed with nothing but a spork. “I think it was just all the people crowding around us—I felt like I couldn’t breathe.”
“Really?” she asked, her tone skeptical. “You sure it doesn’t have something to do with running into Ghost again?”
The blood drained from my face. “Dane’s—he’s here? You’re sure? ”
She nodded, watching me with a penetrative gaze that always made me feel like she was peering straight into my soul. “Yeah, I saw him carrying boxes in with GQ and Duke before you got here.”
My legs buckled, and I latched onto her to remain upright. My instincts screamed at me to run—from the hotel, from the memories, from him.
“The biker—he’s the reason you’re on the verge of a panic attack?” she questioned, pulling the corner of her lip between her teeth and studying me like I was a puzzle to be solved.
She knew me all too well—could sense the turmoil churning beneath the surface of my carefully crafted facade.
“What am I missing? You hung out at the pool, and then he walked you back to the room. End of story. Why would seeing him again upset you? It’s not like he’s the deadbeat who knocked you up—” She stopped abruptly, her face draining of color.
“Dane is Avery’s father?” she whispered, her voice barely audible.
I managed a small nod, confirming her worst suspicions.
“Jesus Christ,” Ivy breathed, running a hand through her hair. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because saying it out loud made it real.” Tears burned behind my eyes, threatening to spill over. I swallowed past the lump in my throat. “And I wasn’t ready for it to be real.”
“Does he know?”
I shook my head, shame and guilt twisting in my gut. “I tried to find him after I found out I was pregnant, but without a last name or phone number, it was virtually impossible. Short of dropping by every clubhouse in the state to see if they knew a Ghost or a Dane, I didn’t know what else to do.”
“You should have come to me with this. I would have helped you find him.”
I shrugged, unable to meet her gaze. “At first, I was too scared to face the reality of the situation. Then, as time went on, it just got harder and harder to bring it up. I told myself it was better this way—that Avery and I were doing fine on our own.”
“But you’re not fine,” she pointed out in a gentle tone. “You’re exhausted, overworked, and falling apart at the thought of running into Dane. This isn’t healthy, Piper. ”
“I know,” I said, my voice cracking again. “But what am I supposed to do now? Walk up to him and say, ‘Hey, remember that night we spent together? Surprise! You have a daughter!’”
Ivy placed her hands on my shoulders, forcing me to look at her. “Yeah, that’s exactly what you’re going to do. He deserves to know, and more importantly, Avery deserves to know her father.”
The thought of confronting him, of seeing the shock and potential anger on his face made me want to vomit all over again.
“You don’t understand,” I choked out, shaking my head frantically. “I can’t just drop this bomb on him out of nowhere.”
“Then when, Piper? When Avery’s graduating from high school? When she’s looking for someone to walk her down the aisle?” Ivy’s voice softened. “There’s never going to be a right time, but the longer you wait, the harder it’s going to be.”
The full weight of her words sank in. She was right, of course. But knowing what I had to do and doing it were two very different things.
“What if he wants nothing to do with us? Oh my god. What if he tries to take her away?”
“Breathe,” Ivy commanded. “You’re catastrophizing. You don’t know how he’ll react until you tell him.”
I paced back and forth across a small section of pavement. “That’s just it. I don’t know him . Not really. We spent one night together, and then he vanished. For all I know, he could be married with three kids.”
She latched onto my arm, halting my frantic movement. “Then you need to find out so you can stop torturing yourself with the what-ifs. You also need to consider the possibility that he might want to be involved. Are you prepared for that?”
Was I prepared for Dane to want to be a part of Avery’s life? To potentially disrupt the careful balance I’d constructed over the past year?
“Piper?”
I froze, my heart pounding so violently I thought it might burst from my chest. Time slowed to a crawl as I turned around, coming face to face with the man who haunted almost all my dreams.
Dane stood less than six feet away, looking even more devastatingly handsome than the last time I saw him. His dark eyes roamed over me, and memories of that night flashed through my mind like an uninvited guest.
“I thought that was you inside,” he said, his presence as palpable as ever. The kutte he wore molded to his muscular frame like a second skin, while the black T-shirt underneath strained against his biceps and broad shoulders.
Had he always been this muscular, or was it a recent development? I couldn’t remember.
He took a step closer. “It’s been a while.”
A while.
As if the past year and nine months could be summed up so casually. As if he hadn’t knocked me up and disappeared without a trace.
Not that either of us had known I would end up pregnant when he slipped out in the middle of the night, but still. A while? That was the best he could come up with?
A vein pulsed in my forehead. My emotions were rapidly cycling between anger, hurt, confusion, and rage.
Heavy on the rage.
An awkward silence stretched between us, thick with unspoken words and lingering questions. I could feel Ivy’s eyes darting between us, practically vibrating with the need to intervene.
I opened my mouth, but the words wouldn’t come out. This was it—the moment I’d both dreaded and longed for. And I was completely unprepared.
“You look…” He trailed off, his brow furrowing as he studied me more closely. “Are you all right?”
No , I wanted to scream. I’m not all right. I haven’t been all right since the night you left.
My throat was bone dry as I replied, “I’m fine.”
Dane’s eyes narrowed, clearly not buying what I was trying to sell. He took another step closer, close enough now I could smell the faint scent of leather and something distinctly him. My traitorous body reacted instantly, a familiar warmth spreading through my veins.
His forehead creased with concern. “You don’t look fine. What’s wrong?”
A hysterical laugh bubbled up in my chest. What wasn’t wrong? My entire world had been turned upside down the moment I saw those two pink lines on the pregnancy test. And now here he was, standing in front of me like no time had passed at all, asking what was wrong as if he had any right to know.
“Nothing’s wrong,” I lied again, my voice trembling. “I just... I wasn’t expecting to see you here.”
His jaw tightened, a flicker of hurt flashing across his face before he schooled his features into a neutral expression. “Yeah, I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to make it this year, but GQ convinced me to come at the last minute. It’s good to see you.”
Good to see me?
“Well, we better go before we lose our place in line. Bye, Dane.” I turned and walked back inside, focusing on the click of my heeled boots against the pavement—anything to keep from looking back.
My mind replayed our brief encounter on a loop. The concern in his eyes and the way his voice softened when he asked if I was all right was almost enough to make me believe he cared.
Almost.