The Keeper (Silent Phoenix MC #5)

Chapter 11

ELEVEN

PIPER

Ivy & Piper’s Guide to Life Rule Number Twenty-Two:

Have a backup plan for your backup plan.

T he door swung shut behind Dane with an ominous finality, reverberating through my bones and extinguishing the hope I’d been clinging to for the better part of two years.

“A-ma.” Avery stirred in my arms with a hiccupped whimper, her lower lip jutting out pitifully. I smoothed her wispy curls and breathed in her sweet baby scent, my chin quaking as I tried to hold back the tears flooding my eyes.

“Not him, Piper,” my mother said while shaking her head in horrified shock. “Tell me you weren’t that stupid.”

I sucked in a ragged breath and turned away, not bothering to deny the truth hanging over the room like a wet blanket.

Dane was Avery’s father.

And my mother’s words, while harsh, were only a reminder of the painful reality I’d tried so desperately to ignore.

Because I was stupid.

Stupid enough to think he might be different. That, unlike my own father, he might want to be a part of our lives .

But his sudden and hasty exit said it all.

I wanted to scream, to rage against the unfairness of Dane choosing to walk away when I’d only begun to picture the three of us as a family.

I’d spent so long convincing myself we could make it alone because there hadn’t been another option. It was the same way I’d felt when I held Avery in my arms for the first time, knowing everything was on my shoulders. Even then, I’d held onto this na?ve hope it wouldn’t be forever.

But now I’d watched Dane walk out without a backward glance, and the fear crept back in. Only this time, I knew better.

No one would swoop in and save me.

This time, I was completely and utterly alone.

My mother’s eyes drilled into me from across the room, her disappointment especially palpable in the tense silence. If I knew her, she was putting the finishing touches on an epic lecture I was in no mood to hear but would be forced to listen to regardless.

The door handle turned with a click, and my heart leaped in my chest. But it wasn’t Dane returning.

“Ms. Kelly? Hi, I’m Dr. Diaz,” the woman said as she entered, blissfully unaware of the emotional storm brewing in the room.

After sanitizing her hands, she approached the bed, her face a mask of professional concern. “I understand Miss Avery here took a tumble. Let’s take a look.”

The fluorescent lights glinted off the bright, rainbow-colored frames perched on the bridge of Dr. Diaz’s nose as she examined the angry red gash, and I held my breath, silently pleading for good news. Anything to distract me from the gnawing ache in my chest.

“It’s okay,” I said when Avery flinched and began fussing. “Be really still so the doctor can make it all better.”

Unfortunately, one-year-olds were notoriously bad listeners, and instead of settling, my daughter fought back with everything she had. By the time Dr. Diaz finished her poking and prodding, I felt as if I’d just wrestled a honey badger. Sweat ran in rivulets down my spine, and I was certain at least one of the kicks would leave a bruise.

“Good news,” Dr. Diaz announced before straightening. “It’s shallow enough that it won’t require sutures. We’ll clean it up and apply Steri-Strips to help keep the wound closed while it heals. It’s important to keep the area clean and dry while those are on, okay?”

“So, she’s going to be okay?”

She nodded reassuringly. “She should be just fine. Concussions aren’t always easy to spot in little ones, though, so keep a close eye on her over the next twenty-four to forty-eight hours. If she’s acting sleepier than normal or begins vomiting, bring her back in so we can run some more tests.”

I nodded numbly, already imagining another sleepless night ahead. “Thank you.”

My mother waited until she left the room before rounding on me. “How could you be so reckless, Amelia? A biker? Really?”

“It’s not like I planned it,” I said through clenched teeth, trying to focus on Avery’s soft breaths and not my rising blood pressure.

“Oh, that’s blatantly obvious.” She pinched her lips together and shook her head. “Mark my words. A man like that is trouble with a capital T.”

“He’s her father?—”

“And where has he been while you’ve been raising his daughter?” she asked, her eyes flashing with frustration. “Riding with his club, free from all responsibility? That’s not a father, Amelia. That’s a stranger who happens to share her DNA.”

Her words landed with all the subtlety of a whip, but it wasn’t as if I could argue. We’d both watched Dane walk out when he put two and two together. Avery reached up, her tiny fingers grazing my cheek as if sensing my distress.

“Owie, A-ma.”

“Mama’s here.” I stroked the back of her hand with my thumb, softly singing a song that had helped me through my pregnancy and many sleepless nights as a new mom.

The door swung open, and I froze mid-verse, convinced I was seeing things. My heart lodged in my throat when Dane stepped into the room, his broad shoulders filling the doorway.

“Well, look who decided to grace us with his presence again,” my mother said, her eyes narrowing to slits.

His jaw tightened, but he didn’t take the bait. Instead, he approached the bed, each step slow and measured, like he was trying not to startle us. In his hand was a small stuffed bear, its fluffy pink fur matted from being squeezed too tightly.

“I thought,” he began, his voice gruff with emotion. “I thought she might like this.”

The simple gesture threatened to unravel me completely. I blinked rapidly, fighting back tears as Avery reached for it with both hands.

“You think a cheap toy makes up for?—”

“Mom,” I said in a carefully controlled tone. “Why don’t you head home?”

She looked ready to argue, but I cut her off with a sharp look. “Please. I need to do this alone.”

“Fine.” She shot Dane a withering glare. “But don’t come crying to me when he breaks your heart.” The door slammed behind her, leaving an awkward silence in its wake.

He sank onto the edge of the bed, his gaze never leaving Avery’s face. “I’m sorry I walked out like that. It was…a lot to take in, and I needed a minute.”

My eyes brimmed with tears. “I’m so sorry, Dane.”

“She’s mine,” he said flatly.

It wasn’t a question.

I nodded. “I should have told you back at the hotel?—”

He held up a hand, cutting me off. “Not here. Let’s get her taken care of first. The rest can wait.”

Was he angry?

Did he hate me now?

“Okay,” I finally said, unable to read his expression.

We slipped back into an uneasy silence. My mind swirled with the what-ifs and could-have-beens until the nurse returned.

“All right, sweetie, let’s get you patched up,” she said before turning to me. “Just try to keep her as still as possible, Mama. She’s not going to like me messing with it.”

She didn’t. Avery whimpered and clung to me as soon as the nurse touched her head. I stroked her damp hair with my free hand while the nurse cleaned the wound.

“It’ll be over soon.”

In response, she arched her back and let out the unholiest shriek while battering my thighs with her heels .

I was seconds from joining her when Dane’s hand found my shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. I leaned into his solid presence, letting myself pretend we were a normal family.

Even if it wasn’t real.

“You’re being so brave,” he said. I didn’t know if he was referring to me or our daughter, but his low voice calmed us both. By the time the nurse finished, Avery was asleep in my arms.

The nurse went over the discharge paperwork, explaining what to give her for pain and when to follow up with her pediatrician. I nodded along, trying to absorb it all while simultaneously worrying about the conversation still looming over us.

“Someone will be in shortly to discuss payment options,” she said as she headed for the door.

My stomach tightened. The last thing I needed was another medical bill.

“I’ll take care of it,” Dane said, releasing his grip on my shoulder.

I craned my neck to look up at him. “You don’t have to?—”

“Not asking for permission, Piper,” he said, silencing me with a look.

After settling the bill, Dane led us out to my SUV. I buckled a sleeping Avery into her car seat while he stripped off his kutte and placed it on the backseat.

I reached for the driver’s side door handle before hesitating. “I can take you back to the hotel.”

“Why would I want to go back to the hotel?” he asked, adopting a challenging tone.

“Um, I didn’t know if you wanted to get your motorcycle or...” I trailed off with a shrug.

He frowned. “Thought we’d go back to your place to talk…unless that’s a problem.”

“No! I mean, no, as in it’s not a problem, not that I don’t want you to come to my house. That came out?—”

“Piper,” he said, opening my door with a heavy sigh. “Just get in.”

My knuckles were white against the steering wheel as I drove home, each familiar street leading me closer to a conversation I wasn’t sure I was ready to have .

Dane didn’t say a word, but I could feel the tension radiating off him in waves.

I pulled into the driveway before turning to him, noting the rigid set of his jaw in the glow of the lights over the garage. We’re here,” I announced unnecessarily.

He nodded, his eyes fixed on the large two-story house. “Nice place.”

“Oh…thanks. It was my grandparents’,” I said, glancing back at Avery, pacifier dangling from her bottom lip.

He got out and opened my door before I could reach for the handle.

“She doesn’t like men,” I blurted when he moved toward the backseat next, realizing how it sounded as soon as the words left my lips. “It’s just—she’s more comfortable with women…that’s all.”

“Got it,” he clipped, backing away from the SUV with his hands raised.

I carefully lifted Avery from her car seat, tucking her sweaty body against my chest before heading around to the gate on the side of the house. I shifted her weight to one side long enough to punch in the code, breathing a sigh of relief when she didn’t stir.

Dane held it open for me to enter, his eyebrows pulling together in confusion. “Any reason you don’t use the front door?”

“Because that’s my mom’s house,” I explained before nodding toward the small guesthouse across from the pool. “We live back here.”

I fumbled with my keys, hands shaking slightly as I unlocked the front door. Once inside, I disarmed the alarm and dropped my keys on the entry table before carrying Avery to her room. Dane followed close behind, his heavy footsteps echoing off the hardwood floor.

In a routine almost as familiar as breathing. I changed her diaper and put on her favorite unicorn pajamas while he stood in the doorway, taking in every detail.

“Do you mind watching her for a minute? I need to grab her sippy cup from the fridge.”

He slowly released a deep breath and nodded before taking my place at the changing table.

When I returned, he was tracing the back of her hand with his index finger. My breath caught at the unmistakable look of love in his eyes, and I hesitated in the doorway, feeling like I was intruding on a deeply intimate moment.

Dane stepped back when I approached, letting me lift Avery and settle her in her crib. I tucked her favorite blanket around her and placed the sippy cup within reach before turning on the white noise machine.

“She’s so perfect,” he said, putting the stuffed bear in next to her.

I nodded, unable to speak past the lump in my throat. We stood there for a long moment, watching her chest rise and fall with each peaceful breath.

Finally, Dane turned to me. “We should talk.”