21. Break it up.
Chapter 21
Break it up.
Amelia
T he sound of a car door slamming as the hairs on the back of my neck standing on end. A bad feeling washes over me and I shiver.
“Well, who the hell could that be at this hour?” Grams asks. It’s after ten o’clock and everyone is still sitting around the table drinking. The men are close to finishing the bottle of whiskey Grams dragged out earlier, while the women made margaritas. Everyone except me is tipsy or wasted.
“I’ll go check,” Christian says. He pushes to his feet, and I grab his arm.
“No, let me.” I have a bad feeling about this. Something in my gut is telling me if he or any of his brothers go outside, it’ll be nothing but trouble.
Christian isn’t too drunk. He handles his liquor well, but he’s had enough to drink that he’ll probably stumble to the truck when we finally head home. He’s impaired, which means he’ll be easily provoked.
“I’m not letting you go out there.” He furrows his brow and looks down at me like I’ve lost my mind. Maybe I have, but I’m still not letting him go out there alone.
“Trust me.” I push to my feet and head toward the front door. I hear several chairs scrape across the floor as the rest of the Mutter men jump to their feet. I roll my eyes in frustration.
Men . They always have to act tough and be the saviors. Why can’t they just trust me?
Because my gut is right.
“What are you doing here?” I say as soon as I open the front door and see three of my brothers standing out front. I’m not surprised to see Linden and Tanner are dumb enough to show up at the Mutter homestead, but seeing Aaron outside is shocking. Especially after how he helped Hannah.
I’m relieved when I don’t see Badger. Wherever Linden is, he’s usually right behind him. At least he’s not stupid enough to show up here. If he took one step on the Mutter homestead, Christian would probably beat him to the edge of his life.
“You need to come home,” Linden says.
“I am home,” I say, knowing damn well that is going to sting. I shouldn’t poke the bear, but I’m pissed at my brothers, and not just for showing up here tonight. They’re acting like children and it’s time they grow up.
“Fuck, Lia.” Tanner looks like I just punched him in the gut. “How can you say that?”
“I know you didn’t come here to tell me to come home. What’s the real reason you’re here?”
“Rumors in this town spread fast. We know he’s back. And we need answers,” Linden says. He doesn’t sound as angry and dominating as he usually does. There’s a hint of worry behind his question. Linden steps closer and lowers his voice. “Is he dealing drugs?”
“What?” I stare at him in disbelief.
“We need to know why he keeps disappearing.” Linden continues. “The rumors are concerning. He’s going to be the father of my niece or nephew. I have the right to know if he’s doing something illegal.”
“You’re unbelievable.” I roll my eyes, ready to head back inside and slam the door in my brothers’ faces. I can’t believe they came here for this.
“Just answer the question. We need to know.”
“She doesn’t need to answer any of your questions.” Christian growls from behind me. When I spin around, I see every one of the Mutter men standing behind me.
Christian is close to my back while the other six men form a wall as they stand shoulder to shoulder with their arms crossed over their chest like sentinels. A wall of strength, ready for battle. With as tall as they are, they’re quite intimidating.
“Let me deal with them.” I press my hand on Christian’s chest. His heart is beating so hard and he’s taking low, shallow breaths. His eyes are fixed on Linden. I cup his cheek and force him to look at me. “Please.”
He gives me the slightest shake of his head.
“You gonna let her stand in your way?” Tanner says, antagonizing him. It’s such a foolish thing to say, given they’re outnumbered.
Christian steps around me and rushes toward Tanner. He gets right in his face. “She’s not standing in my way. I listen to her because I respect her. Something all you assholes could learn a thing about.”
Tanner grunts. “Like you know anything about respect. You’re nothing. Just a shit addict who’s working for a motorcycle club.”
“Easy now.” Aaron reaches for Tanner’s arm and tugs him back. “Don’t do this.”
Christian’s eyes snap to Aaron. “Didn’t expect to see you here.”
“Just here to pick up the pieces after you kick their asses,” Aaron answers. Even if he hadn’t helped Christian and Edge with Hannah, this would probably still be his reply. He’s not nearly as invested in the feud as Linden and Tanner.
“Who said they’re going to kick our asses?” Tanner looks offended that Aaron would suggest such a thing.
“Look around, dumbass.” Aaron waves his hand toward the porch where the rest of the Mutter men remain. “You lay one hand on Christian, and they’re going to tear you apart.”
“He’s not wrong.” Chase calls out. Then he cracks his neck and clenches his hands into fists. The smile that covers his face has a sinister edge to it. “Throw a punch. Please.”
“No one’s throwing punches,” I say.
“Go inside, Lia.” Linden orders like he’s in charge of me. “Let us deal with this.”
His words anger me to the point I see red. I barge past Christian and slam my fist into Linden’s chest. He stumbles back in surprise. I punch him several more times before I stop. He’s too stunned to stop me himself.
“Lia! What the fuck!” he calls out.
“I’ll tell you what the fuck,” I spit out the words as I poke him in the chest in the spot I punched. He winces like it hurts. “You’re going to turn around right now and get back in your car. You’re never going to antagonize Christian again.”
“The fuck,” Tanner says. Then he pulls his fist back and hits Christian square in the jaw.
“Tanner!” I yell, just before chaos breaks out.
Before I can take my next breath, I’m surrounded by a pair of strong arms and pulled out of harm’s way. The last thing I see before a wall of Mutter men blocks my view is Christian grabbing Tanner’s jacket and punching him in the jaw. Tanner goes down like a limp rag.
“Stop!” I struggle against the arms that hold me tight, but it’s useless. I can’t break free.
“Hold still,” Aaron says in my ear. I was too busy kicking and wiggling to free myself to pay attention to who grabbed me. “You can’t get in the middle of that. Think of the baby.”
His last words have me falling still. He’s right. I can’t jump into that mess and risk getting hurt. No one would hit me intentionally, but in the heat of the moment, they probably wouldn’t notice I forced my way in.
“This isn’t a fair fight.” I call out, but I don’t think anyone here’s me. It’s two to seven. The Mutters will obliterate my brothers. Granted, they’re acting like assholes and deserve a bit of a beat down, but not like this. This is just cruel.
I strain my neck to see what’s happening, but the Mutters are too tall and broad. I can’t see anything around them. All I hear are grunts and curses.
A few seconds later, Christian goes flying backwards and lands on his back. Tanner lungs forward, but Mac and Ash wrap their arms around him and hold him back. I’m relieved to see they’re not actually fighting him. They’re simply intervening, so he can’t hit Christian again.
Liam charges Linden and hits him head on in the chest. Linden tries to hold on to his balance, but he fails. Once he’s on the ground, he takes a fist to the face before Liam releases him and steps back.
I wait for the other brothers to step in and join the fight, but they don’t. They’re letting Liam and Christian take care of my brothers. Maybe this is a fair fight after all.
Christian jumps to his feet and glances in my direction. He visibly relaxes when he sees I’m out of harm’s way. He looks at Aaron, and they both nod.
That single nod says it all. Christian is acknowledging that he’s grateful Aaron is protecting me, and Aaron is letting him know nothing will happen to me. It’s kind of cute and warms my heart on a level I’ve never quite experienced before.
Aaron’s recent interactions with Christian gives me hope that one day they could all get along. If Aaron can accept Christian, then maybe he can help bring the rest of the family around.
A girl can dream.
“Why did you come here?” Christian growls. He’s pacing back and forth in quick steps like a lion assessing its prey. One wrong move or word from Tanner and he’d pounce.
“We want our sister back,” Linden calls out. “You had no right to take her.”
Christian grumbles. “I didn’t take her. She’s here on her own free will.”
“Bullshit!” Tanner yells as he struggles against Mac and Ash’s hold. But he can’t break free. The two of them are stronger than him. “I don’t trust a word you say.”
Christian stalks toward him and gets in his face. I can’t hear what he says, but whatever it is, it makes Mac and Ash laugh and Tanner furious. Knowing Christian, he said something obscene and then bragged about how much I like it.
“That’s enough!” I yell so loudly my throat hurts after the words are out. Christian whips his head around to face me and Liam freezes mid swing. Aaron doesn’t let go of me, but his grip loosens. “You’re all acting like immature children.”
“Amen to that,” Grams calls out from the porch. All the women are spread out on the porch watching the fight with various levels of amusement.
“Lia, please,” Linden says. There’s a sadness to his tone I haven’t heard before. When I look at him, he looks more distraught than angry. “Dad is a mess. Just talk to him.”
I pinch the bridge of my nose and sigh. “I’ve messaged him several times, and he’s never responded once. What am I supposed to do?”
“Try again,” Linden begs. “He’s a proud man. He just needed more time.”
“Then he can reach out to me now.” I don’t bother hiding my anger. It’s not my job to fix everything. I may have slept with the enemy, but I didn’t walk away from my family. They pushed me away.
“You know he won’t.” Linden shifts his eyes to Christian and the sadness that was in his eyes vanishes and is replaced with disgust. “Not as long as you’re living with him.”
“For crying out loud!” I toss my head back and growl. “Just go home! If Dad wants to talk to me, he knows where to find me.”
I push Aaron’s arms off me and march toward the front door. Before I go back inside, I spin around and glare at everyone. “You’re all ridiculous. Find a more civilized way to deal with your aggression and hatred for each other. And then get over it. I’d really love for my baby to have all its uncles in its life.”
Before anyone can respond, I march inside and slam the door behind me. I fall against it and groan.
What I wouldn’t do for a drink right about now.
I rub my belly and push off the door.
“If you’re a boy, you’re not allowed to act like any of your uncles,” I say to my unborn baby. “I won’t stand for it.”
Covering my mouth with my hand, I yawn for the hundredth time. The flower shop is swamped with customers, yet I’m too tired to function properly.
I hardly slept last night. After my brothers showed up at the Mutter homestead, my nerves were shot. It took me hours to fall asleep. As soon as I dozed off, my alarm went off.
Christian passed right out, though. I swear nothing robs that man of sleep.
Then again, it could’ve been the alcohol or the punches to his face that made it easy for him to pass out. When I get my hands on Linden and Tanner, I just might punch them myself. What were they thinking of showing up there last night? Stupid. Just stupid.
I swear, I think they just wanted to fight and they’re using me as an excuse.
But there’s no time to think about them now. I’ve got way too much work to do.
Today is the busiest day I’ve had in months. Maybe even years. When I arrived at the flower shop, we already had twenty-seven online orders to fill. That’s more than we usually get in a week.
We’ve also had a steady stream of customers come in to order arrangements for various events. It’s a very unusual day, but one we desperately need. We need all our days to be like this if I want to turn this shop into something really great.
“Lia,” Darlene calls out. “We’re going to need more calla lilies too.” She leans against the counter next to me and juts out her hip. When I don’t immediately look up at her, she lets out a low huff. “What did you do last night? Some sort of flower incantation that set the entire county on a flower needing frenzy?”
I snort at her vivid imagination. “If I thought that would work, I would have done it months ago.”
“Something sure as hell happened overnight because this is the third flower we’ve run out of today. That’s something that hasn’t happened in … well, ever.”
“Whatever it is, I’ll take.” I smile and it feels good. Because it’s a genuine smile born out of happiness. I’ve worked hard to get the business to this point, and even if short-lived, I’m going to relish today’s success. “I’ll put in a rush order. Our supplier can have whatever we need here in two days.”
The bell on the door chimes again, announcing another customer. I look up to greet them but frown when I see who it is.
Dad looks around the shop with a mixed expression of equal parts surprise and joy. In addition to the customer Darlene is helping, Mom is shuffling between three others, offering them advice while they make up their minds about what they want.
Four customers in the shop at the same time are a rare occurrence, and Dad knows it.
“Busy day,” Dad says when he reaches the counter.
“Yep.” I force my smile to return.
“Good, good.” He nods as he takes another look around the shop. He hasn’t been here since I rearranged everything to be color coordinated and photo ready. “It looks nice in here. I like what you’ve done.”
“Thanks Dad.” Now when I look up at him and smile, it isn’t forced. Getting a compliment from my dad on business is a monumental accomplishment. “The customers really seem to like it as well. Both in the shop and online.”
I add the last bit about online shopping in the hopes that it will help Dad come around to the new side of the business. He’s been just as resistant to that as Mom.
He nervously scratches the back of his head and glances over at Mom. She gives him a slight nod that seems to be the encouragement he needs to continue. “So, Aaron stopped by the house this morning.”
I wait for him to elaborate, but he doesn’t. So I give him a little nudge. “Oh, yeah. What did he have to say?”
“Well, he … he mentioned that I should …” He struggles to get the words out. Dad hates admitting when he’s wrong.
I should help him out, nudge him along again. That’s what the old Amelia would have done. But the new me will not feed him the words. My family hurt me, and they need to fix it.
He takes a deep breath and fidgets with the zipper on his jacket. “I guess what I’m trying to say is I’m sorry. Your brothers went there last night because of me.”
My eyes widen, and Darlene drops the scissors she’s using on the floor with a loud clatter. I’m not sure I’ve ever heard Dad utter those words. If he’s ever apologized to Mom for something in the past, he’s done where no one else can hear.
This day just keeps getting better and better.
He grumbles and waves his hand in the air in frustration. “Now, don’t go making a huge deal out of this. You know this is hard for me.”
I drop what I’m doing and rush around the counter. When I reach Dad, I pull him into a tight hug. He instantly relaxes and he returns my tight embrace.
“I’ve missed you, princess.” His voice croaks and he clears his throat. “Nothing is the same without you.”
“I’ve missed you too, Dad.” Tears sting at the corner of my eyes. I lean back and smile up at him. “It means a lot to me that you came to see me.”
“I should have reached out sooner. It’s just—” He looks down at my stomach. I’m still not showing much, but it won’t be long. “It’s going to take me some time to get used to this.”
“Which part?” I push away from him and rub my belly. I need him to accept my baby and my relationship with Christian.
“All of it, I guess.” This time, the sadness in his eyes is different. It’s not born out of disappointment, but something else. Maybe acceptance? I can’t quite tell.
Regardless of how he feels, he’ll never be able to change who the father of my baby is.
“Dad, I’m having a baby with Christian Mutter. I’m living with him. I need you to accept that. Is that something you think you can do?”
He stares at me for several seconds without answering me. I can’t tell from the look on his face how he feels about that. His expression is blank, almost lifeless.
“Dad.” I reach out and rest my hand on his forearm. “Did you hear me?”
He snaps out of it and shakes his head.
“Um, yeah. I hear you.” He clears his throat. Not because it’s bothering him, but to buy himself a few more seconds to answer me. “I’m trying. I really am. But that man, Lia. He’s … he’s done bad things. The rumors.”
“Are just rumors. You need to stop listening to them.” I don’t even bother hiding my irritation from him. “You need to let that go.”
“But he keeps going on all those secret missions for that club. Everybody says they deal in drugs. And now this mess with Hannah and Charlie.”
“You have got to stop listening to rumors. Christian is a good man. He’s doing good things.”
I turn around to head back around the counter. I can’t listen to my dad talk badly about Christian. I will never deny that Christian has made more than his fair share of mistakes in his life, but that doesn’t make him a bad person.
“All I have are rumors,” Dad says. “Everything is so secretive with that club. What else am I supposed to think?”
“Maybe have a civil conversation with Christian.” I suggest. He recoils as if I suggested the worst thing imaginable. “I understand where your concerns come from, I really do, but you need to put aside your prejudices and really see the man he is today. If you want me and this baby in your life, then Christian will also be in your life. It’s all or nothing.”
“Lia.” Tears well up in his eyes, and for a second, I feel terrible for what I just said. I’ve always taken on the role of caring for my parents, and this does not fulfill that role.
“Dad.” I reach out and squeeze his hand. “Do you love me?”
He nods.
“Then do it for me.”
He takes a deep breath and glances around the shop like he’s looking for someone or something to give him the answers he needs. All he finds are the same customers Mom continues to help.
“I’ll try,” he finally says. “I really will. But it’s not going to be easy.”
“I know it’s not. But ignoring me and sending my brothers out to follow me won’t help either.”
“I’m sorry for that.” This time when he looks at me, I see the full force of his remorse. We still have a long way to go, but he means that apology with all his heart.
I rush back around the counter and jump into this embrace. “Thanks for that, Dad. It means a lot to me to hear you say that.”
“I love you, princess.” He squeezes me tighter.
While his apology doesn’t fix everything, it’s a step in the right direction. If he gets on board with my relationship, then so will Mom. With them on my side, they’ll help get Linden and Tanner on board too.
I still have a long road ahead of me, but for the first time in weeks, I feel hopeful.
I just might get my family back after all.