Chapter 26 LEXIE
LEXIE
One month later
“I can’t believe you were suspended, Michael.
It must be a record. You’ve only been attending for a few weeks and you’re already kicked out for three days.
What were you thinking?” I slammed the front door closed as I pushed Michael into Bear’s house.
Our house. I was still getting used to that.
So was Michael, apparently. I flipped the deadbolt closed and turned to face him.
“Fuck that school. That guy had it coming. I was sick of hearing him run his mouth about the girls. He’s the one that should be kicked out, not me. But fuck it. I don’t have to go back. I’m old enough to drop out.”
“Oh, you’re going back all right. You’re going back and graduating in three years with decent grades and at least one extracurricular activity.
” I put my hands on my hips for added emphasis.
The easy rapport we’d found on that first night had flown out the window once he realized I took my guardianship seriously.
As much as he needed a bestie, it couldn’t be me.
“And what if I don’t? What if I drop out? Or maybe I’ll flunk out. Then what will you do? Send me back to Kentucky? Then you and Bear can have this big house all to yourselves. That’s what you really want, isn’t it? Why don’t you send me back now!” He stormed off to his room and slammed the door.
Ohhhh. I ran my fingers through my hair and took a deep breath, trying to stop the tears welling in my eyes.
I’d seen this before, felt this before. My new little brother was trying to push me away before I could push him out.
Eventually he’d learn that wasn’t possible.
Until then, we were in for a rough ride.
I heard a loud thump and groaned. “Dang it, Michael, you better not be sneaking out that window again!” I’d texted Bear that our sweet little ward had been suspended, but I wasn’t sure if he was going to come home or not.
After taking out the Diablos, he’d been busy chasing down leads on the mysterious leader.
Not that I was supposed to know anything about that.
But he wanted me aware of the threats so I’d keep my guard up.
Speaking of, if the knucklehead, Michael, had jumped out of his window, I needed to close and lock it back.
But only after I made myself a snack. I’d left early from my new job as the club’s bar manager and hadn’t had a chance to eat lunch.
***
After polishing off a roast beef sandwich and leaving out a second (because a teenage boy would always return for food), I finally got a reply text from Bear.
Bear
I’m impressed he made it as long as he did. I was suspended in my first week. Need me to come home and talk to him?
I shook my head, laughing. I started to reply when I heard a noise from Michael’s room. I set the phone down, eager to talk to him now that we’d both had a chance to cool off. He needed to understand that he was part of this family, no matter what he said or did. “ Michael, I made you lunch!”
A door opened and footsteps thundered down the hallway. I smiled. If nothing else, we could connect over food.
“It’s roast—” I stopped mid-sentence as the plate clattered to the table.
“Aww, how sweet. You made me lunch.” My heart raced in my chest as Jordan emerged from the hallway.
“What are you doing here? In my house?” My eyes darted to my phone, too far away to do me any good.
But as long as he didn’t see it, maybe I could maneuver myself to that side of the table and grab it without him noticing.
And then somehow text Bear without Jordan noticing.
Crap. At least Michael wasn’t home. I didn’t know what Jordan was after, but I knew it wasn’t good.
“Your house? Looks like you’ve done well for yourself, Lexie Malone. Club princess. Old lady. You even picked up a kid and became a mom. Once again, you got everything while I was forgotten.”
Strong body odor wafted from his skin. And his cheeks were sunken in like he hadn’t had a regular meal in weeks.
He was a far cry from the ladies’ man I’d met.
I took a small step toward the phone. Bear would call soon if I didn’t text him back.
I glanced toward the corner of the room where the cameras were located.
Maybe he’d check those and realize something was wrong.
“Jordan, what happened to you? You disappeared that night at the Diablos and no one could find you. Bear tried, but you’d vanished. I thought they’d killed you.” I really had, and the guilt had me crying in Bear’s arms on more than one occasion.
Jordan huffed, his head twitching as he moved closer. “You would have liked that, wouldn’t you?”
“Liked you dead? No, not at all. Why would you say that?” I inched closer to my phone. As long as he was distracted, he didn’t notice what I was doing.
“Stop lying!” he shouted and reached behind his waist to pull out a gun. He aimed for my phone and fired, blowing bits of plastic and god knows what into the air. I screamed and ran for the back door, only to be yanked back by my hair.
“No, Lexie. You can’t ignore me this time. I will get what’s mine! Everything you stole from me.”
“What are you talking about? I didn’t take anything from you. We barely know each other.” Tears filled my eyes as he pulled me to the center of the room.
“My mother was a club bunny, too. She was there when your mom got knocked up. Had to listen to her brag to everyone about how Sinner was moving her out of the clubhouse and putting her up somewhere nice. My mom wanted the same thing and she got knocked up, too. Only he wouldn’t claim me like he claimed you.
My mom tried to reach out to your mom, do playdates and shit, but your mom ignored us.
Said if I was really Sinner’s, she’d know about it.
He sent your mom money, but he sent my mother nothing!
Kicked her out of the club and wouldn’t let any of the brothers go near her.
We lived in the trailer park with barely enough to live off of.
She died of pneumonia, and I vowed my revenge.
I almost had it, too! Until you screwed it up. ”
“Wait, you’re saying you’re my brother?” My face scrunched as I tried to work out the details.
“Yes, bitch, I’m your long-lost brother. The one our father didn’t have time for because he was too busy with you.”
I snorted. “Dude, I don’t know what story you were fed, but I barely knew my father, and he definitely didn’t spend any time with me growing up. You do know he’s in jail, right?”
“What the fuck does that matter?”
“I’m trying to work out how a man who’s been in jail for fifteen years is supposed to be Father of the Year.” Wait, what? When did I start excusing my sperm donor’s shitty parenting?
Jordan shook his head. “That’s not—” He let go of my hair and stepped back, pacing the floor. “That doesn’t matter. My mom said he spent time with you as a baby, but not me. He refused to even see her.”
“Did she refuse the DNA test? I know he made my mom get one.” Reason number 502 that my grandparents despised them both. The thought that my mom had enough partners that there was even a question about paternity was too much for their church-loving hearts.
But I guess Mom only poked holes in Sinner’s condoms. Or whatever. Gross. More important things to think about right now.
“My mom didn’t lie. She said Sinner was my dad, and he refused to help us. So I vowed to destroy his club, and I almost did! Tracker should have died, and he was supposed to be the first of many until you stepped in and fucked it all up.”
Jordan seemed lost in his monologue, so I began to inch my way toward the back door. I looked up at the camera and noticed the blue light was on, meaning someone was watching. Thank goodness. The MC was on the way, and I needed to not get killed a little longer.
“Why did you take me to the Diablos?” Inch, inch, inch.
“They were supposed to kill you and toss your body over the Reapers’ gate.
But those idiots saw all the food you brought and wanted to eat first. Which would have been fine, expect for Bear’s obsession with you.
He figured out something was up and took you away before they could kill you.
And I knew at that point there was no way I could explain my way out of it.
So I hid, watched, and waited until I could get you alone.
I may not be able to get my revenge against the club, but killing you will have to be enough.
Dear old Dad will have to notice me now.
” He laughed, sounding every bit as unhinged as his words.
I was almost at the back door when he finally looked at me and noticed I’d moved.
“I don’t think so.” He raised the gun as the sound of motorcycles rang in the distance.
“Ooh, looks like they’re too late. Say goodbye, sissy!
” He laughed again and I closed my eyes, not wanting his face to be the last thing I saw.
This wasn’t how I wanted to go out, but if this was it for me, I wouldn’t complain.
I’d found love and family, two things I’d always longed for.
The gun cocked and I heard footsteps down the hall. My eyes flew open and my heart lurched as Michael raced down the hallway with a baseball bat.
“She’s my sister, you crazy mother fucker!” he yelled as he slammed the bat into Jordan’s back. The gun fell onto the carpet, and the window behind me exploded with a gunshot.
I screamed, ducking down and covering my head.
The front door burst open as Bear raced in, followed by Mav and Baller.
“Lexie!” Bear shouted, grabbing me from the floor and turning to Michael. “What the fuck is going on?”
“No worries, old man,” Michael said with a grin. “I took care of the threat.”
Even though I knew Bear was coming, I couldn’t stop the wave of relief that washed over me when he actually showed up. I wrapped my arms around his barrel chest and snuggled into him.
Baller picked up Jordan’s feet and dragged him toward the door.
I heard Mav and Baller shuffle around the room and then grunt.
“Sorry you had to deal with this, Lex,” Mav said.
I mumbled a “no problem” but didn’t move from Bear’s arms.
“Bear, we’ll take him to the shed and wait until you’re ready,” Mav continued. There was a dragging sound, and then I heard the door slam.
Bear’s hands moved to my face, forcing me to look up at him while he leaned back.
“Lexie, what happened? Did he hurt you? I heard that gunshot and thought…” He pulled me close again and squeezed. “Fuck, I don’t even want to think about it.”
“I’m okay. A little shook up, but I’m not hurt.” I looked up at Bear, resting my chin on his chest. “He wanted to kill me because he was jealous.”
“Jealous?” Bear’s brown eyes scrunched as he looked into mine. “I thought you barely knew him.”
I snorted. “Basically, he thinks Sinner is his dad and that I ruined his life by taking Sinner away from him. I guess he missed the memo that I never saw Sinner after the age of five, but whatever.”
Bear scratched his head. “Sinner had another kid?”
I laughed. “Maybe? But sounds like Sinner didn’t think so. More likely, Jordan is a mama’s boy who believed exactly what she told him. But lucky for me, Michael was home from school today…”
I turned toward my brother and reached an arm out to bring him into our hug.
Michael’s eyes watered, his earlier bravado long gone. “I’m so sorry, Lexie. This is all my fault. He must have come through my window. I left it open when I ran off. You should send me away. I deserve it.”
I sighed, opening my mouth to reassure him when Bear stepped in.
“Michael, we’ll talk later about that window.
Because you’re absolutely right that it was your fault he got in, and you can’t leave your home vulnerable like that.
Ever. But clearly, Jordan had been biding his time, waiting for the opportunity to come for Lexie.
The important thing is that you were here when it mattered, and you saved your sister.
You need to get it through your thick skull that you’re stuck with us, no matter what.
Family is forever, and you’ve got a big sister and an even bigger brother now who have your back no matter what.
And in a few years, if you want it, you can have a whole club full of brothers. As long as you graduate high school.”
Michael blinked several times and took a deep breath. “Okay.”
“Okay?” I asked, looking between the two guys. “That’s it?”
Michael shrugged. “Yeah.”
“No, wait. He says ten words and now you’re going to settle down and graduate high school?”
His nose scrunched. “Did I say settle down?”
Bear laughed, stepping out of the hug so he could reach down and pick me up. “Never settle, little brother. Now if you’ll excuse me, I had the life scared out of me and I need to have some alone time with your sister to reassure myself she’s not been injured.”
“Eww, gross,” Michael said, backing away. “I think I’ll go for a ride.”
“Great idea!” Bear shouted as he carried me down the hall. “Take a $50 from my wallet and enjoy yourself!”
“Bear, you can’t give him $50. He was suspended today. He should be grounded.”
“Baby girl, do you really want him stuck inside this house while I do all the things I’m about to do to you?”
I sighed. “Fine, you win. See you in a few hours! And lock the door behind you!” I shouted over his shoulder.
Michael’s laughter followed him out the door.