Chapter 6 Ginny
F or the past five weeks, I’ve been a prisoner. Okay, it wasn’t actually a jail cell. Hell, it wasn’t even a hardship. Brick spoiled me. Anything I wanted, he got it for me. Anything I needed, he supplied.
The catch? I had to stay at the safe house, which meant I lost my freedom, and I hated it.
“I’m not risking you, Ginny,” he explained for the tenth time. “Your safety is my priority.”
“For how long?”
“Until the threat is eliminated.”
Yeah, not a great answer. After that phone call with Judge, where I overheard him talk about the Crimson Skulls being in Crescent City, I knew it was too close for us to remain here for long. Crescent City was only about seven miles from the Redwood National and State Parks in Northern California. Since our vacation home was privately owned land close to the parks, the backyard spilling right into Redwood Creek, it meant Judge was right to be concerned. If the CSMC decided to take a boat on the river, they could end up finding our safe house.
Our location was a bit closer to Orick than Crescent City, and I was thankful it wasn’t the tourist season. It would be a few months before campers, hikers, and sightseers flooded Northern Cali and the Redwood Parks. That might help keep us concealed. The private land didn’t prevent anyone from kayaking the river, though. We still had to be careful.
But none of that was why I was irked.
It was Brick. Since the phone call with Judge, he’d been a bit moody. We ended up arguing over bagels and cream cheese five days ago, and I hadn’t spoken to Brick since. No talking. No sex. I ignored him, and the big, growly brute was growing agitated about it.
Good.
But that wasn’t what worried me. It was the questions I still had. The things I didn’t know about my father, his club, and their enemy, the Crimson Skulls. Those secrets got him killed, and they were the reason I had to live in hiding with a constant bodyguard.
I was sick of being kept out of the loop because I didn’t wear a leather vest and ride a motorcycle. My entire life had been about secrets since the day my father died. Even my mother sheltered me.
Last night, I slept restlessly, too occupied with all my thoughts to sleep. Well, it also didn’t help that Brick slept on the couch. He was giving me space, but it was the last thing I wanted. I slid from the bed, three steps toward the bathroom when my stomach roiled. The nausea came on fast.
I barely made it to the toilet before getting violently sick. It was the third time in recent days. Shit. This wasn’t the stomach flu. An upset stomach didn’t come and go for days, always happening around the same time each morning.
I’m pregnant.
It was the only logical conclusion.
I wiped my mouth and rinsed it, brushing my teeth as I saw the pregnancy test on the counter.
Brick. He must have suspected this like I did.
I ripped open the box, peed on the stick, and washed my hands. For ten minutes, I paced the bathroom, pausing to get sick a second time. When I finally had the courage to peek at the result, my assessment was correct.
I’m having Brick’s baby.
The best surprise at the worst time. How could we bring a child into the world with all this craziness? I didn’t know if I could handle Brick’s life in the club once this child was born. Would our child become a target? Would something else always be next? Another threat? More danger? Did it ever stop?
My hand lowered to my stomach. I wanted this baby and Brick to be a part of his life. I just had a feeling this child would be a son. How did I share all the fears and doubts I had without causing more friction between us?
Everything had grown more complicated.
I suspected that I conceived the first night I spent with Brick. He made no effort to hide the fact that he wanted to breed me. Okay, another harsh observation. It wasn’t like I didn’t enjoy the sex or agreed to him filling me with his cum. We didn’t use protection. It turned me on that he couldn’t resist trying to knock me up.
I wanted this baby. And yes, I still wanted Brick as much as I did that night and every night since. The part that bothered me was the thought of raising a child in this mess or my baby facing the possibility that we could lose Brick. It terrified me. I didn’t want to raise a child without a father or have the same fate repeated.
God. I should have figured this out sooner. I hadn’t had a period since the night we spent at Birdseye’s cabin. Six weeks.
I was having Brick’s child. That part was certain.
The future? I didn’t have a clue.
Would he want to know if I took the test as soon as I left the bathroom? Just when I thought the worst was over, I grew dizzy. Fatigue pressed in, draining me completely.
I needed a nap. Everything else could wait.
I FELT MUCH BETTER after a nap. No more sickness for the rest of the day. In fact, the next couple of days went by without incident. The dizziness went away, even if the fatigue persisted.
Dagger left us alone often, probably because he could feel the tension in the room whenever he was around us. He probably got sick of Dominoes, movies, and card games. There was only so much to do to occupy ourselves.
It was clear my mom hadn’t come here more than a few times since my father’s death. My room still had toys strewn throughout. Dolls, Barbies, and art supplies filled an entire wall. While it was nostalgic and sweet, I didn’t want to leave it cluttering the space.
I found a few extra totes for storage in the garage and proceeded to pack them, stuffing most of my old treasures into the empty interiors. Once I had the lids on, I went to search for Dagger or Brick. Since learning of my pregnancy, I tried to be careful with my body, making choices for the healthiest diet and avoiding caffeine. While the totes weren’t heavy, I wanted to avoid lugging them across the house.
I found the two men in the garage, tinkering on an old motorcycle my father had left behind. Both men were covered in grease, repairing the brake lines, or so I heard Dagger say.
“Hey, sweetheart,” Brick greeted me as I leaned against the open doorway. “You need anything?”
Yeah. To talk. Hear your secrets. For you to spill your guts about the club.
“I packed up a bunch of my old stuff. There’re some totes that need to go into the attic. Toys and such. They’re a little awkward to handle.”
“I’ll take care of it as soon as we finish up here.”
“Okay.” I lingered, not quite wanting to be alone.
“Hey,” Brick ticked his chin my way. “You got something on your mind?”
“Yeah.”
He nodded as Dagger glanced my way.
“We’re nearly done. Go with Ginny.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah. Gives me something to do.”
Brick stood, reaching for a rag. He wiped as much of the grease from his fingers as possible before tucking the rag into his back pocket. “I need to get cleaned up. Is this the type of conversation that can wait until I shower?”
“Uh, sure.”
“You don’t sound convincing,” he chuckled.
“Well, it’s just that.” I began and hesitated. “Go ahead. I’ve got a lot to say.”
Dagger snorted but wisely remained quiet.
“Give me ten minutes.” Brick walked my way, kissed my cheek, and then strode inside, disappearing as I heard his boots pound the stairs. Half a minute later, I heard water running.
“He’s worried, ya know. Knowing there’s a hit on your life has him all twisted up.”
“I know. He should worry about the hit on his head, too.”
“Eh. We know what this life is when we join up.”
I figured.
“It’s the part about our women that tests us.”
Blinking, I wasn’t sure what he meant.
Dagger leaned back against a tool cabinet, resting his arm on his knee. He’d been crouching before but moved to give me his attention, sitting on the ground. “We’re tough. This life ensures we see and know mayhem. It’s the life of a brother in the club. We accept that when we patch in.”
“I understand.”
“But what we don’t expect and can’t plan for is how the life we choose affects our women. Some of us get fucking lucky.” He frowned. “And others find out that not all women can handle it.”
I was about to ask what he meant when he looked me right in the eye.
“My ex? She hated my choices and life in the club. Made it fucking hell for me. By then, we already had my son.”
Oh, shit. I didn’t know the whole story.
“She still makes my life hell.” He leaned back, resting his head on the metal shelving. “Wanna know the worst part?”
“I think I do.”
“I’m still in love with her.”
Not just love, in love. I didn’t hear many people using those words anymore. They held a deeper meaning. “Wow.”
“Yeah, fuck.” He rubbed his chest like it ached. “I’m telling you because the way Brick looks at you, he’s in the same spot I am. He’ll fucking do anything for you. He’d give up everything if you asked him.”
Shit. I knew where this was going.
“Don’t make him give up his identity. Audrey demanded I walk away from the club, and it fucking ended us. We never recovered from it.”
“I wouldn’t ask him to give up anything for me. It’s a personal choice. I love him for who he is, Dagger. If I wanted someone different, I never would have let him into my bed.”
Or invited him into it with so much enthusiasm.
Dagger smirked. “Yeah. You’re Hesh’s kin. Always tell it like it is.” He laughed. “Good to know.”
“For what it’s worth, it’s never too late. Women can change their minds. Maybe Audrey is so far into this choice and its consequences that she’s given up hope that you’ll ever forgive her. But that doesn’t mean you stop trying if she’s who you want.”
He nodded, taking in my words. “Fuck. Maybe you’re right.”
“You don’t know if you don’t try.”
I almost felt bad for the little twinkle that entered his brown eyes. They lost some of the dull emptiness I’d gotten used to seeing with Dagger. I sincerely hoped it worked out.
“I might call her and check in.”
“Maybe take it slow,” I advised.
“Ginny, that ain’t my style. Nothing about me is slow, and that’s how Audrey fell in love with me the night we met.” He flashed a cheesy smile. “Gonna make her do it a second time.”
“They say second chance love is even sweeter.”
“Yeah?”
I shrugged. “I read it somewhere.”
“Good to know.”
Brick cleared his throat as he joined us. “Ginny?”
“Yeah?”
He held out his hand. “Let’s take a walk.”