Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
River
I pulled my phone out of my pocket when it began vibrating with a call, raising an eyebrow at the screen when I saw who was calling me.
Joey .
I knew it was only a matter of time before he got word that Adelaide was with me. I’d just been waiting.
“Been a minute,” I said when I answered his call.
“How is she?” he asked, skipping past all the pleasantries. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to know he was asking about Adelaide. She was the only woman besides his sister that Joey cared about.
The woman in question was currently holding Axel as she fed him. Reina was sitting next to her, and both women were talking quietly amongst themselves. I smiled. It was nice to see Adelaide finally making a friend here, and it would honestly be good for Reina, too.
My lips tilted up a little more at the corners when her beautiful, dark eyes raised from Axel’s face and met mine. “She’s doing okay,” I told him. She arched an eyebrow at me in question before she turned her head back to Reina when Reina said something to her. “You’re more than welcome to come to see her if you want, but I’ve got some conditions.”
I trusted Joey around her. He’d changed. I saw it when he saw her again a few months ago.
He was trying to be better… better for her.
“Name them,” he ordered.
This was what I liked and appreciated about Joey. He never beat around the bush. He didn’t play fucking games. If he wanted something, he normally got it. And I knew that where Adelaide was concerned, he would do whatever it took to make her happy.
And he knew the meaning of boundaries with her, something that Grim had never grasped when it came to her… never tried to either.
“Hold on,” I told him as I moved outside, where my conversation wouldn’t be overheard. I needed to inform him of her pregnancy before he came to my territory, but I didn’t want anyone overhearing. Adelaide and I had both agreed that her pregnancy needed to be kept under wraps for as long as possible. At least until everyone here got used to her being around.
Once the clubhouse doors were shut behind me, and I was secluded, I began talking again. “She’s pregnant, and no one in my club knows except for Sam,” I informed him. “I want it to stay that way for right now because I’m pretty sure that I’ve got an inside problem.”
“Understood,” Joey stated, the only shock being revealed at the news of Adelaide’s pregnancy being his sharp intake of breath when I first announced it.
“Tristan was just here yesterday, and he fucked her up pretty good when he tried to get her to take him back.” Joey softly growled. “If I hadn’t stopped her, she would have destroyed my fucking garage. I don’t want her that fucking worked up again. The second that I feel that you being here is fucking with her, I’ll boot you off of my grounds and out of my town,” I warned him. “She comes above all else.”
“As she should,” he agreed. “You can trust me with her, River. I won’t do anything to hurt her, not anymore. Anything else?”
“Nope,” I told him. “You know how to handle her, so I’m pretty sure your visit will go well.”
“Ink and I will be there in a few hours,” he informed me before he cut the call. I’d almost forgotten he made Ink his VP. I had a lot of respect for Ink. It was because of him that Joey’s club had remained intact.
I walked back into the clubhouse, finding Gregory and Adelaide in a heated argument as Axel cried against her chest. She was trying to get him to quiet down as Gregory got in her face.
My blood ran hot.
“Shut that fucking baby up,” he snarled at her. “Some of us need fucking sleep, and your fucking brat is disturbing us.”
Adelaide tightened her hold on our little boy, her features twisting into a scowl as she lightly bounced Axel, quieting him almost instantly.
“He’s a baby, not a fucking brat,” Adelaide sneered at him. “Babies fucking cry, Gregory.”
“And he’s my fucking son, so if you’ve got a mother fucking problem, you take it up with me, not my fucking woman,” I barked, making my presence known. I walked up to them and wrapped an arm around Adelaide’s waist, protectively tugging her against my side, my eyes narrowed on Gregory.
He knew that he had fucked up. He’d let me catch him popping off at her after I had already warned him about his mouth around her.
Gregory clenched his jaw. “My bad, Prez,” he grumbled.
I gripped his shoulder before he could walk away and swung him back around to face me. Still gripping his shoulder, I stepped around Adelaide, then swung my other fist, clocking him across the face. He slammed against a couple of tables, sending them crashing down to the floor with him. A couple of the girls screamed in fear. Vern quickly moved over toward us, ready to back me up if Gregory tried some stupid shit. Vern was always ready to protect his president.
I bent over Gregory, gripping his cut in my fists as I hauled him up off of the floor, bringing his face close to my own. “This is your last warning, Gregory,” I quietly snarled. He nodded. “If I catch you disrespecting my woman again when you think I’m not around, I’ll cover these walls with your blood. You got me?”
He nodded jerkily, knowing from experience not to take my threats lightly. I shoved him away from me, sending him crashing back to the floor again. Drawing in a deep, calming breath, I turned to face Adelaide, finding Sam standing beside her, his hand on her shoulder, ready to move her out of the way had that situation escalated.
I ran my hand down my face tiredly, wiping away the anger that I felt as I did so. I wasn’t Tristan nor Joey. Adelaide would never be faced with my rage when my anger was for someone else. Even if I was furious with her, I wouldn’t raise my voice at her. I would always do my damnest to be reasonable.
“I’m going out to the garage for a little while,” I informed Adelaide. There was no fear in her eyes, just concern for me. And I loved that about her. She was perfect for me, able to stand by my side as I wreaked destruction. “Remember, if you need me, come get me. And if Gregory or anyone else starts any shit with you, let me know,” I ordered.
She reached up with her free hand, rubbing the slight stubble along my jawline. “Grab a beer out of the fridge while you’re on your way out,” she instructed quietly. “You look like you need it.”
I leaned down and pressed my lips to hers, not missing the way she softly sighed against my lips. I moved my head so my lips were at her ear, my stubble rubbing against her cheek. “A beer for now, but later tonight, I want you bent over my bed with those thick thighs spread as I fuck you hard from behind,” I whispered huskily, nipping her ear lobe as she moaned softly at my words.
I stood back up to my full height, smirking at her flushed face. I reached up and rubbed her bottom lip gently, watching as she slightly parted her lips on a soft sigh, those pretty brown eyes practically begging me to fuck her.
Dammit, my cock was hard as fuck for her.
Shaking my head, a slight smirk tilting my lips, I stepped back from her and strode to the kitchen to grab a few beers because after that little moment with her, I was going to need a hell of a lot more than just one.
I stepped out of my room in a fresh pair of jeans and a blue and black flannel shirt rolled up to my elbows, my cut on over it. I found Adelaide at the bar with Reina, teaching the newer girl the ropes of mixing drinks. Adelaide laughed when Reina muttered something, her brown eyes lighting up with amusement.
Fucking perfect .
I stepped up to the bar, drawing Adelaide’s eyes to me. I reached over to wrap my hand around the back of her neck, drawing her lips to mine for a hot, slow kiss.
I was so fucking addicted to her. It was hard as fuck to keep my hands off of her.
When I pulled back, her eyes were slightly glazed over. She blew out a shaky breath as she locked her eyes on mine. “You have got to stop doing that to me, especially when I’m trying to help someone,” she complained, but there was a smile on her lips.
I smirked at her. “What’s the fun in that?” I teased.
She rolled her eyes, but there was a beautiful smile on her face. Her eyes flickered over my shoulder when the clubhouse doors opened. I turned around, watching as Sam let in Joey and Ink.
Adelaide squealed and ran around the bar. I grinned, loving how happy she looked at that moment. I knew she would always love Joey, but as I told her, as long as she continued to live for me, I didn’t care how much she loved him.
She launched herself at Joey, and he caught her, his back slamming against the wall as she locked her arms and legs around him, her shoulders shaking as she began to cry. He released a soft laugh as he locked his arms around her, burying his face in the curve her neck. My smile widened, loving how beautiful she looked when she was properly being loved.
How she should have been loved all along.
Surprisingly, there wasn’t any jealousy in my veins as I watched Joey settle in a chair in a dark corner. He nodded once at me before he focused his attention on the beautiful, crying woman in his arms.
He’d take care of her, and I was secure enough in my relationship with her to know that she wouldn’t be leaving me nor cheating on me.
Those two just had something together that would rip them both apart if they were separated.
She may live for me, but Joey taught her how to breathe when she felt like her only option was dying.