CHAPTER 12
brIELLE
Compared to the last time I was in the clubhouse lounge, it looks vastly different today. As it should since we’re celebrating a little girl turning ten. I have to hand it to Everton because he made sure this party was exactly what his little girl wanted.
It’s been clear from the moment I arrived because pure joy has been written on her face the entire time.
She soaks up all the love and attention Everton’s brothers shower on her and it’s clear that she has all of them wrapped around her little finger.
All she has to do is flash them a smile and the big, bad bikers melt for her.
Honestly, it’s adorable.
I’ve been giggling at the way these badass men have practically been falling over each other. I’m sure the presents are going to be a whole other form of competition for the guys. Considering the way Rian’s eyes are twinkling, she knows it too.
When I first arrived I wasn’t entirely sure how to act. Sure, we spent the weekend together at Sagebrush, but we had a buffer of old relationships I hadn’t nurtured in far too long and the attention of her family. It took some of the pressure off me.
Now, after Everton and I whispered the truth in our hearts—that we never stopped loving each other—I was worried Rian would know and be hurt by it for some reason.
I shouldn’t have worried.
The moment I stepped into the lounge, her whiskey-colored eyes lit up. She was up and running toward me at a full sprint. Even though I braced for the impact, when she slammed into my body, I still stumbled back a few steps.
When I looked over her head, which was buried against my torso as her arms wrapped around me with an unexpected strength, I caught Everton’s eyes.
He was looking at the pair of us with unfiltered and unconditional love.
My heart thumped a little harder in my chest, but I couldn’t dwell on how good it felt.
Because Rian was looking up at me as she breathed out, “You came.”
“I told you I would,” I murmured. Our gazes locked and I wanted her to see the sincerity of my next words, “I will always tell you the truth, Rian, and I’ll always follow through with my promises.
If I think I can’t deliver, for a reason out of my control, I will tell you before it becomes a disappointment. ”
Her arms tightened around my middle while she looked at me like I had just given her the best birthday present possible.
But it wasn’t a present. I offered her the bare minimum anyone should be given.
Don’t make promises you can’t keep.
Don’t speak unnecessary words unless you can back them up.
Don’t shield someone’s heart unless you’re willing to defend it with the same kind of vehemence.
I do have a present for her, and I think she’s going to love it. I’m nervous about it and now I’m wondering if I should have asked Everton about it first.
His reaction will tell me a lot about whether he truly trusts me with is daughter and the truth in his words when he told me he wants our forevers to be entwined.
And it’s almost time.
Rian is practically bouncing on the balls of her feet with the presents laid out in front of her. Still, her eyes keep darting toward the cake while she licks her lips without realizing she’s doing it.
Everton slides up behind me and the heat coming off him is soothing in a way I didn’t realize I needed.
His hands land on my hips and he gives a squeeze before his touch slides around my body and pulls me back until my back is plastered against his front. I can feel every hard plane of his body. My flesh is more than willing to mold to him.
“You know,” his lips brush against the shell of my ear and I shudder in his arms, “just you showing up for our girl has made her day.”
“There’s nowhere else I’d rather be,” I murmur.
As the words leave my lips, I feel the truth of them, raw and vulnerable, wrap around me. She’s an amazing little girl, and I say that not only because she loves dance in a way I understand. No, it’s so much more than that. It’s her.
She has a precious light inside of her which I want to protect and nurture.
The thought of being important to her, loving her and being loved by her while watching her grow up, doesn’t terrify me. Not like most kids, especially babies, do.
When Rian is let loose on her presents, paper and ribbons go flying while I admire the wrapping jobs on the gifts.
I suspect the brothers watching on with grins on their faces didn’t wrap them themselves.
Some of them chuckle when Rian squeals, but then they melt as she runs up to each brother and gives them a hug and whispers words of gratitude which are soft but land like bullets.
It’s quite a sight.
“Oh, Ace,” she manages to gush and squeal at the same time, “you got me the rubber band loom I asked for.” Ace grins at Rian, big and goofy, as his eyes soften with affection.
Then she’s pulling something else out of the large back in front of her and she gasps.
“Look at how many rubber bands there are! I can make so many bracelets with these.”
A few of the brothers groan under their breath. I’m sure they’re thinking the same thing I am—it’s just a matter of time before she’s made bracelets for every brother in the room. And everyone else she knows and loves.
They might grumble, but I can see the smiles they’re trying to hide. They won’t turn down her bracelets. Hell, I bet most of them will wear them with pride.
It’s obvious they nurture her love of creating something from nothing and cheer her on while she explores new activities and hobbies. Ace’s present is not the first craft kit Rian has gotten today.
The whole thing is adorable. I keep that to myself, though. I have a feeling these leather clad bikers wouldn’t appreciate the sentiment.
When Rian looks up at us, I stiffen for a moment. It’s not like she hasn’t seen us being affectionate. Everton has become very touchy, and he didn’t stop the inclination when we were at Sagebrush. Still, it’s new to her and I don’t want to rush her.
Fuck, I don’t want to rush myself.
Everything just feels right. I won’t say I regret going to New York. I chased the stage and the spotlight because it was what I felt like I needed to do.
Now I have a chance a something else. Something more.
With the building, the money to make my dream happen, and all of Everton’s promises, it’s a lot. That doesn’t make it wrong.
I shouldn’t have been concerned about Rian. She gives me the brightest smile and Everton’s hands tighten their hold on me. Belonging like I’ve never known flickers to life inside of me.
Still, I bite my lip when she reaches for my box next. I’m so damn nervous I can hardly breathe. I grip Everton’s wrist and let the contact ground me. It’s not helpful.
“There’s something for you too,” I whisper to him.
He kisses the top of my head, his fingers flexing against me, as we watch her slide the top of the box up and off.
The tissue paper is covered in watercolor ballet slippers, and she touches it with reverence.
Rian reaches for the gold envelope on top and opens it with such profound care that tears fill my eyes.
She slides the heavy paper out of the envelope and gasps. The way she looks at me, as if I’ve just shown her that the cage has a door, has one tear escaping and sliding down my cheek.
“What is it?” Everton’s voice is gruff as he asks, but there’s no wariness there.
“It says,” Rian swallows hard and looks back at what is in her hands, “this ticket grants lifetime access to any and all dance classes and practices at Tiny Dancer Studios.”
“It might look like a ticket,” I murmur, my words thick with the words I desperately want to say to her, “but it’s more like a key.
Your dad has gone completely off the edge and bought me a building and is helping me to get my dance studio open.
I’m going to need a lot of help if you’re willing to give it. The door there is never locked to you.”
Rian practically vaults herself across the room after putting the ticket down with careful fingers.
Her entire body wraps around me and it’s a damn good thing Everton is at my back because she would have taken me down if he weren’t there.
I hold her and feel the love I have for her transform from a thread to a chain. Unbreakable and unwilling to yield.
“Thank you,” she whispers and I swear I hear her dad echo the same words against the crown of my head like a halo.
“There’s more in the box,” I tease her even though I hold her a little tighter.
“Really?” She chirps and does a little dance which has everyone chuckling. Honestly, I forgot they were even there. “Can we choreograph a routine together?”
“For you? Of course,” I agree easily.
“I can’t wait to see that,” Ace pipes up. “We have to make a night of it and there must be popcorn.”
Rian giggles, but a few more brothers agree and they’re not just shining her on. They love her, I can feel it in the room, and they would do anything for her.
“Will you dance with me?”
She’s looking up at me with the same whiskey-colored eyes I have never been able to say no to. Not trusting my voice, I nod and she kisses me on the cheek before skipping back to the present she hasn’t finished opening.
“I love you, Tiny Dancer,” Everton husks against my temple. “I love how you love our girl. Everyone here loves her, but you’ve given her something we couldn’t—a mom.”
Fear engulfs my heart for a split second, and I forget how to breathe. But then something amazing happens. Love refuses to be forgotten and every bit of it that I have for Rian fights back. And wins.
I let out a slow breath. No panic. No fear.
“It’s an honor,” I whisper.
“Oh,” Rian blinks down at the canvas she’s uncovered. It’s a cropped shot of a photo I took when she was dancing. Her feet aren’t perfect, but there’s something there. Something unpracticed but determined. Her eyebrows pull together and she looks up at me with uncertainty. “Is this me?”
I nod and swallow past the lump in my throat. “I took it when we were dancing together,” I tell her. “The next one is the whole picture, that one is for you dad.”
Rian lifts the canvas and hugs it against her chest like it’s cherished and I can’t help but smile. A smile takes over her face as she looks down at the second canvas. When she holds it up for Everton to see, his breathing turns ragged.
I’m spun before I even know what is happening. Everton kisses me like he’s just breached the surface after almost drowning.
The sound of his brothers hooting and hollering has me tensing, not that my man lets me get away with it. His hands slide into my hair, and he holds me in place.
When I hear Rian’s giggles over everything else, I let myself completely melt into the kiss. Even when he pulls back, he doesn’t go far. His forehead rests against mine as his eyes study me closely.
“You took that picture of our girl?” When I nod, he murmurs, “You’re amazing, Brielle.”
I feel the change in the room before I register the sound of a woman approaching in heels. When I turn, I see a blonde woman who is botoxed within an inch of her life and covered in designer brands. Her eyes sweep over Rian, and I swear her lip curls up in disgust.
My spine straightens and the only thing that stops me from slapping this bitch is the way Everton tucks me into his side. The movement doesn’t go unnoticed and the woman turns her attention toward me.
She looks at me like I’m gum she just stepped on and is too important to even deal with.
When her eyes land on my man though everything changes.
Her entire being softens as she puts on an act of innocence and poise, as if he wouldn’t have noticed her before her mask was in place.
As if she didn’t already sneer at his daughter.
“Shania,” Everton’s tone is glacial and I stiffen next to him, “what are you doing here?”
This is Rian’s mom? This woman who looks at her daughter with disdain?
When I look at Rian, her face is tilted down and it’s as if someone flipped a switch inside of her and the light turned off. I hated the woman in front of me already, but now I’m enraged. I won’t let anyone make my girl feel badly about any fucking thing.
My spine turns into steel.
The temperature in the room has dropped and I don’t have to look around to know everyone is glaring at Shania like she doesn’t belong here. Because she doesn’t.
“What do you mean?” Shania bats her eyelashes at Everton like she’s about to take fucking flight with her fake lashes. “It’s my daughter’s birthday. Where else would I be?”
Everton’s body is strung tight and I can feel the second he snaps. His fingers tighten their hold on me, his touch an apology before it’s even required. He kisses my temple and then steps closer to Shania. The idiot actually titters like she’s getting everything she’s ever wanted.
All I can do is roll my eyes at how ridiculous she is.
When my man grips Shania’s arm, he’s not gentle about it.
He hauls her toward a hallway. I don’t know where he’s taking her since I didn’t get a full tour of this level of Elysium.
Before I move to follow them, unwilling to let this bitch be alone with my man, I meet Ace’s eyes and then flick my gaze toward Rian.
He puffs up his chest slightly and gives a nod.
As I follow behind Everton, I hear Ace’s voice behind me, “Show me that photo, Little Dancer. Oh, it’s good. I think I’ll need to ask Brielle for a copy for myself.”
Even though I’m seething, I can’t help but smile.
Part of my heart stays behind in the room with Rian, but a fierce protectiveness is driving me now.
This woman has shown up and pretended to care about the girl who is the daughter of my heart.
I’ll be damned if she uses my daughter as a pawn in some fucked up game.
Not now, not ever.