Chapter 17 #2
I nearly groan as the bikes reach us and Dad, Skull, Pez, and Spider all pull up.
“Fuck me,” I mumble under my breath. I feel Beau’s body jerk and I freaking panic.
I know she can’t want all of this attention.
If she tries to push me away because of all of this, I’m going to go motherfucking ballistic on all of them.
“Harper, sweetheart—” I stop as I turn to look at her.
She’s silently laughing. She looks up at me, shaking her head.
“What’s going on?” I finally ask, feeling like I’m three steps behind this woman and fuck, that’s never happened to me before.
“Club is family, Hunter and family always gets involved,” she murmurs. “I may not have been around, Hunter, but I’ve been family according to your dad and Skull for a long time,” Beau murmurs.
“She’s right,” Dad says. I hadn’t even realized they’d made it to us. I look up at him and Skull. They’re staring at me like they don’t know if they want to pat me on the back or kill me.
“I want him arrested! He put his hands on me. He’s also keeping my child from me!”
“Hey, Adam,” Skull says, but is looking at Robin.
“Hey, Skull. Good to see you out,” Adam replies, ignoring Robin.
“Been staying close to home. How is your hermano?”
“Doing good. He’s coming home on leave next month.”
“Good. Bring him up to the house. Beth will cook you two dinner,” Skull says, making me smile.
Adam’s twin brother Leon got into some trouble when they were teens.
Skull saved Leon when some street punks jumped him.
They were seconds away from killing him.
It’s a debt that neither one has forgotten and not one that Skull worries about.
They’ve become family, too. Both know that to be the case.
It’s also how Adam knows so much about Robin’s bullshit.
“What a surprise! Another fucking cop on the Devil’s Blaze payroll,” Robin huffs. “You see this shit, bitch? This is what you’re signing up for when you let his dick between your legs. You’re never going to be free.”
“Robin, you’ve been free since you took money in place of our son. Bitch, you’re the one that refuses to walk away.”
“My boy loves me. That’s why he wanted to start visiting me. He wants to live with me He told me that, too. What he doesn’t want is to live here with your latest piece!”
“I told you to lay off my woman!” I snarl, advancing toward her.
I feel Beau’s hands on me and soon my dad joins her, but I won’t be stopped.
This woman is evil. I’ve known it for a while.
Someone has to be evil to turn their back on their own flesh and blood for money.
That’s the least of Robin’s crimes, though.
I won’t allow her to touch Beau. She doesn’t deserve to breathe the same air as her.
“Your woman,” she laughs, the sound hideous coming from her lips.
“Mom! Stop it! Beau’s been great to me,” Ty cries, coming out of the house, Slider at his side.
“Baby,” Robin whines, doing her best to hide the hate written all over her face. “Come here, sweetheart. Let me see you,” she says.
I scrub the back of my neck, letting out a curse under my breath. “Ty—”
“Sweetheart, why don’t you, me and Slider, take your grandpa into the kitchen. He can help us make breakfast?” Beau asks softly.
“Nu-uh. No way, bitch. You aren’t taking my son anywhere,” Robin screams. “Ty, come here to Mom. Tell this cop that you want to come with me.”
“Ty, son. Go back inside. We’ll deal with this and be in, yeah?” I exhale, praying my son listens to me.
Ty walks over to Adam, shrugging Dad’s hands off of his shoulders.
Skull is there, so I stand still. This is going to kill me if he agrees to go with Robin, but there’s not much I can do.
I’m not going to put my son in the middle of a tug of war.
He’s going to have to learn about Robin on his own and I fucking hate it.
I despise myself because I’m ultimately responsible for the pain that is waiting my boy.
“I don’t want to be around my mother. I don’t have to. My dad has full custody. Mom doesn’t have visitation unless I ask for it. Right, Dad?”
“Ty! You don’t mean that!” Robin screeches.
“Right, Ty. Seriously, though buddy, why don’t you go inside? Let us work this out,” I plead again.
“You never told me that you paid Mom money so you could have custody of me, Dad.”
“Shit,” Beau whispers, hugging me tighter.
I look at my son, my heart breaking for him. This sick feeling hits me, and I wish I could erase all of this from his memory. If I could, I would in a heartbeat—even if that means him still visiting with the piece of shit that is his mother.
“Son, let’s talk about it later, okay?”
“You don’t understand, Ty. I was all on my own. I couldn’t take care of a child. I didn’t have anyone to depend on.”
“Beau’s all alone. Slider told me that she took care of her dad when he was dying and turned down a chance to be a star on a television show and everything so she could be there for her dad.”
“Ty—” Beau starts, but Robin doesn’t let her finish.
“She’s not your mother. I am.”
“Yeah. You sold me to Dad. You never even tried to keep me and take care of me. You don’t now. You don’t even feed me when I’m there. I eat peanut butter sandwiches while you’re out or at home drunk.”
“That’s not true,” Robin says, obviously panicked, looking around at all of us—obviously feeling trapped.
“You’re right. Sometimes you are in bed sleeping it off.”
“Ty—” Fuck, I don’t even know what I’m going to say to him right now.
I didn’t know any of this shit. My boy never told me, and I’ve always felt like a bad father, but now I feel like one that’s a piece of shit.
Not only am I responsible for the fact Robin’s poison touches my son on a daily basis, but I also let him stay in an environment no kid should live in.
“Go home, Mom. I don’t want to see you. I’m going to help Beau make strawberry French toast.”
My fucking heart feels as if it’s shattering in pieces.
“You stupid kid. You think that bitch cares about you? You’re just a tool for her to try and trap your father. That’s it. It doesn’t even matter, BB will kick her to the curb in a week. If not that, he’ll be screwing some of the club girls and she’ll leave his ass. Where will you be then?”
“Jesus Christ, Robin. Quit spouting that shit—”
I stop talking. I was so wrapped up in seeing the pain on my son’s face that I didn’t see Beau march over to where Skull, Adam, Ty, and Robin are all standing. She backhands Robin hard enough that her head jerks back from the force of the blow.
“You can say what you want about me. You can hiss your vile thoughts until the cows come home. Just fucking do it while Ty isn’t here.
I’m at the garage all day. Drop by when he’s at school if you want a go, but don’t you ever hurt your son because you’re pissed at me.
I care about Ty. I cared for him before I knew he was Hunter’s child.
He’s an easy kid to love and you’d know that if you weren’t so twisted and ate up with hate! ”
“You fucking bitch! I’ll kill you.” Robin moves like she’s going to jump on Beau, but Skull and Adam hold her back. “Do you hear me? I’ll kill you!” She tries to jerk out of Skull’s hold as Adam bends her arm backwards. “Let me go, you assholes!” she shrieks.
Beau ignores her, squatting down to ruffle Ty’s hair.
“Let’s go get started on breakfast. It’s going to take a while so we can feed all of your family that is here,” she whispers to my son.
It doesn’t escape my attention that she stresses the fact that his family is here for him.
Ty’s eyes are overbright. I know he has to be a mess inside, but he reaches out and takes her hand. She leads him straight to the house.
“Beau, do you want to press charges on Miss Cabell?”
“Press charges? She hit me!” Robin squeaks.
“You’re on her property and verbally abused her and her houseguests—one of which is a minor. She has a right to press charges if she so chooses.”
“She chooses,” I speak up for Beau. “We’ll swing by sometime later today and fill out a restraining order against her. I want to make sure she’s banned from Beau’s house and place of business.”
“You got it,” Adam says as he handcuffs Robin.
“I cannot believe this shit! I’m the injured party here!”
I tune her out and look at Dad and Skull, then shake my head at Spider and Pez who are standing beside me. “You guys staying for breakfast?”
“I’m sure as hell not going to miss Beau’s French toast. That woman can outcook your mom and if you tell her I said that that, I’ll gut you like a fish—son or no son,” Dad growls, making me laugh.
“It will be our secret. Although if Skull tells Aunt Beth—”
“He wouldn’t dare because he knows Beau can outcook Bethie, too,” Dad explains.
“Mi cielo has many wonderful skills and attributes. Cooking is hit or miss,” Skull murmurs.
“But you eat it all,” Torch laughs. “Even when she made that minute rice and pork casserole. God, I thought we were all going to end up in the hospital with food poisoning.”
“It wasn’t that bad,” Spider grouses, obviously trying to take up for his mother.
“Says the man who stayed in the bathroom all night worshipping the porcelain gods,” Skull laughs at his son.
“Shut it, old man,” Spider chuckles. Do you remember Diego’s face after he took his first bite of the pork?”
The air shifts around us and gets harsh.
I don’t think any of us dare a breath. The look on Skull’s face reflects pure agony, before he pushes it away.
Then, my breath stalls as the man smiles.
He lets out a chuckle and it doesn’t sound forced.
“He and Gabby both managed to eat one whole serving. Then, they swore it was the best thing they’d ever eaten in their lives.
Beth was so happy she fixed it for them for their birthday for three years before they both developed a weird pork allergy,” he explains, this chuckle moving into a full-blown laugh.
“Wait. I’ve had Beth’s cowboy cookies, they’re awesome,” Pez grumbles.
“Some things she makes awesome,” Skull concedes.
“But stay away from her casseroles,” I tell him slapping him on the back, as we walk back inside.
The men continue to talk, but I don’t. My breath stalls in my chest. I see my son, Slider, and Beau at her island laughing and dumping ingredients in a bowl.
“You okay, son?” Torch asks.
“Everything I want is right in front of me, Dad. I’m just not sure I’ll be able to hold onto it.”
His gaze moves from me to Beau and the kids. Skull, Pez and Spider join them and Beau’s laughter echoes in the room. The sound hits me right in the gut. I close my eyes at the joy and hunger that slams through me. I want her with me for the rest of my life.
The. Rest. Of. My. Life.
I knew it before. I knew it down in my soul.
Yet, after this morning’s mess with Robin, I crave it.
The thought of being without her makes me panic.
Since the birth of my son, I’ve lived my life closed off to anything and everyone except my son and family.
I’ve been half a man—completely damaged.
That’s why it was so easy to push Beau away that first morning with her.
I wanted her even then but couldn’t open myself up to her.
When you spend as much time as I have alone, it’s fucking painful to let someone in.
But fuck if Beau isn’t there in a way that I know she always will be.
“Be the man I know you are, son. Make sure Beau knows you’re in this for the long haul and that you will always have her back. Trust me, she needs that more than you understand right now—probably more than she realizes herself.”
I nod, thinking Dad makes it sound simple. I can’t help but think that it can’t be. After all, nothing has ever been simple in my life. I doubt it’s going to start now.