MAESTRO
This here was what I’d been missing, I realised, even if I’d not known it. The chaos, the noise, the laughing and teasing. It didn’t matter that the reason we were all here wasn’t a good one; the fact that we’d pulled together meant everything. At least Stacey wasn’t too pissed with me. I’d wondered if she would be, but I’d taken my chances. I’d have to do better at communicating with her. I was so used to being on my own and making decisions every day for the good of the club that it hadn’t crossed my mind to tell her that I’d spoken to Kyle, because I’d instinctively known that Rosie needed her brother and that he’d have wanted to be told what had happened.
With breakfast nearly done, I looked over at Kyle, “Do you want to come with us? We’re heading over to Ford’s.”
“Why are you going to Ford?” Rosie asked worriedly. “He didn’t do anything wrong.”
“I know, sweetheart, but I want to check on him, make sure he’s okay and to give him my thanks, that’s all.”
“Promise?”
“I promise, that’s all. Besides, Kyle’s already vouched for him,” I reassured her.
“Just so you all know, we’re on soft lockdown for a little while, just until this all blows over. That means you stay on clubhouse property.”
“What about the diner?” Stacey questioned. “I’m supposed to be on shift today.”
“I have a prospect covering you,” I grinned, knowing they hated having to cover the diner.
Stacey snorted with laughter, “Poor guy. What did he do to piss you off?”
Cash and Tinman chuckled but didn’t say anything. I wouldn’t tell her the prospect was being punished because he’d happened to say something about Stacey’s ass, not knowing I was in hearing distance.
“Showed disrespect.” With those words, I stood up from the table. “Give me ten minutes to get dressed and we can leave. Kyle, your bike should be at the clubhouse if you want to ride. And go see Buck; he has something for you, but only if you want it. We’ll discuss the ramifications of you wearing it later.”
“Yes, Pres,” Kyle replied, standing up and starting to clear the table.
“Leave it,” Rosie said, taking the plates from him. “I’ll clean up; you go and check your bike over. Although I can promise it’s fine, I’ve been looking after it for you. I did a service last month.”
My eyebrows rose at that news. Not saying anything, I continued down the hallway to my bedroom as Kyle replied, “Thanks, little sister. Appreciate it.”
Stripping off my joggers, I started the shower, making quick work of washing up, conscious of the time. Switching it off, I stepped out to find Stacey waiting for me, leaning up against the sink, heated eyes roamed over my chest as I swiped it with the towel. Biting her lip, her eyes drifted down my chest to my cock that was now hard and standing to attention. Not that that was unusual; my cock always seemed to be hard whenever I was anywhere near her.
“You like what you’re seeing, baby?” I growled out as I gave one last swipe of the towel across me before throwing it towards the laundry basket, whether it landed in it or not, I didn’t care.
Not with the hungry way Stacey was eyeing me up.
“Ah, uh, stay there,” she held up her hand, stopping me from moving forward.
Taking my cock in her hand, she ran a finger over the head, swiping through the pre-cum leaking from it. Bringing her fingers to her lips, she sucked on her finger as she looked at me through lowered lids before sinking to her knees in front of me.
All thoughts of having to be somewhere left my head as her mouth closed around the head of my cock. Growling softly as she ran her tongue around the head with quick flicks before sucking me deep. Deep enough that I hit the back of her throat.
“Fuuuck, baby,” I groaned out, my fingers threading through her hair as I gently held her head and rocked my hips. Looking down, I watched as my cock disappeared into her lush mouth, lips bright pink and swollen around me, cheeks flushed. Lowering her eyes, she gripped the back of my thighs as she took me deeper with every thrust of my hips.
So, fucking beautiful on her knees for me, allowing me to fuck her mouth the way she was. I was fast approaching the point of no return with what she was doing to me.
“Jesus, baby, I’m going to come,” I warned her just as she took my balls in her hand and gently tugged on them before laving her tongue down my length, then back up to take my cock deep. Deeper than I’d been before, and swallowed, her throat tightening around my cock.
“Holy fuck,” I bellowed out as I came so hard my knees went weak, and I had to catch myself on the vanity before I went down. Gasping for breath, I blinked at the black spots that were dancing across my vision; once they were clear, I looked down to find Stacey smiling smugly up at me. ‘What the fuck was that?’ I wondered.
“Good, huh?” she grinned proudly.
“Jesus, baby, I think you’ve sucked my brains out. What the fuck was that?”
Snorting out a cute little laugh, she held up her hand for me to help her up. Pulling her straight up and into my arms, I buried my face in her neck as I tried to get my breathing to even out.
She was still laughing slightly because I could feel her shoulders moving, but I found I didn’t have it in me to care. The bedroom could be on fire, and I’d not care. It wasn’t that I’d never had blow jobs because I certainly had a fair few in my life, but whatever she’d done was nothing like I’d ever had.
Tilting her head back slightly, her eyes sparkling with amusement, she told me, “No gag reflex, honey. That’s why it was different; I can take you all the way down.”
“Stace, if I wasn’t already planning on marrying you, I’d certainly be planning on it now.”
“It was that good?” she chuckled slightly before sobering. “How about this? I don’t really want to get married again, but what I do want this time is a property tattoo wherever you want me to have it, and I’ll take that cut you have hanging next to yours. Will that work for you?”
“Perfectly, baby. Fucking perfectly,” I muttered against her lips before taking them in a deep kiss. Drawing back slightly so that I could see her face, I said, “Love you so much, baby. Have done for twenty years, and I still can’t believe you’re finally mine. I’m fucking thrilled that you’d have me put a tat on you, and the cut is just waiting for you to wear it.”
Stacey blinked rapidly and wiped at the tears that hovered on her lashes. “Love you too, Roman. Wish I’d seen you first and we hadn’t lost twenty years, but I got my kids out of the deal so I can’t complain too much. I’ll be proud to wear your property cut and your tat. Just tell me where and when you want me to get it.”
“Your kids are pretty awesome, Stace; the world would be a poorer place without them. I wish I could stay with you today, especially since you’ve just agreed to be my Old Lady.”
“You go do what you’ve got to do to keep the girls safe,” Stacey replied, patting my chest and turning to leave the bathroom. Stopping in the doorway, she turned, “If you need to bring Ford home, you do so. I don’t think his home is a good one—not from what I’ve gleaned from the girls’ conversations.”
“Okay, sweetheart,” I agreed. With a smile, she took her cut off the peg, slipped it on, and with a last wink, left me with a stupid, if happy, grin on my face.
A grin that was still on my face as I walked out of the house after kissing Stacey goodbye and giving Rosie a hug. From the looks of the ingredients laid out in the kitchen, they’d be baking something today.
Cash was waiting on his sled that was parked next to mine, with a shit-eating grin on his face as he pointedly looked at his watch, “Ten minutes, huh? More like forty-five,” he chuckled with amusement.
“Fuck off,” I grunted, swinging my leg over my sled. Even his teasing wasn’t going to put me in a bad mood.
Cash smirked a grin at me as he swung onto his sled and picked up his helmet, “Happy for you, brother. She’s a great woman.”
“She’s my Old Lady. She wants a property tat. That’s not something she gave him, and I can’t fucking wait to see it inked onto her,” I said, slanting my eyes to my best friend as I returned his smile.
“Fucking awesome, Roman. It’s been twenty years coming, so I’m fucking thrilled you’ve finally got your woman. Let’s go see this kid so we can get back; maybe have a party tomorrow to celebrate. Club only.”
Starting my sled, I tugged my helmet on and secured it before pulling out of my driveway towards the clubhouse. Cash alongside me, we drove into the club parking lot to pick up Kyle, who was geared up with a Prospect cut on his back, chatting with Bolt Tinman. It made sense that they knew each other, as he was only a few years older than Kyle.
Revving my bike to get Kyle’s attention, he didn’t waste any time getting on his sled once he realised I was waiting. As we pulled out, Buck followed—no surprise there, as he was our Sergeant-at-Arms and usually came along on rides that involved club business. What did surprise me was having Tinman and my dad pull in behind him, with Kyle bringing up the rear. Tinman because he’d been pulling away ever since Chains had died, and my dad because he didn’t ride as much anymore, not with his arthritis playing up. I was glad for the backup, though, even with us all carrying. Not that I expected anything to happen today, as we were just visiting a kid.
We rode into the trailer park on the other side of town. It was run down, and while a few trailers looked like they had tried to keep things tidy, the rest looked broken down and on the edge of falling apart; the one we were looking for was one of the worst in the park.
Stopping our sleds, we got off, and I put my helmet on the seat. Cash and I exchanged a look—there was no way I was leaving this kid here, not after what he’d done for Rosie. I’d give him a choice; we had contacts that I could call for a favour. It wasn’t as if he was a small child; he was sixteen and could make up his own mind.
Going up to the door, I was just about to knock when it opened, and the kid that I was assuming was Ford filled the doorway, looking at us suspiciously. His face showed signs of the fight he’d been in, with the black eye he was sporting and the way he was holding his ribs. I had no idea he even existed until yesterday, but from the looks of him, either Dad, Chains, or I should have known about him at least sixteen years ago.
His appearance was a shock to all of us if the comments of, “Holy shit, he’s Maestro and Chains’ twin,” were anything to go by. And he could be mine or Chains’, because he looked exactly like we’d looked at sixteen: tall, not quite filled out but still muscular, with the same eyes, olive skin, and if I’d let my hair grow, the same black hair that all the men in my family had. It was like looking at my much younger twin.
“Ford?” I questioned, holding out my hand to him.
“Yeah,” he replied, shaking my hand. “Can I help you with something?”
It seemed that while he’d seen the resemblance, he wasn’t going to comment on it, so I pushed forward with why we were here and I’d swing back around to us obviously being related in a minute.
“You helped our girls yesterday. We wanted to say thanks and to find out if there was anything you needed. But obviously there’s something else we should be discussing because, looking at you, you’re either mine, my brother’s, or my father’s. Can I speak to your mother?”
He let out a scornful laugh, “Only if you can commune with the spirits. She died six months ago. She always told me she didn’t know who my father was, and I believed her.”
He sighed and ran his hand over his head, “Look, my mom had issues, drugs being one. She was clean enough when she had me but didn’t stay that way, so when I say she didn’t know, she really didn’t know. Trust me, if she did, she’d have hounded you for money.”
Dad came up and stood next to me, “This is my dad, Red; he’s either your grandfather or father. Same goes for me; I’m either your father or uncle. Even if you weren’t related to us, we’d still want to offer you a place to stay if you wanted out of here.”
“Ford,” Dad held out his hand to shake Ford’s, who was looking more and more shaken.
Ford shook it, “There’s nothing I’d like more than to get out of here, but I can’t. It’s not just me.”
“What do you mean?” I demanded, just as a cry went up. Looking tiredly at me, Ford replied, “That’s what I mean,” before turning and disappearing into the trailer, leaving the door open. I took that to mean that we were invited in, so I walked up the steps and into the small space that was kept clean and tidy. In the back, towards the bedrooms, we could hear Ford talking to what I assumed was his baby.
Dad and I exchanged a look. “No matter what, he’s coming home with us,” he uttered quietly.
I agreed. There was no way I was leaving him here by himself, not with an infant. I wondered where the child’s mother was.
Ford walked down the hallway carrying the baby, and my heart took another tumble. Seems I was a sucker for girls because I seemed to be collecting them. She was perfect: dark hair, rosebud lips, plump cheeks, and bright blue eyes.
He stopped when he realised we were in his house. Jostling the little girl in his arms, he explained, “This is why I’m not sure you’ll want me to come with you. This is Poppy; she’s my sister. Nobody knows about her because Mom had her here when nobody was home. I came home from school to find my mother dead on the bathroom floor and Poppy crying weakly.
“The trailer park might not look like much to most, but we look after each other. I knew that if social services found out, they’d take her from me, so my neighbours and I buried Mom over in the far corner, and we’ve all been looking after Poppy so that I can still go to school. Well, the ones I trust with her have been helping,” he explained.
Holding out my hands to Poppy, she came to me with no hesitation, just a great big smile.
“Sounds like you have a pretty great big brother,” I told her as I watched Ford go to the kitchen and expertly get a bottle ready for her. I took it from him as soon as he was back and offered it to Poppy. It had been a few years since my nieces were little, but it was a bit like riding a bike; it all came back naturally.
Dad was enviously eyeing Poppy in my arms as I fed her. “You can have her next,” I told him with a smirk.
“I should have her now and you can sort Ford out; you need to get a prospect here with a cage so we can get them home and phone your Old Lady,” he grumbled, holding out his arms for her. Ford was watching us with wide eyes, mouth slightly agape as we argued over who got to hold his sister.
But the old man was right; I had things to do, even if cuddling babies was preferable. “Here,” I transferred Poppy to Dad, not that she seemed fazed at being passed around.
Turning my attention back to Ford, I clasped his shoulder, “I’m giving you an option to come with us to the clubhouse. We’ll look after you both. I don’t want to leave you here, especially knowing you are family. Poppy is welcome. But it’s your choice; I won’t force you, but know that we’ll be checking on you constantly because not only did you save my Rosie yesterday, you’re our blood and we don’t turn our back on family no matter what.”
For the first time since we’d arrived, Ford looked like the kid he was as he sank down on the couch and stared at us in disbelief.
“Really?” he asked shakily, his eyes straying to his sister, who was happy as a lark in Dad’s arms. “Both of us?”
“Really,” I reassured him. “The first thing to do is get you back to the clubhouse; my Old Lady already told me before we left that I was to bring you home with me. So that’s what I’m doing. We’ll sort the paperwork for Poppy out as soon as I can speak to our tech guy, Hard-Drive. If you want, we can do a DNA test, but I have to be honest—I think you’re my nephew because my dad didn’t mess around on my mom and I was careful with who I spent time with. Either way, you’re our family,” I waved my hand between Dad and me, who nodded in agreement. “And we’d really like it if you came home with us.”
He thought hard about what I’d offered, his eyes continuously moving towards Dad and Poppy. Finally, he looked at me, “Is my dad going to have an issue with us coming with you?”
Sighing, I squatted down in front of him, laying my hand on his knee, “I’m sorry, Ford. I know you didn’t know my brother, but he died a few years ago. It’s just me, Dad, and my sister, Lizzie, now and you have three cousins.”
Disappointment crossed his face when he heard about Chains, but then he sat up straight. Even without growing up around us, he was an Ivor through and through, just from the way he seemed to pull himself together. Here I’d been worrying about who was going to take over from me when I retired as Pres; now it seems like that was one worry I didn’t need to have. He may not be my son, but I’d treat him as such if that’s what he wanted.
“Cousins, huh?” he smiled at me.
“Yup, you probably know them as you all go to the same school. There’s Maura, Chrissie, and RJ, although he’s a bit younger so you may not know him. Then Stacey, my Old Lady, has two children: Rosie, who you know, and her brother, Kyle, who’s outside. He says you know him.”
“Yeah, I do. Is Rosie okay? You need to speak to the girls; things could have gone really bad yesterday if those four had got the upper hand. They’d have been better calling for help.”
Giving him a pat on the shoulder, I stood up, “I know, and I’ll be having a chat, but not just yet. For now, I’m just glad they’re safe, and from what I understand, we have you to thank for that. So, son, are you coming with us or are you staying?”
Again, he studied me seriously, “Check with your Old Lady about Poppy; if she says it’s okay, then we’ll come.”
“Boy,” Dad interrupted him, “even if Stace didn’t want you in their house—which I know won’t be the case—my grandchildren will always have a home with me.”
“What about Poppy?”
This kid, all his worry was about his sister, not about himself. I couldn’t have been prouder of him than if he’d been my actual son.
But Dad wasn’t finished giving him a lecture on family and what it meant; it didn’t always mean blood either.
“Is she your sister?”
Ford nodded, answering, “Yes, sir.”
“Then she’s my granddaughter,” Dad informed him. “Blood doesn’t make family, son, but love and loyalty do. If you ask anyone, they’ll tell you I had three children: two boys and a girl, when in actual fact I had five.
“Four boys and a girl because I considered Tinman and Cash both my sons. They’re waiting outside to meet you. Tinman was closer to your dad than Maestro was. Cash is closer to Maestro than Chains. It didn’t matter, though, because when push came to shove, they’d be there for each other, and not because they shared blood—because they don’t. No, they’d be there for each other because they’re a brotherhood, and if you come with us, you and Poppy will be part of that.
“And Ford,” Dad spoke his convictions firmly, “there’s nothing better than knowing the people at your back will do anything for you, as long as it’s earned. You earned it yesterday with what you did standing up for the girls.”
With those words, he stood and shook Ford’s shoulder. “Go pack bags for you and Poppy. Maestro is going to call Stacey, and while you’re all doing that, Poppy and I are going to go across the way to the swing I saw there, and we’re going to spend some time getting to know each other.”
With that, he walked out the door, Poppy still perfectly happy in his arms, leaving a gobsmacked Ford in his wake.
Laughing at the look on the kid’s face, I pushed him towards the bedrooms, “Go pack, Ford. I’ll sort out getting a cage here to pick it all up.”
Knowing it would take some time to let it all sink in, I left him to it, walking outside to find what I knew was some of the toughest men cooing over a baby girl who seemed happy as a lark with all the attention she was getting, smiling prettily as Tinman held out his hands for her, and she happily went to him.
Leaving Dad scowling at the man he’d just likened to a son.
Kyle walked up to me. “Now I know why he always looked familiar. I’m sorry I didn’t put it together sooner,” he apologised.
“No need to apologise, son. I’m just glad we’ll have them home with us soon. Can you go and give him a hand packing? I’m going to call your mom and let her know her offer to have Ford come stay has been extended to include a cute six-month-old baby girl.”
Kyle grinned, “She’s going to be stoked. There’s nothing Mom likes more than babies, especially ones named after flowers. Poppy will fit right in.”
With that, he left me to put a call into Hard-Drive, who answered immediately and assured me that he’d get a cage to me as soon as possible.
Then it was time to put a call into my Old Lady. I can’t lie, I was hesitant; we were new, and I was about to throw two more children at her, one of them only six months old.
Her phone rang and rang until she answered with a happy, “Hi, honey.”
“Hey, baby,” I hesitated to continue, and she must have heard something in my voice because the music I’d heard in the background disappeared, and over the line I heard a door close.
“Talk to me, Roman, what’s wrong? Whatever it is, we can sort out a plan.”
“Oh, baby, I hope so. Once I tell you though, you may change your mind.”
“I doubt that,” she laughed softly, “now stop wasting time. Tell me.”
So, I did. I filled her in on who I thought Ford was, about how he’d come to be the sole carer for his sister and how I’d asked them to move in with us.
“Oh, Roman. That poor boy. Bring them home. Rosie and I’ll get the room sorted next to ours for Poppy. Love her name, he did good.
“We’ll have to go shopping, though. Send me a list of what they have, and I’ll get a prospect to go and pick up whatever else they need if you can arrange to send one of them over to me.
“Oh, and whoever is picking up Ford and Poppy better buy a car seat first. Don’t worry about anything else, honey. Just bring them home.”
This woman I’d known was right for me from the start. She was true Old Lady material, and the way she was handling this situation made me proud that she was mine.
“Thank you, baby. I’ll get a prospect to you as soon as I have a list of what they have so you can buy whatever is missing. Kyle is helping him pack up, and I’m watching a bunch of grown men make fools of themselves over a pair of gorgeous blue eyes and a milky smile,” I chuckled as I watched Poppy being handed from biker to biker. “Love you, darlin’, we’ll be home in a few hours.”
“Love you too, honey. Rosie and I’ll be waiting.”
Ending the call, I filled the men who’d accompanied me in on what was going to happen.
“We have eyes on us,” Cash said casually as he tossed Poppy up in the air before catching her.
“Figured,” I grunted. “You do know she’s just had a bottle of milk, right? I’d stop tossing her up in the air like that.”
“Damn girl, your daddy is no fun,” Cash grumbled playfully at Poppy as he settled her on his hip.
Raising an eyebrow, I looked at him, “Daddy?”
“Well, she has to be something to you as she’s moving in with you. Plus, I know you; by now, you’ve had Hard-Drive add your name to her paperwork because that’s just how you work, so yeah Daddy. I don’t think Ford will mind, but we can check with him,” Cash smirked at me, “plus look at this face, and she already fits in with your other girl as they’re both named after flowers.”
Catching sight of an older lady coming out onto her porch from the corner of my eye and noting the suspicious way she was watching us, I called out to Ford.
“Ford, can you come out for a second and speak to your neighbour? She’s not looking too happy with us being here.”
It didn’t take long for Ford to be framed in the doorway as he looked over to the old lady sitting on the porch watching us.
“Give me a minute, and I’ll let Ms. Emily know what’s happening. She looks after Poppy for me when I’m at school. Damn, I hate leaving her here by herself. She’s not got anyone.”
With those words, he loped off towards her while Dad and I looked at each other. Sighing, I put my phone back to my ear and called Hard-Drive; he needed to do a quick check on the old lady for me. There was a small cottage behind Dad’s house, although I’m not sure what condition it was in.
Once I’d finished my call, I asked Dad, “What state is the cottage in?”
“It’s okay. Could probably do with a new bed, but I’ve had the prospects clean it regularly. Maura and Thor didn’t complain when they last stayed in it.”
“Jesus, Dad, this morning I woke to a houseful, then Stacey officially agreed to be my Old Lady. In the last two months, I’ve gone from being single to being an Old Man, stepfather, and now uncle slash dad to two more. And now I’m making room for an old woman we don’t know because the boy loves her, you can see that plain as day. What the fuck?” I hissed, throwing my head back.
And the fucker that he was, he just laughed, “Welcome to being in charge, son. Here comes the boy.”
Dad was right; Ford was walking towards us with an older lady, but by no means ancient. I doubt she was more than mid-sixties, medium height with long grey hair in a braid, grey eyes, and tanned skin. She was dressed casually in jeans and a T-shirt. I wanted to curse when I saw interest flash over my dad’s face when he got a proper look at her, but I held back.
I figured they were adults; they could do what they wanted. My mom had been gone for years, and this was the first time I’d seen my dad actually look interested in another woman.
“Hi,” she informed me with a smile. My eyes widened at the sound of her voice, the husky quality reminding me of the Janis Joplin records my mom used to listen to. Taking the hand she held out, I gently shook it. “I’m Emily. Ford tells me he and my Poppy girl are moving in with you. Other than you’re obviously related, tell me why I should trust my grandkids to a motorcycle club.”
Dad chuckled at her bravery at voicing her concerns for children that weren’t hers. Holding out his hand to her, he introduced himself, “My name’s Red, darlin’, but you can call me Deck.”
Well, fuck, that raised some eyebrows as we watched in amusement as Dad tried to charm a woman who wasn’t about to be charmed by him.
“And why would I do that?” she queried, brow raised. “Only Old Ladies get to use your government names.”
Dad’s eyebrow rose at her words, and from the corner of my eye, I watched as Cash sent a text to who I hoped was Hard-Drive to do a deeper check on her. The last thing we needed was another MC coming for us right now.
“It seems you’re not a stranger to MCs, darlin’.” Threading her arm through his, Dad turned them back towards her trailer, continuing to talk as they slowly walked away, “Why don’t we go and sit on your porch while this lot finish packing up my grandkids? And before you ask, we didn’t know about them before today, or they’d already be living with us.”
Seeing Ford’s worried look, I laid a hand on his shoulder, “Don’t worry, Ford, Dad will make sure she’s okay. We have space for her if she wants to come with.”
“Really?” he asked in disbelief. “But you don’t know her.”
“No,” I agreed, “but you do, and you love her, so as long as her background comes back clean, she’s welcome with us.”
Ford shook his head, “I wish I’d known about you all earlier.”
“Me too, son, me too.”
I had no idea what Dad had said to Emily, but she’d agreed to come with us. He’d also assured me that there was no other MC to worry about. I took him at his word because there was no way Dad would put us in any danger.
Three hours later, we’d packed up both trailers, and a convoy of sleds and cages took them towards their new homes.