22. Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Two
Griffin's Beach Colt
T wo black bags sit on the table as Colt reads the instructions to figure out how the powder works. The only one who knows the gender is Lex, and he had to. He realized he'd likely slip up and use "he" or "she" in conversation without thinking and ruin the surprise. It's the only thing he truly asked of her, but after last night, he feels terrible for even doing that.
He'd gotten a frantic phone call from Tess telling him to hurry to her house. When he walked into Jennings and Tess's house, he found Lex sobbing on the couch with Tess holding her. Tess locked eyes with Colt, and he saw the terror in them. Lex had finally broken. That's the moment it all came tumbling out, and Colt hates the world right now. He has no idea how she's kept her shit together for almost a month now.
He turns and watches Lex and Tess hang up decorations while others put out the food. It only took a couple of days to plan, and he's kind of glad his wife wanted to help. Tess knowing the truth, too, helps because Colt feels a sense of relief that someone else is keeping an eye on Lex. Strength in numbers, especially because Colt wants to knock his father-in-law on his ass.
As soon as Psycho walks into the clubhouse with Lacey, Colt lets out a deep breath and puts the bags in the box to conceal it from anyone wanting to get a sneak peek. Lex typically handles the hard conversations, but he took this one for her. One less thing on her plate right now.
"Hey!" Lacey says with a beaming smile. Her red hair shines even more than usual, and she looks like she has an aura of gold around her. Glowing doesn't begin to describe it. "This looks amazing!"
They decided to throw it in Griffin's Beach because it's not only the largest clubhouse but directly between Black Valley and Summerville. He suggested they throw it at the Puffy Taco, the club's strip club, because it's a bigger building, but Lex nixed that idea as soon as the words left his mouth.
"Hey, gorgeous," Colt says, kissing her cheek. "Psycho, you bring your bike?"
He nods and smiles. "I'm ready!"
"They gave us two bags. I'm not sure if we're supposed to use both with one bike, or if they're supposed to be with two bikes. The instructions are a little vague."
"Guess we're doing it together."
His excitement makes Colt's chest ache, but he forces a smile. "Before we get too far into everything, can I talk to you in the Chapel for a minute?"
Lacey nods but gives him a concerned look. "Sure. Is everything okay?"
They shut the door, and Colt lets out a deep breath. "Look, I'm really sorry to do this to you guys, but after the party, we have to break some bad news to everyone. It's the only time we'll have pretty much everyone in the same room, and it'll be easier than having the conversation multiple times."
"What's going on?"
"I think it's best to go over everything together. I don't know all the details, so I don't know all the answers to the questions you'll undoubtedly ask. But all you need to worry about now is whether the burnout will have pink or blue smoke. And, don't worry. Lex ordered it, so it's not going to be something like orange or black and confuse us all."
Psycho laughs. "You were scared you'd spill the beans, huh?"
"Sort of," he admits. "It's killing Lex we have to end this on a bad note. If it wasn't a timing thing, we wouldn't even think of it."
Hand on her belly like all pregnant women seem to do, Lacey tilts her head. "Club related?"
"Kind of."
"You didn't lose another baby, right?"
He shakes his head. "No, we're pretty good with four kids in the house. Not that I'd mind a pregnant Lex. I really love pregnant Lex."
She laughs, but Psycho looks serious. "Lex isn't sick, is she? I mean, I know you said she has a lot on her plate, but it's not her, right?"
"She's just exhausted. It’s not her. She's as healthy as someone who never sleeps can be. Promise."
"No sleep means no sex, huh?" Lacey asks. "No wonder you want pregnant Lex."
Chuckling, Psycho says, "Ignore her. She takes after your wife with the increased pregnancy libido."
He gives them a smirk. "To ease your worry, our sex life hasn't suffered. In fact, it seems to be the only thing that gives her a break from what's going on. It also knocks her out sometimes for an hour or two. And you know I'll do anything for Lex. I aim to please her."
"I find a decent pounding puts me right to sleep," she says, and Colt's eyes widen. "What? I'm the wife of a President of a motorcycle club. Hearing me talk about getting pounded by him shouldn't cause all that." Her finger circles in the air in front of Colt's shocked face.
"For you? Yes, it sure as hell does. It's almost worse than hear you swear. It sounds wrong, even though it's not. Still sounds it."
"Like a little kid saying fuck ," Psycho offers.
Snapping his fingers and pointing at him, Colt says, "Exactly!"
"Baby, you seem to like when I say fuck . And pound . Oh, and you love when I say deeper ," Lacey says.
"Oh God!" Colt says with a laugh. "You sound just like Lex."
"So, you really don't know what we're having?" Psycho asks, his eyebrows wiggling.
He shakes his head. "Nope, only Lex knows. And it's no surprise to anyone she's the queen of secrets. Fucking good at it. Don't even try getting it out of her."
"He thinks it a girl, so he wants to know before everyone else," she says. "I think it's a boy."
"I know it's a girl. I just... I do," he says. "Is Lex gonna gather everyone together after we do the burnouts?"
"Jennings will, but I think she's gonna be the one to explain and... the other stuff. Just, I need to make sure you know she hates this. Having to do it today. She knows how special this baby is, and if you're upset or angry, it's understandable. I just ask that you get angry with me, not her."
Reaching to touch his arm, Lacey gives him a reassuring smile. "We know how Lex feels about our baby. And us. If today needs to be the day we all get bad news, we know it has to be important. We're not angry."
"You're an angel, darlin'," he says, kissing her forehead and chuckling at how much he just sounded like Jennings. "P, let's get our bikes in the lot. We have to clean the tire before we can attach the bag to it. I gathered that much from the piss-poor instructions. Then we'll be ready to show everyone if we're having a little mermaid or little biker."
"What?" she asks, laughing.
"Oh, yeah, I forgot to tell you it's not all pink and blue for the party. We used that redheaded mermaid from the Disney movie Calla's obsessed with for a girl, and then, obviously, a little biker jacket for a boy."
Her mouth opens as tears fill her eyes. "That's so sweet! And adorable."
"She does that," Psycho says and wraps his arms around his wife while grimacing over her head to Colt.
"Dog food commercials, too?"
"Who could feed those adorable little animals chicken byproduct meal? Don't they deserve the same food we feed ourselves?" she asks and wipes her eyes. "I might be hormonal."
Griffin's Beach Psycho
"H ey, best friend," Psycho says and walks up to Lex after everyone's eaten and picked up what they think the gender of the baby will be.
Turning, Lex wraps her arms around his neck, and he feels just how skinny she is. "Hey, you!"
"Lacey loves the mermaid idea."
"I knew she would," she says with a smirk. "And just so you know, I chose both so no one can say I gave away what you're having. Besides, a biker mermaid is just too damn cute."
Looking at her shirt, he smirks at the pin with a mermaid wearing a leather jacket. "How exactly would that work? You know... no legs and all? How does she ride the motorcycle?"
"Well, it's just stupid when you get detail-orientated, so just roll with it."
"Thanks for the party, babe."
Her blue eyes lock with his. "Colt told you already."
"Whatever it is, we understand."
"I'm so sorry, Psycho—"
"Don't," he says. "We love that you did this, and I can't wait to do that fucking burnout!"
As she laughs, Undertaker and Venom walk up to join them, both taking a turn to congratulate Psycho. He doesn’t know the men well, but he understands they're the two men to have along with him if shit goes south.
"I took a page from Lex's book," Venom says and shows off his biker mermaid.
"He just copied me," she says with a smirk.
"You're the only friend I have here, really," he says. "Okay, you're pretty much my only friend, period. But, like, don't make a big deal about it."
Undertaker slaps an oversized hand on his shoulder. "We can be friends. We did kind of take out a shit ton of Kingsmen together. This dude flew in like was just diving into a fucking mosh pit. Bones breaking and blood flying. It was the most beautiful thing I'd seen in a long ass time."
Psycho looks at Lex, stunned by the dreamy look on her face. "Tell me more."
"Lex?" Psycho laughs.
"What? Is it my fault that I imagine Undertaker cradling me in his big, strong arms like a baby whenever he talks? He's just so... yum."
The man actually blushes, and Lex laughs. "You did that on purpose, didn't you?" Psycho asks. "To make Undertaker blush."
"Didn't know if it was possible. It was an experiment."
"Dude, you're still red," Venom says and laughs, slapping him on the back. "Not used to hot women hitting on you?"
Glaring at them and cracking his neck, he says, "I'm not used to married women hitting on me, especially with her husband in the same fucking room."
"Oh, so you don't think I'm hot? Venom does, it seems."
"I'm walking away now," he says as they burst into laughter.
Lex looks at Venon and continues laughing. "Okay, that was way more fun than I thought it would be."
"That was kind of mean. Don't get me wrong, though... I loved it," Venom says and winks at her. "That man went from large and in charge to fumbling over his words."
"Psycho, it's time!" Colt shouts from the front door.
"Gotta go," he says, kissing Lex's cheek, and running towards Colt.
He hops on his bike like a child eager to show off his brand-new bicycle to all of his friends on Christmas morning. They both start their bikes, and Colt shouts, "Ready?"
Nodding, he knows he wears a shit-eating grin, but he's so damn excited. Everything in his bones tells him they're having a girl, and he's about to find out if he's right.
Both count to three before revving the engines, their backends getting a little squirrely before he dares to look back at the smoke it produces. He almost gasps when he sees it.
Pink. Pink smoke. "Holy fuck, it really is a girl."
Shutting off the engine, he jumps off and runs to Lacey. He wraps her up in his arms and picks her up to kiss her. Tears make the kiss salty, but he doesn't care. They're having a girl.
"You knew it, baby," Lacey whispers in his ear. "You knew it!"
"I knew it!"
Holy shit... I'm having a girl. Oh God! I have to worry about all the boys out there. Jesus fuck, what the fuck am I going to do?
"It'll be fine," she assures him. "She'll only be able to date the men you approve of. Which means she'll never date."
"Holy fuck, we're having a girl."