Chapter Seven
Trey
E very time I close my eyes, I see her face.
My daughter. She has to be. I see Lacey in her, but I see so much of me. With thoughts of Zella comes the anger. Why was she kept from me for four and a half years?
Lacey owes me an explanation.
Furthermore, she needs to explain why she’s not here with her.
I’ll make her talk to me eventually.
In the meantime, I have Samantha on the case. I only answered a thousand questions this morning over the phone. She promised to get the ball rolling on requesting a paternity test. I’m going to go crazy until I find out for sure.
“I can’t wait to see baby Emilia,” Charlotte chirps from the front seat of Cal’s truck. “I never get enough of her.”
Cal reaches over and takes Char’s hand, bringing it to his lips, and kisses it. They share a quiet moment, loaded with unspoken words. I’m glad this girl has my best friend. She’s his, which means he’ll take care of her until his dying breath. Maybe one day they’ll pop out a kid like Little Hornet and Jordy.
Then all the Hornets will have kids.
When the fuck did we grow up?
My phone buzzes in my jeans’ pocket. I pull it out and sigh after reading the text.
Grandma: Come get your mail, Trey.
Me: I will this weekend.
“Goddammit,” Cal complains. “Someone needs to teach that brat how to fucking park.”
Charlotte and I both laugh.
“Let’s hope you’re not the teacher,” Charlotte says. “You suck at it yourself.”
We all climb out and I smirk at the fact Penny drove her yellow Jeep around all the other cars, parking in front of them, right in front of the stairs at Hollis and Roan’s. She drives and parks just like Cal. It’s fucking funny to me.
I head up the steps behind Cal and Charlotte, nursing my leg. It’s been aching today, putting me in a bitchy-ass mood.
The front door opens and the first thing I notice is the music. It’s not loud by any means and mostly background, but it’s still more than I care for these days. I grit my teeth and endure as I make my way inside. Their quaint apartment is decorated with gaudy New Year’s gold and silver. The table is loaded down with snacks and shit. I forget what a little entertainer Hollis is until it’s time for a birthday party or holiday. It makes me wonder if his siblings are the same way.
Charlotte, sure.
Penny, no way.
I find my grumpy girl sitting cross-legged in the recliner, a beanie pulled low over her brows, nearly covering her eyes. It’s her outfit, though, that has me freezing.
I’ve only seen Penny once in something that wasn’t comfortable and baggy. At Jordy’s wedding. And back in October, I was still so fucked up from my migraines, I didn’t take the time to notice.
I notice now.
Fuck.
An irrational spike of anger shoots through me, jealous of anyone who can see her. A quick assessment of the people here has me relaxing. They’re all taken or related to her, aside from Lo, who’s chatting it up with Roan, and he’s gay.
Chill the hell out, man.
Her expression is a bit more scowly than usual tonight. But she’s wearing makeup. Her lashes have been painted with mascara and her blue eyes are lined with black eyeliner. Pouty lips are stained Barbie pink and she chews on her bottom one like it’s personally wronged her. I skim my gaze to her outfit that made me crazy in three seconds flat. Dark, painted on skinny jeans that have more holes than actual material covers her long, slender legs. She wears a black pair of ankle boots that I’m shocked she even owns. Her white tank under her black, fitted leather jacket is loose and hangs low. A long, black necklace sits right between her perky tits, a bunch of silver and gold house keys attached. The tank is thin, so you can see the outline of her black bra underneath.
I can’t with this goddamn girl.
“Smash,” she says, tipping her head at me, barely looking up from her phone. “What’s up?”
Ignoring the laughter of the guys in the kitchen, I stalk over to Penny. I sit down on the coffee table right in front of her, drinking in her sweet floral scent. Fuck. She’s too fucking pretty and distracting.
Only seventeen.
Until April…
The thought feels like a lifeline I cling to. Soon she’ll be legal. And then what? I don’t like Penny. Not like a chick I want to stick my dick into.
No, you like her more than that.
She starts to shed her leather jacket. My mouth goes dry as she reveals her creamy arms that have cute curves of muscle from her being on the basketball team.
I’m not going to survive her.
I can feel it in my bones.
I’m going to do something regrettable—something that breaks the Hornet code.
Because… fuck .
“Put your jacket back on,” I bark out, leaning forward and resting my elbows on my knees so I’m in her personal space.
Her lip curls up as icy blue eyes sear into me. “I’m hot.”
No fucking kidding.
My jaw clenches as I drop my stare to her sassy mouth. “Penny…”
“Stop talking.”
Our gazes meet and there’s amusement in her blazing blue eyes. Fuck if it doesn’t make my dick hard, too. For a girl who’s grumpy as shit, I suddenly feel the urge to amuse her a helluva lot more. My lips quirk up on one side as I let loose a chuckle.
“Fine, brat,” I say with a grumble. “You don’t want to talk to me, I’ll go talk to someone else.”
She kicks out one of her booted feet, planting it between my spread legs. “Stay here, Smash.” Her words are warm and playful.
She leans forward until her face is close to mine. It’s then I notice her AirPods are in. Her blond hair that’s usually in a ponytail is loose and is in messy waves that suit her. I crave to reach out and twist a silky strand around my finger.
I bite down on the inside corner of my bottom lip, roaming my stare over her made-up face to her pink lips. “So you’re going to talk to me?”
Her lip curls up and it’s hella cute. “I guess.”
“Good,” I murmur. “I like talking to you.”
She parts her lips when I toy with the keys hanging from her necklace. I tug on it, pulling her closer.
“I gotta tell you a secret.” I flash her a grin. “Come here.”
A gasp escapes her when I pull her closer to me by her necklace. I pluck the AirPod out of her ear, leaning in to whisper to her. “You look beautiful, mean-ass. So beautiful I can’t stop staring at you.”
“I’m not a ball in your court, player,” she says, pressing a finger to my lips and pushing me away from her.
Her words sting, but I guess I had them coming. It’s not like Cal and I didn’t try to fuck the entire female population in Oregon. There’s no hiding that fact.
“Don’t hate the player, hate the game,” I tease, grinning at her.
She does her dramatic eye rolling that has her lashes fluttering wildly. “Go mack on someone else.”
“You’re the only one here.”
Her head cocks to the side, her brows furling. “There are like eight other people here if you count Emilia.”
“I only see you,” I admit.
“Ew. Save it for someone else,” she says, rising to her feet. “I’m not interested.”
Before I can even think about the fact it’s because I look like a fucking train wreck, she swirls around, her finger right in my face.
“And not because of the way you look, Smash. You fucking know it too so stop being dramatic. I happen to think the dents and scars make you look badass.” She holds out her palm. “Give me back my shit.”
I hand her the AirPod, noting her body shivers when my fingers brush against hers. She snatches it away and shoves it into her ear. This time, rather than feeling sorry for myself, I shamelessly check out her ass as she walks away.
Penny has a nice goddamn ass in a pair of skinny jeans.
Jesus.
Cal plops down in her chair, smacking my cheek. “Dude. Stop salivating over jailbait.”
“I’m not…” I trail off and shake my head. “Can you blame me? Look at her.”
He barks out a laugh. “I’m looking and all I see is smartass Penny.”
“In. Fucking. Jeans.”
“Bad idea,” he mutters. “Protective big brother in three, two…”
Hollis sits down on the arm of the chair, frowning at me. “What are you and Penny up to? Lots of secrets going on. You better not be fucking my sister.”
This fucking guy…
“I’m not fucking your sister,” I snap.
I want to…if she were older.
Hollis narrows his eyes at me, reminding me of Penny. “Probably better not even think about it either.”
Cal snorts. “Nice try, rat. He already thought it. Look at his face.”
“Traitor,” I mutter, punching Cal’s knee.
“I like you, Trey,” Hollis says. “I don’t want to have to bust you in your good eye.”
Cal cracks up laughing, earning another punch by me to his leg.
“He actually fucked your sister, but I can’t even look at your other sister. How is that fair?” I demand. “Penny’s just my mean-ass friend. Nothing more.”
Hollis’s features soften. “She’s not like Charlotte. Penny is different. More vulnerable. Innocent. She needs more protecting.”
Damn right she does.
And I feel like it’s my job to do it, too.
I don’t tell Hollis that.
“Yeah, yeah,” I grumble. “Heard you loud and clear.”
Sure, I heard him.
Doesn’t mean I was listening, though.
All night, I feel like Penny avoids me. She bounces from conversation to conversation, adding in her bitchy two cents, all the while leaving me to stalk her to each one. When Penny gets asked by Roux to hold her baby, Emilia, she tenses and I can tell she doesn’t want to.
“I’ll hold her,” I offer, sitting close to Penny on the sofa.
Roux flashes me a thankful smile. Jordy is in the kitchen laughing with the other Hornets and Hollis while Charlotte is locked in an intense conversation with Loden. It makes me feel bad Sonya couldn’t be here, but it’s her damn fault for getting grounded by Grandma.
“I’ll be right back,” Roux assures me. “I need to run to the restroom.”
She hands me the swaddled bundle. I lean back against the cushions, admiring the cute baby. Emilia is barely a week old and so damn tiny. I hold her to my chest, patting her back with my giant hand that’s damn near the length of her body.
So fucking cute.
A pang of sadness washes over me. I missed this with Zella. All this shit with Samantha is just for confirmation of what I already know. I’m sad that I’ve missed out on four years. Four years that Lacey didn’t have to parent alone. Sure, it would have sucked trying to go to college and also be a father, but I would have found a way to make it happen.
“You think she’ll be rowdy like Sebban?” I murmur, slightly nudging an all-too quiet Penny beside me.
“She’s part Hornet, so probably.”
Sebban is spending the night with Kelsey and Karen. Kelsey, though young and hot, is a surprisingly good grandma. I know she picks him up and keeps him a lot, which helps out Hollis and Roan with their strange work schedules.
I run a finger over the soft hair on Emilia’s tiny head. Her lips pucker as she makes a face in her sleep.
“I’ll hold her,” Penny says, her voice tight.
“You don’t have to.”
“I want to.”
I cock a brow and cut my gaze to Penny. She’s fidgety and her blue eyes storm with emotion, but she holds out her arms anyway. Carefully, I turn Emilia and then settle her into Penny’s waiting arms. My fingers brush along Penny’s bare skin and she shudders, scowling at me.
A small laugh tumbles out. “Sorry.”
Not sorry, though. I crave to run my finger along her forearm, up over the curve of her small bicep, around her shoulder, and to her neck.
I sling an arm over the back of the sofa behind Penny, leaning in so I can still look at Emilia. At first, Penny is stiff, but she relaxes, talking softly to Emilia.
With my free hand, I gently stroke Emilia’s hair again. She’s just so soft and cute. My leg starts aching, so I stretch it out, only wincing slightly. Penny nudges me with her thigh, sending currents of heat straight to my cock.
“You’re hurting,” she says, frowning my way.
“Always.”
Emilia opens her eyes, pinning us with amber ones that match her mother’s. Her face scrunches and then she lets out a grumbly-ass fart that sounds wet.
“Ew,” Penny whines. “Take her.”
“All yours, babe,” I say with a laugh.
Her eyes are fiery. “I’m serious. I hate poop.”
“And I like it?” I challenge.
“You’re a boy. Boys are gross. Just take her.”
Jordy appears, looking fatherly as fuck as he holds his hands out for his baby. “Hand her over. Roux wants to feed her anyway. I’ll go change her.”
Penny happily passes her back to her daddy. As soon as he leaves us, I realize with my arm on the sofa behind Penny and sitting so closely, we might be seen as a couple. And, for some reason, I don’t hate that fact.
Penny, however, must.
She flies off the sofa and heads toward the kitchen. Before I can go after her, I’m bombarded by Cal, who sits down in Penny’s vacated seat and proceeds to give me shit about lusting over jailbait.
I’m in so much trouble with this girl.