Chapter 33
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
S triker…
I left Rarity to clean up the kitchen from dinner, after holding her for a time and leaving her with a kiss to her forehead at the sink.
This fucking toilet was fixin’ to slay me. I wasn’t going to be able to fix it tonight. I was seriously about to take it out back and smash it with a fuckin’ hammer just for the fuckin’ satisfaction – when it happened. There was a noise, and a pop. When I picked the fucking thing up off its base, there was this goddamned rubber dragon like a rubber ducky for bath time or whatever – but not a duck.
“Motherfucker,” I swore.
“Everything okay?”
“Jesus, princess!” I pressed a hand to my chest after jumping sky high. She was lucky I was in an awkward position with nothing at hand. I could have hurt her.
“Shit, I’m sorry – I didn’t mean to startle you,” she said.
“Just make some fuckin’ noise or something next time, I’m a vet and we all got some sort of sand demons just looking for an opportunity to ruin us and everything we love if we’re not careful. I would never hurt you on purpose – you know that, but damn .”
“No, I know!” she said quickly. “I get it, I’m sorry.”
“All good,” I reassured her.
“Whatcha got?” she asked.
I picked up the dragon.
“The head, body, and the rest of your mighty foe, my princess. Your dragon has been slayed!” I tossed it in the sink. “I’m taking that fucker with me, too – I earned its ass.”
She laughed and said, “My hero,” before rolling her eyes.
“I’m not going to be able to put this back in tonight. I wanna get a new wax ring and make sure it gets a good seal. If I was a less stable man, I’d smash the fuckin’ thing on principle it was that big of a pain in my ass – but a penny saved is a penny earned and not worth the price of a new john.”
“I wouldn’t blame you if you did smash it,” she said, crossing her arms and leaning her hip against the sink top – “or if you ran screaming from the chaos that is my life with these three little bridge trolls.”
“Nah,” I said, shaking my head, and turning to wash my hands thoroughly with soap and water at the boys’ sink. “Why would you even say that?” I asked.
She didn’t say anything for such a long time I had to look over my shoulder to make sure she was still there at the other end of the counter. She wouldn’t look at me, and gave a sort of shrug, which was a total non-answer.
I shut off the water, shook off my hands in the bowl of the sink, and grabbed the hand towel out of the ring, turning to square up with her and try and get it out of her what was eating her.
“Just feeling insecure, I guess,” she said and I pulled her to me.
“How can I help?” I asked and she rested her forehead against my chest, letting her hands slip from beneath her arms and go around my waist. She melted into me, and I took the weight she carried and hefted it like it was nothing – knowing that to her, she carried the weight of her family’s world on those delicate slim shoulders.
“I love you, Rarity Mitchell,” I said finally, into her hair. “You’re sweet. You’re kind. Your brothers are a handful, sure – but today was just a real bad day and tomorrow will be better.”
“What if it’s not?” she asked piteously.
“Then the day after that will be better,” I told her with a chuckle.
“How can you know?” she asked petulantly.
“Because the bad days like today? They don’t last forever,” I reassured her.
“I’m scared my mom isn’t going to get the chance to know you and love you as much as I do before my grandmother ruins it all.”
It was one of the rawest things I’d ever heard come out of her mouth and it made me freeze.
“What do you mean?” I asked innocently, but I already knew and my heart cracked right down the middle for the soft and fearful tone she’d used to make her initial confession.
“My mom’s mom is nothing like me or my mom,” she said. “She’s very… particular… gossipy and judgy. Like I don’t tell anyone at the craft store anything about my home life or life outside of work because I know those old biddies would narc me out to gran in a heartbeat.”
“Okay,” I said carefully.
“The only reason I waved the white flag today was because they’re out of town,” she said. “I’m just not ready for World War Three to break out in the house because gran will pitch a fit and I don’t want any fighting… but mostly I’m scared my mom’s opinion about you will be colored by what Grandma is going to have to say about us and I’m just not ready for the peace I feel with you to be disturbed or for you to rightfully say ‘fuck this shit’ and walk away because of all the drama.”
I chuckled then, and held her tighter and said, “I like a little chaos. Thrive on it, actually – I wouldn’t be a Royal Bastard if I didn’t.”
“I’m afraid we’re going to be too much chaos for even the Royal Bastards,” she said miserably and I had to fight not to have a fit of laughter loud enough to wake anyone in the house.
“We’ll cross all of those bridges when we come to ‘em baby girl,” I promised, stroking a hand down her long, smooth, blonde hair.
“Promise, Daddy?” she whispered so quietly I barely heard her.
“I promise,” I assured her out loud since she hadn’t caught the promise in my voice alone.
“I love you too much to want to let go,” she said and she sounded on the verge of tears. “You make my life so much better.”
I smiled at that, and held her tight, “Who else you gonna find to come slay your toilet dragons at a moment’s notice?” I asked, and she snorted and buried her face in my chest to keep from laughing too loud.
Of all the dragons I had to possibly slay for my fair princess, I hadn’t expected her grandmother to be the one. She’d seemed nice enough at the Iron Horse on the family day for all the exchange was pretty brief.
I wondered about some things now.
It was definitely some food for thought.
I tucked my girl into bed not long after and it tore me apart to leave and not get beneath the covers with her – but there would be plenty of opportunity for that later.
I went home, got some sleep, ground through a half a day at work the next day and took care of the more pressing shit, and ducked my head into Stormy’s office to let him know what was up.
“Yeah, man – go ahead,” he said. “It’s quiet enough around here.”
“Thanks, man,” I said and I’d left early. A quick run past the hardware store, and I was on my way back to Rarity.
I didn’t need my truck, so I’d left it back at St. Augustine. The tools I’d left at her place could easily fit in the saddlebag of my bike for the return trip. I would re-install her toilet and see if her brothers would behave for a chance at an all-expenses-paid trip to the Gator Farm up my way.
She was radiant when she answered the door, even if she was still frayed around the edges some.
“How goes it? Crew pull another mutiny today?” I asked.
“The beatings will continue until morale improves,” she said rolling her eyes and stepping aside to let me into the house.
The living room was a war zone of toys and little boys playing robots, one of the Transformers movies on the screen.
“Who’s dat?” one of them asked, running up.
“Guys,” Rarity called, and the other two stopped their WWE wrestling moves long enough to scramble over and join their brother.
“I was here last night. Don’t you remember?” I asked them.
“Yeah,” three little voices chorused back at me.
“Aden, Braden, and Caden – meet my friend Striker. Striker, these are my little brothers who were being stubborn little billy goats last night.”
“Ah huh.” I nodded sagely. “I remember that. Have you boys been good today?”
“Yes,” they all chorused.
“No,” Rarity recited with them and frowned.
“Well, how come they say ‘yes’ and you say ‘no’?” I asked.
“Throwing food at each other at the breakfast table is being good?” Rarity asked her siblings with an arched eyebrow.
“No,” they all chorused sadly and I fought not to laugh.
“Tell you boys what. I’ll make you a deal.”
They all perked up.
“You behave yourselves the rest of the week and this weekend, I’ll take you, and your sister – your mom, grandparents – whoever you want, to the Alligator Farm up by where I live.”
“Alligator farm?” Braden asked.
“Real life dinosaurs,” I said, nodding wisely.
“What?” That definitely got Aden’s attention and Caden was just as curious.
“Only if you’re good for sissy,” I told them. “And your mom, and your memaw and pop-pop.”
The boys all looked at Rarity who said, “Don’t look at me. The deal’s with him!”
“Can you do that?” I asked them.
“Yeah,” I got back from all three.
“Okay, go back to your movie and sit quiet now while I finish fixing your potty.”
“Okay.” All three went back to the couch and climbed up on it.
Rarity looked after them for a moment and then turned to me.
“That’s awfully expensive,” she tried to argue, and I chuckled.
“Not when two of your club brothers practically run the place. The Boucher brothers got us handled. All it’ll cost me is snacks and drinks.”
“Are you serious?” she asked.
“As a heart attack,” I told her.
“I’m going to text Mom,” she said and she looked both so grateful and so relieved.
“I got you, let me get started on getting their toilet back in.”
“Thank you,” she said, and she sounded grateful to the bottom of her heart, which did mine some good.
“Anytime and anything for you, princess,” I said softly and made my way in the direction of the boy’s bathroom.
She broke for the kitchen and her phone sitting on the kitchen island.
I meant it, too – anything for her. My love for that girl was growing with every passing moment, let alone every passing day; and the more I saw her interact with her family, the more I wanted to do for them, too.