Chapter 14 #3
“Yes. More than anything.” She watched him closely for any sign of doubt or lie to what he was saying and could find none.
“In case you missed the part where I want to be with you and I would walk through fire to prove it, I hoped the part where I said I love you would clue you in that I’m in this for the long haul.
You, me, Oliver and the baby. And maybe, one day, I can have my vasectomy reversed and we could have one or two of our own to add to the bunch. ”
Thanks to her stupid hormones, her eyes filled with tears. She wasn’t normally a crier, but here she was fighting back tears. “You would do that?”
“For you? Absolutely.” He dropped his mouth to hers for a kiss. When he pulled back he reminded her they needed to finish up and get dressed so they could be ready for Oliver.
Sadie was pouring herself a glass of juice while Jed was making himself a cup of coffee when Oliver stumbled into the kitchen yawning and rubbing his eyes.
“Good morning, Oliver,” she greeted him.
“Morning, Sadie,” he replied, still half asleep.
“Why are you so tired, buddy?” Jed leaned against the counter, his cup halfway to his mouth.
“Jed!” Oliver’s eyes popped open in surprise as his head jerked in his direction. It took a beat, but he took off like a bullet, wrapping himself around Jed’s middle. “You’re here!”
Jed barely had time to set his cup down before Oliver was hugging him. “Yeah, bud, I am.”
“I missed you so much.”
Damn it. Sadie was going to tear up again.
“Oliver, I missed you so much, too. You have no idea.” He dropped to his knees to better hug her nephew.
Oliver pulled back and asked, “Are you going to disappear again?”
“No. Never.” There was no hesitation on Jed’s part. “You and Sadie will never be able to get rid of me now that I’m back."
“Forever?” he pressed.
“Oliver, I don’t think,” she started to tell him they were going to take things slow to see how it went, but Jed replied at the same time, “Forever.”
Jed continued by adding, “Your aunt and I are together, but I still have to prove myself to her.”
“Prove yourself? What does that mean?”
“It means I messed up and now I have to show her I won’t do something stupid like that again.”
“What did you do?”
“Oliver. That’s enough questions. What do you want for breakfast?” Sadie cut in, sparing Jed the rabbit hole that conversations with Oliver could sometimes be.
“Scrambled eggs and pancakes?”
“Sure. Why don’t you go turn the TV on while I fix breakfast?”
He took off in search of the remote as she started pulling things she was going to need to prepare breakfast when she heard him squeal. “Jed!”
“Right here, buddy.” He stood with his cup of coffee in his hand, leaning on the counter, his ankles crossed.
“Your present! You weren’t here for Christmas to open it.”
The look of regret on Jed’s face broke her heart. He didn’t immediately reach for the gift Oliver was holding out for him. She could feel the emotion rolling off him as she watched the muscle in his jaw tick and he struggled to swallow.
“Don’t you want it, Jed?”
Jed’s voice was strangled and raspy when he responded.
“Yeah, buddy. I really want that present, but can you hang on for just a minute?
I left something in my truck. I'll be right back.” He shrugged his coat on and rushed out the door.
She could hear his boots stomping down the stairs.
When he returned he was carrying some Christmas themed gift bags in his hands.
“What’s that?” Oliver asked.
“Come over here and have a seat.” He waited for Sadie to have a seat on one side of him and Oliver on the other. “These are for you.” He handed two bags to Oliver and one to her. “I wasn’t sure what to get, so I hope I did okay.”
Oliver handed Jed’s gift to him, then tore the colorful tissue paper from his bags and pulled out what was inside. In one bag was a toy motorcycle. “That one,” Jed said, “is the exact same bike I have. I thought you might like it to go with your car that’s like mine.”
“This is so cool, Jed! Look at this, Sadie! Isn’t it cool?!”
Sadie took the motorcycle from him and looked it over. “Yes. It is very cool.”
Oliver was already moving onto the next bag.
He struggled to pull out the contents. Jed ended up helping him pull the box out and remove the lid.
He pulled out a little black vest that said “Property of Jed” on the back.
He frowned as he looked at it, then asked Jed, “What does it mean, Property of Jed?”
“First of all, it’s called a cut. All the brothers of the Sons of Redemption MC have one. Second, it means that you belong to me and that you’re mine.”
Oliver’s head tipped to the side. “Does that mean you belong to us, too?”
“Yes. I absolutely belong to you guys, too.”
Oliver tried it on. “This is so cool! I can’t wait to wear it to school!”
“I, uh, don’t think you should wear it to school, buddy, but you can wear it anytime you come to the clubhouse or whenever we go somewhere.”
“Thanks, Jed!” He wrapped his arms around his neck and squeezed hard. “I can’t wait to see it in the mirror!” He ran to the kitchen table and grabbed a chair, dragging it down the hall and into the bathroom to get a better look in the mirror.
Holy shit! She was going to cry again. If she was going to be a big ole crybaby for the next six months, it was going to suck. She somehow managed to blink the tears away. The cute little cut proclaiming Oliver his property declared his intentions loud and clear.
“Aren’t you going to open your present?” Jed pointed at the bag at her feet.
Reaching into her bag, she pulled out a similar box to Oliver’s. She held her breath as she opened it. “It’s beautiful,” she whispered with emotion. She smoothed her hands over the soft, supple leather, then traced the patches with her fingers. Property of Jed. She liked the sound of that.
“You didn’t think I’d publicly claim him and not you, did you?”
“When did you get these?” It had to be some time ago. These cuts would have taken time to make.
Jed’s voice dropped. “I ordered them the same day you went shopping with the old ladies.” At her obviously puzzled expression, he added, “Yeah. My heart knew then that I wanted you both, but I let my dumb ass self get in my own way.”
“This looks so cool on me,” Oliver declared as he strutted into the living room.
“Yes, it does.” Sadie chuckled as she agreed. Where did he get that swagger?
“Oh, wow! Did you get one, too, Sadie?” He came closer to get a better look.
“Yes, I did. You want to see how cool I look in mine?” She got to her feet, letting the box fall to the floor, and shrugged it on. Stepping over the trash, she modeled it for both of them. “What do you think? Am I cool?”
“Yep. You are way cool.” Oliver nodded his head.
“Why, thank you.” She returned to her seat and waved at the gift in Jed’s lap. “Are you going to open yours?”
He ripped the bow and paper off, then pulled the lid off the box. His fingers reached out to touch the leather bracelet she’d bought him. It was stunning. The craftsmanship was perfection. “Thank you.” He cleared his throat. “I love it.”
“I’m glad you like it.” He leaned toward her, giving her a quick press of his lips.
Oliver didn’t seem to notice or mind that Jed was kissing his aunt as he declared, “I’m starving.” He dropped to the floor to play with the toys he’d gotten for Christmas. Funny thing, he left his cut on while he played.
“How do you feel about cinnamon rolls?” she asked them both, deciding she didn’t feel like making pancakes and eggs.
“Yes. Sounds good,” Oliver replied as he skimmed the channels on TV. He finally found a kids' show he liked and left it there.
Sadie got up to put the cinnamon rolls in the oven. And yes, she was still wearing her cut. She put away the ingredients she had taken out of the fridge earlier and grabbed the can of cinnamon rolls.
Jed followed her to the kitchen to reheat his coffee in the microwave.
He set the cup next to where she was freeing the rolls from the can and arranging them in a baking dish.
He stepped behind her so that his hands settled on either side of her, pinning her to the counter.
“Definitely going to fuck you in nothing but that cut sometime,” he whispered in her ear.
She felt her cheeks flame hot along with a full-body shiver.
He chuckled in her ear. “You like that idea, don’t you?
” He dipped to place a kiss on her neck.
She dropped her head back on his shoulder and nodded.
In fact, she liked the idea so much that if Oliver was still sleeping, she’d drag Jed back to her room and do exactly that.
Holy hell. The man was dangerous to her libido.
He stepped back to allow her to slip the rolls into the oven.
Once she was finished, he pulled her back in front of him, this time so that she was facing him.
His expression grew solemn. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you and Oliver for Christmas.
It was the first Christmas without your brother, and I should’ve been there for you guys.
” He dropped his head back and shook his head. “I fucked up so bad.”
“Jed, this isn’t going to work if we keep looking to the past. I forgave you, and I think we need to move forward from here.”
“I like that idea.” He pressed his lips to her forehead. “I don’t deserve you, but I’m a selfish enough bastard to hang on tight. Never letting you guys go.”
This Christmas had been one of the hardest she’d ever experienced.
The loss of her brother hit her and Oliver hard.
Not having Jed in their lives at the time made things even worse.
He might consider himself selfish for wanting to hold on, but she was going to be just as selfish.
They loved each other, and they both deserved to be happy.
They’d both experienced heartache and loss in their lives, but from this moment forward, they were going to find their way to happily ever after.
And if anyone tried to ruin it for them, they better think twice.