Chapter 6 #3
“My own damn fault for not seeing it coming. The kid’s been a steaming pile of shit the entire time I’ve known him.”
“Ouch,” one of the girls in the vehicle says.
“Deacon, Claudia has a child with him, so maybe …” I blink and see Nalani is speaking, and she comes into focus. I turn to the other woman, and for a moment, I feel like my brain is skipping like an old vinyl record, and it’s not from the hit.
“I know who Claudia is.” I lean over and look at the little girl sleeping in the car seat on her lap. “There is a God. She looks like her mom.”
“Wait—how do you know Claudia?” Koa asks.
“Met her at the bar after a game, asked her if she knew what she was getting into. She didn’t answer. You were all there.”
“Avoiding Dingy?” Dash laughs.
“It was not a big deal,” Claudia, who is obviously shaken up and isn’t the same woman I remember back then. “A fling. I got pregnant. I told him because I thought it was the right thing to do. He chose not to be part of her life, and now this.”
“My old man was a dick; he thought child support was paying for time to kick his kids around.”
She blinks a few times and glances at Nalani, who puts her hand over Claudia’s. “He’s not gonna get a chance. I caught it all on video.”
“Queen move.” Sofie Fairfax, who I’m just seeing, reaches out a fist, and they tap them.
Claudia turns and looks at Dash. “I’ve never asked or received support. I wasn’t a puck bunny or whatever they call them.”
“Shit, Claudia, I wasn’t implying that you were.” Dash shakes his head. “Sorry if I came off as a tool.”
“There is no need to apologize. I just wanted to make sure that it’s clear that I didn’t have a child to trap an athlete. I got pregnant and knew I would be able to take care of the child and give her a good life.”
“She’s a doctor,” Nalani states with pride, as she should.
“Good. Take a look at Deacon’s head?” Dash asks.
“Of psychiatry.” Nalani clarifies.
“Then take a look at Dash’s head,” I mutter, pulling the cloth away and looking at it.
“Nice, asshole.” Dash laughs as he reaches into his pocket and pulls out his phone. “Message from Coach D.”
“Everything okay?” Koa asks.
“Apparently, a bunch of guys got taken to the cop shop, and she wants us to stay with Sofie tonight.”
“We can get a room.” Koa snarls
“Nope, the next message says, ‘Don’t get a room or go to your place. A room and in name will pop up in the system. Your place, they’ll be waiting.’”
“I um, I need to go back to Nalani’s,” Claudia says.
“Pump and dump?” Sofie asks.
What the fuck?
When we pull up in front of the house, Nalani scoots across the floor of the SUV and gets out. “I’m gonna need Savannah.”
Claudia hands her the carrier before climbing out.
Dash chuckles, “Message from Coach D. ‘Don’t go to Sofie’s or Noelle’s. The cops have their names.’”
“Seriously, it’s not like we knocked over a liquor store,” Sofie grumbles.
“Shit, what now?” Dash asks as he gets out. “Deacon, don’t go back to your hotel. Coach D says stick with us.”
“This is so fucked,” Koa murmurs as he climbs out. “Let’s go.”
“You sure about this?” I ask.
“This is some bullshit.” He says, but nods.
When we start to cross the road to head to a different place, we hear a loud whistle and look back. Everyone else is standing on the steps of a house that looks, well, like it needs a shit ton of work.
“Bullshit.” Koa lifts his chin.
“Welcome to the hen house.” Sofie laughs and waves to the door.
“It’s not as bad as it looks on the outside.” Nalani shrugs.
“Is that like saying, she’s got good bones?” Dash asks.
“She does.” Nalani pops the door open with her ass. “Shit locks, but good bones.”
I bite back a laugh because I am team Koa, but that doesn’t make her any less funny.
Sofie and Noelle look at each other and silently giggle as we walk past them.
Koa stops, and Nalani waves her hand, “After you.”
Koa is the last one up the steps. He stops and growls, “You get this isn’t the fucking island?”
“Aw, but it is an island,” she corrects him.
“Get your ass inside,” he snarls when a car alarm goes off.
“Is that a fucking chicken?” Dash asks.
“Not a fucking chicken, not even a regular one. It’s a hen.” Nalani smiles.
Someone inside laughs.
“You live with chickens, Nalani? Chickens?” Koa whisper-hisses.
“Hens,” she says as she proceeds to lock one of four deadbolts. “Updated the security system, Paul?”
“If I’d known the blonde was coming back, I wouldn’t have bothered,” a man answers.
“Nice to see you on your ass and not sprawled out on the floor like a starfish, Paul,” Sofie jabs back.
“What?” Nalani asks, pushing through all of us.
“Jesus, kid, tell me this crew is better than the sassy ass,” the man says.
“They, uh, yeah. They’re just gonna crash here tonight.”
“You know one’s bleeding on a diaper, right?” He chuckles and hands her a set of keys
“I do. He, um, got—”
“Paul, there was a bar fight, and these three can’t go home,” Sofie states. “They were not to blame.”
Holy shit, I think as I look at the cloth and realize it is, in fact, a diaper.
“You got a problem, kid?” he asks.
“No.” Dash runs his hand over his head and chuckles.
“Do I have pizza sauce on my face or something?” The man asks.
“No, sir,” Dash answers.
Sir? I think.
“Then why are you staring at me like you wanna kiss me?”
“I’m staring at you because I think you’re a legend.” Dash says quietly.
“You know, I get that a lot.” He winks then starts to walk away.
“Fuck, I gotta ask.” Dash chuckles. “Are you Paul Bronski?”
I lean to my side to get a look and no shit. It’s Paul Bronksi.
“The guys that roughed you up asking for me?” Paul grabs his walker.
“Jesus, Mr. Bronski, it’s an honor.” I hold out my hand.
“Wait—what am I missing?” Nalani asks Koa.
He lifts his chin. “That’s Paul Bronski, hockey legend.”
“No freaking way? Paul, why are you holding back on us?” Sofie laughs.
“That’s why right there—you’re gushing over me. I don’t like that bullshit.”
“Why are you holding back on me?” Nalani laughs.
“’Cause I think you got the hots for me, kid.” He chuckles.
“It’s the hair,” she says as she passes him and opens some door, and a fucking hen walks out of it.
“Could have done that myself,” he quips.
“I know. I just wanted to check on the big guy before I hit the hay.”
“You stop calling him Cock because of that one?” He throws his thumb over his shoulder.
“Which one?” She asks.
“The one that’s got hair almost as good as mine,” he says as he turns the corner to head down the hall. “He’s more your age, kid, but you should never trust a player.”
Once a door shuts behind him, Dash freaks out. “Paul freaking Bronski has chickens?”
“Hens and a rooster,” Nalani corrects him.
He makes an explosion sign with his hands. “You live with Paul freaking Bronski.”
“I thought I rented an apartment from him, but yeah, I guess so.” She shrugs
I lean over and whisper to Koa, “Jesus, is this what we have to look forward to?”
“Only if you’re lucky.” Nalani scowls at me.
“He has birds.” I shake my head.
“His wife of over sixty years had birds. She passed away a few years ago.” She nods to the door. “The elevator is getting fixed next week. Until then, we take the stairs.”
“How does he keep tenants here?” Koa asks, looking around.
“He got rid of them when someone turned him in,” Nalani says as she starts up the stairs.
“The tenants over the birds?” Koa grumbles.
“At least one of them was hers. They didn’t have kids, so yeah.”
Noelle sighs. “That’s so romantic.”
“Or insane,” Koa says quietly.
She smacks him, “He’s a good man.”
“With hens.” Koa quirks a brow.
“And a cock.” Noelle laughs as she starts up the stairs.
“What floor?” Dash asks, taking the stairs three at a time.
“Four.”
“You’re serious?” I ask.
“Suck it up, big guy. You’re only carrying yourself up. Claudia carries herself, a diaper bag, and a baby at least three times a day up and down them.” Nalani chirps.
“Must be why her ass is so tight.” I chuckle to myself.
Inside the little apartment, the tension is thick between Koa and Nalani, and yes, even though I don’t want to watch their story unfold like a movie or TV show, I’m kind of vested… and buzzed, and possibly concussed. This means I kind of do.
Nalani looks around, “The girls are in the big room. A couple of you can take the other; it has a decent bed. Then there’s the cot, a gift from Paul—”
“I’m taking the cot. I may even dry hump it.” Dash laughs.
“I’ll take the couch, and you and Deacon can—”
Dash cuts Koa off. “Deacon’s got the couch.”
Koa looks at him, just stares, and I do too, because Dash was not for this reunion back at the bar, and now he seems to be.
So… where is Claudia?
I look toward a door opening and see Sofie coming out with an armful of blankets and turns to Nalani and Koa. “You two go sort your shit, because I need to know if I have my wing woman back or not. I’ll manage the guys.”