6. Spike and Milly
SPIKE AND MILLY
“Come on, Mr. Fluffy.” Millie tugged at Mr. Fluffy’s leash as she attempted to get him out the door. “We’re gonna be late if you don’t move.”
“Millie, leave him. I’ll get him,” Spike ordered as he walked out of the kitchen.
“I don’t know what his problem is. He loves barbecues. And picnics. I think it’s because he saw me pack his earmuffs. He hates the earmuffs.”
“Pretty sure he doesn’t need the earmuffs,” Spike said as he walked over.
“No, he never seems that bothered by loud noises,” she admitted. “But what if today is the one day he hates the sound of the fireworks? I’ll bring them just in case. That’s if he actually gets in the truck. I don’t want to leave him alone in case he freaks out.”
Spike stared down at Mr. Fluffy skeptically. “What would he do when he freaks out?”
“I don’t know. Maybe he’d run around? Pant? Cry?”
“All of those require energy. Think we’re safe.”
But Spike crouched down and picked Mr. Fluffy up in his arms and carried him to the backseat of the truck. Millie had a blanket and some pillows set up for him, as well as his favorite toy.
“See, Mr. Fluffy? I’ve got Ducky for you. You love Ducky!” She held the toy in front of his face, but he simply let out a huff and lay down.
“Why do you think that Ducky is his favorite?” Spike asked as he closed the back door, then helped Millie into the front seat.
She was wearing the Fourth of July dress that she’d made especially for this barbecue. It had a sweetheart neckline that was tight around the bust, then cinched in at the waist with a belt, before falling into a series of pleats.
The material was red, white, and blue striped. She thought it was pretty adorable, and she had a huge straw hat to protect her skin from the sun.
She’d found a red ribbon to wrap around the top of it.
Unfortunately, Spike hadn’t been keen on wearing the shorts that she’d made for him.
Maybe they had been a bit tight across the bottom, and she could possibly see his concern about bending over and having them split at the seams. Although he’d suggested that she make a pair of them for herself.
But only to be worn at home, where just he could see her.
And Millie thought that idea had some merit. She’d need to make a cute top to go with them.
Spike climbed into the driver’s side of his large truck and started down the driveway.
“Oh, it’s totally clear that Ducky is his favorite. You should just see the way he looks at him, with love in his eyes, and he cradles him close and carries him around.”
“Never seen Mr. Fluffy carry anything around that wasn’t food,” Spike said to her. “You’re the one that carries Ducky around.”
“Yes, but Mr. Fluffy wants me to carry Ducky around. I had really hoped he’d like the brontosaurus that I got him, but he doesn’t pay it any attention. He’s just a one-toy dog, you know? Like me. I’m a one-man girl.”
“Damn fucking straight you’re a one-man girl. You had any other man, he’d be dead right now.”
“You’re always so romantic, Spike,” she said, leaning over to rest her head on his shoulder.
Spike just grunted.
She didn’t know why people were so surprised when she said that Spike was romantic. It just wasn’t as obvious as things like flowers and chocolates. But she’d take him threatening to kill any man who acted inappropriately toward her over chocolates any day.
To Millie, that was true romance.
“That why it ended up in the playroom?” he asked.
What ended up in the playroom? Oh, the toy dinosaur.
“Yeah. That’s exactly why it ended up in the playroom.” She nodded. “It didn’t have a thing to do with the fact that I like dinosaurs; it was because Mr. Fluffy doesn’t.”
“Right,” Spike said.
He didn’t sound all that convinced.
“Oh, no, did we forget the potato salad?” she cried, turning around to look into the backseat.
“No, I put it in the very back, in a cooler,” Spike told her. “Didn’t want to risk a Mr. Fluffy incident.”
“Good thinking, Daddy. He would have been all over that potato salad. He loves potato salad.”
“He loves any food.”
“Now, that’s simply not true,” Millie told him. “He really doesn’t like that diet dog food the vet put him on. He said it tastes like cardboard that’s been chewed up and spat out.”
Spike shot her a look, then shook his head. “Told you that, did he?”
“He did. Not so much with words, seeing as he can’t talk, but it was more the look in his eyes. He looked . . . desolate. You know? It’s like all his worst nightmares were packaged up in that disgusting, dry cardboard food. Do you know what I mean?”
Spike grunted.
They pulled into Ink and Betsy’s driveway, and she started to bounce around with delight.
“I love the Fourth of July. Don’t you love the Fourth of July, Daddy?
You get to have fun with your friends, eat lots of nice food, wear clothes that are red, white, and blue and then at the end of the day, you get to watch pretty lights sparkle in the sky. It’s like the perfect holiday, really.”
Spike parked and turned to her, unbuckling her seatbelt. Then he grasped hold of her chin, tilting her head back slightly. “Listen to me.”
“I always listen to you,” she said.
He gave her a skeptical look, as if he didn’t quite believe that.
How rude.
“No wandering off. You’re to stay with everyone, and if you need to go anywhere, like the bathroom, then you’re to tell me.”
“Daddy, you’re acting like there’s a threat here. There’s no threat.”
“Always the possibility of a threat, baby, and I just want to keep you safe.”
“And that’s why you’re the most romantic man I know.” Leaning over, she kissed him on the lips. “Now, let’s go eat! Sunny said she was going to bring cupcakes for us to decorate. I’m so excited.”
As soon as Spike exited the truck, he knew something was wrong. He glanced around. Everyone looked tense and concerned. What was going on? This was supposed to be a fun barbecue.
He moved around to the passenger side, but didn’t open the door for Millie. She gave him a surprised look, but he just held up his hand, telling her to wait.
Then he glanced around and saw Hack and Greer standing close by. “What is it?”
“There’s no threat,” Hack reassured him. “The girls are just upset because Zinnia Danes collapsed on stage during a country and western show in Las Vegas.”
Ahh. Right.
Millie wasn’t big on country music, but even she thought Zinnia Danes was cute and lovely. He thought it probably had something to do with her lilac-colored hair and carefree attitude.
Spike opened the front passenger door and helped Millie out.
“What’s going on?” she said. “Why does everyone look glum? This is meant to be a party.”
“Zinnia Danes collapsed on stage at a concert in Las Vegas,” Greer told her.
Millie gasped, placing her hand over her mouth. “Oh, no, that’s terrible. I love Zinnia Danes.”
“I’m sure she’s fine,” Hack said. “She just needs someone to look after her better. She’s probably been pushing herself too hard.”
Greer nodded. “She did look tired during the last interview I saw her give.”
“She’ll get some rest once she’s at the hospital. She’ll be fine,” Hack reassured them all. “Come on, let’s go have some fun. You girls have got some cupcakes to decorate, I hear.”
“Hack!” They all looked up at the cry as Betsy moved toward them, holding a large, rolled-up piece of paper in her hand. “I made you something.”
“You did?" Hack gave her a look filled with surprise as he took the rolled-up bit of paper from her. As he opened it, glitter flew out, sprinkling down around him.
“It’s a glitter picture,” Greer said. “Betsy, that’s awesome.”
“Thanks,” Betsy said with a shy smile. “Do you really think so?”
“I do,” Hack replied. “This is a great picture, Betsy. Are you sure you want me to have it?”
“Yes, I made it just for you because you love glitter.” Betsy smiled at him.
“He sure does!” Greer said. “Unless it gets in his beard. He hates glitter in his beard. Oh and in his butt. When it goes in between his butt cheeks and it itches.”
Hack sent her a look of disbelief. “I cannot believe you just said that.”
“Neither can I,” Spike said dryly. “More than I needed to know.”
Millie let out a surprised giggle, and Spike wrapped his arm around her.
“What is it?” Spike asked.
“What?” Hack asked.
“What is the picture of?” Spike asked, nodding down at the picture that Hack was still holding.
“Oh, yeah. Would you like to explain it, Betsy?” Hack said.
Yep, Hack had no idea what the picture was of. Amusement filled Spike as he moved back to open the door for Mr. Fluffy, lifting the dog down.
Mr. Fluffy took two steps and then collapsed with a loud sigh, as though that had completely tired him out.
It likely had. He was the laziest dog that Spike had ever met, which was why he had to go on a special diet with cardboard-tasting food.
Because he was putting on way too much weight.
“Oh, no, you should explain what you see,” Betsy said, bouncing on the balls of her feet. “After all, the picture is for you.”
“Yes, Hack. Tell us,” Spike said.
Hack sent Spike an unamused look and it was all Spike could do to keep the smile off his face.
Hack cleared his throat and glanced down at Greer. She was biting her lower lip, obviously trying to hold back her own smile.
“What’s going on? What are you all doing over here?”
Spike glanced over as Cash Savage walked toward them. His best friend, Ralen, was next to him. Both men were fairly new to town. Cash had returned home after years of hiding away with Dante Diaz in Mexico.
Cash wrapped his arm around his sister’s shoulders and leaned down to kiss the top of her head. Cash and Ralen weren’t part of the Iron Shadows. Spike knew that they wanted to join, or at least Cash had, but he’d already given his allegiance to Dante Diaz.
Apparently, Dante hadn’t been impressed with the idea of Cash and Ralen splitting their loyalties. But they were still invited to family things like this barbecue, because that’s what they all were, a family.
A strange, odd sort of family. With a real mix of people.
He turned and glanced over at Sunny, who was talking to a stranger.
Only he wasn’t a stranger, was he? Just because Spike had never seen this disguise didn’t mean he didn’t know who that was.
The Fox.
Part of him still found it hard to believe that they had an assassin in their mix, a man who had killed people, but who had also done a lot to help them, who had rescued more than a few of their women.
And who was now part of the family.
The Fox nodded at something Sunny said, smiling down at her. Spike was kind of glad that the Fox wasn’t as close to Millie as he was with Sunny. At the same time, he knew that Sunny was now one of the most protected people in the city of Billings.
The Fox would always make sure that.
He was also glad that the Fox had never bought Millie a pink motorbike, because he knew that she would insist on riding it. She’d probably put some sort of seat in the back for Mr. Fluffy and buckle him in with his own motorbike helmet.
Oh, God, Spike could see it now. All too easily.
Yes, he was glad that the Fox didn’t send Millie ‘gifts.’
Sunny giggled at something the Fox said as Brody and Autumn moved toward them. Brody and Autumn started talking to Sunny, and the Fox glanced around, his gaze hitting Spike’s.
The Fox nodded to him and he nodded back before turning back to find Hack had started guessing what Betsy had drawn a picture of.
To him, it looked like an alien getting beamed up into space.
“Um, is it a flower?” Hack said.
“No,” Betsy said, shaking her head. “Stop playing around. You know what it is.”
Oh, he really didn’t.
Millie leaned against Spike’s side, and he placed his arm around her again. He could feel her shaking and glanced down at her in concern.
But when she looked up at him, there was amusement in her face. Ahh, she was just trying to hold in her giggles.
Relief filled him. The last thing he wanted was Millie to be upset. His world revolved around his girl and her happiness.
Not that he wouldn’t spank her bottom if she was naughty. But he thought she was happier with boundaries in place. And someone to enforce them.
Because she’d had very few boundaries before he’d come along. In fact, she’d put herself in some dangerous situations that he did not approve of.
No, she was much safer now that he was taking care of her.
It seemed like Zinnia Danes might need a Daddy herself if she was collapsing on stage due to exhaustion. He remembered the last interview he’d seen with her, and he swore that she was looking thinner and more drained.
Not that it was any of his business. He had his own girl to take care of, and she was a full-time job.
One that he thoroughly enjoyed.
“Right. Yes, of course it’s not a flower,” Hack said, rubbing at his forehead as he stared down at the picture. The look on his face was one of intense concentration, as though he thought the answer was suddenly going to pop out at him.
Poor bastard. Spike wouldn’t want to be in his shoes. That was for sure.
“Is it a bird?” he said. “Or an octopus?”
“No, it’s not a bird or an octopus. And those things aren’t even alike, so how could it be one or the other?”
“Oh, she has a good point,” Spike stated.
“It doesn’t have eight tentacles,” Millie pointed out. “You need tentacles to be an octopus.”
“That’s true,” Greer said. “It also doesn’t have any feathers. You’re not very good at this, are you, Daddy?”
Hack sighed and gave them all a resigned look. “Well, what is it then?”
“Ink! Hack doesn’t know what the picture is that I made for him,” Betsy said.
“He doesn’t?” Ink said, shaking his head. “How can he not know? I think it’s perfectly obvious.”
“I don’t know,” Betsy replied. “Maybe he just doesn’t understand art.”
“Or has no sense of imagination,” Spike added.
“All right, everyone. What is it?” Hack said.
“It’s your house,” Betsy told him. “See? This is the roof. There’s the door and the windows.”
Even with her pointing out exactly what it was, Spike still didn’t see it. It looked more like a storm cloud. Or a tornado with cows flying around the middle. Actually, that was exactly what it looked like, except for the glitter.
Glitter didn’t really belong in a tornado.
“I see it now,” Cash said. “That’s exactly what it looks like. I don’t know how you couldn’t see it, Hack.”
Hack just glared at the younger man. Cash smirked as he turned around and led his sister away, chatting with her quietly. Ralen followed them after giving Betsy a wink.
“Good one, doll,” Ralen said to her.
“Right,” Ink said. “Who’s ready to eat?”