PART 2
MAVERICK
AS PREDICTED, the wrapping paper is flying in a million directions. Will is ripping through her presents like she’s on some kind of time limit. My attention is riveted on her. The excitement coiled in her tiny body is a wonder to behold.
I don’t remember ever having a Christmas like this one. Not as a kid. Not even when it was just my mom and me. It was a long time ago, but I think I would have remembered it if it had ever been like this.
Thinking of my mom has a rock wedging itself inside my throat.
I can’t fucking believe she’s coming here—and that my asshole of a stepdad isn’t coming with her.
She’s finally going to meet Ember and Will, and I just know she’s going to love them.
I thought for sure when she called to tell me Paul was sick that it meant neither of them were coming.
It pissed me off. I figured it was just an excuse.
And I’d been on the verge of begging her to reconsider when she dropped a bomb on me.
Her and Paul were having problems.
It turns out my not-so saintly stepfather slipped up and had an affair with one of her friends from church. They’d been trying to work it out, but she thought maybe spending this holiday apart wouldn’t be such a bad thing after all.
It’s sick, but that news was the best news I’d heard since finding out Ember was pregnant. I hate Paul. He’s a self-righteous dick. And he’s been pulling my mom away from me bit by bit over the years.
If my mom’s no longer sold on him being Mr. Touched-by-God, then maybe she’ll finally see that just because I’m not a choir boy doesn’t mean that I’m not a good man. I'm still the son she raised, who loves her.
A scream pulls me from my thoughts. Will yanks the giant plush unicorn from the box and gives it the biggest hug I’ve ever seen.
“Mommy, look!”
I chuckle at her response and then spare a glance at Ember. Her eyes light up every time Will calls her mom. It’s something new, and it shocks the both of us daily, but it also feels exactly right.
As Ember pets Saint, and keeps him from attacking Will’s new unicorn, she laughs and exclaims, “Oh my gosh! Look at that thing!”
Giddy, Will squeaks. “I know! It’s hu-mongus!”
Bending over I reach under the tree—scowling at the ominous gold mystery present as I do—and pull out the last present I have for Ember. Handing it to her, I say, “Second to last one, babe.”
Ember takes it but frowns. “Jeez, Mav. You’ve already got me enough.” She glances over at the pile of clothes, jewelry, makeup, and other odds and ends that I’d gotten her.
“Yeah, but these last few presents are special.”
Without Ember holding him, our puppy, Saint, saunters towards Will and her unicorn.
Ember takes her time unwrapping, almost as if she knows what’s inside. I tense as the paper comes off, and bite my lip as she removes the top half of the box. The subtle changes to her expression have me holding my breath.
Is it too soon?
Will she say yes?
Ember’s face flushes with color, and she bites her lip. Her eyes dart up to my face for a second before settling back to the leather vest inside the box—the one with her name on it and mine. The one declaring her my woman and a part of our little HOC family for life.
“Mommy! You got a jacket like me!” Will claps her hands and then runs her tiny fingers over the patches on the vest. “Ooohhhh...it’s like Aunt Birdie’s.”
My chest tightens with unease as Ember’s fingers follow the same path Will’s did.
They slide over the HOC insignia. Then she picks it up like it’s a fragile piece of cloth and gently turns it around.
Her fingers don’t touch the actual patch, but they trail over the words on it, Property of Luce.
Then they move to the other side and scroll over her nickname, Doll.
Her silence causes my stomach to roll like the ocean in a storm.
Not able to stand it a moment longer, I move towards her and crouch down. I comb her hair away from her face. Cupping her jaw, I tilt her face a little so she’s looking up at me.
“Baby, you’re gonna give me a stroke. What are you thinkin’? You don’t like it?”
Shaking her head, my panic spikes, but then she says, “No, I was just wondering what took you so long. Lily said you ordered this thing months ago. Did you forget how to spell my name?”
Still with the smart fucking mouth.
“She wasn’t supposed to say anything.”
“Yeah, but Lily can’t keep secrets. Especially when she’s drunk.”
Grinning wide now, she picks it up and stands. With great care, she slides her arm through one side. I stand behind her and help her put her other arm through. Seeing her red waves cascade down over my colors gives me instant wood.
Thankfully, I’m behind her, so Will can’t see a thing.
Gripping Ember’s shoulders, I turn her. Her face is down as she takes in the look of her new property vest.
“God, Doll. Say somethin’. You’re killin’ me here. Do you like it?”
As an answer, she grabs a hold of my T-shirt and yanks me closer.
Going up on her tippy toes, she kisses me hard and long.
Then pulls back for a mere second to whisper, “I love it,” before she plants her lips over mine again and sweeps her tongue along my lips.
“I love that it tells everyone you’re mine, too. ”
A rumble rattles off in my chest. In the background, I hear Will saying something about kissing being gross, but I couldn’t give a fuck. Weaving my fist into Ember’s hair, I deepen the kiss. Without words, I tell her exactly how much I love her.
We only pull away from each other when Will wedges herself between us and starts pushing on both of our stomachs. “Can we show her the surprise now? You said after all the presents were opened.”
I groan. I don’t want to stop. But I also smile because Will is an impatient little shit, and I love it. Even though she’s not biologically mine, she’s so much like me it’s uncanny.
“Yeah. I think now’s a good time.”
Will jumps up and down, unable to contain her excitement. “Will you help me ride my bike after?”
Ember smirks up at me. “I told you.”
At the thought of teaching Will to ride her first bike and finally showing Ember what I’ve done with the space above the garage, my grin spreads.
Could anything ruin this day? Nah, I don’t think so.
But then my eyes drift down to the damn present—the one that just happened to arrive when I wasn’t home.
If I had been the one to get it from the postman, I would’ve thrown the damn thing in the trash because I’m pretty sure I know who it’s from and mark my words; nothing good is in that present.
Ember’s only going to regret opening it, and I swear to God, if someone fucks with her today of all days, there’s gonna be hell to pay.
***
EMBER
A PRESCHOOL.
He designed and built me a freaking preschool above the garage.
As I look around at the space, I gape as I take it all in.
It wasn’t enough that he went and made half of the space an apartment we could rent out—a space that I’d asked him if we could offer to Ivy when I find her.
But then this gorgeous man goes and builds me a damn preschool.
Good God, what am I going to do with him?
Love him.
Hell yes, I am.
Because this...this is amazing.
There’s a huge tree in the middle of the room. It’s not real, obviously, but it’s so cute. The center of the trunk is hallowed out, and it’s massive. Mav says it’s for reading time. But God...it’s the neatest thing I’ve ever seen.
My gaze travels from the tree to the shelves filled with books. Will’s beaming beside them. “She helped me pick out some good ones,” Mav motions to Will.
“Jeez, Mav. This is incredible.”
“Bethany helped too. I didn’t really know all the stuff you’d need, so I gave her a little money, and she did some shopping. She got the little table and chairs and the mats. The rest of it, I ordered online and had delivered to the clubhouse.”
Leaving his side, I walk through the room. It’s so colorful, and the tiny chairs make my heart flutter. When I get to the other side of the room, I see a plethora of supplies: boxes and boxes of crayons, paint, paintbrushes, toys, small blankets, and nap mats. “Oh my God. How did you know?”
“Like you said. Lily spills everything when she’s drunk.”
“Drunk. Drunk. Drunk,” Will sing-songs.
Mav’s brows purse together, and he gives me an oh shit expression.
I laugh. Looking around again, I breathe out, “I can’t believe this. This is amazing.”
His hands circles my waist and he pulls me into him. “So you like it?”
“Love. Love. Love.”
He kisses my neck. “Merry Christmas, baby.”
Holding my hands over his, I whisper it back to him. “Merry Christmas.”
***
WHEN WE deliver the news about the new baby to Will, she takes it better than we thought she would.
She simply asks if it’s a boy or a girl, to which we tell her we don’t know yet and that we’ll find out in about a month.
She probes a bit to see if she’ll have to share her toys, but otherwise, she’s not really concerned.
She just shrugs and asks if Mav will teach her how to ride her bike now.
Then we venture outside. I help Will put on all the protective gear we bought her. Mav double-checks that the bike is safe and ready. I snap a picture of the two of them as Will mounts the new bike. The concern on Mav's face is priceless, next to the excitement on Will's.
There are a few rough starts, but all too soon, Will gets the hang of it and yells for Mav to let go—something I can tell he’s reluctant to do.
Will’s a lot like him, though, talented in so many ways, and honestly, it doesn’t surprise me one bit that she took to that bike like she’s been riding it for months.
What does astonish me is Mav’s response.
He seems almost disappointed and follows her around like a sentinel, ready to catch her if she even wavers for a moment—an act that fills me with amusement and pride.
It also makes me realize how valuable second chances are. To think I could have missed out on all this...
I guess sometimes, for the right person, giving them another chance is the only choice that makes sense.
Eventually, Mav realizes Will’s got this and backs off. He makes his way to me, and when he comes to stand by my side, his arm circles my waist. Smiling, I snuggle into his side and wrap my arms around him.
“God, she’s a talented little shit, isn’t she?” he rasps after placing a peck on my forehead.
“Yep, like someone else I know.”
In comfortable silence we watch Will.
Eventually, Mav breaks it by asking, “So you really think it’s a good idea to have everyone over?
” He reaches into his pocket and pulls out his phone.
After checking the time, he says, “I could cancel now, and we could spend the rest of the day with just us, wrapped up, on the couch, all cozy and warm. We could relax and watch some movies.”
Chuckling, I pinch his side. He flinches and tries to pull away.
“I’m kidding," he laughs. After a beat of silence, he adds, “But it’s tempting, ain’t it?”
Yeah... it is.
But I promised I’d cook a Christmas dinner for an army of HOCs, and I plan to do just that. Plus, with Nick gone, someone needs to step in and make sure these men eat a home-cooked meal on occasion.