Chapter Fourteen #2
“Good,” Big Dick said. “That is what I like to hear.”
And without another word, he left Wilcox’s house, and as he did, he knew the next place he wanted to go.
Raven and Carlos’s house was not too far from the clubhouse, and he straddled his bike and rode on over there.
Something wasn’t sitting right with him. He wasn’t sure what it was, but it was that feeling he couldn’t ignore. Big Dick knew he had to think about what was bothering him, but right now he didn’t have the time. He needed answers.
Raven wasn’t home, and he knew she was already with Ava and Abriana having a playdate with their kids at the local park. They always took their kids there. They wanted them to have as close a bond for the club as possible.
Carlos let him in, as he had moved out of the wheelchair and was working on crutches now.
“You want to throw a punch at me, you’re going to have to wait until I’m all healed.”
“You were not going to cash in on the bet?”
“Why the fuck would I?” Carlos asked. “Did you even think about that bet we made? I’ve done the whole prospecting and proven myself to your guys and to Raven.
Do you really think I would get Smokey to put you in a prospect position?
Don’t get me wrong, some of the guys would love to order you around and make you do shit, but not like that.
Do you really think Smokey would have listened to us and the whole club over a stupid fucking bet? ”
“Now that you say it like that, fuck, no.”
Carlos laughed.
“But I can’t help but wonder why you made it?” Big Dick asked.
“You needed to get your head out of your ass.”
“What the ever-loving fuck are you talking about?”
“The way you are with Larissa. I saw it. I’m sure a lot of other people saw it. You were constantly watching her. Did you even realize that you hadn’t been with a woman since she started working for Smokey?”
Big Dick frowned. “I was.”
“You weren’t. You weren’t even interested in them. I have a feeling it was easier to be interested in the other women when you didn’t have to see Larissa every fucking day,” Carlos said.
“And you think you had a right to make ... that bet?”
“Look, I came up with an idea for you to get your head out of your ass. You’re a lot of things, but you’re not one to back down from a fight, and if you think about it, a bet is a fight. Just in a different form.”
“Do you have any idea what we’ve done? What that bet did?”
“Yeah, I know what it did, and for that I’m sorry. I was never going to see it through,” Carlos said. “I always intended to come home and tell you it was off.”
Big Dick ran his fingers through his hair.
“She’s ... fighting you.”
“I betrayed her trust. Larissa is a ... she has this idea of what she wants out of life, and I’m not it.”
“You’re wrong there.”
“She wanted to meet the right guy, fall in love, get married, have kids, and raise a family together, driving off into the sunset, with no drama.”
Carlos held out his hand. “She met a guy—you. She fell in love with you. So far, that isn’t wrong.”
“Yeah, only people saw videos of us together and she knows the truth.”
“So, fight for her.”
“I am fighting.”
“From where I’m standing, it seems to me you’re moaning like a little bitch because it is proving to be a lot harder than you wanted it to be.”
“Fuck you.”
“No, fuck you. You want Larissa, and you love her, and you want to repair the damage, then you fucking fight for her. I know this, because this is what I did for Raven. I fought for her, and you know what, I fight for her every single day. I’m in her corner.
I’m her rock. I’m everything she needs, and it doesn’t matter what it takes.
I am here for her. She can break down, and I am not going to run.
She can argue with me, and I will be here.
If you love Larissa, if you truly love her, then what I said will not scare you, and you will fight.
It’s not about chocolates and flowers and jewelry.
It’s about showing up. It’s about being there every chance you get. ”
****
Larissa hated how tired she felt. Even though she was in her first trimester, she felt exhausted, and that wasn’t supposed to come for a little while. Although some books do suggest you could get tired, so perhaps she was just unlucky.
Ava and Harlow had told her she was doing too much.
The truth was, she was trying to fill her mind in doing everything that would stop her thinking about George.
She had even taken up knitting in an attempt to learn a new skill.
In the past, she had knitted but rarely got past a scarf.
Now, she was attempting a baby sweater, and so far, it was looking like the pattern.
At least, she hoped it looked like the pattern.
She was constantly following the knits and purls, until she got to the end of each section.
She was enjoying the process, for the most part.
The very thought of knitting was exhausting tonight.
She and Ava had agreed that they would need to find another employee.
Ava had already put out the advertisement.
The bakery was doing well enough and Smokey had agreed to get a third person.
Harlow had said she didn’t want to come back to the bakery, as she loved working with Hailey.
Larissa knew how much fun it was working at Hailey’s.
Some nights, if the beauty parlor was still open, Larissa would go and pass the time by helping put product on the shelves. She always liked to be busy.
Arriving at home, she saw the lights were on, and she frowned, because her father wasn’t due back yet. She got to the front door, and she nearly screamed until she realized George was on the other side. Only, he shouldn’t be inside her house.
“Before you start freaking out, I have already spoken to your father and he is happy with my ... suggestion.”
She held her key in her hand. “Suggestion?”
“Come on in. You don’t want to freeze your tits off. Sorry, sorry, I mean ass off.”
She tensed up as he pressed a hand to her stomach.
“Sorry, little one. I will get my language in order when I am around you.”
Larissa was pulled into the warmth of the house. “Suggestion?” she asked again, hoping to put some sanity on what was happening.
“Ah, yes, come on, let me take your coat.”
Her coat was eased off her shoulders, and he took her bag, and she didn’t fight him as he took hold of her hands. Although she did hate the feeling that swept over her as he touched her. His bare flesh to hers. It had been the first real time they had touched like this.
When they stepped into the kitchen, it was then that she inhaled all the delicious scents, and her mouth started to water.
“Have a seat. Let me get you a glass of milk,” George said.
She was sat down in a chair, and she was still confused.
“Did you break into my father’s house?”
“No, I called him and he told me where the spare key was.”
“My dad actually told you where the spare key was?” This made her even more confused as her father didn’t trust easily.
In fact, Jonah Adams hadn’t wanted to talk about Big Dick, or George.
That wasn’t the truth. He wanted to talk about him, but Larissa had asked him to stop.
It was the first time she had told her father no, and that she wasn’t going to listen to reason.
She had been hurt, and she didn’t want to talk about him, nor know anything about him.
The pain of the betrayal had been too great.
“Yes, he told me where the spare key was, and he also said you were going to hate my idea, but he liked it.”
“Your idea?” she asked.
This was getting scarier by the second. She knew all about how good of a sweet talker Big Dick was.
“Yes, I am going to be living here from now on.”
“Wait? What?” Larissa asked.
This was starting to sound worse than she wanted to know. This couldn’t be possible. There was no way he could be living here. That wasn’t going to work. It was bad enough dealing with the memories of being with him. There was no way she would be able to handle this.
“No,” Larissa said.
“I’m going to take care of you,” George said.
“I’m going to give you the space you need to adjust, but I am part of this baby’s life.
” He crouched down beside her. “I know you won’t believe me, and I don’t blame you.
But I love you, Larissa Adams. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, and I’m going to be there for you.
I’m going to help you in the morning, take you to work.
Where I can, I will help you there as well.
I’m not a baker, but I can cook a good meal from time to time.
I’ll have obligations at the club, but for the most part, I am going to be by your side. ”
“You’re needed at the club.”
“And I’ve already talked to Smokey. He is happy with me taking a step back right now, helping you. Fixing what we have. If he needs me, he’ll call.”
Larissa was shocked.
“You don’t have to do this,” she said.
“Yeah, I do. I love you,” he said.
Was it just because of the baby?
“I should have told you that when you told me you loved me, but I was a fucking idiot. Have I told you that lately? How much of a fucking idiot I am?”
She shook her head.
He surprised her even more by getting to his feet and pressing a kiss to her forehead.
“You’re not going to need to worry about cooking dinner. I’ll take care of that.”
She watched as he moved toward the stove and began to make them dinner. This was spaghetti, with what looked like giant meatballs. She had never seen them that large before. She always made modest meatballs.
Looking up at him, as he came to the table, he put the plate in front of her, along with a knife and fork. She still had a glass of milk, and she took a long sip. George had a large glass of milk as well.
“You went grocery shopping,” Larissa said.
“Yeah, when I got here and Jonah told me how to get inside, I checked the fridge and freezer, saw that you only had a ham sandwich for dinner tonight, so I went and stocked everything up for you.”
“I bet that was an experience.”
“I’ve gone to the grocery store a lot over the years.”
“You have?”
“Okay, not recently, but I used to go all the time for my parents, as well as for the club when I was prospecting.”
“Prospecting?”
“Earning my place at the club. It’s not an automatic entrance. You have to prove yourself, and I did. It’s a lot of hard work and humiliation, but the reward was totally worth it. Speaking of my parents, this Sunday we’re going to dinner there.”
“We’re going?”
“Yes, I would like you to meet them. Is that cool with you?” he asked.
“You’re asking if I would go?”
“I would appreciate it if you did. It would help me a lot. I know my mom is pissed at me how all of this has happened, but they would love to meet you.”
She already knew his mom and dad, but they hadn’t been formally introduced.
“Okay,” Larissa said.
Her father was still going to be away.
Dinner at George’s house. It seemed like a recipe for disaster.
“Great. My brothers are going to be there and so are Harlow and Hunter.”
“Oh,” Larissa said. “It’s not just going to be with your parents?”
“Unfortunately not. They’re taking the whole relationship with their kids to a new level,” he said.
“Okay.”
Was she okay with that?
“Don’t worry. I won’t leave you on your own. Unless you want me to.”
“You’re the oldest, right?”
“Yes, It’s me, then Callum, Michael, Bernard, Erick, Jude, and then little Harlow.” George smiled.
That did not sound overwhelming at all.
“Where are you going to sleep?” Larissa asked.
“I’ve already set up the guest room,” George said. “Where Raven stayed when she lived here.”
Larissa nodded. This was fine. It was going to be a piece of cake.
George was going to be around, and she was going to have some help around the house. Ava was going to find another employee, it was all going to work. Although, she did have doubts.
“Did you see what happened to Wilcox?” George asked.
Larissa looked up. “What?”
George pulled out his cell phone and pushed it toward her.
There was a video on the screen that required her to press “play.” At first, she hesitated but then figured she might as well get it over with.
It was just a short three-minute video that explained all of Mr. Wilcox’s bad deeds. She was shocked.
“How did this happen?”
“I did some digging. Found out he has a lot of skeletons in his past, and it was time to expose them. I wasn’t going to let him get away with what he did to you.”
“You didn’t have to—”
“I know. I’m going to protect you, Larissa. That means no one gets to mess with you and get away with it. Not on my watch.”