Chapter 6
CHAPTER SIX
Katrina
“We need to talk,” Dagger announces the moment we step into my little house. A house that he’s spent every night in for weeks now. A house that has been my home for years now, a place that has been a sacred space for me since I first came to town and moved in.
“About what?” I drop my bag, not looking in his direction.
Instead, I head straight for the kitchen to get myself a bottle of water out of the fridge.
As much as I’d love to have a Coke or sweet tea, I’ve been doing my best to stick to water.
I didn’t want to drink a lot of caffeinated drinks.
I even cut my coffee down to one cup a day.
“Got some things we need to discuss,” he says, coming behind me, wrapping his arms around my middle, his hands resting over my very tiny bump.
If you didn’t know me, you wouldn’t think anything of it, but I could tell, and Dagger could too.
With the way he keeps touching my stomach, it’s completely obvious.
“Okay, then talk,” I say, turning in his arms, tilting my head back, and looking him in the eye.
“Let’s move to the couch and talk there,” he suggests, dropping his arms and taking my hand.
“Now I’m nervous,” I blurt quietly, more to myself than him.
“Nothing to be nervous about.” The softness in his voice eases some of the unnerving feelings trying to take root.
We’d just gotten back from my doctor’s appointment, where the doctor did another ultrasound so we could see the baby again.
It’s still a little early to see the sex of the baby, but honestly, I didn’t want to know.
I was perfectly fine not knowing until the day he or she gets here.
I didn’t need or want some big gender reveal.
There was no need for any of that. Not when it didn’t matter what the sex of my baby ends up being.
He or she is going to be well loved that’s all that’s needed.
Together, we sit on the couch, my back resting against the arm of it, my legs up in Dagger’s lap, his hands running along my bare legs.
With the temperatures being so warm, I went with athletic shorts and an oversized T-shirt with Crocs on my feet.
Totally when for the ‘I’m comfy, and I don’t care how I look today.
“So, what is it we need to discuss?” I ask, watching his features closely.
Dagger brings his gaze to mine as he shifts ever so slightly, eyes penetrating mine.
“When you came to the clubhouse to tell me about the baby, I had Cy, one of my brothers, look into you.”
I stiffen at his words, not liking that he had someone do this. It’s a total invasion of my privacy.
“I didn’t look at the file other than to find the address on the top page of it.
It had the studio warehouse and this place right on top, along with your phone number,” he explains and lets out a heavy breath.
“But Cy, he dug deep in a short amount of time. It’s not hard for him when he’s onto something.
He found someone else had also been looking into you. ”
“What?” I breathe. I didn’t like the sound of that.
Dagger nods, not wavering as he keeps going. “I sat down with my Prez and Cy as he told us this. Hammer made a call since we knew who the hell it was to find out why they were looking into you.”
“Who was it? I don’t get why—”
“What do you know about your dad?” he asks, interrupting me.
I frown at his question, not liking this at all. “I don’t know who my dad is.”
“That’s why you told me about the baby. You said you didn’t need anything from me, but you wanted me to know I was going to have a child. You were giving me the option to know our baby,” he says so matter-of-factly, it’s uncanny how he remembers everything.
I swallow nervously, feeling my throat tightening, my breathing becoming unsteady.
“I never knew who he was. My mom never told me,” I whisper.
“You don’t have a close relationship with her,” Dagger states, nodding.
“You can say that considering I don’t want anything to do with the vile woman,” I snap and suck in an unsteady breath.
“Growing up in my mom’s house, it wasn’t easy.
No, it was a total nightmare. If it wasn’t what Rena Ray wanted or about her, she’d throw a fit.
I can’t tell you how many times I walked in on her giving blow jobs to random men.
Or her bouncing on them with their bare ass on the couch I had to sit on.
The older I got, the more she hated me. She couldn’t just lock me away.
The men she brought home would eye me up for size, some even tried.
. .” I shudder at the memory of it all. It’s a part of my life I refuse to think about.
“Any of them succeed?” Dagger growls, eyes blazing with fury.
“More than one would get into my room,” I answer, shakily. “She would be passed out when they did, and they’d laugh. The one time I told her, she slapped me across the face, calling me a slut for spreading myself and inviting them to my bed.”
“Stupid cunt needs a bullet in her head.” The harsh bite in his voice gives me pause. “You talk to her at all?”
“She calls, and I refuse to answer. I’ve learned there’s no point in blocking her number, considering she doesn’t get the hint and calls from other numbers. Doesn’t even matter if I change my number, somehow she seems to find the new one.”
It’s a blessing I was able to keep her from posting comments of any kind to any of my social platforms. If I could have kept her from finding out I was a music artist, I would have. She thinks because I have music out there that she’s entitled to the money I make.
That’s not happening.
“Right,” Dagger grunts and shakes his head.
“Why do you ask about her?” I whisper, unsure if I want to know the reason behind this.
“We have a charter out in Colorado. That’s part of the intel that Cy shared about you, that’s where you’re from. They were the ones who were looking into you.”
I swear my heart stills in my chest at the mention of the Devil’s Riot Charter there. Weakly, I ask, “Why?”
“Your mom went there looking for Boxer, Grinder’s dad. They found out about you and were looking into you,” he says gently, though I could see the tick of the muscle in his jaw. “Grinder’s the President of the charter there, and he’s your brother.”
“What?” I stare at him wide-eyed and unbelieving.
“To say Boxer not knowing about you is hitting hard, and they’re pissed.
Both of them. Grinder’s older than you, by ten years, and is not happy with the revelation of not being able to be in your life.
One thing about my club, about my brothers, there’s nothing any of us wouldn’t do to protect our families.
To make sure those we care about are safe. ”
My mind is reeling over the information that Rena went to my dad. More so about the fact I have a brother. I never thought of it before. I always thought of the man who was supposed to be my dad and didn’t know about me. I hadn’t dared think further on the thought.
“Why would they care about a woman they didn’t know about?” I couldn’t help but ask.
“They care because they’re not douchebags or bitches who think of only themselves.
” Dagger’s answer comes out through gritted teeth as he reaches for me, shifting me up off the couch and onto his lap with my legs straddling either side of his waist. “Growing up, that’s what I dealt with.
Up until I couldn’t take anymore and joined the military.
Did what I could there, got out, found my brothers, and haven’t looked back.
My family consists of my brothers who take my back without question.
They might not be blood, but they’re family no less.
I’d kill for them as they would for me.”
I liked that he had this. Has his brothers. The way he’s spoken about them over the weeks we’ve spent together, I know he’s telling the truth. He never went into detail about his family like he just did, but what he did share, I was able to put the pieces together.
“I’m glad you have your brothers,” I tell him, cupping either side of his face in my hands.
Staring into his eyes, seeing past just the dark brown of them, I lean in, my lips pressing into his.
Dagger slides his hands up my back to tangle in my hair as he urges the kiss deeper, his tongue slipping in my mouth.
For a moment, I let myself get lost in the sensation, in the way Dagger makes me feel safe when everything else feels like it’s crumbling around me.
But the revelation he just dropped keeps circling in my mind, refusing to be pushed aside.
I break the kiss and rest my forehead against his. “I have a brother,” I whisper, the words feel completely foreign on my tongue.
“Yeah, you do.” His thumbs caress my cheeks. “Your dad and brother are both more than a little pissed they didn’t know about you sooner. We’ve been holding them off from coming to town. Don’t know how much longer we’ll be able to keep them at bay. Grinder’s growing impatient.”
“I don’t know what to do with that information.
” I close my eyes, trying to process it all.
“My whole life, I thought I was alone. Just me against the world. And now, finding out a name for the man I never knew is a bit more than I can handle. Especially learning that it’s more than just my dad, but a brother. ”
“Baby, you got people in your life. It’s not just you against the world.
Not only do you have me, but before I even entered the picture, you had your friends, you have Tucker, Mike, Jessy, and Chase.
You’re not alone.” Dagger’s voice is gentle but firm.
“You just got to see it as your world is just about to get even bigger. Especially with our baby coming.”
My heart skips a beat as I take in Dagger’s words, listening and repeating them in my head. Thinking about them, I know he’s right. I have had people in my corner for a while, but I never actually fully allowed myself to enjoy the fact that I did.
Leaning in, I kiss him deeply, needing that touch. I need the connection between the two of us. More than that, I wanted to feel what I’ve only experienced once in my life, and that was at the hands of the man who is slowly infiltrating my life more and more every day.
Dagger’s hands move back to my hips, holding me steady against him as our kiss deepens, keeping me from rocking against him as I long to do. The weight of everything he’s told me still presses on my mind, but his touch grounds me to the here and now.
When we finally break apart, I’m breathless. “Do you think they’ll hate me?” I ask, voicing the fear that’s been growing since he mentioned my father and brother.
“Not a chance in hell,” Dagger says firmly. “They want to know you. Not Kat Ray. Not the music artist. Not Rena’s daughter. They want to know the daughter Boxer missed out on knowing and the sister that Grinder never got to be a big brother to.”
I slide off his lap and curl up next to him, needing to process. “I don’t even know what I’d say to them. I mean, it’s not like I can just say, ‘Hi, I’m the daughter you never knew about’. That’s not exactly a great conversation starter.”
“You don’t have to figure it all out right now. You don’t even have to be the first to speak up.” His arm wraps around me, pulling me closer as he kisses the top of my head. “I’ll be with you, baby. You have nothing to worry about.”
I close my eyes and suck in a breath, appreciating him all the more.