Chapter Twelve
Maeve heard what Doc did. She heard how happy the town had been, and she listened to every piece of gossip as she worked at Kristin Shaw’s.
By the end of closing, she didn’t know if Doc was going to be there to pick her up.
He’d dropped her off in town that morning, but she hadn’t expected him to be there to pick her up.
Only, as she stepped out of Kristin’s shop, he was right there. She couldn’t help dropping her own personal makeup bag to the floor, she ran the few feet toward him and threw herself into his arms.
Doc laughed and picked her up, swinging her around. “Do you want to tell me what the meaning of this is?”
“I’m so happy to see you.”
He chuckled. “I have a feeling you’ve been listening to gossip today.”
“Yeah, only it’s not gossip if it is in fact true.” She smiled at him. “Is it?”
Doc sighed. “You tell me what you heard, and I will tell you if it’s true.”
“You went to that dick, Wilson Carmichael’s, house, who I heard kicked his wife and kid out of the house.
He then had a yard sale, moved his mistress into the house.
Today, you went and the mistress was seen running away terrified, and Wilson had all his belongings tossed out of the house, and well, you moved Jamie back into her home. ” She couldn’t stop smiling.
“Yeah, that is what happened.”
Maeve threw her arms around him, but Doc moved back, and she didn’t know why until he bent down and grabbed her bag. “None of this stuff is broken, is it?”
“No, no, it’s fine. Everything is protected, and it’s not like I dropped it too badly.” She couldn’t help but wince, but she couldn’t stop smiling. “When did you meet Jamie?” she asked. “Is this what the club does now?”
“I think we need to go somewhere and talk,” Doc said.
This did not feel good.
Maeve frowned, and she grabbed her bag. “Is this the part where you tell me it’s over and we move on from each other?” she asked.
Doc stopped and stared at her. “You don’t have a lot of faith in me, do you?”
“You want to go and talk? It’s not about having faith in you. I trust you.”
“Then trust me now.”
Maeve knew she wasn’t behaving like herself.
Fear did travel down her spine, but she ignored it and followed Doc to his truck.
He hadn’t brought the bike, but it was probably a good thing, seeing as her makeup bag was pretty large, and it had been a bit of a nightmare this morning.
He’d been determined to drop her off, rather than let her drive herself.
She kept advising him, but he wouldn’t listen. Kristin had a great deal of beauty supplies in the salon, but Maeve knew what she liked, and her makeup kit was fully stocked and had items that were not in the salon, which she needed to add those finishing touches that made a woman’s eyes sparkle.
Doc put her makeup bag in the back seat, and Maeve climbed into the front. It wasn’t an overly large car, but it sat high off the ground. Maeve didn’t say a word as she pulled on the seat belt.
Doc drove out of town, and it surprised her as they made their way toward a drive-thru selling burgers. He ordered them both large cheeseburgers and fries, and after they got their order, he handed it to her and parked up at the drive-thru.
Maeve took several fries out of her bag and shoved them into her mouth.
She was so hungry. Her stomach chose that moment to gurgle how hungry she actually was.
She’d skipped lunch because with now working at Kristin’s salon, within twenty-four hours, she’d become fully booked.
In fact, she was booked up until the Easter Fair, as well as after it through to July.
Kristin was shocked. Especially as Maeve had also limited her days to only three in the shop, so she could still be available for other clients.
She and Kristin had come to a negotiation that worked for the two of them.
Kristin had already posted the detail over social media, which had brought in a great deal more clientele.
“Maeve, I’m not a good person,” he said.
This made her turn toward him. She was not going to speak, but she would listen to him.
“The Chaos Monsters are not some rebel group. They’re not a fucking boy band.
In Rivermont Ridge, we keep the bad shit out.
That has been the agreement with Sheriff Hayes for a long time now.
” Doc looked at her, and Maeve didn’t look away.
“I’m not a good man. I have killed people in the past and I don’t give a fuck when I do.
The club must come first, it always has.
I take care of business, and I keep everything under lock and key.
Today, I showed restraint but there might come a time when Wilson Carmichael doesn’t go home. He doesn’t deserve his wife and kid.”
“What was today?” she asked.
“I don’t like it when men fuck over their responsibility. I don’t like man-babies. I can’t fucking stand it when men want to be men, stick their dick where they want, and then don’t take care of what they created.”
“Is that why you stayed with Nancy for so long, even after everything she did?” Maeve asked.
He looked at her.
She shrugged. “Nancy and I talked a little while ago. I figured your past was your past, and I wasn’t going to pry.”
“Nancy cheated a lot, but I had Charlotte, and then I had Jake, and just because their mother was behaving like an asshole, I wasn’t going to ... hurt them.”
“You’re a good man, Doc.”
“No, I’m not. You need to understand who you’re with.”
Maeve smiled. “You know, I’ve traveled the world for my job.
I’ve seen a lot of bad stuff. I have turned down clients after one meeting.
Several years ago, I had a woman who called me.
She offered to pay me triple my usual fee.
So I dropped everything and flew out to her house.
She was the wife of some kind of businessman, millionaire, I don’t know.
Because of my ability to hide tattoos with makeup, she needed to be on her husband’s side.
She needed me to fix what that man had done.
He’d given her a black eye, bruised her face, and her wrists and body were a mess.
She was a mess. She was shaking, and while she drank, I did what she asked.
The house was a mess, and it was easy to fill in the blanks of what went wrong.
That day, I told her to lose my number, because unless she was willing to go to the police, I was not going to help.
She told me the money and cushy lifestyle were worth his bad temper.
I’ve seen men and women taking drugs. I’ve heard a lot of bad stuff, Doc.
I know a lot of bad stuff happens in the world, I’m not a fool.
I also know you may do a lot of bad things, but you’re a good man.
You’re a good man that does a lot of bad things, but today you did a good thing for Jamie and her daughter.
If you want me to walk away, you’re going to have to dump my ass, because I like you, Doc.
I like what I see, I like what I hear, and I know there is a lot more to learn, and I want to be there to learn it. ”
Maeve had intended to sit in silence and just listen to Doc.
They hadn’t ever talked about commitment or a future, but Doc had already told her tonight if she got pregnant, they were together.
He wouldn’t walk away from her. They’d find a way to make it work, and that was all she wanted from him.
Actually, she wanted his love, but maybe that would come in time. She didn’t know.
He reached out and cupped her cheek.
And her stomach chose that moment to growl. “I need to eat.”
He laughed. “I’m starving.”
She unwrapped her burger, took a large bite, letting out a moan as the taste exploded on her tongue, and it was so good. Better than good.
“So did he cry? Did he threaten you with a lawsuit? I know Wilson Carmichael. He’s a piece of shit and hides behind his lawyer status to keep everyone in line,” Maeve said.
He’d tried to use that same shit on her, but she’d bluntly told him to fuck right off.
Wilson was nothing more than a bully, and when she pushed back against that bully, he did in fact back the fuck off.
“He didn’t look happy, and he didn’t like that I didn’t give a shit about his lawsuit.” He shrugged.
“What about Sheriff Hayes?” she asked. “Did he turn up and threaten to arrest you?”
Doc laughed. “I think if I do something like this again, you’re going to want me to film it?”
Her eyes went wide. “Would you do that, because if the answer is yes, then I would be all over that?”
Doc shook his head, but he was laughing at the same time. “Eat your burger so I can take you home and fuck you.”
That sounded like a good time to her.
****
Doc wanted coffee, but he’d been told he was not allowed to make one while Eden was going through her morning sickness phase.
It was the day of the Easter Fair, and Maeve was upstairs, sleeping for a little bit longer.
He’d kept her awake during most of the night, making her take every inch of his dick.
Right now, he wanted coffee. However, the coffee shop wouldn’t even be open yet. The Easter Fair always started at ten, and that was when all the stores opened. Sheriff Hayes had arranged it that way.
Last night, he met up with the good sheriff and laid down some ground rules when it came to the use of the club and how they were going to move forward. They negotiated their terms and parted ways.
Hayes didn’t like the bullshit that came with crime, along with the excess paperwork, and dealing with the criminals. His boys tended to patrol the streets, and any sign of activity they dealt with the old-fashioned way, or sent them straight out of town. There were a lot of ways to handle crooks.
“I thought I heard someone up,” Eden said, surprising him as she entered the kitchen.
She was dressed in jeans, but he saw the waistband was stretchy to go over her ever-expanding stomach.
She wore a wrap top that fit her perfectly.
She was a beautiful woman, and the pregnancy glow really shone through. “Good morning.”
“Good morning. What are you having?” he asked.
“I’ll have a glass of water,” she said, offering him a smile. “Are you wishing for some coffee?”
“A little bit, but that’s all right. When I take Maeve into town, I’ll get my coffee fix along with her.”
Eden smiled. “I have told everyone I don’t mind, they can enjoy as much coffee as they would like.” She wrinkled her nose. “Morning sickness is all par for the course.”
“But people are considerate, and they won’t do that to you.” He slid a glass of water toward her. “Trust me, you’d prefer it this way.”
“Ah, yes, you went through this with Nancy.”
“I did.” Actually, Nancy spent a great deal of her pregnancy moaning about all the things she couldn’t have.
It had been a little exhausting. She wanted coffee, he’d get her coffee, and she’d throw it at him, and then run away vomiting.
It was the hormones and her inability to handle them. “How are you handling it?”
“It’s okay at the moment. I’m trying to pretend I am a tea lover and I don’t love coffee.” She pouted.
“How is that working for you?”
“It sucks because I hate tea.”
Doc nodded. “I’m sure I heard that was a bone of contention between you and Mac, right? He always got you tea, and you never liked it.”
“Ah, yes,” Eden said. “You know, Mac’s a good guy when you’re not dating him.”
“You and Razor are by far a better match.”
Her smile widened. “Thank you. Right, do you want to get this over with?”
Doc raised his brows. “Get what over with?”
“I’m the little sister, but I need to know what your intentions are with my sister. Maeve is a good woman, and I may be pregnant, but my punch is fierce.”
Doc looked at Eden, and he had no doubt Eden would kick his ass, or she would put the threat on layaway, and then kick his ass at a later date.
“You’re looking out for your sister?”
“Yes, Maeve’s a good woman. She has been an amazing person for a long time.
She is fierce and loyal, and I love her more than anything.
She thinks I don’t know what she did for me, for the both of us, but I do.
I know all she sacrificed so I’d have a good life.
I need to know you’re not playing around and this is not a joke to you,” she said.
Doc knew he could fob her off with words, but that was not how he rolled. Eden deserved more than that from him. She was looking out for her sister.
He reached into his leather cut and pulled out the velvet box he’d purchased on the first week they got together.
Eden frowned. “What is this?”
“Open it, find out,” he said.
She opened the box and let out a little gasp. “This is an engagement ring.”
He nodded. “I’m in love with Maeve. She means everything to me, and I hope one day I mean everything to her, and I don’t want to take your place or any of that shit.”
She smiled at him, and he saw tears in her eyes. “You love my sister?”
“So much, it’s kind of scary. I don’t think I’ve ever loved anyone the way I love her.”
“Wow. Does Charlotte know yet? The last Maeve told me, she didn’t know.”
“No, I’ve got to tell her. Maeve wants to wait until after the ... Easter Fair,” he said.
“Maeve said in case she isn’t happy, and it makes for a bad working environment.” Eden tensed up and quickly pushed the velvet box to him, which he slid into his leather jacket as Maeve rounded the corner into the kitchen.
“Good morning, you two,” she said, and reached over to kiss him. “How are my two favorite people in the whole wide world?”
Doc smiled at her and pulled her in for another kiss.
Eden wrinkled her nose. “You’re my sister so I won’t be grabbing your ass.”
Maeve chuckled. “Where’s Razor?”
“He went to go and check on everything,” Eden said. “There are a lot of tourists this year. I overheard that all the hotels are fully booked already.”
“That’s like most years, though, right?”
“Yeah, I guess.” Eden smiled. “I better go and finish getting ready. Razor will be back to pick me up.”
Eden gave him two thumbs up, and he nodded in her general direction.
“Do I need to be worried? Eden was acting as strange as she usually does when she’s keeping a secret.”
“A secret?”
“I know my sister. What’s her deal?”
“I have no idea. I guess I make her nervous.”
He needed to tell Charlotte before he proposed to Maeve. Although, there was never a perfect time to propose.
Taking a sip of his hot tea, he winced at the taste. “This shit is fucking nasty.”
Maeve laughed. “You sound like my sister.”