Chapter 15
Chapter Fifteen
I’d wanted to talk to Hatchet for days, but he hadn’t shown his face in the clubhouse.
The sporadic texts and Jessa’s Instagram posts showed me the rough-edged, impulsive biker had been body-snatched by a guy who assembled IKEA furniture and wore a “Dog Dad” T-shirt while grilling steaks in the backyard.
All his focus was on getting Jessa settled. He looked happy, like this new domestic life with responsibility suited him.
If only that soft side extended to relationships.
As much as I enjoyed our friendship, part of me wished he were the kind of man who would settle down.
Who wanted the same things in life that I wanted.
But as commitment-phobic as he always was, I didn’t have a shred of hope he’d ever change.
With Jessa in the picture, he’d probably become even more antsy—wanting freedom in the moments where he wasn’t playing parent.
But I knew he’d show up when I asked if he could help Elena and her kids move into their new place.
“That’s everything,” Elena said, leaning against the tailgate of my truck. Her few belongings fit in the back with room to spare.
Eva bounced Tomás on her hip. “I found some furniture for you in the club’s storage unit. Just a few things: a bed, a sofa, and a kitchen table. I’ll follow you with Reaper’s truck, and Hatchet can unload it.”
Kenna and I exchanged a glance. The club didn’t have a storage unit.
Eva met my eyes and raised her brows in a silent challenge to keep my mouth shut. I couldn’t help but smile. She’d bought it, probably out of her own pocket, but she knew Elena wouldn’t accept more charity.
Tomás reached for Kenna with his chubby arms, and she stepped back.
I stifled a chuckle. While Eva clearly had baby fever, the only baby Kenna wanted was a baby goat.
I’d overheard her laying out a case for an entire menagerie to Merrick the night before.
The argument was so organized that I suspected she’d shown him a PowerPoint presentation.
Elena exhaled softly. “Is it weird that I’m going to miss it here? I know Sofia is going to miss Hatchet.”
As if on cue, Sofia shrieked as Hatchet and Jessa lunged at the girl as they played a nonsensical game they called “bear trap.”
“I think he’ll miss her, too,” I said. “He’s a giant kid. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind if you dropped by with her to say hi sometime.”
“Maybe,” Elena murmured.
She’d been through hell, and I didn’t blame her if she wanted to leave her time living at the club in the past.
Jessa walked over then, sweaty and smiling, and reached for Tomás like she couldn’t help herself. The baby cooed. Eva tried to turn away to keep hold of him, but Tomás whimpered, and Eva relented.
“Thank you for everything,” Elena said, reaching her arms to wrap around Kenna. “I can’t believe you even found me a job.”
Kenna hugged her back. “The owner of Onyx Taproom is a Maverick, and he needed a new server. It’s a nice place, so tips should be good.”
“Now I just need to find a daycare or a babysitter.” Elena ran her hands through her hair.
“I could babysit,” Jessa offered.
I arched a brow at her and then flicked my gaze to Hatchet, who was still chasing Sofia. “You should ask your brother first,” I suggested. “He has pretty strong ideas about you working.”
“It’s not work,” Jessa argued, clutching Tomás closer. “It’s fun. I love kids. And I’m going to lose my mind doing nothing until school starts. Besides, he told me I have to find something to keep me busy for the rest of the summer.”
I leveled my gaze at Jessa. She was still adjusting to having a parental figure who cared about where she was and what she did.
She groaned and threw up her hands. “Fine. I’ll ask for permission or whatever.”
She stomped off toward Hatchet, her golden ponytail swinging with fury.
Eva chuckled under her breath. “Hatchet seems to be taking to domesticity well.”
“He’s strangely good at it,” I said, watching Sofia chase Hatchet around the yard. Chaos lunged at his leg, yapping loudly. He yelped when the dog caught a bit of skin. I didn’t even try to hide my laughter.
A few minutes later, Jessa came trudging back, her expression dialed to full teenage exasperation. She still had Tomás propped on one hip, his tiny hand tangled in her hair.
“So, Mr. Overprotective said I can babysit, but only if it’s at our house.” She scowled. “Apparently, I’m not allowed to stay by myself at somebody else’s place. Because the world is full of danger and creeps and blah, blah, blah.”
“Sounds like a fair compromise,” Eva said. “He’s not wrong. There are a lot of creeps out there.”
My eyes flicked to Elena. “Looks like you’ve got a solution to your sitter situation.”
“I guess I do,” she said, smiling faintly. She turned toward Eva, Kenna, and me. “Really, thank you.”
We helped Elena load up the kids. Jessa headed off with Kenna and Chaos with some big talk about going to a book sale. Once Tomás was safely strapped in his car seat, we hit the road with Elena and the kids in the backseat, and Hatchet riding shotgun. Eva followed in Reaper’s truck.
The drive didn’t take long. The income-based apartment complex was tucked behind a warehouse in a long line of identical beige buildings. It wasn’t much, but it was safe and clean.
Elena stood in the doorway for a long moment, taking it all in, while Hatchet and I hauled boxes and Eva’s “found” furniture inside.
By the time everything was unloaded, Sofia had fallen asleep on the couch, and Tomás was already nodding off in his car seat.
Elena turned to me, lips trembling. “Merci, really. Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me,” I said. “Kenna did the hard part. She found this place and the job.”
“But you got me out,” Elena said. “You probably saved my life.”
I hugged her tightly. “You saved yourself.”
Hatchet and I said our goodbyes. The ride back was quiet.
There was tension in the air, like we were still figuring out how to be alone together as friends.
By the time we got back to Merrick’s place, the sun was slipping low in the sky, throwing long shadows over the dirt path that led down to the clubhouse.
I slammed the truck door shut. “Thanks for helping. I appreciate it.”
“That’s what friends are for, right?”
I tensed at his taunting tone. “Right,” I said, a bit too cheerfully. “Look at us nailing this whole ‘friends’ thing.”
“I should start my own moving company,” Hatchet mused. “Maverick Movers. Has a ring to it.”
“OK, Mr. Shark Tank. You buy one business, and suddenly you think you’re an entrepreneur.”
He chuckled and pressed a hand to my lower back as we started down the path toward the clubhouse. My heart kicked a beat at his touch, reminding me of how those same callused fingers had mapped my curves in the dark. How his large hands had pinned me down. How they’d unraveled me.
The hum of conversation drifted through the woods as we approached the party already underway.
I stumbled over a root, and Hatchet easily caught my arm to steady me. His fingers grazed my skin and sent a jolt through me. His hand lingered, and he pulled me closer.
“Merci—” he started.
My heart kicked in my chest before my brain slammed the brakes.
“We can’t,” I whispered.
His eyes searched mine as his hand fell away.
“We’re just friends,” I reminded him, forcing my voice steady. “Remember? We promised. No more … whatever this is.”
He huffed out a half-laugh. “Yeah. I know.”
For a second, neither of us moved. My traitorous body screamed for what my mind knew I couldn’t have.
He forced a smile that didn’t meet his eyes and stepped away.
As soon as we walked through the clubhouse doors, Hatchet split off to join Fuse, Rev, and Reaper for a game of pool, tossing me a quick nod as if nothing had happened. But the skin where he’d brushed his fingers still tingled.
I headed for the bar, slid onto a stool, and ordered an espresso martini. Leah huffed at me.
“Sorry,” I mouthed. She rolled her eyes as she shook the drink.
Kenna walked into the clubhouse. She spotted me and made her way over, pausing to let Merrick lean down and peck her on the cheek as she passed him.
“How’d the move go?” she asked, sliding onto the stool next to mine.
“Good,” I said. “Elena’s settled. We’ll still see them around, I’m sure.”
Kenna nodded, fingers drumming lightly against the bar. “She’s lucky you were her doctor. Not everyone gets that kind of fresh start. How many women in this town are out there right now with nowhere to go?”
Leah slid my delicious concoction across the bar with a murderous glare and pushed a margarita on the rocks to Kenna.
I sipped the drink and tried not to moan in pleasure before returning to the conversation. “Too many. And it’s not just about getting them out. It’s about giving them something after. Making sure they have stability and the confidence to make it on their own.”
Kenna’s eyes lit up. “What if there was a place for that? Somewhere to help women rebuild. We already do self-defense classes. What if we expanded into something more official? A place where women getting back on their feet could go for help?”
“Like a community center?”
“A women’s center,” Kenna clarified.
“With a clinic,” I added. “Somewhere they can see a doctor or therapist without worrying about cost or judgment.”
Kenna nodded, thoughtful. “I’ve got some money—a trust fund. It could cover startup costs. And I know how to write grant proposals.”
“You serious?” I asked, leaning in. “Because, if you are, I’m in.”
“Dead serious,” she said with a grin.
“What are you two plotting?” Eva’s voice cut in as she and Rhetta approached, drinks in hand.
“A revolution.”
Kenna turned to them. “We’re talking about a center for women. A place where they can get resources and help that they won’t find at the shelter. A place for women like Elena.”
Eva’s brows lifted. “That’s genius. I know of a good construction company that can help build it.”
I laughed. “Will you be paying in sexual favors?”
“Of course I will,” Eva said with a laugh.