CHAPTER 13
Kaya
I pulled into the clubhouse five minutes ago and have just been sitting in my car staring at the door ever since.
I’m hoping that Arianna kept her promise and didn’t say anything.
I debated not showing up, but I know damn well Maverick would have been at my door within an hour.
I need to face him, but I am not ready to announce he’s going to be a daddy.
I mean shit, I only just decided yesterday to stop pushing him away.
I think an announcement the very next day of a pregnancy might be a little much.
Plus, he may bail. His giant caveman ass might just hop on his bike and take off, leaving me and the no longer potential fetus behind.
Then, I’ll be alone forever, because there is no damn way I would ever open myself up to someone again.
I didn’t even want to open myself to Maverick.
He did that. He forced it and now here I am knocked up with all these big messy feelings.
I blow out a huff of air and get out. Baby steps.
Normally when I get into my head, I run.
Today, I’m walking in the direction of the man who has the potential to break me.
I pull open the clubhouse door and walk in, realizing this is the first time I’ve come here by myself.
The music is up and Jana is straddling Dom on one of the couches.
They’re not naked, but they might as well be.
She is grinding against him, and he is thoroughly enjoying himself.
On the opposite side of the room, Tink is wearing a mini skirt and nothing else, sitting on a pool table. Deuce and Tank are tossing her peanuts and she’s catching them in her mouth, giggling up a storm. Alrighty then.
I scan the room finding Maverick’s large form leaning on the bar with his back facing me.
Gator notices me and motions toward me with his chin.
Mav turns around and an actual smile crosses his lips.
My pussy immediately tingles at the sight of him.
I walk his way, smiling back. This is so not me, but I am actually happy to see him, like really happy.
He takes a swig of his beer and stands. My stomach clenches and guilt washes over me.
The last time he did this I bit his head off.
Not this time. I approach him and instantly wrap my arms around him, laying my head against his chest. I push down all thoughts of the stowaway in my uterus, and just enjoy my body against his.
He wraps me up, and I fit against him like a hot dog in a hot dog roll.
He’s so big that when I’m against him, I feel like I can almost disappear and it’s so comforting.
He drops a kiss to the top of my head. “You, ok?” he rumbles.
I nod against his shirt, squeezing him tighter. “I missed you,” I blurt out. Oh my God. Where did that come from? Geez. Take it back, take it back. I pinch my eyes closed, waiting for him to say or do something.
I feel him pull back a bit. I reluctantly look up at him to see him grinning. “You serious?”
“Yeah,” I choke out, scared to death of what he’ll say. I have an almost sick feeling, like my body is radiating with a throbbing heat that is the opposite of the heat I felt last night.
“Me too, baby,” he says against my hair. His voice is so low, I’m sure no one else heard him, but I sure as hell did.
I gaze up at him and his dark blue eyes are filled with emotion.
Has it always been there? Maybe it has been and I was so hell bent on protecting my heart that I didn’t notice.
Instead, I kept him at arm’s length. Not telling him about the positive test feels so wrong, right now, but I just can’t do it. Not yet.
I step back, noticing eyes on us. “Is Cipher downstairs?”
“Yeah. He must’ve told Ace about you because he brought it to me today.”
I quirk a brow. “What do you mean?”
“He knows we have something going, so he wanted to check with me that I was ok with you helping out.”
I put my hand on my hip. “You needed to give your permission for me to help?”
He shrugs. “Some guys might not want their women getting in close with the club.”
“So, what did you say?” I feel my voice crack a bit and I hate that I’m so freaking vulnerable. The minute I decided to accept him, it’s like my heart changed from ice to this delicate organ made of egg shell, ready to be smashed at the slightest rejection.
His arm wraps tightly around my waist and he pulls me close. “Told him I was fine with it.”
I lean against him, letting him take my weight. Jessica walks out from the kitchen and comes straight to us. I feel Maverick’s body tense.
“You’re Kaya, right?”
“Uh, yeah,” I say, eyeing her.
“We were never formally introduced. I’m Jessica. If there’s ever anything you want to know about this guy’s history, I’m the one to ask. I’ve known him since I was little.” She smiles sweetly, but it’s obviously fake.
“You don’t know me now, and you sure as fuck didn’t know me then.” Maverick spits.
“Come on,” I say to him, completely ignoring what she said.
He glares at her before walking away, with me at his side. He really dislikes that chick. The mere sight of her makes his entire body go rigid. I will have to see if he will actually talk to me about her when we have some time alone.
We leave Jessica in the center of the room and head to the basement.
The rec room where I spent many days with Sophia and the kids is on the left of the stairs.
Instead, we go to a door on the right. Maverick punches in a code on a keypad by the door that buzzes when it unlocks.
He pulls the door open and we go inside.
I light up upon seeing the set up. There are monitors on a large L shaped desk as well as hanging from the walls.
One side of the room is filled with servers and network racks.
Cords are running everywhere and the constant hum of the cooling units has me giddy with excitement.
I turn around in the center of the room checking everything out.
“This is amazing! I expected a nice setup, but this is more than I could have imagined.”
Cipher turns in his chair. “Yeah, it’s pretty fucking cool. Welcome to my playground!”
“Jesus.” Maverick grumbles.
I sit down in the chair next to Cipher. “Is there a generator on site?”
“Of course. Fully wired, with UPS on board. Can’t take any chances.”
“Nice. So, everything here is connected to the Iron Petal and the garage?” I ask.
“Yep. I can check out any of the security cameras here, or in either of the businesses with a few clicks of the mouse.”
I rub my hands together like an evil villain. “So, what do you want me to do?”
“Well, you said you got into the Sullivan’s system. Let’s see it.” He slides a laptop over to me and I get to work.
In less than five minutes I’m into Max’s security system, showing a clear view of the front door.
I go through each camera showing the different views.
I then move on, hacking into the town’s security cameras.
I bring up the main camera at the intersection in town showing traffic moving along as it should.
“Damn. You definitely have the skills I need. What about data systems?”
I smile wide. “My specialty.”
Maverick sits down in another chair and leans back, looking bored. After fifteen minutes I bring up Dogwood Creek Police’s login screen. Cipher perks up. I continue doing my thing until we’re inside their system. “Anyone have a case they’re interested in? Traffic violations you want gone?”
Maverick leans forward. “Holy shit, girl.”
Cipher’s eyes are wide. “Ok. You are scary good at this.”
I logout quickly after showing them I can get in. I do still get nervous hacking into government agencies. One wrong trigger could send me to prison, which is not something I want, but I figured it would be a fast and easy way to show Cipher, I know my shit.
“Thanks. It’s something I’ve messed around with for years. I know I could ruin lives if I really wanted to. It’s a nice little skill to have.”
Cipher pulls the laptop back in front of him. “I’ll definitely talk to Ace. You don’t mind if I run background on you, right?”
“As long as anything private you find stays quiet.”
“Of course. I’m not trying to expose your dirty secrets, just make sure you’re not a criminal or associated with the mob, like your friend.”
“Hey! She isn’t associated with the mob. Her dad was and she never even knew about it. Dragging my best friend, is not a good way to start our budding friendship.”
Cipher chuckles. “I’m just playing. I know she herself had nothing to do with the mob.”
I glare at him. “Touchy subject. Keep in mind I was close with her family and loved her little sister that died because of that mess.”
“Oh shit.” Cipher’s face falls. “Sorry about that. I know that whole situation was fucked up. I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“You’re forgiven,” I say, before standing. “But we’ll get out of here and leave you to it. Let me know what Ace says.”
“Sure thing. I can’t wait to have someone around here that understands what I do, and who I can actually have an intelligent conversation with.”
“Sounds fun,” I say, smiling. I stand and turn to the door, leaving Cipher with a wave. Maverick follows behind and we head back upstairs.