Chapter 45 – Rebel #2
“Of course! Why make your life more complicated if there’s a simpler solution?”
“Pizza, it is.”
“Do you want some lemonade?” she asked, not ready to return to her lonely room. “That’s what I was drinking. I can refill mine and pour you some as well.”
“Have a seat,” he told her, still more formal than she liked. “I’ll do the honors.”
Once Rebel complied, it didn’t take long for Bishop to pour their drinks and join her at the breakfast bar.
“How’s your sister?” she asked, trying to jumpstart the conversation. “The one with the baby.”
“She’s fine. Motherhood is hard on her, but she’s fifteen, so that’s to be expected.”
“I guess so,” Rebel mumbled, sipping her lemonade to hide her bemusement.
“How’s Rule?”
“He’s okay. I talked to him yesterday afternoon. He doesn’t know what happened to me, though.”
“It’s probably for the best. He’s so far away, he might feel a little helpless.”
“Or it might bring him back to what he did,” Rebel said, trying not to think too hard about her twin. It was best that way. As long as she didn’t dwell on him, she didn’t drown in that misery. “I have another question about your sister.”
Bishop drained his glass. “I’m listening.”
“Why doesn’t she have help with her baby? Like your mom and your other sisters. Why don’t they help her?”
“Because the baby doesn’t belong to them.”
“Momma told me if I had a baby she’d expect me to take care of it—”
Snapping his brows together, Bishop choked. “You want a baby?”
His appalled tone irritated her, though she flushed, reminded of how her mother had sounded. “No. Yes. I don’t know. I just…I’m afraid I’m going to die soon.”
“So, you want to have a baby and leave it motherless?”
“No! I want to have a baby so I’ll be remembered.”
“What?”
“Kaia agreed that I probably don’t have long to live. I want to experience love and motherhood and…and…stuff.”
Bishop studied her, scratched his jaw, and studied her again. “First? Kaia’s a fucking idiot.”
“He isn’t! He’s brilliant.”
“Good God Almighty, you really believe that?”
“Think about his poetry. How can you not believe it?”
“Fuck, never mind. I assume you want to have Kaia’s baby.”
“Uh—”
“Fuck,” he said, shaking his head. “Diesel’s?”
Rebel started to squirm. “Maybe.”
Sighing, Bishop slid his fingers through his hair, walked to the refrigerator, pulled out the pitcher of lemonade and refilled his glass.
“I already know you’re going to berate me or lose your patience or tell me how disgusting and gross I am.”
He put the nearly empty pitcher back into the refrigerator and returned to his seat next to Rebel. “I am sure the message can be delivered in a different way, but I wish you’d listen. Unfortunately, as long as I’ve known you, you ignore what you don’t want to hear.”
She knew that meant he wanted to warn her away from Diesel. They were friends, though, and she needed someone to talk to. As much as Momma tried to be an ear for Rebel, she, like everyone else, judged her. She also lost her temper more often than not, which made Rebel hesitate to share everything.
“I’ll listen to you,” she swore.
“Remember when you liked me?”
“I like you now,” she countered. “Unless you mean when I liked-liked you?”
“I do. You called me Shop.”
“And you called me ‘babe’. I notice you don’t anymore.”
“I like living, Rebel.”
“Daddy wouldn’t—”
“Stop right there. Do you remember Billy and Eric?”
“How can I forget them? Daddy shot them right in front of Mattie and me.”
“If I hadn’t backed off, he would’ve beaten me, castrated me, and then cut my fucking head off.”
Rebel widened her eyes.
“Your problem is you only know what Outlaw shows you and it isn’t a fucking brutal, vindictive killer. Stop underestimating that man, bro.”
“You and Diesel are family. If he overlooks Uncle Johnnie’s crimes because of that, he’ll certainly overlook whatever happens between me and you or me and Diesel.”
“There is no me and you. Get those fucking words out of your mouth. What don’t you understand about I like living. Me. You have nothing to prove and nothing to lose, Rebel. Not a thing. I do. Diesel does.”
Her damnable tears started again and she growled, swiping them angrily away. “I don’t believe—”
“Don’t,” he interrupted. “But let me ask you this. Something completely different. Suppose you aren’t destined to die? Then what? You’ll be stuck with a baby that you have to help grow up when you’re just a kid yourself. You still have so fucking much to experience. Don’t ruin it with a pregnancy.”
Up until recently, Rebel had feared pregnancy. She still did, but, like everything recently, her feelings were so complicated.
“You’re irreplaceable and unforgettable. We don’t need a child to remember you by. But you aren’t dying anytime soon.”
“If you say so.” Her response was lackluster, though she couldn’t help it. Bishop just didn’t understand her fear, so she dropped the subject. “What’s on your upcoming agenda?”
“A concert,” he said, rolling with the flow. He was so easy to talk to. “In three weeks.”
“Can I be your plus one? We like the same music.”
“You absolutely cannot be my plus one. That would be classified as a date.”
“I’ve never been to a concert before.”
“Not my fault. I can’t take you, Rebel.”
Smiling brightly, she pointed to her face. “How can you deny such beauty?”
“Very easily,” he said, laughing. “Even if your mom and dad said ‘yes’, I’d need eyes in the back of my fucking head to keep watch on you.”
“No, you wouldn’t. I wouldn’t be any trouble, I promise. If they say ‘no’, we can sneak there.”
His eyes rounded before he gave her a disapproving look. “This just proves you hear what the fuck you want to. I sneak you out of this fucking house, to a concert, and I’ll be sanctioned, beaten, and out of a job.”
“I’m not trying to get you in trouble. I just want someone to pay attention to me.”
“Reb.” Sympathy replaced his annoyance and the tension in his shoulders eased.
“I’m here for you. I am. As much as I can be.
I want to help you. You’re surrounded by brothers and rules.
I know that gets exhausting. Us sneaking out together isn’t the answer, babe.
It’s a recipe for disaster. Slow down a little.
Take a breath. You haven’t even gotten to the best part of your teenage years.
Sweet Sixteen and onward. Just trust me.
Please. Youth lasts, but being a teenager is so fleeting.
Don’t complicate it with sex and babies.
You have all the time in the world for that. ”
Once again, she dropped the subject. He was saying a lot of what Momma already told her. “Kaia got a little upset with me because I took off his earrings, but Diesel told me they weren’t real gold.”
“You should’ve found a magnet. Real gold isn’t magnetic. If it sticks to a magnet, it isn’t real gold.”
“I didn’t know that.”
“You can also put them in water. Real gold sinks. If it floats, it’s fake. Or just look for purity markings. Actual gold will always be stamped with 10K, 14K, 18K, et cetera. Or 417, 585, and 750, European numeric codes.”
“You know a lot about gold,” Rebel said, impressed by his knowledge.
Bishop glanced away before smiling enigmatically. “Shit I picked up along the way.”
“That’s good shit, though. It comes in handy.”
He slid off the stool, walked to the cabinet and took out a glass that he filled with water, then brought to her. “You’re wearing studs, so the marking is probably on the post. Take one off and throw it in the water. That’ll be easiest on our eyes.”
Without hesitation, she removed the earring and plopped it in the glass. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to vindicate Kaia or prove Diesel wrong.
The earring sank to the bottom of the glass and she clapped. “They’re real,” she crowed.
“They are.”
Bishop took the glass away, returning with her earring in the middle of his wet palm. She snatched it up and returned it to its rightful place.
Axel barreled through the door and skidded to a halt. “Reb!” He ran and hugged her. “You’re feeling better?”
“I am. I’m planning your party. I thought I would get it done quicker out of my room.”
“Yay! Bishop and me will leave you alone, so we don’t disturb you.” He grabbed Bishop’s hand and tugged. “Come on.” At the door, he stopped, forcing Bishop to halt, too. “I’ll be back to check your progress, Reb.”
Smiling, Rebel nodded. “I’ll be here,” she said, not stopping Axel as he dragged Bishop away.