Chapter 19
Chapter Nineteen
Stone stood with his arm around Naomi’s waist and hers around his. They were listening to one of the bands in the park. Standing in a park with the woman he couldn’t imagine life without was one of the treasures he’d never imagined he’d have all those years in prison.
Tori and Lilah had taken the girls back for a movie night.
He guessed this was their way of showing Naomi that they approved of his and Naomi’s relationship.
He appreciated it. Ben had headed to Dodge City to pick up Finn.
Since they’d planned this ahead of time, there were cameras that caught all the angles of Jared assaulting Finn.
Of course, Finn’s face had been turned away from the cameras, and all the video had been edited so no one could hear the taunting Finn had done to provoke Jared into swinging at him.
Finn may have been screwing up a lot lately, but this one act had wiped the slate clean as far as Stone was concerned.
After the song was finished, the band announced they were taking a break. Rascal walked on stage with Meg.
Oh, Stone wondered if this was when Renae would get her request. Meg took the microphone.
“How’s everybody doing tonight?” Meg called out.
Screams and yells were her reply.
“Well, I’m glad to hear it. You know I’ve got such a special place in my heart for this commemoration, as you know if you heard my speech earlier today, but also because it was where I met my man,” she shared, motioning toward Rascal.
“The reason we’re up here is I had an unusual request, but knowing how special this weekend is to Rascal, I had to say yes because the request came with a five-hundred-dollar donation. Otherwise, I would never let another woman touch my man,” Meg teased.
Rascal’s eyes widened. “Touch your man? What the fuck, Meg?” he demanded, turning toward her, which was when Renae came up the side stairs and reached over and pinched Rascal’s butt.
“Oh my!” Naomi gasped.
Rascal jumped. “Did you pinch my butt?” he bellowed, his incredulous stare visible from where Stone stood. Stone chuckled.
“I did. It is a scrumptious butt, and let’s face it, you’ve only gotten better with age. Now, I can go back to Cider Creek knowing I’ve accomplished my dream. I mean, five hundred bucks could buy a lot of Mountain Dew, and I gave that up for this,” Renae bantered, grinning at Rascal.
“Girl, you leave my butt alone, and you can come have supper with Meg and me whenever you’re in town.” Rascal laughed, pulling her in for a hug. “We Army vets have to stick together.”
“A hug and a pinch? Am I dreaming?” Renae yelled.
Stone leaned close to Naomi’s ear. “You ready to head back?”
“Yes. I’m not used to standing all day. My feet hurt,” she admitted.
“Mine too, and there’s still tomorrow,” Stone reminded her.
They walked to his bike. He handed her a helmet and got on, ready to help her. He could get used to this. Now to figure out how to get Jared out of their lives forever.
He and Naomi waved at all the Bluff Creek family still hanging around. Roam and Sprite had headed home. Sprite’s pregnancy was taking a lot out of her. She was still tattooing, but he couldn’t imagine how uncomfortable it was trying to get around her belly to reach her clients.
Flick and Beth were walking to his motorcycle but stopped to talk with them for a minute.
“Hey, I don’t want to get into it tonight, but the listening devices we planted are giving us a treasure chest of information about your dad and Jared. Don’t worry about the girls. It won’t take much, and Jared will be signing whatever papers you need,” Beth promised, giving Naomi a side hug.
“Thank you,” Naomi said, tapping Stone’s stomach that she was good to go.
If he wasn’t so tired, he’d take Naomi for a ride, but tonight, he needed sleep.
It had been a full day, and seeing Jared yelling when they got there, Stone had been worried about how he’d protect all his girls while staying out of jail. Luckily, the club already had a plan.
It was good to always have people who had his back looking out for him and his family.