Chapter 3
Chapter Three
WILL
ONE MONTH LATER
Things at the clubhouse were going great.
I had already fallen in love with this place.
Watching the dynamics between everyone was fascinating.
I had never seen anything like it. They were a true family around here.
It was kind of bittersweet to watch at times.
I longed to have a bond like this with my own family. I knew it would never happen, though.
My mother would always do anything to make Elliot happy.
And my father hadn’t been in my life since I was four.
Once he remarried, he was completely focused on building a family with his new wife.
After years of trying to get my father to spend time with me, my mother packed our bags and moved us back to her hometown, Kissimmee, Florida.
Once we got back, things got better. It was just me and her and it was perfect.
My mom was kind of like my best friend. It was like that until she met Elliot.
Gone was the woman I knew. I guess, after years without any companionship, she became desperate to hold on to a relationship.
Even if it meant turning a blind eye to her husband's mistreatment.
Elliot never raised a hand to me, but there was plenty of verbal abuse.
All because I was different from other little boys.
I think just like me, my family saw early on that I was gay, and that’s where all the snarky comments started.
For years, I kept to myself. I wasn’t ashamed of who I was, and I wasn’t about to kiss anyone’s ass or change.
Either you accepted me for who I was, or you didn’t. It was no sweat off my back.
Recently, my mother had been calling me nonstop, trying to get me to come home for a family dinner.
I wasn’t ready to do that. I knew exactly how the night would end.
So, I had stopped taking my mother’s call and focused on myself.
I knew I couldn’t avoid them forever, but for now, I wouldn’t allow them to disturb my happiness.
Debbie and I had a good routine going. Every day we spent most of the day at Crystal’s home with the babies.
Then, once the older kids were out of school, Crystal would pick them up and bring them here.
Once the older kids arrived, that’s when things would get a little more chaotic. Nothing unmanageable, though.
“Da-da,” Angel whined, breaking my thoughts. She was using the coffee table to help balance herself as she stood in front of Crystal. Her eyes were misty while her face wore the biggest pout.
Crystal leaned forward. “Don’t cry, Granny’s baby. Daddy will be home soon,” she cooed.
That didn’t help at all. Angel threw her head back, releasing a cry. “Da-Da,” she cried out.
Angel was a daddy's girl through and through. In such a short time of being here, I knew that if Angel wanted her father, then we would have to make it happen, or we would be facing the wrath of a furious eleven-month-old.
Crystal continued to try and calm Angel down, but nothing worked. Eventually, she pulled out her phone and called Viper, putting him on speaker.
“What’s up, Ma?” he asked when he picked up. Before Crystal could answer, Angel released another shrill cry. “Why is my baby crying like that?” His voice was filled with concern.
Crystal shook her head with a grin. “She’s crying for you. I’ve tried calming her down, but nothing is working.”
“Well, have one of the nannies bring her to my office at the clubhouse. I have some important paperwork that has to get done today.”
“Are you sure, Viper? If you have work to do, I can try—”
“Ma, I’m sure. I can multitask. I don’t want my baby crying like that.”
I smirked, knowing that Angel had Viper effortlessly wrapped around her little finger. Anytime she got like this, he would normally stop what he was doing and come home.
“That’s why her little butt is spoiled rotten.” Crystal laughed. “But I’ll have Will bring her to you.”
“Ain’t nothing wrong with her being spoiled. That’s my job. But tell Will if he has any problems finding my office to call me,” he said before he ended the call.
I stood up and picked Angel up, propping her on my hip. “Well, I guess that’s my cue. Come on, Your Majesty, let’s get you to your daddy.”
As if Angel understood what I said, her cries stopped, and she smiled, showing off her two bottom teeth. Crystal threw her head back and laughed. “That little girl is a mess.”
I snickered and nodded my head in agreement.
“I’ll be back,” I told her as I made my way out of the house.
When I walked through the side door of the clubhouse, I noticed it was rather empty.
It wasn’t surprising since I knew all the guys worked for the club businesses.
They owned a fitness gym, a tattoo shop, a bar, a garage, a pawn shop, a gun store, and a diner.
They were also in the middle of gearing up to open a restaurant.
These guys sure knew how to keep the money rolling in.
Once I made it to Viper’s office door, I lightly tapped my knuckles on it. “Come in,” he shouted.
As soon as I opened the door, Angel started bouncing in my arms, eager to get to Viper. He smiled, standing to his feet. When he was close enough, she flung herself into his arms.
“Hi, my sweet angel.”
“Da-da,” she shrieked, grabbing his cheeks.
He kissed her forehead before turning to me. “Thanks for bringing her.”
“It’s no problem at all,” I said, waving my hand as I turned to leave. Before I could close the door, Angel was already giggling and talking baby gibberish.
As I made my way down the hall, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I grabbed it and saw I had a text from Oscar.
Oscar: I won't be home tonight. Maurice is back in town.
I knew exactly what that meant. Maurice was Oscar’s on-and-off-again boyfriend of five years. I didn’t know why they constantly broke up because Oscar was always tight-lipped about it. I just knew they would break up every four to six months, only to get back together a few months later.
I kept walking while typing out my reply.
Me: Okayyyyy. Somebody is getting their back cracked like a crab leg. Enjoy yourself.
Oscar: And you know this!
I chuckled right as my body collided with someone. I almost fell, but strong arms wrapped around my waist, catching me.
“I am sooo sorry…” I got out right as I looked up into Tech's crystal-blue eyes.
He was staring at me with such intensity that it caused goosebumps to form all over my body. My pulse raced as he kept me in his arms. Our faces were inches from each other, and I could feel his breath on my lips.
I hadn’t seen him since my first day. Sometimes I felt like he was avoiding me. I had been around all the guys multiple times except for him. But then I would feel like I was overthinking things, because what reason would he have to avoid me?
I watched as his gaze moved down to my lips. Quickly, he released me and walked away without a word. I stood there with my heart beating wildly in my chest.
What the hell was that?
The day was finally over, and I was on my way home. All day, my mind kept drifting to the encounter with Tech. I was confused by his behavior. A part of me knew he was attracted to me. I could see it in his eyes. But something was stopping him from acting on it.
I wasn’t going to press the issue and find out why. For one, this was my job. I didn’t need to get involved with one of the brothers. And two, I could clearly tell he was struggling with some kind of internal battle.
Tech wouldn’t be the first man to struggle with his sexuality, and he wouldn’t be the last. The world wanted to tell us that who we were was wrong. You had to be a strong individual to cancel out all the outside noise and live in your truth.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
“What the hell is that?” I asked as I pulled over.
I got out of my car to examine what caused that noise. It didn’t take long for me to discover my tire was flat.
“Shit!” I exclaimed, throwing my hands up.
I didn’t need this. A thunderstorm was supposed to start soon, and I didn’t want to be trapped on the side of the road during it. Just as I pulled out my phone to call a roadside service, a truck pulled up behind me. I put my hand up to shield my eyes from the headlights.
To my surprise, Tech jumped down out of the truck before making his way over to me. God, this man was so damn sexy, even down to the way he walked. His eyes roamed over my body once again. He licked his lips right as he came to a stop in front of me.
“What seems to be the problem?” he asked in that deep baritone voice that made me shiver.
My mouth was slightly parted, but no words came out. I could only look into his eyes. It's like he had me in a trance. This was not like me. Normally, I had men tripping over themselves. When Tech smirked and lifted a brow, I snapped out of it.
“M-my tire is flat,” I finally said.
Tech looked down at the tire and then back at me. “Do you have a spare?”
I scratched the back of my head. “I think so.”
“You think?”
I placed my hands on my hips. “Don’t judge me. I don’t keep up with those sorts of things. That’s what auto shops are for.”
The corner of his mouth lifted as he chuckled. “Hey, no judgment here, Dimples. Pop your trunk for me.”
I could feel the heat in my cheeks as I blushed. “Dimples?”
Tech propped an arm on the hood of my car, slightly leaning forward. He was hovering over me. “Yeah. Dimples.” After silently staring at each for a moment, he stepped back. “Trunk,” he repeated as he made his way to the back of my car.
I blinked a few times, trying to snap myself out of it. After I got myself together, I opened my driver's door and pressed the button to open the trunk. Tech nodded before making his way to his truck. He came back with several tools and set them on the ground.
“I can have this changed in no time,” he said as he pulled a tire out of my trunk.
“You just randomly have all the tools to fix a flat tire in your truck?” My voice dripped with suspicion.
Tech paused what he was doing to peek up at me. “These are all the things everyone should have in their car. You know, so when these kinds of things happen, we aren’t stranded on the side of the road.”
I snickered at the obvious jab he just threw. “Touché.” I raised my hands in surrender. “So, what made you want to join a motorcycle club?”
Tech stopped what he was doing. He didn’t say anything for a moment. I began to think he wasn’t going to answer me.
“Brotherhood. I’ve been somewhat alone my whole life, so I was drawn to that.”
My eyes bulged at his honesty. I expected him to say something cliché, like “women” or “parties.” Tech giving me a little insight into his past was surprising yet refreshing.
“I get that.”
“You do?” he asked as he continued to work.
“Helllooo. Gay man in America here. Outsiders don’t accept me. Hell, my own family doesn’t accept me. So, yes, I get it.”
Again, Tech froze. He hesitated before he finally spoke. “How do you do it?”
“Do what?” I raised a brow.
“Be so open,” he said as he looked up at me.
“About being gay?” I asked and he nodded. “Easy. I’m the only person who has to walk in my shoes, so I’ll be damned if I live my life miserable just to make others happy.”
Tech nodded before refocusing his attention on my tire.
He didn’t say another word, and neither did I.
I could tell he was deep in thought, so I let him be.
I was now for sure that Tech was struggling with his sexuality.
He’d probably been able to avoid the topic since he surrounded himself with straight men and countless women.
My presence was probably sparking feelings he’d tried burying.
In no way was I trying to fix him, but I couldn’t help but feel like I needed to be there for him.
We lived in a world where people like us didn’t have many people willing to be a listening ear. So, if that’s what Tech needed, I didn’t mind giving him that.
“All done,” he said as he stood.
“Thanks, Tech. There’s no telling how long I would have been out here if you hadn’t shown up.” I smiled at him.
He bit his bottom lip. “It's no problem at all.”
He began packing up all his things. I didn’t know why, but the idea of us parting saddened me. I was really enjoying his company. Before I could even think about it, the words were already out of my mouth.
“Would you like to come over?”
Tech’s brows dipped. “What?”
“I mean, as a thank you. I was going to order some pizza, drink a beer, and watch the game.”
“Uhhhh, I don’t know…” he trailed off.
Stung by the rejection, I sighed. “I get it. You probably already have plans.” I looked away in embarrassment. I didn’t know why the hell I said that. “Well, I'd better get going before this storm rol—”
“Yes,” he interrupted me.
“Huh?”
“Yes, I would like to come over. If the offer is still on the table.” Tech looked so unsure of himself. Like he didn’t know if he was doing the right or wrong thing.
“Of course. You can follow me to my apartment.”
“Okay.” He grabbed my flat tire, placed it in the trunk, and closed it. After gathering all his things, he placed them in his truck and got in. As I buckled my seat belt, I took a deep breath. My stomach was filled with butterflies. I couldn’t believe I had invited him over and that he accepted.
What the hell did I just do?