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Gabriel was finally getting healthy—at least physically. I just wished there was more I could do for his mental health. Especially since we didn’t have a therapist we trusted on the club payroll. All I could do was help him based on what I’d learned from my trauma therapist in the military, do research, and hope I was doing enough for him.
“Come on,” I grunted. I stood to my feet and grabbed my cut off the foot of the bed, shrugging it onto my shoulders. Gabriel grabbed my hand and laced our fingers together. My heart flipped in my chest.
I couldn’t get enough of his clinginess. He was codependent on me, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I didn’t give a fuck what anyone had to say. Didn’t give a fuck that his dependency on me was unhealthy either.
I wanted this boy to rely on me.
Reese waved at Gabriel as we emerged from the staircase before cursing and focusing back on his phone, the sound of gunshots exploding from the speakers of his phone. Gabriel quietly laughed. “Hi, Reese,” he greeted as we passed the pouting man who was asking a teammate to come revive him. No doubt, he was playing Call of Duty Mobile. Didn’t know why he didn’t just go out and get a gaming console and a TV and plug it up in the sitting area. Halo, Elias, and Mark gamed, too. He’d at least have teammates he knew and could trust.
Even though it was currently winter, the sun was beating down like it had a personal vendetta against us. It was hot as fuck outside, and the breeze that was blowing only felt like having a fan blow more hot air on my face.
Texas was a hell of a lot different from where I grew up in Washington, where we got snow in the winter and actually had fucking seasons. I knew some parts of Texas had actual seasons, but down here, only a few miles outside of El Paso, seasons were nonexistent.
I led Gabriel over to the tree we always sat under. He waited until I’d planted my ass on the ground and leaned back against the tree trunk before sitting down between my spread thighs, resting his back against my chest. Closing my eyes, I wrapped my arms around him.
“Gabe!” Destin suddenly squealed.
My eyes snapped open at the same time Gabriel pushed my arms aside to welcome the rambunctious three-year-old into them. Destin squealed and planted a sloppy kiss on Gabriel’s cheek, making my sweet boy laugh. The sound settled deep in my soul, warming my core.
“I’m sorry,” Jessica apologized as she made her way over. “It was game over the moment Destin saw him though.”
I grunted. “It’s fine.” Destin adored the ground Gabriel walked on, especially since Gabriel liked playing with him. I was pretty sure Gabriel had some Little in him. He enjoyed stuffies and blankets, and he regressed a bit when he was tired, irritable, or in high-stress situations and needed comfort. I didn’t mind it; I just wasn’t sure how to broach the subject with him.
Besides, I didn’t think he needed labels. He was fine just the way he was, and I was good at reading him. I knew what to give him when he started acting out and regressing a little—cuddles and lots of fucking love.
And for him, I had a shit ton to spare.
Destin tugged Gabriel over to the sandbox that was near us, and I watched as Gabriel began helping him build a sand castle. I stood to my feet and crossed my arms over my chest so I could watch over my boy better.
“You know, everyone can see the way you look at him.”
I cut my eyes to Jessica. “Touchy subject,” I warned her. She was treading on dangerous ground, and I was hoping she’d heed the warning and back away from the subject.
She sighed, looking up at me. “Tango, it’s okay if you want him like that,” she said softly.
I clenched my jaw, my temper flaring. “I’m fifteen years older than him, Jessica, and he’s got a lot of shit to work through. I’ve got my own baggage on top of that. He doesn’t need that shit.” Gabriel needed someone steady. Not someone who randomly suffered flashbacks. Not someone that watched their best friend get blown to smithereens in front of them.
That kind of shit… no. Days I had flashbacks left me unstable. Gabriel didn’t need a man like me. Didn’t need a man who liked to get his hands bloody when he spiraled out of control. Didn’t need a man with a dead body count so high, I couldn’t even remember the number anymore.
She arched a brow at me. “And if he asked you one day to be his?”
I tightened my hands into fists, tucking them beneath my biceps, refusing to answer her. Because if he did ask me, I was pretty sure that would be it. I’d give Gabriel anything in the fucking world.
I had a feeling all that boy had to do was ask.
But until he uttered those words to me, I’d continue resisting him. I’d continue to try to do what was right.
I’d continue trying to make sure he always found better.
3
Tango
The sound of gravel crunching under tires reached my ears. I set my book down and got off the bed, walking over to the window. After moving the curtain aside, I glanced down at the lot. Three SUVs were parked in a straight line, and I was surprised to find Alejandro, the leader of the Mexican Cartel, getting out of the backseat of the middle SUV.
What the fuck was he doing in town? We had affiliations with him due to Scorpion’s deep connections in the Savage Crows MC’s Texas Charter, where he used to be a member before being patched in as president to this charter of SWMC. He and Johnston clashed heads more often than not, so Alejandro tended to stay away and deal with Scorpion through phone calls.
If he was making a personal trip to come out here… well, that meant only bad fucking news. Goddammit.
