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She had some of her Uncle Thad's crazy mixed in with that, since she spent a lot of time with him. That was where she got her love of the more feminine things I was useless with, who helped with her hair, who waved a hand and soothed over the complete wreck of a job I had done trying to teach her about puberty a few years before.
My sister came back into her life when she was still little, and had become the soft female shoulder I understood Jelly needed at times. I hadn't been able to give her a mother. But I had given her a loving and dedicated family. And, eventually, a whole slew of mother figures in the girls club who took her right into their fold like one of their own.
There were times I second-guessed my decision to join the MC, but it had proven time and time again to be more of an asset than a liability.
That shit they say about raising a kid taking a village? It was true. Jelena wouldn't be the kid she was today without me having that, having the men at the club, having their women, having my siblings.
"She's having a rough time with her son," I admitted. "He seems to be going through a rebellious stage. Trying to sneak out. Mouthing back."
Jelly's eyes went thoughtful at that, her head dipping toward her shoulder. "Are you going to help her with that?"
"I... no. Well, I caught him sneaking out last night. Kept an eye on him until she got back from work. That's all it was."
"It would be okay," she told me as I mixed the eggs around in the pan. "If you wanted to help her out," she clarified.
"Jelly, baby girl, it's not like that," I told her, shaking my head.
Christ, I just met the woman.
"I'm just saying," she told me, getting up, holding out her plate to me to drop the eggs onto. "If it was like that, I'm okay with that."
"I'm not interested in dating, Jelly."
Had there been a handful of casual flings over the years? Especially after joining up with the MC? Yeah, sure. But it had never been anything more than that. All parties involved knew it. And it truly had been only a handful. Over the course of Jelena's entire life.
For me, dating hadn't been an option.
Everything was about Jelly when she was little.
Then, later, it was just a habit.
I hadn't dated since right out of high school. I couldn't imagine getting back into that after so long.
So, once in a while, the need to be with a woman got too strong to ignore, but my interest had never been in more than that.
"You don't have to be alone."
"I'm not alone. I have you."
"You know what I mean, Dad. I'm not a little girl anymore. If you want to date, date."
"I don't want to is my point. What? What are you rolling your eyes about?" I asked as I put toast on her plate. She'd tried to hide it as she went to get the orange juice out of the fridge, but I had eagle eyes when it came to eye rolls. I hated them. And she knew it.
"I'm going to go to college one day."
"Damn straight," I agreed, nodding. It was one of the reasons we had a townhouse and not a standalone one; I wanted to keep our costs down so I could sock as much away as possible for her schooling. She needed seven years to put a doctor in front of her name? That was what I was going to do for her.
"My point is, I won't be here anymore. And then what will you have?"
"Family. Friends."
"Dad," she said, sighing, shaking her head at me.
"Alright, kid. I get your point. If I suddenly wake up one day and decide I want to date, I have your blessing."
"Totally," she agreed, giving me a smile as she took her food out to the living room, flipping through Netflix on the TV as she ate.
I wasn't bullshitting her.
I didn't want to date.
Or, at least, I hadn't.
There was a slam out front, and my nosy ass moved to the front window, glancing out to find Eva trailing behind her slow-moving son down the front porch.
"Roll your eyes at me one more time, Jacob," she snapped, making my lips curve up. Oh, the struggles of trying to raise a halfway decent human being while keeping your sanity intact.
We all had losing days in that battle.
This seemed to be one of those days for our new neighbor.
I didn't realize I was standing there watching her get into her car and drive off until I heard Jelena clearing her throat behind me, making me jump and turn in a way that had to be called guiltily.
"What?" I asked at the smug look on her face.
