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Sway trusting me is a relief. Although, it still leaves me looking for the shooter too close to home.
“Was Shadow pissed Priest put me in charge?”
“He hasn’t said so, but how would you feel?”
Not too good. Which is why I’ve been firm but cautious with Sway’s crew. Taking over downstate has been all sorts of tricky.
“Is there any chance he shot you?”
It’s a rough question. Sway helped Shadow patch-in to the club. Promoted him to Vice President. They’ve worked side-by-side for a long time. But one thing I’ve learned over the years is that power and greed can corrupt even the best of relationships.
“Before National, I would’ve said no. But the trouble he got into down there and the way he handled himself…” He looks me straight in the eye. “I honestly don’t know.”
Chapter Nine
Lilly
“You’re sure you don’t mind?” I ask Z for the third time.
“Is it how I want to spend my evening with you? Not really, but fuck knows I ask you to spend an awful lot of time with my friends and family.”
Not exactly reassuring. “Ted’s leaving tomorrow morning.”
“So, you said.”
“Z.”
“Lilly, it’s fine. You sure Alex doesn’t mind watching Chance?”
“No, we talked. Sorted some things out.”
“Tell me about it later? I need to run.”
“Sure.”
I’ve barely said goodbye before the phone rings again. It’s Mara, and eager to find out what she knows about the subpoena I received, I scoop up the phone.
“Hey.”
“Good news!” she practically shouts into the phone.
“Thank God. Tell me.”
“Damon got the subpoena quashed.”
“Oh, thank God! That’s great. Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me yet. He had it thrown out on a technicality. They’re supposed to get you to sign something for that kind of subpoena. So, there’s a good possibility they’re going to try and serve you again.”
“Fuck.”
“You have somewhere you can hide out? That sexy beast of a man of yours lives in a pretty remote area.”
Unsure of how much I can tell my friend about Z taking over the downstate charter, I choose my words carefully. “Actually, he’s working a little farther south for a couple of months, but he rented a house for us. Chance and I are supposed to move in this week.”
“Oh, that’s perfect! Where? No, wait, don’t tell me. Oh, I’m so happy for you guys!” she gushes like an enthusiastic teenager.
Her excitement brings a smile to my face. “I miss you, Mara.”
“I miss you too, Lilly. When things settle down, let’s get together.”
“I’d like that.”
“Okay, so don’t answer the door and beware of process servers hiding in the bushes. Call me if you get another subpoena or anything else hinky.”
“Hinky, huh?”
“What? It’s a word.”
“I’ll talk to you soon, Mara.”
How much longer before Z arrives?
That’s a new feeling. I never thought I’d find myself waiting on any man. It’s hard to deny the butterflies dancing in my stomach and the way my mouth keeps tugging up at the corners at the thought of seeing Z again.
“Mommy?” Chance calls. “See the ducks?”
“Sure. You want to ride your tractor to the lake?”
“Yes!” He raises his hands in the air like a miniature boxing champ and runs to the door. Laughing, I follow.
A few hours later, my boots and jeans are splattered with mud. Chance is even filthier. Somehow, he managed to get mud in his hair.
“Let’s head back so you can take a bath before we go to Uncle Alex’s.”
“Don’t wanna.”
“You want to go all gross and muddy?”
He glances down at his shirt and shrugs.
“Come on.” I hold out my hand and wiggle my fingers. After a brief hesitation, he presses the little accelerator on the tractor down and steers toward home.
Z’s pulling into the driveway as we come around the side of the house.
“Daddy!” Chance yelps and points.
“He’s home.” That same excited fluttering starts up in my stomach again.
In his eagerness to see his dad, Chance throws himself off the tractor, tripping and falling. He lands with a soft oof in the grass, but jumps up, brushes himself off, and runs. I can’t help it. The whole scene’s so funny, I end up standing there laughing.
Z scoops Chance into his arms. “Missed you. Have you been good for your mom?”
Too eager to tell Z about all the things he’s been up to, Chance barely answers the question. Z’s eyes lock with mine as he slowly makes his way over.
“Missed you too, pretty girl,” he says, leaning in to give me a kiss.
“Daddy!” Chance huffs. He squirms and wiggles for Z to set him down and then yanks him toward the house.
“Hang on, Chance. Let’s put the tractor away. You’re not leaving it out for your mom to do.”
Chance squints up at him and I have to hold in my laughter. “Otay.”
After they secure the tractor in the shed, Chance captures Z’s hand again, dragging him up the front stairs. “Where were you?” he demands.
Z chuckles as he opens the door. “Well, I had a meeting. And then I visited a friend in the hospital.”
“Like Grandpa?”
“Not quite.”
Z looks at me and I shrug. It’s up to him how much he wants to tell his son.
Chance doesn’t want to let Z out of his sight. Even insisting he help with bath time. I don’t think Z knows what to do with that.
“I’m sorry,” he apologizes.
“Why? I’m more than happy to hand over bath duties to you.” I pass him some towels, a bath bomb, some toys, and wish him luck.
Singing and splashing noises follow me into the kitchen while I prepare a snack for Chance. Eventually they emerge—Z’s drenched, but wearing a proud grin and Chance wrapped in his favorite bear-shaped towel.
“Hungry?”
“Yes,” they both answer.
While they sit down to eat, I hurry to grab an uninterrupted shower. Something I haven’t been able to do in years. Z and Chance should be fine together for a few minutes. Heck, I bet Chance falls asleep right after lunch.
“You know I wanted to soap you up, right?” Z’s low, raspy voice startles me and I drop the bottle of conditioner in my hand, narrowly missing my foot.
“Did he pass out?” I ask.
“Practically in his plate. Was that your plan? To tire him out?”
“That’s always my plan.”
There’s a thud, followed by another a few seconds later. A clink and rustle of clothing. I peek my head out of the shower. “Joining me?”
“He’s in his bed. Still dressed in the bear towel but out cold.”
I chuckle and wait. My shower isn’t small, but Z definitely takes up a lot of room in it. “Where were you?” he asks.
“About to condition my hair.”
He motions for me to give him the bottle and I have to bend over to grab it.
“Jesus, woman. What are you trying to do to me?”
I hand over the bottle and he turns me around, pulling all of my hair into his big hands. “How much of this do I need to use?”
“A lot. I have a lot of hair.”
He tugs gently. “Don’t ever cut it.”
“I thought about it when Chance was smaller because he was always pulling on it and I really didn’t have the time or inclination to worry about what I looked like.”
“Hmm.”
Without turning around, I can’t tell if it’s a sound of acknowledgment or if he’s annoyed I brought up a time he wasn’t a part of.
“Will you tell me more?” he asks as he gently kneads his fingers into my scalp.
“About?”
“When you were pregnant. What he was like as a baby.”
Tears burn my eyes and I stick my face under the spray of the shower. “Anything you want to know. I have a ton of pictures…” I can’t finish the sentence, but I gesture wildly toward the living room.
“Hey.” He sets his hands on my shoulder and turns me to face him. Except, I can’t face him, so I press my forehead to his wet, slippery chest instead.
His chest rises and falls. He runs his hands up and down my back, offering comfort without saying a word.
After a few minutes, he says in a low voice, “I put the deposit on the house this morning.”
“Thank you.”
He leans down and tips my head back. “Thank you.”
“I mean for doing everything. Finding the place. Looking at it—”
“It’s the least I could do when I’m asking you to uproot your life for the club.”
“You’re not…I want…I want to be where you are.”
He answers with a kiss, pressing his warm, soft lips against mine while the water pours down over us. Nothing more than a kiss and a little of his hands roaming.
