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“You includin’ me and Jude? Or should me and him get our own place on the farm?”
“No. I thought you wanted us to be a family. All of us. I figured you’d want help with Jude.”
“Yeah, beautiful, help would be good since I don’t know shit about kids.”
“You’re good with mine.”
“They ain’t kids. They’re young women. There’s a difference.” He hesitated, then asked, “What about Rick? He gonna give you shit?”
Yes, her brother and his need to overprotect her and the girls.
“He’ll either understand or he won’t. I’ll love him the same either way. I just ask that you give him a chance to accept you.”
“Think he ever will? Don’t wanna cause problems between you and your brother.”
“It’s not you causing the problem, it’s him. He worries about me and the girls and I love him for that, but once he sees you for who you really are, I have no doubt he’ll come around.” She was done talking about her stubborn brother. That wasn’t a problem they’d solve today. “Now, how soon are you bringing Jude here to his new home?”
Shade shook his head, his eyes serious. “Seen a lot of fuckin’ evil humans in my life, Chelle. Also met some good people. You, beautiful, are one of the fuckin’ best. So lucky to have met you.”
The damaged biker standing before her had his sweet moments and she cherished every single one of them. “Thank Pumpkin.”
It was hard to believe that the day she put her cat down, she met the man she hoped to spend the rest of her life with. He might not be perfect, but he was perfectly imperfect for her.
Fate was funny like that.
“Gonna go grab Jude.”
“I want to go with you.” She was not letting Shade out of her sight. Not yet. “Put your sled in the garage and we’ll take my car.”
“Cage.”
She smiled. “Yes, my cage.”
“Gonna make a great ol’ lady.”
“Do I get to wear one of those ‘property of’ cuts like the other ol’ ladies wore on the run?”
“You want one?”
“Hell yes! They’re badass! And I want everyone to know who you belong to.”
“Supposed to be the other way around.”
She arched an eyebrow. “Is it?”
He shook his head and smothered his grin.
She grabbed his arm as he turned to put his bike inside. “Hey...”
He paused and glanced back over his shoulder. She tugged on his arm and he turned toward her again.
“Come here,” she whispered, tilting her face up to him. He lowered his until their mouths were only a fraction apart.
“Yeah, beautiful?”
“I never responded to your text.”
“Noticed that.”
“That’s because I wanted to tell you in person,” she whispered.
“I’m listenin’,” he whispered back.
“I love you, too.”
Epilogue
Found
Chelle stood in front of the French doors and watched flurries fall from the sky, leaving a blanket of white wonder over her favorite part of her home. Her backyard. Her haven. Where her two previously lost souls sometimes tossed a football around when it wasn’t too cold.
Jude was teaching Shade how to throw one, though the boy wasn’t much better than his “dad,” who had never touched a football before in his life.
He’d missed all that.
Even though it could sometimes be awkwardly comical, it helped the two of them forget the reason why they’d met in the first place. If only temporarily.
To get him enrolled in school, Ozzy, on the sly, put Shade in contact with someone who made fake documents. Julian Jones was now on Jude’s new birth certificate as the boy’s father. They used Jude’s mother’s real name with the slim hope she was still out there somewhere and she’d resurface one day. Unfortunately, Shade doubted she would.
Chelle constantly scoured online news for any mention of his mother. So far, nothing. No body found, no obituary, no Jane Doe matching her description, nothing.
Even if she was never found, Jude would always have a home with them. But he’d always wonder.
While she searched for Jude’s mother, she’d also spend her lunch hour searching articles for Shade’s mother, too.
It took her a few weeks, but she finally found something. Not what she hoped, but what she expected.
She kept her eyes on the falling snow as the bedroom door closed behind Shade.
She had asked him to come up to their bedroom for privacy. He probably thought it was for one reason, when it was actually for a completely different one.
She considered waiting to tell him until after Christmas, but Shade couldn’t care less about the holidays. It wasn’t like he had an opportunity to enjoy them while growing up.
He’d missed out on putting out milk and cookies for Santa, drinking eggnog, decorating an evergreen and waking up early on Christmas morning to rip open gifts. He’d also missed out on holiday meals with family.
Until this year. Trip and Stella decided to start new traditions for the holidays, starting with Thanksgiving dinner on the farm in The Barn. Lots of food, alcohol and, of course, weed. But best of all, lots of laughter, good-natured ribbing, aka busting balls, smiles and fun. Also, plenty of full bellies after the traditional turkey dinner delivered already prepared by the Amish. Homemade pies, free-range roasted turkey, stuffing, fresh cranberry relish and more.
