Page 37 of Property of Mongrel

“I finally called them last week and told the attorney they could pound salt,” Mongrel admits. “Why should I care that they’ll all lose their livelihoods? I lost my fucking family. The only thing that makes any of these past years even remotely okay is the fact that Jonah was finally able to stay with you. But the girls are still out there somewhere, and I went through hell until I came to the Triple R. I hope when he’s eventually burning in Hell that it was worth it to him, y’know? Once the sale of the business goes through, Nerd’s going to help me set up a trust for the five of us until we locate the girls. That way, it’ll keep growing. After they’re found, we can decide how each of us wants to handle our portion.”

“It’s supposed to go to the oldest son,” Jonah objects. “That’s you, man, not us.”

“Which means I can do with it what I want,” Mongrel asserts. “And, I want to split it between the five of us. I don’t need much, Jonah. I live at the clubhouse, own my two bikes and truck outright, and have money in the bank.”

“Still, you don’t have to do that,” Jonah says. “It’ll be appreciated since I’m still paying off a few student loans I had to get that my scholarships didn’t cover.”

“My father is a bastard for sure,” Leroy states. “I know Bobby isn’t a whole lot better, but he tried to overcome what that man preached as gospel.”

“I just don’t understand how he kept it from Grandma or even my parents,” Mongrel replies. “Because until I overheard that conversation between him and Grandma, I never knew how he felt about us five kids.”

“Don’t know, Cam,” Leroy says. “Because that’s not how Mom raised us. She loved your mom as if she were her own child, and each time your parents had another baby, she was over the moon.”

“She was the best,” Mongrel whispers, getting choked up. “She made sure that shit was in place for the five of us after she was gone. Thank you for keeping all of that together, Uncle Leroy. I’m sure it wasn’t easy.”

Leroy shrugs. “It’s your heritage, Cam. In fact, Jonah and I took all the pictures and made multiple albums, one for each of y’all.”

“Picture albums?” Mongrel asks.

“Brought yours with me,” Leroy confirms. “Once we find the girls, we’ll be able to decide what to do with your mom’s jewelry, but your dad was generous so we should be able to divvy that up.”

“I think Cam… er, Mongrel, should have her wedding set,” Jonah decrees, giving me a side eye. “He’s the oldest, after all.”

I watch as Mongrel’s face flushes at his brother’s words, and place my hand on his thigh, gently squeezing. Whether we end up being each other’s forever or not, as the oldest child, he should have his mom’s rings. When his hand touches mine and he squeezes back, I realize he understood my unspoken support.

“I agree,” Leroy replies. “Now, I’m going to go and grab some desserts, anyone want anything in particular?”

We all rattle off several things we want, and he takes Jonah with him to carry it all back, leaving me and Mongrel alone for the time being. I lean against him, instinctively knowing that the conversation about his grandfather has unsettled him. “You okay?” I murmur.

“Getting there,” he admits. “I told you there were things in my past I didn’t think I was ready to share yet, and that man is one of those things. How do I explain that my first exposure to racism and bigotry came from a family member who claimed to love me? It did so much damage, Addy. Because he never acted that way when my parents were alive or when we were all together. I began judging everyone’s treatment of me based on how he was, and that wasn’t fair. Until I came to live at the Triple R, I had a huge chip on my shoulder, but here, we’ve got a mixed bag of ethnicities thanks to being so close to the border, y’know? Everyone’s treated with respect, their opinions are heard and valued, and nobody has ever made me feel like I was less than.”

“Because you’re not, Mongrel,” I reply. “And anyone who thinks differently can come and talk to me. I’ll set them straight, I promise.”

He starts chuckling as he wraps his arm around me and pulls me close. “You’re good for me, Addy.”

“I like you, Mongrel. I like you a lot,” I admit. “Do I think there’ll be people out there who look down their nose at us for dating? Probably so, but I simply don’t care. Your club brothers, their women, your uncle, my aunt? None of them will bat an eye, so who cares what complete strangers think?”

His kiss surprises me since we’re out in the open around everyone, yet I cling to him and kiss him back, until we hear a cough. “Don’t mind me, just bringing y’all’s desserts back,” Leroy says, laughter in his tone. “You remind me of your dad, Cam. He never cared who was around when he wanted to kiss your mom.”

“So, I’m cut from the same cloth. Could be worse things, I guess,” Mongrel states as he picks up his fork and takes a bite of the strawberry cheesecake I made. His eyes widen and he looks at Gretchen. “Gretch, I saw something about making strawberry cheesecake shooters when I was searching for some new recipes for you. Try the cheesecake and see if you think it’s possible,” he says.

She does as he asks and then looks at me. “I think you need to come back as soon as possible so we can try to make these! I bet I can make cake pops too, but it’ll take Connie and Maria’s help.”

“I’d like that,” I reply. “I don’t really have any hobbies to speak of, so it would be fun to learn. I know Mongrel enjoys helping you.”

Gretchen claps her hands then turns to Doc. “I may never return to nursing full time,” she warns.

“I’ve told you before, do what makes you happy, sweetheart,” he replies. “Besides, you’ll need all the helpers you can get when we host the next rodeo.”

CHAPTER

TWENTY

Mongrel

Seeing how well Addy is getting along with my brothers and their ol’ ladies settles something inside of me. They’re my family, and as much as I like her, if there was any kind of issue, I wouldn’t keep seeing her. Because my club brothers have held me up for years now, and having Jonah and Uncle Leroy back is adding to that feeling. Addy will be the cherry on top as far as I’m concerned.

“When are you gonna try to make them?” I ask Gretchen.