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“You still after Griff and Remy about a support club?” Vapor asks.
“Yeah, but it’s gonna need to be more than the two of them.”Hint, hint, you big pain in my ass.
Juliet chuckles. “Molly’s been a sweetheart. She’s watched Atlas for us a couple of times. It’s adorable how she’s always complaining about Remy being too overprotective.”
That sounds about right. “That’s what big brothers do.”
“I wouldn’t know,” she murmurs.
Oof, there’s that stab of guilt again.I’d been so lost in my grief after Debbie died that I didn’t pay enough attention to what was going on in Juliet’s life. I thought she was safe living with her biological aunt and uncle. Only much later did I learn that wasn’t the case. Regret that I didn’t do better for her still haunts me.
“We moved the party clubhouse to Empire,” I say, shaking off the bitter memories. “When I sayfamily dayup at the compound, I mean it.”
“Oh.” Juliet stares at her plate and cuts one of her meatballs into twenty little pieces with the side of her fork. “You sure it’d be okay?”
“Yes.” I flick my gaze to Vapor.
“We’ll check it out. Just say when,” he promises.
Well, that’s more than I expected, so I won’t push. “Murphy and Z built this ridiculous jungle-gym-playhouse thing for the kids. It’s bigger than what some parks have.”
Juliet’s eyes glint with interest. “Really?”
Guess I should’ve led with that. “Yeah. Couple other things for the kids there. Atlas might be too young for some of it, but he’ll have fun. When he’s older he can ride four-wheelers through the woods with the other kids.”
“Okay,” Juliet says with more enthusiasm this time.
After dinner, Vapor and Juliet apparently have a whole nighttime routine with Atlas. I help clean up the kitchen, then park my ass on their couch, listening to their happy family noises in the other room.
How’d they even figure out all this shit? Would I have been as involved as Vapor seems to be? Christ, I was a fucking kid, scared shitless when Debbie found out she was pregnant. Would I have helped her do all the tedious baby stuff? Or would I have been too busy trying to earn whatever money I could to keep a roof over our heads?
Emptiness settles in my chest. I never had the chance to find out. Thinking about this shit usually has me itching to hit the road. Tonight, for some reason, I’m able to look back at the painful memories without feeling like I’m suffocating. Must be from having Juliet living in the same area code again. She’s my last connection to Debbie and I feel better knowing she’s close enough to check up on and help out when she needs it. She’s an adult with her own family now, but she’ll always be my little peanut.
“Ready to go?” Vapor asks, returning to the living room dressed all in black. In his hands, he carries a black knit cap and a pair of black leather gloves.Ah, I’ve taught him well.
“Yeah.” I peer into the darkened hallway. “Juliet?”
“Don’t go yet!” She hurries into the living room and hurls herself at me, wrapping her arms around my neck and hugging tight. I embrace her with the same intensity, lifting her off her feet.
“Thanks for dinner, peanut,” I say against her hair.
“Anytime.” She releases me and I set her down. “Please be careful.”
“Always.” I step outside but Vapor doesn’t follow.
I stand there listening to the two of them murmuring back and forth for a bit before he finally joins me, closing the door behind him.
Should I really involve him in my shit? It’s MC business. I could’ve just waited for Z to go with me. “You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,” I say.
He stares at me, a slight frown forming on his face. “I could use the extra cash.”
“If you need money—”
He holds up his hand to stop me from getting out the full thought. Vapor won’t accept charity. I get that. Respect it, even. “Who’s gonna have your back if I don’t go with you?” he asks.
“I’ll be fine.”
“What if they’ve got a dog who takes a chunk out of your ass?”
