AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“How do you know?”
“I know I’ve barely heard from you since I got shot, since that son of a bitch tried to take Lyla on my watch.”
Isaac nods. “Yeah. You needed time to heal. I didn’t want to rush you back. How could I ask anything of you when you had nearly died to save my baby girl’s life?”
“I thought you were pissed at me for not killing him when I had the chance.”
“Pissed at you? You did the best you could in the situation. I never expected you to be omniscient, to know what’s going to happen before it happens.”
Of course, my thoughts go to RJ when Isaac said “omniscient” because, more than likely, he would ask me what it means in that adorable, pitiful way when he’s embarrassed but wants to learn. It’s amazing he got so far in life with such an obvious reading disability, and nobody noticed or helped him. It seems like all his brothers did was make him feel like shit about himself. Hell, I would like to punch them all in the face, but they’re not my problem. Still, thinking about RJ brings me back to the reason I came to see Isaac.
“I’m glad to hear that you weren’t disappointed in me for all that shit with Lyla,” I tell him. “Are you disappointed that I’m not the hetero man you thought I was?”
When Isaac reaches up to rub his bearded chin in thought, I’m sure he’s about to launch into some long-ass story.
“You know, my father and grandfather didn’t approve of gay people.”
Yep. Story time.
“They made that opinion very loud and crystal clear when I was growing up,” he goes on to tell me. “That shit stuck with me until I became a father myself. One day, out of the blue, it occurred to me that my girls could grow up and be gay. And if they were lesbians, it wouldn’t be my place to tell them who they can or can’t love, right?” he asks, but I know it’s hypothetical, so I keep my mouth shut. “As long as Lyla and Laurel were happy and treated well, I couldn’t care less who they loved. They’re my daughters. I couldn’t love them any less for any of the choices they make, no matter what. So, if I can accept my daughters as being gay, then why should I give a rat’s ass who everybody else in the world loves? I wouldn’t want anyone to judge them, would I? No, I’d fucking kill anyone who hurt my girls or made them hurt for being who they were meant to be.”
I wait a beat to make sure he’s finished. When he doesn’t add anything else, I say, “But I’m not one of your daughters, Isaac. I’m a member of your motorcycle club. One that respects masculinity above all else.”
“Finding out you’re gay doesn’t make me respect you less and doesn’t change your masculinity, does it?”
“To some people, it might.”
“Well then, some people and I are gonna have a problem.”
“I appreciate the sentiment, Isaac, but I don’t want to stir up shit with the club.”
“There’s no shit to stir,” he says. “Tell the guys at the next meeting. Anyone who has a problem with it, I’ll deal with them.”
“Are you sure? What if someone with a problem threatens to quit the club?”
“Then good riddance,” he says before he gives me another backslapping hug. “Good to have you back, kid.”
With that, Isaac walks off into the clubhouse, leaving me standing in the parking lot of the place I’ve always loved but I wasn’t sure would ever accept the real me if they knew the truth.
Now that it’s off my chest, at least with my president, I feel lighter, like the weight I’ve carried on my shoulders my entire life is finally gone.
My heart, though, is still broken.
While I love RJ, I can’t make him come out just weeks after figuring out he’s bi. Especially if it was just a temporary thing because he liked the sex.
And now that I’m out, there’s no chance we can be together without people knowing what we’re doing.
It’s all or nothing.
CHAPTERFORTY-FIVE
Thane
It took the rest of the night to ask around and find someplace I could crash. Isaac offered one of the girls’ rooms, but I didn’t want to barge into his private life.
That’s how I ended up staying in one of Hank’s daddy’s trailers left abandoned on the side of the highway.
I was up all night cleaning the place because it was too dirty and bug-ridden to sleep in.
