AllFreeNovel
Share Us
For the rest of the day, we spend time with our parents and go up to check out Bull’s house. Haley is home with the kids so we spend time with them before I make my excuses to leave Mom and Dad with my brother and his family. Heading back to the clubhouse, no one’s in the common room as I make my way through. I want to go check on Autumn, but I’m not sure now is the time to see her. So, I head for my room and get ready for bed. Tomorrow is a new day and I have to figure out what the fuck to do about Autumn, the club, Brick, and everything else. I don’t see myself getting much sleep tonight, but that’s okay. I’ll sleep when this situation is resolved. At least I hope I will.
Chapter Eighteen
Autumn
THE LAST THREE days have been crazy as fuck and I’m not sure if I’ve actually managed to process any of the information I’ve been given. I’m pregnant with Brick’s baby and that’s why I’ve been so damn sick. Until recently, I can honestly say I’ve never really gotten sick in my entire life. A cold here or there. Maybe the flu once in a while. That’s it. Since I left my mother’s house, I’ve gotten the flu, a viral infection, and now I’m pregnant and getting sick worse than anything I’ve ever experienced in my life. It’s horrible and nothing helps with the nausea. Ghost even brought me saltines and ginger ale. While the soda helps ease my stomach a little bit, it’s still hard to get down even a few crackers. Even the dry toast Ghost has brought me in the morning hasn’t really helped.
Ghost is the only one besides Quinn, Harley, Tank, Steel, the triplets, Shadow, and Renee that I’ve let in my room. Others have tried to come see me, but I’m not ready. They really didn’t want to have anything to do with me before now so I’m not sure what the hell is going on. Other than Tank, Shadow, and Steel yelling at everyone. I don’t want someone paying attention to me or wanting to get to know me because they’re being forced to though. That’s not a way to start a friendship. At least not to my knowledge. I’m not about to start one that way though. I’d rather know someone wants to know me for who I am as a person versus them wanting to make someone else happy. And that’s not to say that the girls of the club didn’t try to invite me to go shopping and stuff with them. They did. But a large part of me felt as if they were just doing it to do it. Again, not something I want to be involved in.
I’ve spent the last three days in bed and getting to know Tank and the triplets. Tank gave me more information about my mother and why he doesn’t have a relationship with her. She apparently stole a ton of money from their parents when they were still alive and said Tank did it. She’s never liked him because she saw him as the ‘golden’ child who could do no wrong. So, my uncle left home when his parents refused to do anything about his sister lying and stealing from them. He hasn’t looked back since then and considers himself alone with no family left. I can’t really blame him. There were other things he told me, but I’ll never repeat them. My mother has been a horrible person her entire life and I’m so thankful I didn’t turn out anything like her. It would break my heart if I were anything like the woman who gave birth to me.
Tank has also talked to me about going to Clifton Falls with him. He wants to continue getting to know me and build a relationship between the two of us. The triplets have expressed their interest in me staying in Cedar Bay so I can build a relationship with them. Steel and Shadow have also talked to me about moving to Dander Falls to build relationships with them as the grandparents of the baby I’m carrying. I feel torn in multiple directions and there’s no way to make a decision without hurting someone. Though Tank has already told me that if I do remain in Cedar Bay or choose to go to Dander Falls, then he’ll be spending time in either place I am so we can continue building our relationship and getting to know one another. I’m glad to know I’m not alone in the world any longer and that I have a family who wants to spend the time getting to know me.
Ghost hasn’t really tried to talk to me when he’s come to my room. I’m not sure if he’s not ready or if it’s because he’s waiting for me to start the conversation with him. We all have so much to think about and I’m not sure we’ll ever really be ready for what needs to be discussed. All I know is in order to move forward, I can’t hold a grudge and I have to be open and listen to Brick and Ghost when we finally do talk about things. I can’t simply hold onto the pain filling me with the thought of them continuing to hurt me on a regular basis. That’s not something I’m going to keep dealing with, but I can’t just selfishly make decisions about leaving Cedar Bay any longer. I have to think of the baby and knowing the father of him or her is here. Though I won’t force Brick to be a dad in any capacity. I don’t need his money and there’s no way in hell I’ll make him be a dad to our child. I’d rather he have no contact with them instead of being an unstable presence in his or her life. I don’t want my child to ever feel as if they’re not wanted or loved with every piece of their dad’s heart and soul. That’s no way to live and I should know.
Brick hasn’t been by to see me and that’s okay. I’m not angry with him for it because he was shocked just as much as I was when Doc was here. She has called to let me know the blood test came back and I am definitely pregnant. I have to go in a few days to have an ultrasound and make sure everything is okay and see what’s going on. There has to be a reason I’m so sick all the time. Hopefully the ultrasound gives us some answers. I’m not really getting my hopes up, but there’s always a chance I could be pregnant with more than one baby and that’s the reason my morning sickness is so bad.
Today I’m going back to work. Venom told me I didn’t need to go in if I wasn’t feeling good. However, I need to earn as much money as I can and I can’t remain at the clubhouse in bed. I have to work and stay busy. Now that I’ve been working, I can’t imagine living like my mother for any reason. There’s something about knowing you’ve done a good job and put in the hard work it takes to run an office. Venom and the guys are there to help me, but I’m left alone for the most part and feel as if I’ve made a difference and helped make their lives easier so they don’t have to worry about anything other than working on vehicles and getting them back to the owners. Plus, they have a huge custom bike build coming up and it’s going to take all of them to make it happen for the company it’s being done for.
“Are you goin’ to work today?” Tank asks me as I enter the common room.
“Yeah. I can’t just sit here. I’ve taken a few days and despite our talks, I’m still trying to process everything. It’s a lot. So, I’m going to head into work today and try to get my mind on something else. Maybe then I can fully process everything else. What are you going to do today?” I ask my uncle as Venom makes his way over to us.
“I’m gonna head to the gym with Steel and Shadow. We’re gonna get a good workout in and maybe take a few of the guys in the ring. I promise not to hurt them too much,” he informs me as I laugh at him.
Tank is a big guy and I know it won’t take much for him to hurt anyone he comes up against. If he gets in the ring with one of the guys from here, I’m not sure what will happen. It’d be fun to watch though. Especially if he got in the ring with Brick or Ghost. I think I’d like to watch that happen.
“You’re thinkin’ of me fightin’ Ghost or Brick, aren’t ya?” Tank asks me, a smirk on his face.
“I plead the fifth. I’m gonna head to work now. I’ll see you later,” I tell him, accepting the hug Tank gives me.
“I’m gonna drive you in today, Autumn. I don’t think you should be on your own right now. Not just because of your mom, but because of how you looked when Ghost brought you back here the other day. If somethin’ happens, I’d rather be safe than sorry. Can we make that work for right now?” Venom asks me, not making any demands like he could if he truly wanted to.
“I don’t have a problem with that. I’m not sure driving is a good thing for me right now with the way the morning sickness hits me out of nowhere. I do have my medicine, saltines, and some ginger ale with me today. Hopefully it will help more than what it’s done over the last few days,” I respond, knowing Venom is going to expect me to fight him on this.
Venom nods and motions for me to go in front of him. Tank follows us as he heads to his truck while Venom helps me up in his. I wave to my uncle as Venom pulls out of the parking lot and we head to the garage.
“Autumn, I don’t know where your head is with everythin’ goin’ on. I know Ghost has been bringin’ you stuff to eat, but he isn’t talkin’ about anythin’ involvin’ you. Brick has been keepin’ to himself more than usual and hasn’t even been seein’ Brindley or James. Everyone is gettin’ worried about him. However, you’re important too and I want to make sure you’re doin’ okay with everythin’ goin’ on,” Venom says as we make our way through town.
“I’m not sure how I’m doing honestly. It’s a lot of information to process and with everything going on with my mother and Nolan, I’m not sure how I feel about anything. My mind can’t seem to wrap around a single piece of information for any length of time,” I answer him honestly. “I am sorry Ghost and Brick aren’t doing okay. They should be relying on all of you to help them figure out what they want. Maybe it would be good for me to leave Cedar Bay. At least for a while until we can all figure out what we want.”
“I don’t know that you leavin’ is gonna help the situation, Autumn. If anythin’ it might make it worse. We all want to make things right with you and make sure you know we do want you around. When it comes to you, we dropped the fuckin’ ball and all of us are to blame. You’ll never know how sorry we are for that. My only concern right now are the three of you. Are you even willin’ to give the guys a chance to talk to you about things?”
“I am. I’ve already decided I’m not going to hold a grudge or make them suffer for what’s happened in the past. Whatever decisions we make, we have to be able to live with because it’s not just about us any longer. There’s a baby to think about. I will never keep my baby from Ghost or Brick. However, I’m not about to force either man to be a part of his or her life either. That will only lead to my baby being hurt and that’s not something I’m willing to do. So, I will talk to them if they ever want to have a conversation but I won’t ever force them to do anything,” I tell Venom as he parks his truck in the parking lot at the garage and gets out so he can help me before I go to open the office.
Work has been extremely busy today. I’m not sure what’s going on, but it seems as if everyone in town suddenly needs their vehicle towed or has brought it in to have work done. Some of it’s simple like routine maintenance while others need major repairs done to their vehicles. I’ve spent all day long at the desk answering calls and filling out the forms for the guys to do the correct repairs on each vehicle brought in. I even had to ask Venom about the wait times because I wasn’t sure what to say with the influx of work.
We have an hour left and it’s the first time all day I’ve been able to breathe. Hawkeye just left me after dropping off the keys to a car he just finished working on. I’m about to go get a bottle of water when the bell over the door jingles and I look up to greet the customer who’s just entered the office. Instead, I freeze in my seat and don’t know what to do. Standing just inside the door is my mother. She’s glaring at me and I know whatever is about to happen won’t be good. Not for me at any rate.
“Autumn, I don’t know what kind of game you’re playing, but it ends. Right. Now,” she grits out between clenched teeth. “You’re coming with me and will be marrying Nolan tomorrow. He’s moved up the wedding and nothing you say or do will change it from happening. The contracts are all signed and you can’t do anything about it.”
“Yes, I can. I can choose to remain here and there’s nothing you can do to make me go with you. I’m a legal adult and if you force me to go with you, you’ll be kidnapping me. So, no, I don’t think I will be going with you today or any day. If the contracts I wasn’t a part of have been signed, then I suggest you go find a wedding dress and marry Nolan yourself. I also don’t have to marry him. If you don’t believe me, we can get the same officer back here who has already spoken to you about this issue. I believe I was told if you had to be talked to again, you’d be arrested for harassing me and I could file for a restraining order against you. How do you think all of your friends would react to knowing you’ve not only been arrested but have a restraining order against you by your own daughter?” I question my mother, hoping one of the guys makes an appearance in the office sooner rather than later.
Before I can even blink, my mother is standing in front of me. She grips a fistful of my hair and yanks as hard as she can. I cry out in pain as she jerks my head to the side making a horrible pain shoot through my neck. My mother has never really been a fighter, but today, she chooses to flex her miniscule muscles. I’m slapped repeatedly in the face and upper body as my mother continues to yank on my hair.
In minutes, I’m yanked from the chair and my body slams into the hard floor of the office. My head bounces once or twice before resting against the cool tile. I scream as sharp pains shoot through my side and concern for my baby fills me. If my mother causes something to happen to the baby, I’ll fucking kill her.
“Help!” I scream out, hoping one of the guys can hear me and rushes in to find out what’s going on.
