Axel (Ride Series Book 3) (24 page)

Without explanation, he knew what I meant.

I felt him shrug. “No way to know, babe. She’ll have to prove it. If you weren’t so strong and you didn’t have the kind of support you do, I’d worry more about it.”

“But I have you,” I smiled up at him.

“You have me,” he affirmed gruffly, pulling me up for a kiss. “Always.”

Chapter 24

I
t was three days before Christmas when I was awoken unexpectedly from a deep sleep. “Babe, your phone,” Axel’s voice cut through the darkness.

“Hmm?” I mumbled. Lately, I’d been sleeping like the dead.

“Your phone, it’s ringing,” he repeated, moving into the room. He was still up so I couldn’t have been asleep for very long.

My hand reached blindly for the nightstand, noting blearily that it was only 11 p.m. I had just fallen asleep but it felt like hours ago. “Hello?” I rasped.

“Kat’s in labor. We’re headed into the hospital. Can you meet me there?” Sal’s voice came urgently through the line.

I sat up abruptly, suddenly wide-awake. “Yes! I’ll be there as soon as I can,” I answered, thrilled that my niece was on her way.

I disconnected and clicked on the light, moving at hyper speed to find my clothes.

“Can you stay with Mad?” I asked urgently.

“Yeah,” he nodded. “I want you to be really careful driving down the mountain. The roads are slick,” he warned.

“I will,” I nodded. I’d been driving regularly in what I affectionately called “The Tank.” Axel had claimed my ginormous SUV was safer on the mountain and had plenty of “space.” That man and the brood he wanted.

I rolled my eyes at the time, but I had to admit I did feel safer in it.

He kissed me tenderly, his fingers running through my hair. “Relax for me a bit. I don’t want you driving like this,” he said against my lips. His methods for relaxation usually worked like a charm and this was no different.

“Okay,” I sighed, wishing I could delay for a bit longer.

He grinned knowingly, delivering a swift smack to my ass.

“Hey!” I protested with a grin.

“Later,” he nodded, his eyes full of promise.

My knees went weak. “Later,” I agreed breathlessly.

Thirty minutes later, I was pulling up to the hospital and running through the halls like a madwoman.

When I spotted Jill looking adorable in her hospital scrubs, I immediately sighed with relief. We hadn’t known if she’d be on shift when Kat went into labor. She’d been working at the hospital for a few weeks and seemed to love it. Her divorce was ugly but we’d gotten her a kickass lawyer. The outlook was good for her to get full custody of Mason.

“You’re here,” I breathed, hugging her.

“My only swing shift this week,” she nodded with a smile. “Piper’s with Mason so I can stay until the baby comes.”

“That’s great. Kat will be so glad,” I smiled. “Ry still seem interested in her?” I asked as we headed down the long brightly lit hallway.

She looked thoughtful. “It’s more than that. We all may have misjudged him on this one,” she admitted. “I think he really cares about her. I feel badly for giving him so much shit,” she smiled ruefully.

Well, that was something. I wanted to meet this Piper.

“How’s Kat?” I asked as a baby’s wail ricocheted off the walls.

“Great. She’s progressing relatively fast with it being her first baby,” she explained as we arrived at their room.

Kat was sitting up in bed with Sal leaning over her. His forehead was pressed to hers and I waited quietly, not wanting to interrupt the moment between them.

“Hey, you’re here,” Kat smiled when she saw me.

“I’m here,” I nodded with a grin. “Okay?” I asked, my eyes shooting to Sal.

“I’m just telling this guy to chill,” Kat replied, quirking her thumb at my brother.

“I am chill,” he argued.

“Right,” I nodded, trying to keep the sarcasm from my tone as Jill moved around the room checking vitals and noting a few things in Kat’s chart.

As it turned out, my brother was the epitome of calm. He was an unyielding source of support for his wife throughout her relatively short but intense labor.

It wasn’t until my niece came screaming into the world, the top of her head a mass of dark hair that I saw him take a shaky breath, his mask of calm slipping.

“She’s gorgeous,” his voice rasped with emotion as he looked down at his daughter in awe.

“What’s her name?” I asked as I peeked over his shoulder at my niece. I was biding my time until I got to hold her.

“Wren,” he answered, winking at Kat.

“That’s so perfect,” I clapped my hands together. Sal had affectionately called Kat “birdie” for as long as I’d known them as a couple. No one could say how it started. It was just one of those things. It was perfectly fitting that they’d name their daughter after a bird.

It wasn’t long before it felt like the entire club was filling the room, everyone waiting their turn to meet the new arrival.

When Axel walked in, I beamed at him wanting to share this incredible moment with him.

“She’s so beautiful,” I announced proudly after he’d pulled me into his arms and kissed me soundly.

“Oh, yeah?” he grinned.

“Yeah,” I nodded. “Mad?”

“He’s with Ry,” he replied, his gaze turning to the littlest member of our extended family. “Look at that hair,” he chuckled.

“There’s a lot of it,” I agreed with a grin as Sal finally placed her in my arms. I’d been waiting, rather impatiently, since she’d been born.

“She looks so much like you, man,” Axel said, looking down at the tiny bundle nestled in my arms.

“You think?” Sal grinned, practically bursting with pride.

“She’ll be gorgeous just like her mama,” I winked over at Kat who was smiling tiredly at us all. “I think we should let these two ladies get some beauty sleep,” I added, noticing exactly how exhausted Kat looked. It was a lot of commotion after having just given birth.

“Good idea,” Sal nodded. “You’ll stay?” he asked Jill as she swept by checking on Kat.

Jill had been amazing throughout the whole birth and I didn’t blame Sal for not wanting her far. I wouldn’t be surprised if he tried to convince her to move in.

“I’ll stay awhile longer,” she assured him, grasping his hand briefly with a warm smile.

She was completely in her element. I was so proud of her.

“We’ll be by tomorrow if you’re not discharged by then. Otherwise, we’ll bring some food by the house,” I told Sal, giving him a quick hug. He wasn’t typically much of a hugger but I couldn’t help myself. “I’ll buy some prepared food,” I added with an eye roll when I saw the look of apprehension on his face.

“Thanks, sis,” he replied, hugging me back briefly before turning his attention to his family.

I looked at Sal and marveled at how much he’d changed from the brother I’d caught glimpses of as a kid. He was still gruff and at times distant, I had no doubt that would always be the case to some degree, but he was also centered in a way I hadn’t seen before. He was happy from the inside out; he just showed it in his own way. Love had done that for him. It had done the same for me.

“Want to go home?” I murmured to Axel as he wrapped an arm around me.

“Yeah, baby,” he nodded. “Let’s take the bike. Someone can bring your car back later,” he added.

“Sounds perfect,” I replied with an exalted grin. I freaking loved that bike and the man who rode it.

“I think we should start the expansion project on the house,” I mused as we walked down the hospital halls toward the exit.

“Oh, yeah?” he cocked a brow.

I shrugged innocently, knowing my suggestion resonated with him. It meant my letting go of the past and moving toward our future.

He stopped me as we reached the parking lot, stooping to look into my eyes. “You lettin’ it go?” he asked.

I swallowed against the ball of emotion suddenly choking me. I wouldn’t ever fully get over the loss of my father and we still didn’t know who’d killed him. I still had a long road with my mother. But with Axel by my side, propping me up, I felt like I could do anything. The truth was that with the love of a great man I
could
do anything.

“Yeah, babe,” I grinned. “Now are you gonna take me for a ride?”

He licked his lips, his eyes perusing my form in a way that made my heart pound and knees go weak.

“We’ll take the long way,” he growled into my neck.

In so many ways, we had taken the long way around, but in that time, we’d come together far stronger than I’d ever thought possible. It was time to hold tightly to my man for whatever the future held and always remember to enjoy the ride along the way.

Epilogue

One Month Later

“M
om?” I called as I walked through our house. It was a bit of a disaster with the construction we’d started and I was ready to have my home back – well a bigger version of it anyway.

“In here,” her voice called from the nursery.

I found my son and mother sitting on the floor looking at books. Maddox squealed when he saw me, crawling over to be picked up. I scooped him up kissing his sweet neck and smiled.

“How did you two do?” I asked, tickling his belly.

“Great,” she smiled, rising to her feet.

Ever since that visit over six weeks ago, we’d been letting her spend time at the house. It was only recently we began leaving her alone with Maddox for any length of time. Maddox adored her and the feeling was mutual.

“Do you want to stay for dinner?” I offered as she followed me into the kitchen.

“I would but Sal wanted me to help with Wren for an hour or so tonight,” she shared with a bright smile.

I knew that was huge for her. My brother had been decidedly more cautious about letting our mother near his family. Slowly but surely, he was coming around as she proved on a daily basis that people could change. He knew it was possible since he himself had already proven that ten times over.

“That’s great. Give her a kiss for me. I’ll be over there tomorrow,” I replied as I tried to keep my slightly frazzled state under wraps.

“Everything okay?” she asked.

Hopefully.

“Yep,” I nodded far too quickly.

She didn’t press. Our relationship had dramatically improved to something far healthier than we’d ever had, but we still had a way to go.

I walked her out hearing my phone buzz from the other room.

Is he home yet?

Have you told him?

Jill’s persistent texts made me sigh with exasperation. It had been all of twenty minutes since I’d seen her.

I was also irritated with her constantly dodging my questions about her love life. Her divorce was in full swing, but she’d settled in comfortably in Hawthorne. She loved her job and had daycare for Mason. I wanted to see her have some fun.

Not yet

I typed quickly, setting my phone aside and beginning to make dinner while Maddox entertained himself with the Tupperware drawer. He was growing up so fast; he’d be walking any day. I couldn’t believe it.

Axel strode in as I was putting the casserole in the oven. He’d been spending more hours at the club as the guys worked to solve what the cops weren’t. There were no official answers about my father’s murder, but every day, it looked more and more like it had been the Black Riders. The consequences of that were daunting at best.

“Hi, baby,” his deep voice rumbled and he kissed my neck.

“Hi,” I replied, trying to hide my nervous energy.

“Hey, little man,” he greeted Maddox, scooping him up.

Maddox squealed in delight as Axel carried him off to survey the work completed on the house during the day. It was part of his routine; he did a walk through with Mad sometimes in the middle of the day if he could find the time. We were adding an entire second story. It would take months but the result would double our square footage.

“What’d you do today?” he asked when he’d returned, grabbing a beer from the fridge.

I dropped the knife I’d been holding, startled by his question.

“Jesus, babe, be careful,” he cursed, bending to pick it up. “You all right?” he asked concerned.

“Fine, why wouldn’t I be fine?” I replied hurriedly.

He looked at me skeptically. “Are you on the rag?” he demanded.

I let out a choking sound, something between a laugh and a cough. “Uh no, why?”

“‘Cause you get a little crazy when you’re on the rag,” he shrugged, eyeing me steadily.

“Nope,” I shook my head. “Just must be in a weird mood,” I added breezily. “My mom and Mad had fun,” I added, changing the subject.

“Oh?”

I nodded. “I ran out for just about an hour. Oh, and Sal wanted her to come help with Wren.” I grinned.

He smiled. “That’s great, baby.”

“Yeah,” I sighed. “Dinner will be ready soon,” I added, shooing him out of the kitchen. Until Mad went to bed, avoidance was my method of choice and I was rolling with that as long as my far too perceptive man would let me get away with it.

“Okay, baby, what gives?” he demanded in exasperation later that night. I’d spent the evening a bumbling distracted mess. We’d put Maddox to bed and I knew I couldn’t avoid it any longer.

I bit my lip. “I have something to tell you and I’m nervous,” I blurted.

“Okay,” he nodded warily, waiting for me to continue.

“I got you a present,” I said, rising from the bed to grab it.

“A present?” his brow wrinkled in confusion.

“Open it,” I said softly, handing him the gift bag and standing nervously, fighting the urge to pace.

He removed the tissue paper and pulled out the tiny onesie I’d picked up earlier that day. In black letters, it read, “I have the world’s best Daddy.”

He looked at it in consternation for a minute. “But this is too small for…” Then I saw the light go on and he looked up at me in wonder. “Does this mean what I think it means?”

I bit my lip and nodded.

He swallowed hard as his eyes swept my frame landing on my belly. “You’re givin’ me another baby?” he demanded.

I nodded again.

From his place perched on the edge of the bed, he reached out and pulled me between his legs, his head resting on my flat belly.