Taking a deep breath for courage, I step through the door. The inside is a lot like the outside, homey. There is huge flower print sectional against the back corner of the living room. Above it, pictures of children line the walls. The two boys and one girl in the pictures hold a special place in this woman’s heart, and she wants to make sure everyone that walks through her door knows it.
Without thinking, I walk over and take a closer look. One of the boys is no doubt her son; I can tell just by looking that he shares her DNA. It only takes a second to realize the other boy is Bowie. The child in the pictures looks nothing like the tattoo covered man I just met, but there is no denying that those sparkling blue eyes are the same. I’ve never seen anything like them. They remind me of the summer sky, just before a storm. A mixture of a million shades of the same hue, changing constantly.
“He was such a cute kid. I’m not sure what happened to him.” Nina says, as she steps next to me and pushes a cup of coffee in my direction.
I turn to her, not yet meeting her eyes, and take the cup. “Thank you.”
“I quit hanging pictures when he started inking up his body. I told him God gave him beautiful skin, there was no reason to cover it, but he wouldn’t listen.”
I’m not sure what to say, because it’s rude to disagree with a person in their own home, but I think Bowie’s tattoos are beautiful in their own right. Trying to change the subject to something else, I point to the young girl. “Who’s that?”
“That is my beautiful Rachel, and that one is my
hijo,
Justin. He’s another one that doesn’t get his picture hung. He shares his brother’s fascination for color. Only he’s worse, ink has become an obsession to that boy.” She finishes motioning towards the pictures of the children.
Brother? They look nothing alike. I don’t ask how it is possible, instead I look back at the photos. My eyes focus in on one of the pictures.
“He was in high school in that picture; he and Rachel had just moved in with me.” She motions towards the shot of an adolescent Bowie in a football uniform, with a baby wrapped around his leg. “That was taken right before his first game in the Varsity league.”
“I remember that day.” Bowie says, walking into the living room with a coffee in his hand. “I didn’t think Priss was gonna let me play.”
Nina laughs, looking over her shoulder at Bowie. “Rachel just wanted to play too.”
Bowie shakes his head and chuckles. “She wasn’t even a year old. Not sure she could have hung with the guys on the team.”
“Your sister would’ve put them all on the ground.”
Sister? I look back the wall and stare at the girl’s face. I look from picture to picture, watching her grow from a toddler to child and finally a teen. It takes me a minute, but I can see the resemblance. A small tip to the end of each of their noses; it’s barely there, but definitely noticeable. I move my eyes to the pictures of Nina’s son. Again, the tip of the nose is visible. Judging by the different skin tones, hair and eye colors: I can only assume they had different moms, but all shared the same father.
“I see you are confused,
cariño
.” Nina says, with a smile on her face.
“A little, maybe,” I admit.
She never loses her smile, as she explains the ins and outs of their family. “Their dad is a womanizing bastard. He has children spread across this country. Two of those women weren’t willing to be the mother the kids needed, so I stepped in.”
Bowie steps beside her and throws his arm across her shoulder. Leaning down and kissing her cheek, he says, “And you are the best
mamá
in the whole fuckin’ world.”
Without hesitation, she sends the back of her hand into his stomach. “Watch your mouth,
hijo
.”
He leans down and kisses her cheek again. “I gotta head out. I got shit to do when I get to the clubhouse.”
Nina narrows her eyes, when he curses again, but she doesn’t reprimand him a second time. “I will take care of your woman, don’t worry.”
“I’m not worried.” He says, as he pulls away from her and looks at me. “If you need me for anything, just tell Nina. She can get in touch with me.”
Not yet ready to let him leave me, I move closer to him. “When are you coming back?”
He looks towards Nina, a faint splash of red on his cheeks. Finally looking back at me, he shrugs. “I’m not sure.”
“What do you mean?” I ask, even though I already know the answer. He has no intention of coming back; Bowie is done with me.
He shakes his head, not wanting to tell me the truth. “Like I said, I’m not sure when I’ll be back.”
“He’ll be back soon; he can’t stay away for long. He’ll miss my homemade enchiladas if he does.” Nina answers for him, trying to break the tension in the room.
Knowing that my last link to my family is leaving me behind causes a wave of panic to course through my body, but I fight to conceal it. I square my shoulders and paste on the serene face that I learned so well during my marriage. “I’ll be fine.”
“Of course, you will.” Nina says, as she steps next to me and grabs my hand. “Come on,
cariño
.”
Without looking back at him, I follow her down the hall. “What does
cariño
mean?”
My grasp of the Spanish language is limited at best. I understood
hijo
, because our housekeeper used to tell me stories of her young son all the time.
Cariño
is new to me though.
“It is a term of endearment.” She explains as we continue down the hall. “Similar to sweetheart.”
I nod at her explanation. “It sounds prettier in your language.”
“Everything does.”
I am about to agree, when I hear the sound of a door opening. I listen to it shut, marking Bowie’s departure, as she leads me into a vacant bedroom. Pain slashes through me again; he’s gone. The man my brother trusted to take care of me has discarded me like a piece of trash.
She squeezes my hand, doing her best to make me feel comfortable. “You’ll be all right; I promise.”
Still wearing my mask, I force a smile. “I always am.”
Not my Old Lady
Bowie
I walk into the clubhouse, just as dawn is breaking. I walk straight to the bar and tap its top. “Give me a shot of Jack and a beer.”
It only takes the prospect a minute to get my order. Walking away from the bar, I see an empty table at the back of the room and take a seat. I grab the shot and toss it back. A vision of the pain in Laura’s eyes is playing on a loop in my mind as I swallow the fiery liquid. I’m irritated as fuck, mad at myself for putting that look in her eyes. It was like she was breaking in two, but too damn proud to show it. I felt like shit for just dropping her off, but a woman like that doesn’t belong at the clubhouse. Nina’s is the safest place for her.
I lift my beer to my lips, as Tin-Man sits down next to me. “
Hermano,
glad to see you’re back.”
“Glad to be back, brother.”
“Took her to
Mamá
’s
after
all?” He asks, with a smirk.
I nod my head, but don’t bother replying. No need to tell him that the girl I thought I wanted in my bed turned out to be an uptight bitch. Shit, that’s not true. She may be about as uptight as a person can be, but there wasn’t a bitchy bone in her body. I swear looking at her, reminded me of a broken glass. It was like she was begging me to put her back together. That shit ain’t happening. I don’t do commitment, and a woman like her would want it all. Even if I did want an Old Lady, she isn’t what I want on the back of my bike.
“Not what you were expecting, huh?”
“Nah, man. She’s nothing like I thought she’d be. Doesn’t matter though, Nina will take care of her.”
“If
Mamá
’s not around to do it, Priss will.”
I smile thinking about how our sister will react to Laura. Shit, Shay. I have to start thinking of her as Shay. “Priss will have a hell of a time with Shay.”
His eyes narrow, when I say her new name. He doesn’t ask any questions though. “If anyone can fix a broken soul it’s our
hermanita
and
Mamá
. A woman running away like that, her soul is probably shattered.”
I nod in agreement. Shay will be fine at Nina’s. She has to be, because I can’t help her. I’ll protect her, but that is all. “She’ll find her way.”
He’s about to reply, when the sound of heels clicking against the concrete floor draws my attention. I turn my head, just in time to see Domino walking my way. As soon as I lay eyes on her tits, barely hidden behind her shirt, my dick goes to half-mast. A slow smile spreads across my face, as I lift my chin to her. “Domino.”
“Bowie,” She purrs as she slides into my lap, barely fitting between me and the table. She grinds her ass against my dick, turning it to stone. “I missed you.”
I’m just about to lay my hand on her lap, but her words cause me to pause. She’s been getting needy lately. Texting and calling while I’m on the road. Even worse, she somehow ends up in my bed nearly every damn night. If her pussy wasn’t so damn good, I would’ve kicked her ass to the curb a long damn time ago.
I place my hand on her hips and lift her from my lap. “You’ll have to miss me a while longer, cause I’m talking to my brother right now.”
She looks between the two of us, before a pout forms on her lips. “I guess I’ll have to wait.”
“Yeah, you will.” I say with a hard nod. “Now, go.”
She lets out a nervous laugh. “There’s no reason to be such an ass.”
“Get the fuck away, right now, or I’ll show you how much of an ass I can be.”
She hesitates for just a second, before turning on her heel and heading towards the other free pussy hanging around the club. “That bitch is getting clingy.”
“You don’t know half of it,
Hermano
.”
I look to him, not liking his tone. “What the hell are you talking about?”
He takes another pull from his beer, before answering. “She’s been hanging around here all night, waiting for you. One of the prospects wanted a piece, but she told him no. Said that you had claimed her.”
“What the fuck?” He better be lying, or Domino will be learning there is hell to pay for running her mouth.
“She’s here all the damn time, making herself at home. The other bitches are calling her your Old Lady.”
I jerk my eyes back to her, glaring at her skank ass. “I fucked her a few times, but that’s all. A bitch that’s been passed around by half my brothers will never wear my patch.”
“You’ve done more than fuck her a few times, man. She’s been in your bed for nearly a month. You haven’t had a piece of club pussy in weeks. That’s a first.”
“That’s not true,” I say with a shake of my head. “I had Noelle in my bed a few nights ago.”
“Look around, do you see her now.”
I scan the room, only seeing a couple of stragglers from last night’s party. “It’s six in the damn morning; everyone’s asleep.”
He shakes his head, . “She hasn’t been back since the day after she was with you. I heard Domino ran her ass off. I’m not sure what really happened, but I know she asked Cash if she could be moved to the house on Front Street. She’s been working for Belle ever since.”
“No fuckin’ way. She begged to get out of the flop house, hated the customers.”
Some of our girls didn’t mind turning tricks; Noelle isn’t one of them. She didn’t mind selling her pussy, but she didn’t want to sell it to strangers. She had a bad john, not long after she started. After that, she pleaded to work the clubhouse. We may be a bunch of thugs, but other than a few of the brothers, most of us treat the girls with respect.
“I guess whatever Domino threatened her with was worse than being worked over by a customer every now and then. Plus, Homer and a few of the boys have been making stops over there. Someone in a cutt on the property, keeps the trouble down.”
“Fuck! Domino’s pussy is stellar, and she gives a killer blow job but that is it. Her thinking that she is going to be my old lady is just a fantasy.”
“Her pussy is toxic. It latches on to your fuckin’ dick and doesn’t want to let go. When you’re balls deep, it feels like heaven, but as soon as you shoot your load, you realize how bad you’ve fucked up.” Tin-Man shakes his head. “You’ll wear scars from that shit for years.”
Sitting the nearly empty beer on the bar/table, I lean back in my chair. “I don’t know what in the hell you’re talking about man.”
“She’s going to cause you problems,
Hermano
. Especially, when she lays eyes on your hidden treasure.”
I don’t have to ask who he’s talking about. “She’s never going to meet her, because Shay is never going to be within a mile of that bitch.”
With that, I stand up. “I had a long damn night; I’m hitting the bed.”
“Sleep well,
Hermano
. I’m heading out, riding the lead to Nashville.”
“Ride safe, brother.” I lift my chin, before heading to my room.
As soon as I walk through the door, I shed my clothes and climb into bed. Folding my hands behind my head, I lean back and close my eyes. Sleep comes fast, and dreams of Shay follow closely behind. Sweet fuckin’ dreams.
*****
As sleep clears from my brain, I feel a weight on top of me. I’m about to reach under the pillow for my extra piece, when the strong scent of perfume reaches my nose. Instantly, I know who is in my bed and I’m fuckin’ irate. Shrugging Domino’s body from mine, I climb out of the bed. As soon as my feet hit the floor, I kick the mattress so hard it nearly comes off the frame.
Domino’s eyes open, as she reaches up to grab the headboard. She barely catches herself from sliding to the floor. She slowly sits up and runs a hand through her tangled hair, before she looks up at me. “What the hell, Bowie?”
“Why the fuck are you in my bed?” I ask, furious with her.
“I fell asleep.” She explains, dropping the sheet and giving me a view of her ample tits.