Released: MC Secret Baby Romance (New Adult Contemporary Biker Romance) (20 page)

“What’s on your mind,” he bopped her on the nose. “You look worried.”

“Yeah…,” she tossed her cigarette end into the back yard. “It’s not long until Rex is out and well…. He’s gonna want to see Ricky.”

Neil felt as though he’d been punched in the gut. He hated how that violent thug was never far away from Brandy’s thoughts, and he hated that he was Ricky’s father. There were times when he lay awake at night and dreamed that he himself was his real dad.

“That’s not for a while though, ain’t it?”

“Six months,” Brandy pursed her lips and nodded her head in thought. “Six months and I bet he’ll be wanting to take Ricky away from me.”

Tears began to gather in the corner of her eyes.

“Don’t say that,” Neil grabbed her by the shoulders and looked deep into her eyes. “You don’t know that! And, there’s no court in the land that would take Ricky away from you.”

“Rex doesn’t pay attention to what the courts say… The gang don’t care about the law. I thought you’d know that.”

Neil gulped down his anxiety and pulled away. He’d often wondered how a nice girl like Brandy could get involved with a criminal like Rex Allen, but then again, he knew how far bad boy credentials went, knew that girls couldn’t say no to an alpha male.

“Six months,” he looked to the floor. “It’s enough time that I could save up some money and we could get outta here, make a fresh start.”

“Really?” she perked up and looked at him with her eyes wide and her hands clutching at his arms.

“Sure, I mean it. I wanna give you and the boy the best life I can, and if that means breaking away and getting as far away as possible from that bunch of psycho bikers, then I’ll do whatever I can.”

Brandy was overcome with emotion, and she let her tears spill out down her cheeks.

“You’re the best,” she kissed him hard. “We’ll make it work. It’ll be wonderful, I just know it.”

“I know it too,” he kissed her back. “We’ve just gotta stick together.”

They both nodded at one another in agreement.

“But right now, I gotta go to work,” Neil sighed as he stood. “I’ll try not to be home too late.”

“Aw, I wish you could just stay home with me all day.”

“Yeah… I wish that too,” he playfully ruffled her hair, as he walked away. “But I’ll be back soon, promise.”

He left with a heavy heart, gazing back over his shoulder.

“I’ll bring back treats for Ricky,” he smiled before gathering his things and making his way to his pickup truck outside.

Brandy listened to the sound of the stuttering engine as he left. She heard as the metallic whirring of the loose hubcap sounded as though the wheel could take off at any moment. When she heard the sound fade into the distance, she lit herself another cigarette, knowing that she shouldn’t, and rested her head against the wall.

With the sun on her face, she felt as though new beginnings were right around the corner. She couldn’t stop smiling, couldn’t stop the singing that was in her heart as she thought about the future.

She believed every word Neil said. He was, after all, nothing like Rex and anything he promised, he’d make sure to fulfill. With his words still floating around her head, she was certain it was only a matter of time until they were long gone from this part of town. She was counting down the weeks in her head, wondering how she should get things organized before they moved.

With a flash of ideas in her mind, she hurried to the kitchen where the calendar was stuck to the fridge. Grabbing a red pen, she began making notes and ticking off dates. If she could get the finances in check, then that would shave off a month, if she could get Ricky set up in a preschool somewhere, that would mean they could go even sooner, and if she got a job not long after that, it would mean things would be set up real quick. When she was finished, she rested back against the wall and studied the x marks and doodles. Feeling rather proud of herself, she took the last drag of her cigarette before throwing it in the sink. She listened to the sound of it sizzling in the leftover dishwater before she left to check on Ricky.

She was halfway across the living room, just a few steps away from the front door, when she heard a cheerful knock. Assuming Ricky had forgotten something and rushed home, she swung it open with a big smile on her face.

“Hey honey!” she beamed. “Oh!”

She recoiled back in horror when she realized who she was talking to.

“Shit!” she panicked and began to scramble backward, as she stumbled into the back of the sofa. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“Well, that’s no way to greet the love of your life.”

Rex towered over her, his enormous stature like a bull in the doorway. His shoulders were so wide they eclipsed the light before it had a chance to enter the house.

“But, I have to ask….” he strode into the living room, glancing around the place he used to know so well.

“Who you callin’ honey?”

There was an anger in his voice that Brandy hadn’t heard before, a menace in his eyes that she knew meant trouble. She remained silent, her voice strangled in her throat. For a moment, she just watched him, just looked up to his scarred face with terror in her gut. But then, he came closer to her, so close that she could smell the liquor on his breath and the musky cologne as it mingled with his sweat.

“Whut…. Whut are you doing here? I thought you still had time!”

“Now, that ain’t the response of a loving old lady… You should be welcoming me home with open arms, and open legs…” he moved even closer and grabbed at her bare thighs.

She let out a pained gasp, as she felt his muscular fingers dig into her skin. As she looked up to him, she didn’t think it was possible he could get bigger, but after almost two years of being inside, he’d bulked up.

Brandy tried to wriggle free, tried to pull his hand off her, but she was helpless against his strength. It was like a kitten trying to fight off a bison.

“Why are you struggling, babes? I thought you’d be pleased to see me.”

He spread her legs and pinned her up against the couch, eager to feel all of her body in between his hands.

“I’ve missed you so much, been desperate for the touch of a woman,” he grunted. “But, you still didn’t answer my question… Who were you calling honey?” he gripped at her chin and held her gaze to his.

She said nothing.

“Cos unless I’m paranoid, which God forbid I am, I could have sworn you were expecting me to be a lover of yours.”

His mouth was so close to hers she could almost taste his sour breath. She grimaced, as he breathed into her face, and winced as the tears stung at the sides of her eyes.

“Eh?” he shook her head. “Am I right?” he looked to the floor behind her and saw a pair of men’s boots.

His face was red with rage, and Brandy took note of the throbbing vein that was flickering between blue and purple at the side of his head. She recognized it so well; it was the vein that pulsed when she knew he was reaching fever pitch. It was going to come, the temper. He was going to destroy the house and everything in it. He was going to ruin her life, he was going to…

“Mama?”

There was a tiny voice coming from the top of the stairs. Rex looked up and saw his son for the first time. In shock, he let his hand go limp and Brandy pulled away, rubbing at her face as she hurried up the stairs.

Bundling Ricky into her arms, she picked him up and ran into the bedroom, slamming the door and pushing a chair in front of it. She threw the bedding up in the air, as she searched for her phone. It was beneath her pillow, and she tried her best to punch in 911, but her hands were shaking too violently.

Meanwhile, her bewildered little boy was sat on the floor with his pacifier hanging halfway out his mouth. His eyes became wide, as he heard heavy footsteps coming down the hall. His tiny hands reached for his mother and she clutched him tight, the both of them huddled on the bed.

Brandy watched as the door handle began to move. It shook slightly as Rex tried to get in, but when he realized the door was obstructed, she was certain it would be torn from its socket. She imagined any minute now he would kick the door in and it would shatter in splinters.

Her hands were trembling as she held onto her baby, the tears coming fast and frequent as they spilled onto her shirt.

“Brandy! Let me in,” Rex yelled.

She punched in the numbers 9 and 1.

“Hey, come on!” he shouted.

She was on the brink of pressing the last 1 when she heard something that made her stop. It was Rex’s voice and it wasn’t what she expected.

“Look, Brandy,” he now sounded defeated. “If anything… Will you at least let me see my boy?”

She heard the sound of him giving up and slouching to the floor, his enormous weight resting against the door.

“Please,” he begged. “I don’t want the first time I meet my son to be like this.”

Chapter Three

Her hand was still shaking when she opened the door. Rex stood up when he saw her and, for the shortest second, she was sure she saw a redness around his eyes as though he’d been crying.

There was a deep tension hanging in the air, but despite the fear Brandy was feeling, she found herself stepping to the side.

“Would you like to see him?” she asked, as she noticed the softness in his eyes.

Something had changed in Rex like a switch. He was no longer the beast he was downstairs, but now, looked as though he had something behind his eyes she hadn’t seen before. If she wasn’t mistaken, he looked as though he cared.

She watched him in awe as he stepped into the room and introduced himself to Ricky.

“Hey buddy,” he knelt down on one knee. “Do you know who I am?”

The little boy shook his head, as he chewed on his pacifier.

“I’m your Daddy,” Rex explained. “In fact, I can see you’ve got the same nose as me,” he pressed one of his giant fingers onto the end of Ricky’s nose.

The child giggled and pulled away, his tiny hands resting against his chubby tummy. Brandy could see it, the resemblance between them. There was no denying it, he was definitely the biker’s boy. Despite him still being a baby, he had the making of Rex’s diamond shaped jaw and high cheekbones, and there was that nose… that proud, snub nose…

For a long while, Brandy watched the biker stare with love at his son. If she was being honest with herself, she’d have to admit he seemed to genuinely love him despite him having never met him before. There was a bond between the two as they played and laughed.

She watched as Rex picked his boy up and flung him over his shoulder. Ricky squealed and giggled as the enormous man tickled his ribs. Brandy couldn’t help but smile, eventhough she was still scared.

What now? She thought. What about Neil? As Rex looked up and their eyes met across the room, his mood seemed to change once again. He put the little boy gently on the bed and asked for a high five. As Ricky slammed his little palm into Rex’s, he laughed and did a backward roll.

“So…” Rex approached Brandy while he was still laughing at his son’s amateur gymnastics. “He’s a real cute kid. Looks just like me as a baby.”

“I can imagine that.”

“He’s even got that little cheeky streak running through him. He’ll be trouble, I can tell you that.”

“Yeah… I hope not,” Brandy looked to the floor.

“Well,” Rex reached into his pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. “Shall we talk outside?”

She nodded, knowing she had no choice. She had to do what he said. As they walked down the stairs and back out into the garden, the biker lit two cigarettes and handed one to the young mom.

“I shouldn’t,” she sighed. “I’m really trying to quit.

“Urgh… Quitting's for losers,” he smirked.

Brandy found herself laughing at his lame joke eventhough she hated him. There was something about him that was so magnetic, eventhough he was a brute. He’s a psycho, just remember that, she reminded herself.

“Is that a smile I see?” Rex noticed the look on her face. “If I wasn’t dreamin’, I’d say you were sweet on me again.”

“Nope,” she looked back down to the floor as she blew out a lungful of smoke. “I’m just thinking of something.”

“Oh yeah? Like your new man?”

She looked up at him with panic in her eyes.

“What?” he upturned his hands. “Like you think I don’t know? It’s written all over your face, his smell’s still in this house and his shit’s everywhere.”

He shook his head in despair.

“I don’t know how you could do something like that to me, Brandy. I thought we were good together.” He looked into her eyes with a pained expression etched across his face. “Weren’t we?”

“We were,” she nodded, her lips hanging onto the end of the cigarette butt. “But, I can’t believe you’d do such a thing like hold up a gas station with a shotgun,” she spat. “Why would you do something like that? What did you need the money for?”

He said nothing, just sucked on his cigarette as if it was giving him life.

“Don’t you worry your pretty little head about gang business, lady,” he tilted his head back and gave her his signature cocky look.