Rusty Cage (Rawlins Heretics MC Book 1) Read online

  Glitch shakes his head. “No, but you’re supposed to lie about people’s kids.”

  “Grow up,” I tell them and rev my engine. “The first part of fixing a problem is admitting you have one. Trevor is a nine-year-old piece of shit, and he’ll never be a member of the Heretics. I don’t care who his daddy is. This club needs rebuilding, but we still need standards.”

  “You sound like Ginger,” Blackjack mutters.

  Smirking, I nod. “Thanks, man. That means a lot.”

  I speed away, and they soon catch up. We ride around Rawlins, giving our territory attention. We’re six guys, and that might not intimidate many people, but we still know how to get the job done. Having Little Memphis’s money and Everything Nice Crew’s muscle is only the beginning of what I hope for my club’s future.

  Chapter Twelve

  ku‘uipo

  ➸ Ginger ☆

  The day after I move into my townhome, I call Tana and ask her to meet me at a rundown Craftsman-style located a block from the heart of Main Street. When she asks why, I tell her it’s a secret. She asks what kind of secret, and I tell her it wouldn’t be a secret if she knew. Tana then breaks into twenty questions that only end once I ask her not to tell Oz about our meeting. Curiosity piqued, she agrees to come to the house.

  I’m on the porch when she arrives. Her long black and gray hair hangs loosely and blows in the late summer’s surprisingly chilly breeze. She’s wearing another colorful flowered shirt and white shorts as if defying the cooler weather.

  “What was so important?” she asks, giving me a disapproving frown.

  “This is one of the houses my company bought with plans to renovate and rent it out. What do you think about the location?”

  “If you’re asking if I want to live in this house, why would I keep it from Oz?”

  “You and I both know he’s resistant to change. Before he knows about the house, I wanted to make sure you approved of it.”

  Tana studies me with her rich brown eyes which remind me so much of Oz’s. I wait for her to agree, knowing she will since she wants what I want even if she doesn’t want to agree with me.

  “Show me the house,” she finally says.

  I open the front door and lead her inside where the floors need repairing and the walls painting. The kitchen is small and functional, but like the rest of the house, money needs to be spent to make it livable.

  “Apparently, the last tenants beat the crap out of this place,” I explain. “They tore up the floors and walls, stole lighting, broke the toilets. Typical low-rent types. For less than twenty grand, the house will look great. The backyard is dying for a green thumb, and Oz said you like planting flowers.”

  “He said that, did he?”

  “Yes.”

  “And you have twenty grand to throw away on a rental property?”

  “My company is investing in Rawlins. We bought a lot of dumpy houses that only need love. We plan to rent some, sell others, and this one could be yours. Or if you don’t like it, I have others, but this one is walking distance from Main Street and two parks. Oz said you like to walk, but there’s nowhere interesting to go in the country.”

  “He talks about me a lot, does he?”

  “Obsessively.”

  Tana finally gives me a grin. “How many bedrooms?”

  “Only two.”

  “That’s not going to fit us.”

  I swallow deeply before regaining my inner cool. “I want Oz and the kids to move in with me.”

  “Oh, you do.”

  “Yes. I love him, and he loves me, and you want to live in town, and the kids want to live in town, and this way everyone gets what they need.”

  “Do you know much about kids?”

  “Enough. What I don’t know, I can ask Oz and you. Could probably Google a few things too.”

  Tana crosses her arms tightly, and I swear she’s a tiny, chick version of Oz. “I don’t like owing people anything.”

  “Are you that dense?” I ask, irritated that we’re still playing this game when I need to spend even more time with her today. Tana instantly gives me a deathly dirty look that would scare the piss out of someone else. “You’re doing me a favor by choosing this house. If you don’t find a house you want, Oz might decide he shouldn’t move in with me until you’re happy. Your choice here makes me owe you, not the other way around.”

  “Don’t call me dense.”

  “Don’t act dense.”

  “Didn’t anyone teach you manners?”

  “You really don’t want to know what people taught me when I was growing, Tana. So, what are your thoughts on this house?”

  “Hard to tell when it’s not fixed up.”

  “You’ll be able to choose the flooring, wall colors, etc. As long as you stay on budget, we don’t particularly care about your design choices.”

  “You sure know how to sweeten the deal.”

  “Yes, I do. This house would basically be yours, even if it belongs to my company.”

  “And if you and Oz break up?” Tana asks, still poking the bear.

  “We won’t. If we did, I wouldn’t kick you out. Even if I wanted to, my crew wouldn’t let me,” I say, imagining how the girls would guilt-trip the hell out of me. “I know you and I are strangers, but I’m loyal to those I care about. I’ll treat Oz right. If things don’t work out, he’ll still be special to me. So will his kids and bitchy mom.”

  Tana surprises me by laughing. “All this talk about you two breaking up is ridiculous. Oz has never wanted a woman until you. There’s no breaking up in his mind. You’re stuck with him for good. I hope you’re ready for that.”

  Slightly taken aback by her enthusiasm, I can only think to say, “If he can put up with me, I’m more than ready to stick with him.”

  “Good,” she says, having lost the edge to her voice. “This is a nice house. Can I look around more?”

  “Yes. In fact, I have a copy of the keys for you, so you can check things out during the reno. I’ll have the Heretics do the reno to keep the money in the family.”

  “Smart.”

  “After you look around, I’d like you to help me with something.”

  Tana’s immediately suspicious again. I roll my eyes, even though I’d be the same way if in her shoes.

  “What?”

  “I want to fix up my spare rooms for the kids, and I want it to be a surprise for Oz. The plan is to paint the walls and get the basics ready. Would you be willing to go with me to a couple stores to pick out things?”

  Tana surprises me again by throwing her arms around my shoulders and embracing me. “You’re going to take such good care of my boy.”

  With my arms pinned, I can’t hug her back. Instead, I nuzzle my lips against her head and hope the move comes off as affectionate rather than creepy.

  I’m still getting accustomed to the kind of physical warmth so easily given in the Savo family. Despite my uncertainty, I enjoy Tana’s hug and soon her abundance of suggestions for the kids’ rooms. She and I will no doubt butt heads on a regular basis. However, Tana is the kind of mother I would have flourished under, and there’s no denying she loves the hell out of her son and grandkids. Without a doubt, she and I will enjoy more good times than bad.

  ➸ Oz ★

  The first night sleeping at her new townhome, Ginger invites me over to break in her bed’s springs. Afterward, as the ceiling fan cools our sweaty bodies, she suggests we pick up the kids from school tomorrow and take them out for a fast food dinner. I’m so relieved at her showing interest in Alani and Makoa that I insist we enjoy another round as a thank you.

  The next day, I pick up Ginger in my used silver SUV. We head to the school where the kids know to skip the bus and look for us instead. I keep glancing at her to see if she’s nervous. Ginger, though, focuses on her phone.

  “Everything okay?” I ask.

  Ginger nods. “Yep. The girls back in Little Memphis are getting the hang of calling the shots, but they s
till like me to give feedback.”

  “You’re so badass,” I say, only half teasing.

  Ginger grins and sets aside her phone. “I played dictator for a long time, so it makes sense for the girls, even Sage my former right-hand chick, to be uncertain.”

  “I need to improve my dictator skill. I still think like I’m a member of the crew rather than the leader.”

  “Your men aren’t smart enough to give you feedback.”

  Frowning at the certainty in her voice, I mutter, “They’re not as dumb as you think.”

  Ginger hears my tone and smirks. “Yeah, but they’re not as smart as you think. Camo is young and dumb. Blackjack is stubborn and dumb. Glitch is a follower and dumb. Devo is self-indulgent and dumb. Vile is weak and dumb. As their leader, you need to exploit their strengths and work around their weaknesses. I think you do well at that. It’s not like you send Camo to do things that involve a long attention span. Or send Vile to scare people.”

  I’m impressed she picked up on the guys’ weaknesses after only dealing with them in passing over the last few weeks while they worked on the townhomes.

  “Are you complimenting me?” I ask.

  “Always,” she says and reaches over to caress my cheek. “You’re a good man, father, son, boyfriend, and leader.”

  “But you still think you’re a better leader.”

  “Of course, but I’ve been doing it longer.”

  “Very true. You’re the Yoda to my Luke.”

  “Nerd talk means nothing to me,” she says, withdrawing her hand from my cheek.

  “Everyone likes Star Wars.”

  Ginger rolls her eyes. “No, trust me that they don’t.”

  “Alani does.”

  “She’s eleven. Let’s not base everyone liking something on the opinion of a child.”

  “Are we arguing just to argue again?”

  “Probably, but we can’t have sex for hours, so let’s stick that shit into neutral until we’re able to enjoy the fun payoff.”

  “I agree.”

  Ginger smiles brightly, and I think she’s excited to hang out with my kids. I doubt I can love her more than I do in this moment.

  After we wait in the pick-up line for ten minutes, Alani and Makoa finally climb into the SUV, already talking about ice cream. Ginger turns around to say hello and hands them each a Starburst. They glow under her gaze, already thinking she’s the cool girlfriend rather than a usurper in our family.

  “I wanted to talk to you guys about a girl that lives in our townhome community,” Ginger says as we sit at a light. “Her name is Duffy, and she’s seven. She’ll start going to your school next week. Duffy’s brain works differently than ours. She hears things louder than we do. She feels things different too,” she says and then pauses as if having trouble explaining.

  “Guys, you know how you get freaked out when Uncle Camo comes over with his souped-up Harley because it’s so loud?”

  The kids nod in unison.

  “That’s how Duffy hears a lot of stuff,” I say and then glance at Ginger. “Right?”

  “Yes,” Ginger says. “And when she touches certain things, they can feel really weird to her even if they don’t feel weird to us at all.”

  “Alani, you know how you get really creeped out by the fish we catch at the pond? Well, that’s how Duffy feels about a lot of things.”

  The kids nod in unison again, and I’ve never realized before how often they pull that move. Maybe they really do need to spend more time apart.

  “Duffy is like you in a lot of ways too,” Ginger says. “She likes to watch cartoons, swim, and listen to music. On Saturday, when you come over for the party, you’ll meet her, and I wanted to make sure you understand why she acts the way she does.”

  “Should we talk to her?” Alani asks.

  “If you want to but don’t be upset if she doesn’t talk to you. She’s shy, and new people scare her. Once you’re around a lot, she won’t be afraid of you.”

  “Then we can be her friend,” Makoa says, and I can’t help my proud father grin.

  “Yep,” Ginger says, sharing my smile.

  After the tough topic of Duffy, we spend the rest of dinner talking about swimming, Silver Swan, and our favorite junk food. The kids even pull out their homework, and Ginger helps them with the problems. When she can’t figure out one math problem, she searches Google before calling Cayenne, who knows the answer off the top of her head.

  “She’s a good chick to have around,” Ginger says, giving me a wink.

  The kids are crazy about Ginger by the time we drop her off at the townhomes. They wave at her through the back window while I drive away. Ginger waves too until I turn a corner, and they can’t see each other any longer. The kids settle into silence, and I wonder if they’re thinking about Ginger. Do they hope she’ll be their mother one day? Or are their thoughts as simple as liking the lady with the Starbursts and a pool?

  Whatever they’re thinking, I know they’ll open their hearts to Ginger. Until tonight, I worried she might not be able to do the same with them. Then I noticed how she kept an eye on them, wanted to take Alani to the bathroom rather than let her go alone, and instigated the homework routine so they’d have more time to play later. Ginger made the kids her responsibility rather than just mine. For a woman with such a guarded heart, Ginger took a big step tonight.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Nau ko`u aloha

  ➸ Ginger ☆

  The day before the housewarming party, Cayenne saves my ass by offering to cook up the many Hawaiian recipes I’ve found online. Never handy in the kitchen, I assume cooking for Tana isn’t the best time to start playing chef. Instead, Yarrow and I help Cayenne who absolutely shines when in the kitchen.

  Once dinner is nearly ready, I meet Oz, Tana, and the kids at the front gate. I buzz them inside, smiling at the kids while dodging Oz’s feisty hands. Tana looks around, frowning at the security fence.

  “Who you trying to keep out?” she asks.

  “People don’t need to see our business,” I explain while handing the kids each a Starburst.

  Oz nods, surveying the fence and thick brush blocking the view from the street. “I don’t want anyone peeping on you.”

  Smiling at how Oz has my back, I gesture for everyone to follow me into my townhouse where Yarrow and Cayenne still work in the kitchen. Tana immediately smells familiar foods and cranes her neck to see what’s cooking.

  “I hope we picked dishes you like,” I say, struggling to hide my anxiety. “What were they again, Cayenne?”

  “We have lomi-lomi salmon, mahi-mahi, and loco moco.”

  “Oh, really,” Tana says, sounding unconvinced we can make anything she’ll approve of.

  Terrified she’s right, I focus on the kids and Oz. “Do you want to see the pool?”

  “Yes,” Alani says while Makoa nods wildly.

  Leading them past the kitchen where Tana sets up shop, I take them out of the sliding glass door to the common yard and pool.

  “I like the privacy back here,” Oz says, gesturing to the outer eight-foot metal fence and thick evergreens blocking the view of the pool and yard.

  “It’s exactly what I hoped for,” I say and unlock a second fence around the pool area. “It’s private and safe.”

  “Perfect for kids,” Oz says while his hand caresses my back.

  The kids are nearly salivating by the time they dip their feet into the pool. Nearby in the hot tub, Duffy walks back and forth while Clove sits on the side.

  I introduce the kids to Pepper, Bay, and Clove, along with Duffy, who ignores us. Bay chills under the cedar-stained pergola, hoping the insemination yesterday takes. Pepper sits on the side of the pool with her feet in the water. She smiles at the kids who hurried to the shallow end.

  “Alani, Makoa, can I show your dad something inside?” I ask.

  “Sure,” Makoa says, waving us off while bouncing in the water next to his sister.

  A proud Oz sm
iles. “They really like swimming.”

  “Can we go upstairs really quick and talk?”

  “Are they cool here?” Oz asks, frowning ever so slightly.

  “Yeah, boss man,” Pepper announces. “We’ll watch your offspring. If there’s trouble, I’ll let out a high-pitched girly scream to alert you.”

  “That’s all I ask,” Oz says.

  “Great,” I say, taking his hand. “Let’s go.”

  We walk back inside, setting off the door’s security bell and alerting Cayenne, Tana, and Yarrow to our arrival. I smile at them while still heading for the stairs with Oz’s hand in mine.

  “What’s the big reveal?” he asks. “If it’s your bed, I’ve already seen it, and I don’t think this is the time for a quickie?” he mumbles, following me. “Well, I probably could if you sucked me off a little first.”

  I ignore his comments and keep walking until we reach the upstairs hallway. Still holding his hand, I struggle to keep Oz from reaching for my breast.

  “No fucking, Oz. Now listen up.”

  Shaking his head free of horny thoughts, he finally exhales softly. “This better not be bad news.”

  “I love you.”

  “So far, so good.”

  “I want to learn to love your kids.”

  “Again, I’m on board for what you’re saying.”

  “I want you, Makoa, and Alani to move in with me.”

  Oz’s face freezes, and I’m startled to see uncertainty in his eyes. When he doesn’t respond immediately, I start babbling.

  “I found a house your mom likes, and your crew will fix it up for her, and she’ll be only a few blocks away. The kids will have their own rooms here, and we’ll be able to spend every night together. It’s perfect really.”

  “You planned this all out, huh?”

  I open the door to one of the rooms and show him the blue Transformers décor. “For Makoa. Tana helped me get the rooms ready.”