Maui
I’d seen the horror in Casey’s eyes when she got her first glimpse of Roscoe. Now the two were asleep on the couch. My pet skunk lay in her arms, looking utterly content. I wondered what he’d think of Becca, or how the baby would react to him. Roscoe hadn’t had the chance to be around kids much. I knew Doolittle had worked with him a bit before I’d gotten him. He’d likely been around the children at the Devil’s Fury compound, but I doubted any had been as young as Becca.
I knew I should wake her up and get her to bed. If she stayed on the couch all night, she’d end up with a sore neck. And yet, I couldn’t bring myself to disturb her rest. Why hadn’t she let more people help before now? I knew she had her pride, and could be stubborn as a damn mule, but at what expense? Did she really think wearing herself out was of any benefit to little Becca?
“If I’d stopped by more often, would you have let me help?” I mumbled. I doubted it. Most of the time, she’d tried to push me away, saying she was fine. It had only been my refusal to leave immediately that let me through her front door. Most didn’t bother to push so hard.
I left the two of them alone, knowing Roscoe would move to his play area, eventually. He enjoyed sleeping in his pile of blankets. Knowing Casey, she’d want to give Becca the second bedroom downstairs. Right now, it remained empty. I’d had no use for it, even though I’d toyed with the idea of making it a play area for Roscoe. Instead, I’d turned the old laundry closet into his play area, after sealing off the hole for the dryer vent. One of the first changes I’d made to the house was to add on a laundry room off the kitchen. I hadn’t had a pantry either, so I’d created a short hall with shelves for dry goods and cans, which led to the laundry area.
I hadn’t had a chance to show it to Casey yet. I’d thought she might like having a designated spot for something like that. There was enough room for clothes hampers. I’d added a table for folding, and underneath were organizers for things like laundry detergent, dryer sheets, and anything else she might need. The table could also double as an ironing board in a pinch.
As I stared into the empty second bedroom, I wondered how quickly I could get things delivered for Becca. I knew she had a crib already, as well as a changing table. There had been little space at Casey’s place for any extras. Now that Becca would have a normal-sized room, I wanted to make the area a haven for her.
I pulled out my phone and shot off a text to Ravager. The man did amazing work and enjoyed building things. No sense buying cheap stuff at the big box stores for my daughter when I could have something custom made for her.
I need two small bookshelves and a toy box for Becca.
Despite the late hour, he answered immediately, which told me he’d most likely been in his workshop and not at the clubhouse. The man liked to party, but not all the time. If anything, he seemed to find the club whores to be tedious.
Anything specific I need to include in the designs?
As small as Becca was, she hadn’t really developed enough of her personality for me to determine what would suit her best. Instead, I decided to let Ravager be as creative as he wanted and told him as much. Whatever he came up with, I knew it would look amazing. I also trusted him to make sure there wouldn’t be sharp corners since he knew it was for a small child.
Is there a color scheme in her room?
His question made me realize Becca’s current room didn’t really have much to make it unique. She had several themed blankets and sheets, and Casey hadn’t decorated the walls yet. Or if she’d had something up, it hadn’t lasted long. As protective as she felt over Becca, she may have worried pictures would fall and hurt her baby. I already knew I’d be bolting the bookshelves to the wall, and possibly the crib as well.
Shit. The toy box. What if she crawled inside it and got stuck?
Make sure she can’t get trapped in the toy box. I probably didn’t need to tell Ravager that, anyway. Since he knew it was for Becca, he’d ensure it would be safe for her. Everyone at the club adored the little girl. Even Meredith had started to interact with her. After she’d gone through a miscarriage, she’d had a tough time being around pregnant women or children. Then she and Lynx had adopted two kids, and things had improved for her.
I’ll make sure it’s vented and can’t be locked.
Good enough for me. I couldn’t wait to see what design he came up with. Knowing Ravager, the shelves and toy box would all match. It made me want to request a bed as well, but I didn’t want to spend more on a crib when Becca could only use one for so long. At least the other items would carry her through her toddler years and beyond.
I hoped Casey wouldn’t be upset I didn’t give her any input. Now that I’d claimed her and Becca, or rather my woman had claimed me, I wanted to jump into my role as Becca’s dad and not hold back. I’d loved that little girl since the day she’d been born. I still had to deal with her sperm donor, as well as the other shits who’d hurt Casey. Atilla would be pissed as fuck when he found out, especially if I didn’t let him know before I made my move. I’d take whatever punishment he gave me. I couldn’t drag him into this when he’d just claimed Solena and had two adopted kids. Soon, there would be two more joining the family since Solena discovered she was carrying twins.
Would Casey want more? We hadn’t discussed it. As much as I wanted a baby with her, I’d be content if Becca was our only child. I’d been there for Becca from the beginning. It wasn’t like I’d missed out on the first eight months of her life. We’d have to tell Becca she wasn’t my biological child, once she was old enough, for medical purposes if nothing else. I didn’t want our life to be built on a lie. Although, in every way that counted, she was mine.
“What are you doing?” Casey asked, coming up behind me. I hadn’t even heard her.
“Thinking about our daughter.”
She wrapped her arms around me and smiled. “I like hearing you call her that. Becca loves you already. You know that, right?”
“I do. I should have asked you first, but I asked Ravager to make some furniture for Becca. This will be her room, and it’s going to look empty with the few things she has now. The man is a genius when it comes to woodwork. He’s going to make a set of bookshelves as well as a toy box.”
“Don’t spoil her too much,” Casey said. “We don’t want her to be rotten.”
“Don’t worry. I won’t let her turn out like Venom’s girls. Or did you not hear about that?” I asked.
“No one’s said a word. Why would they? Isn’t he with the Dixie Reapers? I know Lynx is related to one of them somehow, but what does that have to do with the club?”
“Let’s go curl up in bed and I’ll tell you the story of Meredith and Lynx’s relationship. Or the parts I know. I’m sure you heard about her miscarriage, and that’s why she didn’t want to see Becca.”
“Yeah, I knew about that, and I understood.”
Of course, she did. Casey was a sweetheart, and she’d never hold something like that against someone. I’d known women who would have been pissed about Meredith refusing to see their kid. Not my woman. I spent the next half hour telling her how the two met, what Meredith went through with her mental illness, then losing the baby, and how she’d been treated by the club she’d called family.
“So Venom’s girls live with the Devil’s Fury?” she asked.
“Yeah. Farrah is with Demon, and Mariah is with Savage. I always thought they were sweet girls, until this. I can’t believe how they acted. Venom and Ridley called them on their shit and made them leave the compound. They took Lynx and Meredith’s side because their kids were acting like little bitches.” I smiled. “Can’t say I’d have handled it any different. So you don’t have to worry about me spoiling Becca too much. I don’t want to have anything like that happen in the future with her.”
“Good. I have a hard enough time getting my dad to give her things in moderation. I know grandparents are supposed to spoil their grandkids, but I think he’d take it too far if I let him.”
“There’s something else we need to discuss. You know I need to leave before too long. I can’t let your ex and his friend off the hook. I also plan to see what connections I have inside the prison where Chris is being held. The one out of country will be more difficult, but not impossible.”
She sighed and closed her eyes. She might understand why I needed to do this, but I also knew she was worried about me. Whatever it took, I’d make sure she didn’t keep having nightmares about what happened. If that meant burying those bastards, then so be it. Honestly, I was looking forward to it. I wanted them to hurt, to hear their screams and pleas for mercy, and laugh in their fucking faces. They hadn’t cared if they hurt Casey or degraded her. Why the hell should I be merciful to them?
“When?” she asked.
“I’m going to get you and Becca moved in here first. Need the club to know the two of you are mine, so not for at least a few days. Maybe a little longer. I may ask Wire to track Seth’s and Dylan’s daily movements. The more I know about them, the easier this will be.”
“And the sooner you can come home,” she said.
“Right.”
“As much as I don’t want anyone else to know what happened, I don’t like the thought of you handling this on your own. What if something goes wrong?”
I kissed her forehead. “I know, baby.”
Since our club wasn’t the only one who didn’t like rapists, I wondered if I could get some help outside of my brothers. I wasn’t sure how to go about it. Not without Casey’s situation coming to light. Although, I did have two options to consider. Casper VanHorne and Specter. I’d need to contact them to get help with the fucker who’d fled the country. Maybe they knew someone in the area who could lend a hand with the two I’d be taking out on my own.
I wasn’t going to discuss any of it with Casey. For one, I didn’t want to involve her in this if I didn’t have to. The less she knew, the better. Second, if I talked to her about my plans, then she might expect it when it came to other matters. And club business would never be up for discussion.
“When I come back, you can let me know if you’re ready for us to take the next step. There’s more we need to discuss before then anyway.”
“Like what?” she asked.
“My past history with women, and the fact I’m clean. Whether we want more kids, and when we might want them. If you still want to work at the café or stay home with Becca. What you think life will be like as my woman. That’s just to start.”
“All right. We can start those conversations tomorrow. I think I’m too tired to tackle anything big like that. Although, the first one sounds settled already. It’s not like I thought you were a virgin. I’m not going to demand a list of names or something. Not even sure I want to know if you’ve been with the women who currently hang out at the clubhouse.”
I’d been with two of them. It had been a long while ago, and I had a feeling those women wouldn’t linger much longer. They were getting older, and my brothers had tired of them. Made us all sound like assholes. Maybe we were. Sometimes the women at the clubhouse stuck around for years. Other times, it was a fleeting thing, and they were gone after one or two parties. I thought they liked claiming to have slept with one of us, or just wanted to taste life on the wild side.
“You have your GED now, don’t you?” I asked. I remembered her studying for it, but I couldn’t recall her actually going to take the test.
“Yeah. Why?”
“If you don’t want to keep working at the café, but think you might want a job later, would you consider applying for college?”
She leaned up on her elbow to look down at me. “What? Me? College?”
“Why not? You’re smart, Casey. If you don’t want to go to a campus to take classes, there are plenty of places that offer them online. I’m not saying it’s something you have to do. I only tossed the idea out there in case you were interested.”
“I’ll think about it,” she said. “Right now, being Becca’s mom is more important to me. If you’re serious about me quitting the café, then I’ll take you up on the offer. I won’t feel so run down all the time if I can rest more during the times she’s napping.”
“Then it’s settled. Call the café in the morning and give your notice. If you need to cover more shifts while they hire someone else, I’ll help you watch Becca.”
“And what if you have to go do something for the club?” she asked.
“Then we check with someone else here. You know Becca has an entire club who would gladly watch over her, right? Hell, Rebel might be a cocky asshole on the best of days, but I’m sure he’d even watch her if we asked him to.”
“With so many kids here now, maybe what we really need is a club babysitter.” She smiled and snuggled against me again. “Except, I doubt too many parents will let their teen daughters come here, especially at night.”
“Probably not.”
The club needed to make a lot of changes. It was time for us to adapt. Some of us had wanted to settle down and start families, which was a large part of why Atilla built this compound. But it hadn’t looked like any of us would find our one and only anytime soon. Which meant we didn’t have things set up to make this a family friendly place to live.
I had no doubt the Pres had a few ideas already. Wouldn’t hurt to ask him about it. I couldn’t recall discussing it in any detail during Church in the last several months. Since he had elementary-age kids, and Lynx had the twins, it would be a good idea to have a place where they could all play together. What if someone else found a woman who already had children? We needed a neutral area for the club’s kids to play together. Otherwise, we’d likely have chaos and children running everywhere.
Although, that didn’t sound terrible. I’d visited some of the other clubs like the Dixie Reapers and even the Hades Abyss. I liked the way they had things set up and enjoyed the overall feel of their compounds. I knew Atilla felt the same.
A light snore nearly made me laugh. I looked at Casey and realized she’d already fallen asleep again. Her lips were slightly parted, and she looked fucking adorable. Knowing I’d get many more nights like this filled me with joy. If someone had told me five years ago I’d have a woman and daughter, I’d have told them to shut the fuck up. Now I had Casey and Becca, and I’d do whatever it took to keep them safe. Even kill the bastards who’d hurt Casey.