BLAMELESS: MC Biker Romance (Black Thorns, #3) (33 page)

“Really?” I ask, surprised. “Ain’t usually the case, is it?”

“You ain’t that same guy no more. You’re calmer. You got a woman to keep happy now. You’re gonna be more cautious too, cuz you know you’re needed by her and the kid you got coming.”

“Yeah. Everything’s different now.”

“I’m seeing that. So, I’m gonna give you the go ahead to track ‘em.”

“Yeah?”

“It’s why I called you in. Like I said, we ain’t managed to track ‘em down. You’re the best I got, but I had to be sure you were ready to do it my way, do it legit and in keeping with the way the club is now.”

“I am.”

He nods. “What you gonna tell Sarah? Told her you weren’t gonna go after ‘em, right?”

“Dunno, I’ll think of something. Still half true anyway, cuz I ain’t killing ‘em.”

“Yeah, I’m sure she’ll see the difference. Women always do,” he says, sarcasm dripping.

“I’ll think of something.”

He laughs. “Best of luck with that.

Chapter 34

~Runner~

“Zeb, what are you doing back here? I turned around and you were gone,” Sarah says, coming up behind me in the store.

I turn to her and frown as I see the shit she’s carrying. “Sarah! Can’t be lifting all that when you’re pregnant. Thought we talked ‘bout that?”

She eyes me sheepishly. “We needed it and you had the cart with you.”

I grab the stuff from her—boxes of diapers, dishes, baby clothes and some other stuff I got no clue ‘bout. “You shoulda come got me first.”

“I’m fine. They’re not that heavy.”

“Sarah,” I growl when I’ve finished putting ‘em all in the cart next to me.

She pouts at me, looking all cute. She’s doing it on purpose to get outta the lecture I got coming for her. “Yeah, that ain’t gonna work on me, darlin’.”

“Really?” she says, stepping into me and sliding her hands down the length of my leather cut.

Fucking love the way she touches me. “That’s cheating.”

She giggles.

Dammit. It did work on me. I turn her and slide my hands ‘round her waist. She moans happily and relaxes back against my chest as I hold her tight to me.

I point to what I were looking at before she came up to me. “That’s the best one.”

She shakes her head. “Nope.”

“Believe me, it is. I been here checking every single one out, seeing how it’s put together and all that, making sure it’s good enough.”

“Is this your mechanic persona coming out to play?”

“Kinda, yeah. We’re getting that one.”

“Zeb, I’m sure it is the best, but it’s way too expensive.”

“It’s the best and we’re getting it.”

“I’m not exactly flush right now. When I move the diner here soon, to a brand new area, it isn’t going to be that different to starting up a brand new business. I have to build a rapport in the community, build my client base and all of that again.”

“What you talkin’ ‘bout?
I
got all this.”

She turns in my hold and eyes me, looking offended, or pissed. One of those two. Ain’t sure which, but I’m sure I’m ‘bout to find out.

“What?” she snaps.

Well, I got a fifty-fifty chance of getting it right. “You’re…pissed at me?”

“Offended.”

Dammit. “Cuz I said I got this?”

“Yeah.”

“I don’t get it. I’m the man. The soon-to-be-father, too. It’s my job to take care of you and our kid. My family. Why’s that getting your back up?”

“Wow, I thought your sexism was reserved for the whole cooking thing. I didn’t realize it extended much further than that.”

“Sexism?”

“This isn’t the dark ages, Zeb. We do things together. As a team.”

I stare at her, tryin’ to wrap my head ‘round what she’s saying. The way she’s reacting’s got me worried now ‘bout a shitload of other stuff. I gotta lay down the law here. Real fast. So I tell her, “When this baby’s born,
you’re
staying home and taking care of him, or her. You hear me? Baby needs its mom ‘round, Sarah. Tell me we see eye-to-eye on that.”

“A baby needs its father, too.”

“Not in the same way.”

“Rox and Ax don’t do it like that.”

“We ain’t ‘em. You’re staying home and that’s the way it’s gonna be. End of story.”

Her eyes narrow at me. “Oh really? Do you want your dinner on the table when you get home every night, too?”

“Ain’t really gonna be possible if you’re taking care of our kid all day, is it? Gonna have your hands full enough with that.”

A little smile creeps across her lips. “Good answer.”

“Yeah?” I ask, hesitantly, not sure if this is some sorta trick, or not. “So, we
do
see eye-to-eye then?”

She shrugs. “Yeah. Sure. I’ll stay home. I was already planning to. I’ll be hiring staff for the diner anyway. I won’t need to be there every day. And I certainly don’t want to be, right after the baby’s born. I want to be with my child.”

What? What’s happening here? “Wait. So, you
are
on board then? We do see eye-to-eye?”

“Looks like.”

“Then why we fighting?”

She grins. “I was just making sure.”

“Making sure of what?”

“That you
could
be a little open-minded and that you understand that not everything will be
your way or the highway
.” She takes my hands and tells me, “Zeb, believe me, I knew exactly what I was getting into with a man like you. You want a woman who stays at home and takes care of you and the house and the kids. A woman who has your meals prepared when you want them. Luckily for you, that’s already who I am. In case you haven’t noticed, I’ve been doing that already while we’ve been living together. I like it. I like doing that for the man I love. And
you
like me doing it. We work well together. The only thing is, I want to keep my diner. I want to keep working, but, no, not early on in the baby’s life. Also, I’d like a break once in a while and for you to cook once in a blue moon if I’m busy with other stuff.”

“See, that’s what I thought ‘bout you. Shit, woman. You really had me going there. I were real worried you’d turned into Rox. She’s your friend and my best friend’s wife, but she ain’t a woman I’d ever wanna handle.” I smile down at her. “And, yeah, I can cook once in a while, too, if you teach me some more stuff ‘bout it.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Above everything, my main job is making you happy. And if that and your diner make you happy, you got it, darlin’.”

“Aww,” she says, hugging me tight. “So, as we’re compromising, we can go halves on the baby stuff, right?”

I shake my head. “I got this.”

She pulls away from me and I see her ‘bout to argue back.

But I cut her off, telling her, “Wait ‘til your diner’s up and running and starts making money again. I got everything ‘til then. You underestimate how much I make with the club, Sarah.”

“But, I—”

“What I want you worrying ‘bout is taking care of our kid inside you. We want him, or her, coming out strong and healthy. That’s the most important job above everything else, yeah?”

She smiles that cute little smile of hers and rubs her belly. “Yes. Yes, it is.” She eyes me as she takes hold of the stroller I picked out and pulls it to her. “This one, it is.”

“Good.”

I grab the cart and we start down the aisles together. She reaches for my hand and I take it, squeezing it.

“Do you think it’s gonna be a boy or a girl?” she asks me.

“Dunno. Gonna be cute, no matter what, cuz of you.”

She laughs. “You’re such a charmer, Zeb.”

“You know it.”

“I’m three months in now. We can find out the sex.”

I frown at her. “That what you want? To know now?”

She shrugs, looking unsure. “I don’t know. Why? You don’t want to?”

“Figured on finding out when it’s born.”

She grins. “Okay.”

“What? Just like that?”

“Yeah. I like that idea.”

“Okay, darlin’.”

She rubs my arm and tells me, “I can’t believe you’re here doing all of this with me.”

“‘Course I am. Why wouldn’t I be?”

“When Rox had to do it,
I
went with her, not Ax.”

That’s news to me. “Huh. Didn’t know that. Well, I wanna be here. Good start to learning ‘bout it all, too, ain’t it? Right now, I dunno what half this shit is, Sarah.”

“Baby, me neither. Between your hectic work schedule and getting the diner
and
my house ready for the move here, it’s been crazy. Neither of us has had the chance.”

“You know way more than me.”

“Nowhere near enough, though. And that’s okay. We can learn together. We can start reading one of my baby books tomorrow night, if you want.”

“How ‘bout the weekend?”

She stops pushing the stroller suddenly, her hand pulling on mine and making me stop, too. “You’re working late again? Tonight. Tomorrow night? And now you’re saying not until the weekend, I’m assuming Friday, too?”

“Yeah. Gotta, darlin’. You ain’t good with that? You said you were okay to miss a couple of nights going down to the diner.”

“I am. My staff will be fine for a bit. I’m just wondering what’s going on.”

Shit. Here come the questions I can’t answer. “Remember when we talked ‘bout me not being able to tell you club business stuff? I explained to you how that worked with the club when you asked me to teach you ‘bout Thorns, right?”

“Yes, I know. I just…I’m worried.”

“Worried?”

She shrugs and looks away, turning her back to me and starting to push the stroller down the aisle.

I reach out and grab hold of it, stopping her escape. “Talk to me.”

She turns back and yells, “About you! I’m worried about you, Zeb!”

She’s so loud with it that I see a bunch of people in the store look our way. Shit. This must be the start of that hormone stuff I read ‘bout. It ain’t like her normally. Even when she’s upset, if we’re in public and ‘round people, she won’t never yell or air our business in public like this.

I lunge at her, catching her off guard, and pick her up with one arm. With my other I lift up the stroller and put it in the cart.

“Time to go,” I tell her as I spin it ‘round and start heading to the checkouts on the other side of the store.

“No, Zeb! Put me down!” she hisses in my ear. “You’re embarrassing me!”

“Your mood’s changed. Don’t wanna be doing this with you when you’re like this. Ain’t fun for neither of us. We’re gonna go back home. Gonna give you a rest.”

“No. I want to finish. We’re not even halfway down the list yet.”

“We got a good start. We’ll come back again and finish real soon.” I kiss her cheek. “Besides, gives me time to put all the stuff we
are
getting today together, yeah?”

She smiles at that and then rests her head against my shoulder. Yeah, she’s tired, all right. Tired and hormonal? Worst combo ever.

It woulda been even worse if she knew what I’m gonna be working late on tonight and through to Friday, if I gotta.

Tracking down Ben and Torvin.

I ain’t gonna be in no danger. It’s just recon. No contact’s gonna be made. But she wouldn’t see it that way. Women never do. Only see the worst case scenarios. She’d be freaking out on me right now if she knew. Even if it weren’t club business, I wouldn’t tell her, cuz she’d be stressed out over nothing.

Don’t like leaving her at night, especially when she’s pregnant. But I gotta find those dickheads, or she’s never gonna sleep easy and neither am I. Gonna be looking over our shoulders ‘til they’re off the streets.

Rox and Ax are gonna be with her and they’re bringing Ava, so that’ll keep Sarah happy, having ‘em and the baby ‘round. Good chance for her to ask Rox anything she wants ‘bout motherhood, too. It’ll be good for her. It’s Ax who’s gonna be cursing my name by the end of the night, stuck in my tiny place with three girls. Well, if he’d let me track Ben right when I’d wanted to, this wouldn’t be happening now. I just hope I have a good night of it, so I don’t gotta be away another two nights on top of tonight. Telling Sarah I’m gonna be out late for the next three days were to give me enough time. But I’m a hell of a good tracker. I can find anybody. Doubt I’m gonna need that long. But better safe than sorry.

Chapter 35

~Sarah~

“She likes you,” Rox tells me.

I smile down at Ava in my arms. I watch her little eyes flutter for a while, before closing completely.

“I think she’s going to sleep. Is that okay? Is it too early for her?”

Rox chuckles. “Relax, it’s all good.”

Wow. I really do need to relax. I could hear the tension in my voice right away.