Lay It Down: Bastards MC Series Boxed Set (65 page)

Blue eyes met mine, then he nodded again. “I’m gonna go find Rob, okay?” Leaning in, he kissed my temple. “I’ll be down to cuddle in a little bit.”

I rubbed his arm as he passed, not sure if I was trying to comfort him or myself.

Ben came out a few minutes later, teeth brushed, face washed, and all ready for bed. I followed him back into his room, and just as I had almost every night for the past ten years, I helped him say his prayers, told him I loved him, tucked him in, and kissed him on the nose. I reached over to turn out the light, making sure the nightlight was plugged in, when he called me back to his bunk.

Slim arms came out from under the covers and snaked around my neck. “I love you, Mom. I missed you.” Then he kissed my cheek and fell back onto his pillow.

I made it back to my room and managed to strip before I gave in and dropped into bed. I didn’t have any time to process the day’s events before my eyes closed against my will. I never heard Matty climb into bed later.

***

We’d agreed on the drive back that we’d take the kids to the museum on Saturday and the aquarium on Sunday morning. Even though they were visiting, Matty insisted that I keep my training schedule with Nick, so I planned to do that on Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday afternoon. I had a quick test that I couldn’t miss on Monday, but the rest of the week, I was going to play hooky from school and have fun with my family.

Matty and the kids were awake long before me on Saturday. He and Sammy had already given them the tour, then they’d broken into pairs. Sam and Ben were playing in their room and Lily was helping make breakfast when I finally dragged my lazy bones out of bed. Rocker and Dean were helping get the food ready too, but what shocked me speechless was that all three men were wearing makeshift crowns. Dean’s was incredibly girly—all pink and purple sparkle pipe cleaners.

“Wow,” I murmured from the doorway, not sure whether to laugh or be impressed. “Those are some nice crowns!”

Lily turned and gave me a gapped-tooth grin as she continued to stir whatever was in the bowl in front of her. “Good morning, Mumma. I made you one too!”

At that, she jumped down and ran over to the table, pulled a pink-and-blue tiara off the table, and thrust it at me. I leaned down, telling her how beautiful it was, and slipped it over my hair. She beamed before running back to Matty to offer more help.

“I ran to the craft store this morning,” Dean told me quietly as he handed me a cup of coffee. “We didn’t have a lot for girls, so I called Cris and Jessie and they told me what to get.” He nodded at the desk on the other side of the room that was now covered with bags of arts and crafts.

“That should keep us busy.” My smile was genuine. “Thank you.”

He waved as if it was nothing, adjusted his very unmanly crown, and sauntered off to help Lily stir. I watched as my daughter did exactly what Dean had predicted she’d do. With a few giggles, sweet smiles, and very silly jokes, she’d managed to wrap three large and surly bikers around her little finger. I was so screwed.

Breakfast was filled with laughter and lots of eye rolling from me as I realized it didn’t matter how old a man was because fourth-grade humor was enough to bring out the kid in them all. There wasn’t a straight face at the table. Even I had to give in and giggle at the way they snorted and carried on.

Lily caught my eye once and whispered, “Silly boys!”

I could only nod and grin back.

Rob declined our invitation to the museum, but Dean tagged along, telling Ben and Sam that the lightning show was his favorite thing in the world. I knew why he was really there, even if they didn’t, and was actually impressed by his ability to keep a constant visual on them while managing to survey the crowds for threats and play along with them. Lily stayed with Matt and me for the most part, holding my hand and letting me act like a little girl with her when we were in the butterfly exhibit.

It was an amazing day, and even though we were all dragging our feet, we were all smiles when we stepped onto the elevator. We’d been discussing dinner ideas, and the general consensus was pizza delivery. Followed by movies and popcorn in our pajamas. Maybe ice cream sundaes if the kids were really lucky. Okay, so it was really me that wanted the sundaes.

Matty hurried out of the elevator before the rest of us, heading to find the takeout menu for the local Italian restaurant. Never be the thing that comes between a man and his pizza, ‘cause you’ll just get trampled.

I wasn’t really paying attention to him, focused more on Ben’s explanation of the way the human heart works, when I realized more than one voice was coming from the kitchen. And one of them was very feminine. As we headed across the foyer, I struggled to hear the other voices, trying to figure out if it was Jessie with Rob, or Cris. The kids kept rattling on, making it impossible to tell for sure, and Dean was hanging on their every word, so I couldn’t ask them to be quiet.

The face that greeted me as we turned the corner surprised me. I hadn’t thought I’d see Senator Henry Butler so soon, and definitely not standing in my kitchen. He wasn’t alone. His daughter had her arms wrapped around my fiancé and was leaning in for a kiss.
 

Chapter 30

Jo

Whoever said the devil wore Prada was wrong. Nope, today she was clad in an adorable Dolce and Gabbana black-and-white polka dot sheath dress and mile-high patent leather wedges. She should look overdressed next to the man wearing a plain white tee and blue jeans; instead, they looked perfect together. She was tall but the heels brought her almost eye level to Matty. The way they were snuggled together gave me flashbacks, and I couldn’t even pretend the jealousy wasn’t there.

I couldn’t look at them and pretend to be happy. I smiled at the senator. Then I glanced around the room for Rob. Even the open bottle of wine and three goblets on the counter grabbed my attention. Anything to keep myself from glaring at Matty and Taylor.

“Senator.” I glanced back at him, struggling to keep my voice level. “What a surprise. If I’d known you were stopping by, I would have made sure to be here.”

“Josephine.” Hal smiled at me warmly, closing the gap between us as he reached for my hand. “I won’t lie. I had hoped to run into you.” His thumb trailed over my knuckles. “We came to speak with Rob. He told us you were out with Matthew and the children.”

I pulled my hand away and gestured toward my offspring. “Yep. My kids are visiting for vacation week. This is Benjamin and Lily.”

The senator said his hellos to my kids as I introduced them, then he gave Sam a quick hug and asked them all about their day. The whole exchange took maybe five minutes, but I could feel Matty staring at me, willing me to look at him. Dean, understanding the glance I sent his way, asked the kids if they wanted to go watch a movie downstairs and promised me he’d order the pizza soon so they’d at least be fed. The kids, especially Sam, seemed in a hurry to get away from us. I had no doubt they could feel the unease in the room.

Hal didn’t waste any time once the four of them had started down the stairs. “I didn’t know you were in town, Matthew.” Suspicion made his voice cold.

I glanced at Matty then and found him staring at Taylor instead of me.

“You didn’t? Why didn’t you tell your dad I was in town, Tay?”

She smirked, only making her features look even more alluring. Pushing her hair back off her shoulders, she winked at him before dropping her lips into a fake pout. “If he knows you’re here, he tries to steal you. Is it so awful that I wanted some time alone with my man?”

I rolled my eyes, instantly feeling like the unwanted third wheel.

Hal only chuckled at his daughter though. “You’ll have plenty of alone time in just a few months.”

Matty cupped Taylor’s cheeks then kissed the middle of her forehead before returning his attention to Hal. “It seems that Miss Taylor didn’t fill me in either, Senator, because I didn’t realize you hadn’t gone back to Washington. I’m in town for vacation week. Sam’s very close with Jo’s kids, and we wanted them to spend as much time together as they could.” Turning back to Taylor, he smiled and moved his thumb along her cheek in a move that made me feel as if I was intruding on their private moment. He’d done the same thing to me numerous times. “We missed you today.”

His tone was soft and seemed sincere. I couldn’t watch another instant. I thought about joining Dean and the kids, but I didn’t have enough self-preservation. Telling myself it wasn’t real, and instead of saying something that could destroy their whole sham, I turned to the table and sat just as Taylor excused herself to use the bathroom. When I glanced up, Hal was watching me.

I smiled. “The kids wore me out today. My feet are killing me!”

Hal chuckled. “What you need is a foot massage.”

He started toward me when Matty demanded, “What’s going on, Hal? Why were you coming to see Rob and not me?”

Hal’s eyes left mine and moved to Matty. He pursed his lips in thought, tucking his hands in his pockets, then jingled the change in his tailored khakis. “Taylor is being followed.”

“What?” Matty’s tone was abrupt and full of disbelief. I heard him step toward the island, but I still didn’t turn to look at him.

Hal raised an eyebrow, and the change rattled more. “I knew she wouldn’t tell you. That girl thinks she’s untouchable.” He shook his head, sighing. “Three separate times in the last week, my security caught someone tailing her.” He nodded at the counter where a manila folder sat next to the wine.

Matty rushed around the counter and grabbed the file. Shuffling through the pictures, he stopped and squinted at each one. “Have your men made contact?”

Hal shook his head. “No. They didn’t want to spook him. He hasn’t come any closer, but she hasn’t been alone either.”

Matty swore and slammed the file onto the counter. “Why didn’t you tell me about this before now? What’d Rocker say?” His hand curled into a fist as he turned, demanding the answer from the older man.

“I said we’d look into it, but that Taylor needed to tell you what was going on from now on,” Rocker answered, coming in off the patio, slipping his phone into his jeans and sliding the door shut.

He headed straight for me and kissed my hair before pulling out the chair behind me and sitting. His hand found my shoulder, and he pulled me back into him before I could object. Oh, that’s right. Rocker was supposed to be interested in me. Awesome.

“How was the museum?” Rocker asked.

I turned to him, not even bothering to hide my irritation with the whole damned mess and the blonde bombshell I wanted to hit. “It was a great day. Then we came home.”

“You must be exhausted!”

Ah, yes. Speak of the devil, and she will appear.

“I can’t imagine running all over the city with three kids!” Taylor's eyes went wide in revulsion as she joined the men at the counter. “Ugh.” Then she shuddered dramatically, as if the thought of traveling with kids was absolutely horrific.

Everyone else ignored her.

Hal moved to the table and leaned down across from us. “Any luck?”

Rob shook his head. “Wiz is running the picture. As soon as we know something, I’ll call you. In the meantime, she needs to have someone with her.”

Taylor scoffed. “You are all making something out of nothing. I’m sure it’s just some paparazzi freak hoping to dig up some dirt before the wedding. It is going to be the social event of the fall.” Her eyes twinkled happily, as if the idea of being stalked by a man with a camera was exciting.

“Taylor, this isn’t a game. We don’t know how serious it could be,” Matty warned.

She rolled her eyes. “Daddy, you talked to Rob. We should get going.”

Hal nodded at her before turning toward Matty. “Why don’t you ride with us? We can talk more about the plan to keep our girl safe, discuss options. Someone will bring you home in the morning.”

Before Matt could answer, Taylor interrupted, “Daddy! Sam’s here. Matty can’t just leave!”

Hal gave them a condescending look. “I don’t know why you two act like I’m old-fashioned. Or an oblivious nitwit.” He laughed at his daughter. “It’s very obvious that you’ve been sneaking over here every weekend. And now that we know someone is following you, it would be safer, and make me feel better, if you two stayed at our house. It sounded like the kids had plans tonight, and I don’t want to make my future grandson dislike me by forcing him away while his friends are here. I'm sure Rob and Josephine won’t mind him staying with them.”

Three sets of eyes turned to us.

“Uh…” What did I say to that? There was no way in hell Matty would take off with Taylor and leave Sam here, even if we weren't a couple, but I needed to have some sort of reasonable excuse for refusing. Right?

The fingers on my shoulder tightened, as if warning me to be quiet. “Absolutely. He’ll never know you’re gone,” Rob's deep voice answered.

I turned my head, shocked. “What?” I hissed at Rob, but he just shook his head slightly and winked. My eyes narrowed at the giant man, and I was sure I'd never been as surprised by someone as I was at that moment.

Until Matty spoke. “If you're okay with it, it sounds like a plan. Let me go say good-bye to the little man.”