Never Forever (BlackPath MC Book 1) (11 page)

“Sure
baby, go ahead and we’ll talk then.” She gives her dad a hug and he kisses her
on the top of her head and then she turns and does the same to Trent.  Without
another word she goes to the door and gives Zman the same and he whispers
something in her ear we can’t hear. I growl and I don’t know where that came
from, but he needs to move away from my woman. Then she moves out of the room
and for some reason I feel a loss. I know Callie should be with me. She should
be going with me. I can wait. Thirty more hours and I will have my answers. I
am brought out of my thoughts by the door opening back up.

 “Dad,
do you think you could get Cross to come talk with me this afternoon I have
some questions for him? You all say for me to consider this and not to do it
until I’m sure, well I need a lawyer.” She finishes and waits for her dad’s
answer.

 “Sure
babe, but you know he is the club’s lawyer not yours.” Callie has walked back
over by the table and stopped next to me.

“Well
the way I see it, he is an attorney, I need one, so I should be able to hire
him. He helped me getting Tommy’s insurance papers done for when I’m eighteen.
So he should be able to council me on this issue. I know if he has my retainer
he has to keep it confidential so there’s no issue there and you trust him,
right?” She waits for her answer but she is up to something. I see the
mischievous gleam in her eyes.

“Sure.
I will make sure he gets the retainer. That way he will answer your questions
and I will make sure he is here by three. That should give you a few hours of
sleep.” Chief tells her.

“Will
you make it two? I am setting my alarm for one and then I can meet him here or
the house. I have some other things to do today. But you won’t be paying the
retainer. Devil will. I need the attorney because of his proposition, so he can
pay.” She then puts her hand on my shoulder bends down and kisses my cheek,
“right honey?”

Damn
women, “Sure, whatever.” And then she turns and walks out. Every man in the
room knows I have just been taken and have shit eating grins on their faces to
prove it, including my dad.

“Gonna
have your hands full with that one, if you get her.” He’s not lying and I
already know it.

“Ok,
now she’s gone, do you have anything else to say about tonight?” His patience
is wearing thin but so is mine. “Anything at all, especially since you’ve had a
man on her and her friends for a while now. Where did your man pick them up at?
And how long has he been on them?” he could ask questions for hours and to tell
the truth I am too tired for this shit.

“Can
we pick this up tomorrow when we come or later today? It is after six and we
need sleep. Our guy has only been watching and nothing else. I just had to know
about Callie. Easiest way to find out without causing a lot of questions.
Nothing more. We have our intel people on tonight. Maybe between our man and
your man we can come up with something.” I let Chief know we need to ride. We
are getting nowhere.

“Chief,
let’s just put it to bed tonight and look at it with fresh eyes in the morning,
before you and Devil kill each other.” Dad says trying to get Chief listen to
reason.

“He
wants my baby girl in damn club business. How am I supposed to understand or
except that? Back in the day I would have just shot him and let you pick his
body up, but we are a clean club now and try our best to stay on the right side
of the law. But mark my words, if Callie ends up getting hurt over this, I may
just forget the law. Are we clear on that Steel? No one hurts my baby and rides
away free and clear. I still have to deal with the other jackass that broke her
heart and he’s not where I can get a hold of him yet.” Chief lets out a breath
I know he has been holding for a while. I can see he is a man on the edge.
Maybe he’ll save that for another day. But I can’t help the next words out of
my mouth.

“Does
that same warning go for you Chief? What are you going to do when she finds out
you know who her DNA father is and you’ve never shared that with her?” I watch
as he gets up from his chair and slams his fist on the table and before I know
it that tank of a man has come across the table and has me by my throat up
against the wall and I am trying to breath.

“Is
that a fucking threat you piece of garbage?” I try to say something but I am
getting no air so kick out at him. By this time Trent has Chief, and Zman is
between my dad and me with a gun on us. Finally, when I get air back in my
lungs.

 “It
wasn’t a threat, just a damn question.” I am barely getting out louder than a
whisper.

“Ok,
Ok, let me go Trent, I have it!, Look, you two get out of my club. I don’t want
to see you again before six on Sunday. Stay the fuck away from Callie and her
friends. Call your guy off or he will be dealt with. I know what you have over
my head. but I will not try to talk Callie into doing anything, it is her
choice. I will stand by her choice. Are we clear?!” Chief finishes it with the
authority his position gives him. He knows his men will back him even if he
leads them into a war.

Dad
and I make our way to the door and dad turns back to Chief and gives him a
salute and pushes me through the door and grumbles in a hushed tone only I hear
“go ahead, keep poking that bear and see if he don’t bite your hand off, boy.”
I give him a half laugh as we make our way out to our bikes and we see Tito
still sits in his car outside the clubhouse’s gates. We stop beside his car and
he puts his window down and dad tells him to meet us about three at our motel
and then we speed off down the road to find a hot shower and a soft bed.

It
seems like I had finally fallen to sleep just minutes ago when my alarm started
blasting. I reach over to hit the snooze but I know I have to get up and start
a day I really don’t want to face. How do I get myself into situations like
these?

Well,
I guess I’ve never really been in a situation like this before. I bet not many
people have. I wonder for a second, maybe this is a new category of messed up.
Argh, I need more sleep, I am talking crap in my head that makes no sense.

“Sorry
sister, not in your head, you said that messed up stuff out loud.” Felix laughs
at me and I nearly jump out of my skin. Crap, I forgot Felix and Sarah were
here. “Happy birthday” they both shout.

“Sorry,
not enough sleep. Too much weirdness going on. I think I have either stepped
into the Twilight Zone, or took a trip and went straight to the Bermuda
Triangle or wherever that place is where weird crap happens for no reason.” I
laugh, almost but not quite. “Thanks for the happy birthday. I can’t believe
I’m eighteen and my whole life has turned upside down in the last twenty-four
hours.” I shake my head hoping it will clear.

“You
mean that scary show you used to watch in black and white?  Where is the
Bermuda Triangle?" Sarah asks thinking I’m serious. Guess she needs more
sleep, too.

“Never
mind Sarah. I need to get a shower to help me wake up and then we can go and
grab some breakfast. I have an appointment and some other things to do today.
Do you have something you can do for a little while to stay busy?” I ask them.
I hate to leave them hanging by themselves, but I have to get this settled.
This is the last weekend Sarah will be here before she leaves for California
and who knows where I’ll be.

 “I
need to go shopping for last minute things for the trip my mom is taking me on,
and Felix is coming so we can hurry my mom and she won’t take all day.” I
couldn’t have asked for a more perfect plan.

“Ok,
I’m not sure where I will be, so text when you’re ready to meet up for
tonight.” I get my clothes together and head for the shower. “Out in a few.”

I
rushed to the shower so my friends couldn’t pump me for information. I know I
have to tell them. I can’t get yesterday out of my head. I’m still reeling at
how my life has changed in twenty-four hours. Yesterday morning, I woke up to
the excitement of my impending graduation. I was ignorantly happy, with a
perfect boyfriend and all was right in my world. The only problem I had was how
to sneak away from my babysitters so I could race my car. I did graduate and I
won my race, but the rest of my world has turned upside down.

I
know what I have to do. I know exactly where I’m going today, it’s where I
always go when I have to think something out. A wife? How can I be a wife? I
always thought I would marry Mason, someday. Not now. Maybe a year or two. He
can get out of the marines in a few months and we were supposed to go to the
same school. I thought he might propose and then we would live together for a
while before we married. That’s what I get for getting ahead of myself and
counting on a man. Mason is the man I gave my heart to and now it’s just
shattered. I feel the tears sliding down my cheeks and then the dam breaks and
my body is consumed with an earth shattering cry that has been building inside
of me for the last few hours. Since I heard the words that turned my world
upside down.

I
had put so much trust in what Mason and I had. He made me trust him. He made me
believe in dreams again, and then he took them all away. He says she meant
nothing and that it meant nothing. That’s all I was worth to him. A coldness
runs through me. It’s like ice just took over the spot where my heart belongs.
I will never let my guard down again. I have not hurt this bad since the day I
realized Tommy was gone for good and I’d never see him again. I have decisions
to make, so I need to get to it. I start to scrub my body with my loofa harder
and harder. I don’t feel it. I’m numb. I finally give up when my skin is red. I
scrub my hair and rinse, bend and turn the water off and grab for my towel. I
towel off and try to towel dry my hair. Then I go about my daily routine of
brushing my teeth and drying my hair. I put on my clothes, the usual jean shorts
and tank top for summer. Then I apply some moisturizer. That’s as good as it
gets for a hot day in Texas. I do all this without really thinking.

When
I walk out into the bedroom Felix and Sarah are ready to go, but I can see the
curiosity on their faces. They had to have heard my breakdown in the shower.
The walls here are paper thin. They have never really seen me break down much,
but they have seen me do it twice in the last twenty-four hours. They’re
probably waiting for it to happen again, but it won’t. Not ever again. Tears
are a weakness, one I can’t afford. Best thing to do is act if it didn’t
happen.

“I’ll
be ready as soon as I find my flip flops.” I walk over to the closet and look on
the floor, I don’t see them, so I go to the bed and look under it.  Yep, there
they are, so I pull them out and slide them on. “Ready to go eat?” as I smile
real big like nothing is wrong.

“I
understand what you’re doing and for now I’ll let it go, but remember I am here
for you when you need me.” Felix tells me and tries to hug me but I pull away.

“Fe
don’t worry. I let it out and now I am over it. I have things to do and I am
starving so let’s get a move on.” I don’t mean to hurt my friend I just want to
let him know I’m ok.

“We
get it, tough Callie is in the house and she is fixing to kick butt and take names.
Let’s go eat, maybe it will calm your bear.” Sarah says, while joking and
trying to ease the tension.

“Damn
straight, let’s eat.” I laugh along with Sarah and we look at Fe and he looks
apprehensive but he starts toward the door.

“And
they say men don’t talk about their feelings.” Fe knows I will talk when I’m
ready and it will do no good to push.

Just
as I open the door, Ty is standing there with his hand in the air to knock. I
smile and grab him and give him a hug and he embraces me but then pushes me
back to look at my face, “You ok Sis?” he studies my face but I have my mask in
place. “Dad is waiting in the front for you. He said if you don’t get a move on
you’re going to be late.”

I
look at my watch and he’s right. “Ty, if it’s alright with dad, can you take
them to grab something to eat and then to meet Sarah’s mom? You won’t have to
wait for them. I’ll pick them up later. Oh crap, I need my car, too. I should have
gotten up earlier.” I hate being late for anything and I am running out of
time.

“Your
car is already here. Just wait and see what Dad says. He is not in the best of moods
today. Happy birthday lil’ sis. I didn’t forget this year.” Sometimes Ty can be
sweet.

Great.
That’s all I need. A moody dad is not good for me. “Thanks Ty for not
forgetting. I love you.” He just keeps walking but I know he heard.

We
walk up the hall at a brisk speed, knowing I need to get this over with. I see
dad sitting at a table when I walk in the room and I smell all the good food in
front of him.

“You
four sit down and eat with me.” Dad tells Ty, my friends and me. The food
smells delicious but I just don’t think my stomach will keep anything down
right now.

 “Dad
I don’t have time. I have something I need to do before Cross gets here and I
don’t want to keep him waiting.” I try to get out of sitting down to eat.

“No
worries, he can’t be here until three instead of two, so you have an extra
hour. You need to eat, all of you.” My dad says including my friends and Ty and
leaving no room for argument. “Happy birthday baby girl.”

I
pour myself some juice and take a piece of toast. That should make him happy. I
know he is watching me. “Thank you, dad. Do you think Ty can take Fe and Sarah
by her house so they can meet up with her mom? I have someplace I need to go
before I meet Cross.” I look at him and his expression softens. He knows
exactly where I have to go. The same place I go every time I have an important
decision to make.

“Woody
will take my ride and take them. Ty and Zman are on you until this is settled.
You won’t be sneaking past them. Don’t think I have forgotten the shit you
pulled last night, just because we have another issue. I am very disappointed in
all three of you and you can include Hanna in that too. Two prospects lost
their chance in this club because of the stunt you pulled last night. Can you
take that responsibility on your shoulders? What if something had gone terribly
wrong outside that club last night? That would have been on you. I told you no
more racing. I should sell your car.” Dad is raising his voice by the time he
is done. He is furious with us.

“Dad,
it’s my fault not theirs. Tell me, not my friends. Punish me. I’m sorry about
the prospects, but I’m not sorry about the racing. I am mature enough to race,
sir.” I can’t stand when my dad is upset at me, but I can take it better than
my friends. They are both looking at their plates and have stopped eating. For
some reason my dad’s respect is something they both crave.

“Young
lady I know where the blame needs to go, and there is enough to go around.
We’ll talk later about it. Don’t think I have forgotten just because we have
more pressing matters. NO MORE RACING! Am I clear with that, Callie? Last
chance. Next time, life lessons. Do you understand me?” I know to keep my mouth
shut on the issue right now and let him calm down.

“Yes
sir.” I look him in the eyes to let him know I completely understand him.

“Do
you two understand? If you know Callie is going to race, and do not let me know,
I will be really disappointed in both of you.” My dad continues to rant but
waits for their answers.

“Yes
sir, Mr. Black.” Felix says but won’t even look at my dad.

“Yes
sir.” Sarah adds.

“Dad,
I love you.” I give him that. He knows I mean it. I know he means well and is
trying to keep me safe.

“Baby
girl, you are my world. If anything happens to you on my watch, I wouldn’t be
able to take it.” His eyes have softened and I know he means it. “I know you
have a lot of pressure on you right now, but do not try to give the guys the
slip today. They are there for your safety. I have told them to give you room
but you listen to them. Are we clear?” he never takes his eyes off me, waiting
for me to disagree or argue, but I don’t.

“Yes
sir.” I give him a little grin.

“That’s
what I like, respect and obedience.” Now it’s dad’s turn to give me a big grin.

I
see Fe and Sarah are done and Ty is scarfing down his last bite. “Is everyone
ready? I need to go so I can get back.”

Everyone
is getting up from their chairs and I look back at dad, “Did Devil make
arrangements for the retainer?” I have to smirk when I think of the way I
bested Devil on that one. I don’t know what Cross’s retainer is but I know it
is a pretty penny.

“Yes
baby girl, I liked the way you worked that one. Very slick daughter. Be careful
though, Devil is no one to play with.” He warns me. He has a gleam of pride in
his eye because I did one up Devil.

“Yes
sir, no reason for you to pay for his responsibilities though.” I let him know
my reasoning.

“You
are completely right there. Be careful today but think on everything carefully.
This is life changing decision.” I know dad wishes he could do this for me, but
he can’t

“Fe,
you and Sarah be safe today and have a good time. Tonight I will be home and
maybe we can get in some hoops.” My dad knows Fe needs that extra reassurance
from him and he gives it. I love my dad. I am so lucky to have him and so are
my friends.

“I
would like that sir.” And Fe smiles from ear to ear. That’s all it took.

“Ok,
let’s get out of here so dad can get work done.” I get my friends and Ty moving
towards the door. I see Woody and Zman moving that way, too. My dad is taking
no chances and putting someone on my friends also. Today will be a long day.
Might as well get it done.