Page 106 of Ravage

“The kids?”

“They’re coming to the house tonight.”

“So soon?”

“I missed last weekend. Not missing another.”

“Do they know what happened?”

“Nope, and they aren’t going to.”

“Then, how are you going to explain?”

“I’ll figure something out.”

A few hours later, I was sitting at the kitchen table with Sam while Reese sat in the living room, watching one of her shows with her father. He was lying on the sofa, sleeping like a rock. I was helping Sam with a few division problems when he announced, “I’ve got practice tomorrow.”

“That’s okay. I can take you.”

“But Dad’s supposed to take me.”

“He can still go.” It had been just over a week since the night Cole was shot, and while he would disagree, he still had some healing to do. “He just can’t drive yet.”

“When can he?”

“He would drive today if I would let him,” I laughed, glancing over at the sofa to see if he was still sleeping. He hadn’t moved, not even when Reese turned on the television and started singing along with the main character. “But he still needs to take it easy. At least for a little while longer.”

“I can’t believe he crashed out on his bike.” Sam grimaced. “He’s never done that before.”

“That’s because he’s very careful, but accidents still happen.”

I didn’t like lying to Sam, but Cole made it clear he didn’t want the kids to know. He didn’t want them worrying about him every time he walked out the door, but I knew better than anyone he couldn’t hide it forever. Kids have a way of picking up on things, especially when their lives are cloaked in secrets like ours.

I’d been living with Jax for less than a year when the club called for a lockdown. I was still trying to figure out the whole biker world thing, and I was terrified when all the men would pack up and leave in the middle of the night, only to return bruised and bloody. I realized then that their life was far different from the one I’d always known.

I had a feeling Sam already knew something was up, and in a year or two, he would have big questions for his father. Sam’s brows furrowed as he said, “Deer aren’t usually out this time of year.”

“Oh, I don’t know. I’ve seen a few around.” Hoping to change the subject, I asked, “Do we need to do a few more division problems, or do you think you’ve got the hang of it?”

“I think I’m good.”

“Okay. How ‘bout you put your things away, and I’ll start dinner?”

“But it’s Friday.”

“Yeah?”

“We do pizza on Friday nights.”

“Oh… I didn’t realize that was a thing.” I glanced back over to the sofa, and Cole still hadn’t moved. “But it’s fine with me. I love pizza.”

“But it’s not just any pizza,” Sam explained. “We go to Malone’s on Friday nights.”

I thought back to the night Chrissy ditched me, and I ran into Malone’s to grab some takeout. I ran into Cole and the kids while I was there, and when he got a call from the club, I ended up bringing the kids back to his place. That same night I threw a tantrum over him trying to get me a ride home.

Looking back, that was probably the start of our descent into mayhem. I wouldn’t have gotten so upset with him if I hadn’t had such strong feelings for him, and he wouldn’t have been so stubbornly protective if he hadn’t felt the same about me.

I smiled at the thought and said, “I love Malone’s.”