Page 46 of Manny

I get in his face. “Or else I’d remind you that you aren’t patched in. You’re just the cook.”

Manny’s face falls and I immediately feel like a dick. It takes a second for him to answer, but when he does, his tone is an octave lower. “Thanks for reminding me.”

I swallow hard. “I didn’t mean?—”

“Dad, are you still here?” Eli pushes past, an armful of ingredients in his arms, but my eyes are on Manny.

Why do I have to be such a cruel bastard? I palm the back of my neck, but Manny ignores me and walks back toward Eli. I open my mouth, then close it again. He’s in the MC, he should know better than to run his mouth, especially in front of my kid. Then again, I think I’m more sensitive than he is.

“Okay, well, I’ll see you later.” My throat feels dry. I know I hurt his feelings and I don’t know why my immediate response was to be cruel.

“Bye!” Eli says in between reading the recipe Manny has placed on the bench in front of them, along with mixing bowls and lined baking trays. Clearly, he wants me gone.

I walk to the door and look back. Manny’s taking time out of his day to teach my son, and I say the only real thing that could get to the heart of him and crush him. It was a low blow, and yet I took it easily.

Manny doesn’t look up, but his stance is rigid, and he’s lost that smile he had on his face before I ruined it all. He reads the recipe to Eli and doesn’t look at me again.

What the fuck is wrong with me?I know exactly what’s wrong with me. I ruin everything that’s good. Sometimes I really fuckin’ hate myself.

10

MANNY

His words shouldn’t meananything. Who is he to me, anyway? Yet, for some reason, my sensitivity chip is on high alert. We’re supposed to be brothers, and while the guys rag on one another and sometimes Tag even throws a few punches when he’s in a really bad mood, but I thought we were a brotherhood. To him, I’m just the cook, and that’s fine. I don’t give a shit if he likes me or not, but to insult that I’mjust a cook,like he’s better than me just because he wears a dirty patch on his cut? Asshole. I need to toughen up.

It also hits home that Bandit hasn’t been in the club that long, plus he skipped prospecting for the most part because he was in an MC previously, and he and Indi’s dad was an ex MC prez who’s now six feet under. But to have him rub it in my face? It shouldn’t hurt me this much, but it does. To think I’d even checked him out on more than one occasion, and admired his skills as a single Dad. I can’t say many would be cut out for the job with little to no help.

Now I take all of that back, well, aside from the Eli part because he looks up at me with his little chef’s hat on and all the annoyance melts away. He’s a sweet kid. God knows how Banditmanaged to produce such a well-mannered, thoughtful child, but somehow he did, and I can’t take that away from him. As much as he is a dick right now, it isn’t Eli’s fault.

“Like this, Uncle Manny?”

I look at his floured board as he rolls the dough out. “Yep, exactly like that, a little thinner, then we can add the chocolate chips and fold the pastry over.”

He smiles, clearly more excited than I am right now, but that’s a given because he loves to get his hands in the mixing bowl.

Cami was supposed to join us, but Indi texted to say they got held up after school and wouldn’t be too far away. She can help with the second batch.

He does as I say and we work together to make an entire tray. Eli beams from ear to ear, and I can’t help but feel his enthusiasm. I even let him put the oven gloves on and place the tray in the middle rack.Go to Hell, Bandit.Eli can open a goddamn oven door, for heaven’s sake.

He shuts the oven door and I set the timer. “This is gonna be epic.”

It kills me to say it, but I remind myself this is about Eli, not about me and his dick father. “I’ll take some pics and film them baking. We can send them to your dad if you like.” Eli doesn’t have a phone, thank God. Kids are getting phones way too young these days, in my opinion.

“Cool!” He wipes his hands on his apron and looks up at me expectantly.

I laugh. “We gotta wait for Cami.” I check my phone, then I see a text from Bandit. “She shouldn’t be too far away. How about I make us a hot chocolate while we wait?”

He nods enthusiastically. “I can help clean up.”

“That’d be good,” I say, glancing around. “Looks like there was a chocolate explosion in here.”

He giggles, filling the sink as I flick to the text from Bandit.

Bandit

Listen man, I was outta line

Huh. I guess that’s his shitty way of apologizing for being so rude.

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