Page 12 of Stone

With Sasha’s hand in mine, I swing open the door. A strange but comforting feeling of being home washes over me.

“Hey, baby girl,” I squeeze Sasha’s hand gently. “Do you want to see your new home?”

“Let me see,” she smiles brightly. Despite her loss, other than a few disturbed nights and awkward moments when my ability to explain why her mommy and daddy are no longer here, Sasha astounds me with how she takes everything in stride.

“Come on then,” I say, stepping inside. Sasha tugs on my arm, eager to run, not walk, and explore the wide-open living area that we step into. I release my hold on her, and she runs straight over to a large leather couch and climbs onto it. The alarm picks up her movement and starts to tick. Smoke points to a wooden box fixed high up on the wall, left of the door. I flip it open and punch in the four digits. With a single long-drawn-out bleep, the ticking stops, indicating that the alarm has been deactivated.

The place is fucking amazing.

Although the sun is starting to set, light filters through the windows from all angles. The place might be typical cabin style, wood inside and out, but in here, the solid wood floor and walls are stained a light shade of ash. Drapes, rugs and soft furnishings give the space a needed splash of color. Creams, purple, blues and pinks make the masculine exposed beams and wood structure softer and more feminine. To the right of the open space is a fully fitted kitchen. Cupboards in matte white with matching refrigerator and freezer. Dark granite countertops running full length, with four wood stools with white upholstered seats tucked underneath.

“There’s a good-sized bedroom and a shower room which I thought would work perfectly for the nanny.” Smoke points to the two closed doors towards the back of the house. “The third door leads out to a fenced off grassed area with a table and chairs. I thought it might be perfect for when little legs is looking to play outside, ride a bike or something and you’ve still not had enough caffeine to be on full alert.”

“How’s the nanny search going?” I enquire.

“Wolf has got the details,” he responds. “He did the groundwork then got Stacey down at the local cop shop to do a background check on them. I think he’s got it down to three possible candidates.”

“When do I get to see them?”

“I’ll tell him to set-up interviews day after next, if that suits you?”

“Sounds good to me.” The sooner I get Sasha settled in, and find someone suitable for the job, we can start to get into a routine like families do. “I’ll see all three of them, but if none of them are good enough, then we might have to think again.”

“Don’t worry, we’ll find someone,” he assures me. “Now why don’t we go upstairs and show Sasha her room. She’s going to be stoked.”

I hold Sasha’s hand as we make our way up the stairs. I can tell by the way she’s leaning her body forward that she’s eager to get to the top. Her desire to go faster is more than her legs will allow. When Smoke moves in and scoops her up into his arms, I let go of her hand. He takes the stairs two at a time. I’m not sure who is the most excited about seeing her room, Smoke or Sasha.

“There you go, darlin’,” he coos at her, dropping her feet to the floor once he gets to the top. “Can you find the elephant?”

Sasha is off down the corridor, and when she gets to the first door on the right, she stops. “Lellepant,” she points at the door. I step closer to find that she’s right. A soft gray elephant with bright pink ears has been painted on the door. Sasha’s name is in bubble text right above it.

“I guess this must be your room,” I say, crouching down watching as her hand skims over the image. “Let’s see what’s inside.”

When I swing open the door, I’m hit with a rainbow of colors and all things girly.

Sasha squeals in utter delight; her hands clap a few times before she clenches them together, fingers linked into one another, and starts to dance on her feet.

“It’s pretty.”

“Just like you,” Smoke announces, and I can tell that Sasha has already bewitched him with her sweetness, and that I’m not the only one that’s truly smitten with my little baby girl.

ChapterTen

Stone

It’s been two days since we arrived in Reno, and Sasha has been a dream. She’s so taken with her new room. It’s full of her toys and things from her old home, which has given her some familiarity. However, the additional gifts that were waiting for her from all the brothers and the club women made me realize how much everyone had put into making her so welcome.

Today I have three possible candidates to see regarding taking care of Sasha, and I’m not sure that this will go well.

My ability to trust someone, not just to look after Sasha but to also live under the same roof as us, that’s going to be a major stumbling block.

I’ve asked both Smoke and Wolf to be part of it, because I’m sure they will give me an honest opinion and put me right when I come up with some half-ass reason why none of them are suitable.

The first two candidates were not to my liking. Even Smoke agreed with me. One was far too much of a matriarch and gave me the impression that she would be the one calling all the shots, giving me no say in Sasha’s upbringing.

Not happening.

The other, despite being given a comprehensive list of the requirements, wasn’t willing to live-in.

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