Page 9 of Stone

ChapterSeven

Stone

“Nanny,” Smoke howls at me as he walks into the kitchen, looking like a rock star that’s had a heavy night with a harem of chicks.

“What the f…,” I stop myself from cursing just in time and smile at Sasha, who is sitting on the counter in front of me with half a banana in one hand and a juice box in the other. While I watch her like a hawk in case she makes any sudden moves to try to get down. “Good morning, Prez. If I pour you a coffee, do you think you can explain what on earth you’re talking about?”

I lift Sasha up and place her down on the floor. Immediately she takes off running towards Smoke. Coming to an abrupt halt in front of him, she tips back her head to gaze up at him. Hands still full, she flings them around his legs, giving him a hug. For a few seconds, Smoke stands rigid to the spot, but as his body relaxes, he bends down and scoops her up into his arms.

“Hey there, darlin’,” he coos. She holds out what is left of her banana and squishes it into Smoke’s mouth. His eyes widen, his face scrunches up, Adam’s apple at his throat bobbing as he swallows down Sasha’s gift. “Thank you,” he chokes out, his face distorted as he tries not to grimace. He hates bananas, says they should only be found in the devil’s fruit bowl.

“Looks like you’ve made a firm friend,” I howl with laughter. “Sasha, baby girl. No, that’s your juice box.” I intervene when she tries to push the end of the straw into his mouth.

“He can have one?” she questions me over her shoulder, prodding her slimy banana finger against Smoke’s leather cut.

“Of course, he can have one, but I think he prefers coffee.”

“Like you, Uncle Gabe?”

“Yes, like me.” I walk around to the other side of the counter with a mug of the good stuff and put it on the counter in reach for Smoke, before taking Sasha from him. “Hit me with it,” I nod at him waiting to hear what earth-shattering idea he has that had him blurting while barely awake.

“We get the cabin all fixed up and child friendly, then you move in with Sasha.”

“Yeah, we already talked about this last night,” I snigger while wiping my niece’s hands and face with a paper napkin. “Your nicotine levels too low buddy that your memory’s not working on all cylinders?”

“Fu…” I glare at him. “Mmm.” He glares right back, clamping his lips together to stop any further cursing that was about to burst from his mouth. Smoke curses a lot, come to think of it, we all do. As there are no other young kids at the clubhouse, if I do take Sasha back to Reno with me and continue club life, that’s one change that will have to be made. At least in front of her.

“You hire a live-in nanny,” he announces like it’s so obvious. “There’s enough room and that will ensure that if you suddenly need to leave in the middle of the night unexpectedly, there’ll be someone there to take care of Sasha.”

“Are you crazy, you expect me to leave her in the care of a complete stranger?” I look down at Sasha, her face all clean and so angelic. Outstretched arms tell me that she wants picking up. I don’t hesitate in doing so. She snuggles into me, and I brush a kiss to her forehead.

“Don’t be a dic… dammit,” he sighs, his knuckles going white as he clenches the coffee cup in his fist. “You vet them, check them out. Then you take time out to spend it with Sasha and whoever it is that you employ until you’re comfortable with the set-up. When you’re happy, you come back.”

“That sounds great in theory, but no nanny is going to be available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.”

“Stone, think about it. It’s not like you’re out every minute of the day, anyway. There’s plenty of stuff that you could do while being at home. If need be, we’ll work it out so that on certain days you’re unavailable so you’ll be there for Sasha.”

I hold Sasha a little tighter while I consider what Smoke is suggesting. Could it work? Will I be able to find someone that I can trust to care for my niece?

“Another thing to consider, Stone,” Smoke adds to the mix. “Growing up, she’s going to need a female in her life, because that kinda stuff gets awkward, and it ain’t something you want to be having to handle.”

Sasha’s hands come to the side of my face, holding me in place so I have no option but to look her in the eye. She’s such a cutie, and when her face lights up with the most delightful smile, if I was a betting man, I would bet my precious ride that she’s trying to tell me that everything is going to be just fine.

“Okay, we’ll give it a try,” I nod. Sasha nods too. I’m not sure if she’s just simply mimicking me, but whatever, I’ll take it. “As soon as things are settled here, and the cabin is ready, I’ll bring Sasha back to Reno.”

“I’ll call Diesel, tell him to speed things up so we can get you back there sooner rather than later,” Smoke stands with his hands resting on his hips and knocks back the rest of his coffee. “I’ll tell Wolf to start enquiring on the nanny side of things, contact a few agencies, see how that works.”

“Are you sure you wanna do this, Smoke? It’s a lot of work and hassle for the club?”

“Damn right,” he sniggers. “You’re one brother that I ain’t willing to lose. The Young Outlaws wouldn’t be the same without your sorry ass.”

“Smoke,” I chastise at his slip-up, although it feels good that he respects me enough to do this for me.

“Ass,” Sasha giggles out, taking us both by surprise.

“I need a smoke,” he hisses between his teeth when I throw him a dirty look. He moves over to the glass doors that lead to the paved area at the back, slides them open and disappears outside, cigarette in one hand, zippo in the other.

While Smoke ups his nicotine levels, I try to explain to a three-year-old that saying the word ‘ass’ is naughty while keeping a straight face when all I want to do is piss myself laughing.

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