Page 80 of Living Without

“None of your business,” he barked.

“Then go and never come back,” I retorted.

“I’ll wait until I see my son,” he roared and took a step towards me. Parker went to stand in front of me, until I lay a hand to his waist and shook my head. The man in front of me didn’t scare me. If anything, I pitied him. He was an old, mean man. It was all he would ever be. Saxon and I didn’t need a person like that in our life.

My hands went to my hips. “Nothing you can say or do will make me go up and get Saxon. You’re nothing to him.”

“You don’t know all of him. What he’s really like.”

I laughed without humour. “You think I don’t know? I know it all,” I snapped. The fool blanched. “How you let his mother beat him, and when he killed her, you then took over the job and made him do things he didn’t want to do. It stopped when the Hawks MC took Saxon away from you, and I’m glad they did. I know you’re a pathetic, little old man who will never have the chance again to treat Saxon the way you did. Saxon ismylife now, and I won’t let anyone harm him in any way.”

He snorted. “You’ll let a kid who killed his own mum touch you? A kid who’s nothing but trouble, who’s tainted like the dirt he is?”

Shaking my head, I said, “No. I’ll let a man who did everything he could to find me when I was kidnapped and abused. I’ll let a man who knows all of my trauma and takes it on like it’s his own personal mountain to climb and conquer. I’ll let a man who loves me with everything he has, touch me, care for me, and is there for me no matter what we face. Saxon Black is my man. The only good thing you gave him was his kickarse name. Now, you’re just a stranger we don’t want to know.”

* * * *

SAXON

I’d just gotten dressed after a shower when I went looking for Nary. Panic set low in my gut when I didn’t find her anywhere in the apartment. I stood in the kitchen gripping my hair, when I noticed my phone on the table flashing. Picking it up, I saw there was a message from Pick asking us to grab some eggs on the way over. Anger warmed my body when the message didn’t fuckin’ help to find where my woman was. But then I noticed in my caller log that a call to Parker had been made about ten minutes earlier.

Without shoes, I ran from the apartment and up to Parker’s door, banging like hell on it. When no one answered, I bolted down the stairs to go check if Parker’s car was there, only to come to an abrupt halt when I spotted my woman outside with Parker… and my motherfuckin’ father.

Stomping to the door, I pushed it open, and then, fuck me, Nary’s soul-touchin’, heart-pumpin’, dick-hardenin’ words hit me first.

Stepping out, I clipped, “She’s right.”

My woman jumped and spun to me, her eyes wide. Parker moved back a few paces with a smirk on his face.

I came to a stop beside my woman and curled my arm around her shoulders, tucking her in close. “I don’t give a fuck why you think it’s right to come near me. I don’t owe you anything. I don’t want you in our life, and since the day Stoke took me outta your place, I no longer know you. You don’t exist to me or anyone in my life.”

The old man’s jaw clenched. He narrowed his eyes at me and said, “I can fuck up your little happy life—”

I threw my head back and laughed. “You hear that, Parker?”

“I did, brother. Not good, old man, to threaten him in front of a detective.”

Dad went pale. “You’re a detective?”

“Sure am.”

Dad just about blew a vessel when he pointed at me and yelled, “Then you need to arrest him for the murder of his mum.”

Parker snorted. “That case has already been to court and was ruled as self-defence. Judge would hate it being brought up again for no reason at all.”

“He stole. When he was younger, he took things off our neighbours. He—”

“Fool,” Parker barked. “You standing here dirtying their footpath with this bullshit is a fool’s act. Tell them the real reason you came here.”

Dad shook his head. His body sagged, the fight leaving him. All I wanted was for him to get the fuck lost so I could take my woman inside to show my appreciation for her words.

“I need money.”

“Oh, my God,” Nary breathed beside me. “You think you can come here and ask your ex-son for money after the way you’ve treated him?” Her voice was high and agitated. Goddamn, my woman rocked. I kinda wanted to laugh at the ex-son business.

“Shut it, you fuckin’ whore. You don’t know what I had to put up—”

Suddenly before him with my hand around his neck, I forced him back to hit his car.

---