Page 40 of Clint & Ivy

We looked at my parents whose make-out session had turned into a minor wrestling match. My mom kept trying to pin his arms behind his back. Ford let her think she was about to win, only to break free and move away. Meanwhile, Pax cheered Shay on.

“Tackle his old ass,” my uncle insisted. “Take him down to the ground.”

“Traitor,” Ford growled at his brother as he dodged Shay’s hands. “I always take your side when Bebe tries kicking your ass.”

“He does,” Bebe told Pax. “You’re being a bad brother.”

“I’m not wrestling you,” Pax insisted. “Don’t try baiting me.”

Lula shook her head and returned her gaze to me. “You and I aren’t romantic people. How can you think this woman is anything more than a midlife crisis?”

“I’m thirty.”

“Yes, but you’ve always been advanced for your age.”

Despite chuckling, I exhaled hard. “Don’t ruin this for me. If I fail with Ivy, I want it to happen on my terms, not because people meddled.”

Lula pursed her lips, considering my plea. “I will allow this,” Lula said through gritted teeth. “But if this woman screws you over, I will help the foxes bury her somewhere deep.”

“It would break my heart if you weren’t willing to do that for me. I mean, shit, we’re family. I’d have buried Jarred for you.”

“Wait, are we killing him?” Pax asked from where he had Bebe in a headlock.

“I’m going to punch you in the nuts,” my aunt warned before cupping his balls instead and making him bounce away from her. “Now, let me put you in a headlock, so we’re even.”

“Alright, but I’m gonna go ahead and touch your pussy while you’ve got me pinned.”

“Well, duh, Pax.”

Though Lula chose to ignore her parents’ behavior, Ford and Shay encouraged Bebe to pop off Pax’s head.

“He doesn’t use the damn thing for anything but hats, anyway,” Ford insisted while Shay laughed.

Bebe snorted. “His head is one of my favorite parts of him. It’s where his pretty blue eyes are located.”

“Don’t forget my tongue is located in my head,” Pax said, patiently waiting for Bebe to let him go. “Who’s going to go down on you if my head gets ripped off?”

“Oh, I hadn’t thought about that,” Shay said, pretending to get serious. “Best keep his head then.”

“Women are nasty, sex-obsessed freaks,” Ford declared and looked around. “Where’s Sutter? I need to warn him away from chicks.”

“He’s probably designing a rocket,” Pax said after Bebe let him loose.

Thinking his brother was poking fun at his grandson, Ford grumbled, “Where’s your granddaughter?”

Lula grabbed my wrist and tugged me down the hallway. “They mentioned Dillon. We need to flee before I get pulled into their drama.”

“I feel like we’ve discussed our issues enough.”

“No, I want to lecture you more.”

We ended up in the hallway near my parents’ bedroom. On the walls were photos of Elle and me during our baby days. I smiled at my sister sticking her tongue at the camera.

An image flashed in my mind of my future kids’ pictures on the walls. Two days ago, I was focused on Boone’s situation and what might be happening with Tricky and the Black Rainbow Motorcycle Club. Neither issue was dire. Boone would be out in a few months. I’d already considered meeting with the Black Rainbow’s new president. My life felt stable.

Now, I was nursing ideas about future children. Was the condo appropriate for a kid? No, probably not. Though I was getting ahead of myself, Ivy inspired me to think bigger.

“I want to make sure you aren’t feeling pressure to stick things out with this woman,” Lula said as we stood in the quiet hallway. “I know how it feels to want to save people. But there are ways to do that without having her in your home.”

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