Melissa looked over at us. “Thank you.”
Walking over, I sat down on the couch and bumped her shoulder. “She wasn’t the only one missing you.”
Ghost got to his feet and headed for the door. He stopped and leaned close to Danny, who hadn’t moved, and whispered something I couldn’t hear. Danny stiffened, then nodded before Ghost left the cabin.
The cabin was eerily quiet as Danny and Melissa looked at each other. Neither one wanted to be the first to talk. At this rate, Danika would be married with two kids before the stubborn fools got their shit together.
Glaring at Danny, I cleared my throat when he finally piped up, “Thank you for the phone. Dante and I sat and watched some of the videos you took.”
“There were a lot,” I added, trying to be helpful.
Missy shrugged. “I didn’t want you to miss anything if I could help it.”
“We appreciate it.”
Danny moved further into the room. His hands clasped around the back of a kitchen chair as Missy leaned back on the couch, Dani snuggled in her arms.
My God, this was painful to watch.
“I’m sor—”
“I want to—”
Sighing, Melissa began again, “I’m sorry for screaming at you when you came to the clubhouse. I’d like to say that it wasn’t me. But... I think Haizley might have been right. I think I was projecting my own trauma from what Gunner did on to you. And I’m sorry for that.”
Danny looked at me and I nodded, a small smile on my face as I took Dani from Missy. Walking over, Danny held out a hand. “Take a walk with me?”
When the stubborn woman looked at me, I said nothing and just tilted my chin toward Danny’s outstretched hand. I knew this shit could go either way, but I was banking on Danny’s southern charm and his southern morals to see him safely through this because if he couldn’t sweet talk his ass onto Melissa’s good side, I didn’t know what I was going to do.
“Ok,” she relented, taking Danny’s proffered hand and letting him help her to her feet. Instead of letting go, he pulled her hand up and tucked her arm around his as he escorted her out of the cabin.
Sighing, I held Dani close and whispered, “We got our work cut out for us, baby girl.”
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Danny
This was a big fucking mistake, but it wasn’t like I had a damn choice. King was ready to kill me. The club brothers wanted Ghost back, the women were tired of the fighting, and Dante, well, I’d show him later what it meant to withhold sex. But the one person I couldn’t ignore was Danika. My beautiful little girl. She didn’t understand all this crap. All she knew was that Melissa was her mama and the ornery woman loved her to pieces.
That was the only reason I was doing this.
For my daughter.
Everyone else could go get fucked.
“I want to apologize for my reactions as well. My mother would kick my ass if she were to see how I spoke to you. Not to mention what my dad would have done. The truth is, I was just as angry at you when I walked into the clubhouse. Haizley told us Dani was calling you mama and ... I didn’t take it well.”
She stopped walking and pulled her arm away from me and headed back for the cabin.
Groaning, I silently cursed and sighed. “Melissa, wait. I know you did nothing wrong.”
“I never asked her to call me mama,” she said, her back ramrod stiff.
“I know. We watched the video from the zoo.”
When her shoulders fell and I heard her sniff, I cringed.
Great! Way to dig your grave faster, Danny.