Page 46 of Mile High With the Bikers
“Matteo, why don't you go play downstairs? Dante is down there with Mia and Chloe. I'll call you up when there's ice cream.” Alessa shoos them towards the stairs, then turns to me. “Make yourself at home.”
“Anyone home?” A voice calls out from the door, which is partially open. Peeking in curiously is a woman with wavy brown hair and pink highlights. She's got a baby sling on her chest that's making little whimpering noises. “I'm coming in.”
“Kaylee! Get in here and hand Brooklyn over!” Alessa calls.
The woman with the baby enters and carefully pulls a sleeping baby out of the wrap. She passes the pink bundle to Alessa and sits down with a grateful sigh before smiling up at me. “Hi, I'm Kaylee. You're the new girl?”
“Does everyone know?”
Mila nods. “Pretty much, yeah. You know how they say gossip travels fast in a small town? It’s basically instant in a motorcycle club. And trust me, it’s not just the women. I could write a full time blind item column based on nothing but sitting at the bar in the common room and keeping my ears open.”
“I would pay to read that,” Kaylee says with a laugh.
“Thanks for inviting me” I sit down while eyeing them curiously. “You said it was okay to ask questions, right? Is it really normalaround here to be with multiple guys? Nobody seems to even bat an eye.”
“It isnow.” Alessa snuggles her nose into the baby’s little head and sniffs. “When I hooked up with the cleanup crew, it was just me and Emily. Back then I think Eagle-eye still had some hope that it wouldn’t be a trend, but I think he’s secretly getting worn down to the idea.”
Kaylee laughs. “That’s just because he’s dealing with a one year old.”
“Eagle-eye has a baby!?” I gasp.
“Oh, I love catching new people up on the club lore.” Alessa grins over the top of the baby’s head. “Trust me, it was a surprise to everyone. Including his old lady who is Emily’smomand probably thought she was safe from having to start over.”
Mila nods. “Poor Miriam. I mean Damien is adorable, but oh my God, right? And don’t forget Eagle-eye’s daughter Faith, who’s with Alpha, Ripper and Blade. So that makes Faith and Emily step-sisters. Sorta. This is fun, I like not being the new girl anymore.”
“How long have you been here?”
“Not quite a year, I guess? It feels like forever. I used to live across the street over the Eagles’ Roost before it blew up.”
“It blew up?” Maybe Bull’s comment about the chances of explosions not being zero was more literal than I thought.
Mila shrugs. “Not to scare you off, but that sort of stuff does tend to happen around here.”
“Oh, I forgot the drinks!” Alessa passes me the baby and runs to the kitchen.
I stare down at the floppy bundle in my arms. It’s actually the first time I’ve ever held a baby, and I don’t quite know where to put my hands. “Hi, baby.”
Kaylee must be able to tell, because she leans over and adjusts my grip. “Her name is Brooklyn. Here, keep one hand under her butt, and another behind her neck. I had no idea what I was doing either. I was terrified of breaking her for the first few days.”
“How old is she?”
“Just over a month.” Kaylee brushes her fingers over the peach fuzz on top of Brooklyn’s head.
Alessa comes back holding a tray with four glasses of something bubbly. “It’s just sparkling cider today in solidarity with the nursing mom.”
When Alessa reaches down to take the baby back, I let her go, but I’m surprised to miss the weight in my arms.
“Does it make you want a fourth?” Kaylee asks Alessa.
Alessa’s big brown eyes go wide. “Four? Are you crazy? I would die. Literally die.” Then she sniffs Brooklyn’s head again and sighs. “I would, right?”
“The boys would love it.”
“Nope, nope, nope.” Alessa shakes her head vehemently, then sighs. “I mean, if it happens, it happens. I was terrified when I found out I was pregnant with Izzy and she’s the light of my life, but we're not inviting right now, if you know what I mean. I don’teven know where we would put a fourth kid. It’s already pretty crowded here. If the guys didn’t have the run of the entire club it would never work.”
I feel a bit on the outside, but not in a bad way. Just like when I was hanging out with the sluts, it’s like getting invited to a family cookout. The closest I’ve ever come to something like this was back in boarding school, but even then I was on the outside. I was too focused on school, and my mother didn’t care about socializing with the other parents so I just… existed. I'm only just beginning to realize what I missed out on.
The door swings open and a fourth woman enters. She’s wearing hospital scrubs and looks to be about the same age as Alessa. “Sorry I’m late! The ER was crazy. Is Liam with Izzy? Oh, hey! Who’s the fresh meat?”
