Page 6 of Ace's Legacy
Seven weeks. Christ. Seven weeks and she's been carrying my kid without me knowing it. My eyes drop to her stomach, still flat beneath her sundress, and something primal stirs inside me. My child is in there.
A child. My child.
My father's voice slithers into my head: You'll never amount to anything, boy. Just like me. It's in our blood.
I push the thought away violently. "And you're... keeping it?" The question comes out harsher than I intended.
Her face hardens slightly. "Yes. I am."
"No, I didn't mean—" I step closer, then stop when I see her tense. "I just needed to know what you want. What your plan is."
"My plan was to tell you," she says simply. "Beyond that, I haven't figured everything out yet. But I wanted you to know."
I run a hand through my hair, aware that I'm covered in grease and sweat, standing half-naked in front of the mother of my unborn child. The mother of my child. Jesus.
"Let me clean up," I say abruptly. "And we can talk somewhere that's not... here."
She nods.
"I'll be quick. Five minutes." I gesture toward a picnic table away from the clubhouse. "Wait there?"
Sarah nods again and walks toward the table. I watch her for a moment before I snap out of it and head inside.
I take the clubhouse stairs two at a time up to my room. One of the few private spaces in this place. It's sparse but clean, with just a bed, dresser, and my few possessions. I grab a clean t-shirt from a drawer, slowly not to disturb my bandage as I pull it over my head.
My reflection in the small mirror above my dresser shows a man I barely recognize. Same green eyes, same face my mother used to call "too pretty for your own good," but there's something different in my expression now. Fear, maybe. Or something deeper.
"Pull it together," I mutter to myself, splashing water on my face from the bottle by my bed.
A knock at my door breaks my thoughts.
"Yeah?"
Viper pushes the door open, leaning against the frame with his massive arms crossed. "Everything alright?"
"No." I sit on the edge of my bed. "She's pregnant."
To his credit, Viper doesn't look shocked. He just nods slowly. "Yours?"
"Yes."
"You sure?"
I look up at him sharply. "Yes."
He holds up his hands. "Had to ask. What are you going to do?"
"I don't know." I stand, suddenly restless. "She's waiting for me outside."
Viper steps into the room, lowering his voice. "This complicates things, Ace. With everything going on with the Vultures MC—"
"You think I don't know that?" I snap. "It's not like I planned this."
"No one ever does." He sighs. "Just be careful what you promise her. And what you tell her about club business."
The implication stings. "She's carrying my kid, Viper. Show some respect."
A flicker of surprise crosses his scarred face before he nods. "Fair enough. Just remember where your loyalties lie."
