Page 63 of Property of Raider
Rusher stands there, arms crossed over his chest, glaring at the man behind me.“Do you really think that's the smartest decision?”
“Last time I checked, you were the child and I was the adult.Like I said, we wanted to take you to dinner and talk about things and the situation at hand.”I match his stance and glare.
His eyes cut to Raider behind me.“Just now I don't care if you are my father or not.She has been hurt enough times that I will make you pay if you do it again.”
“Rusher Austin, you will be respectful,” I call after him as he storms out of the room.
“That was as respectful as I can be at the moment,” he spits, storming out the door.
Raider places his hands on my shoulders.“He’ll come around.And as for dinner, something has come up I have to deal with, so I’m not going to be able to make it.I still want the two of you to go so you can talk and replace some things you lost in the fire.”
I turn into his chest, hugging him close.“That sucks, but I get it.”
“There is one more thing.You’ll have a prospect and a brother on you two the entire time,” Raider says.
I want to argue, to tell him he is being ridiculous, but without him and the protection of being at the clubhouse, I know we’re not safe in the slightest.As long as my sister and the men she works with are alive, Rusher and I won't ever be safe.I just nod into his chest before pulling away, smiling up at him.
“Just have them let us know when they're ready to go.I’m going to find Rusher and talk to him.”I push up on my toes, giving him a quick kiss before walking away to find my son.
Using theFind Myapp, I track him to the back of the clubhouse, just inside the tree line, sitting on a rope swing.He doesn’t look up as I approach him, so I walk behind him, pushing the swing.He sits there pretending to ignore me for what seems like hours but is only a few minutes.
“I’m scared, Ma,” he finally tells me.
“If I’m honest, I’m terrified.”
“Did you know he was my dad all along?”His question shouldn’t have shocked me, but it does.
“How about you hop off that swing, and I’ll tell you a story,” I call out.
Rusher stops the swing and walks over to me.I don’t know where to start and what exactly matters to him.
“Your father, Remedy, and Pope were the best of friends for many years.About the time we turned twenty, your mother did something that tore me away from them.She lied about who, what, and why.Telling me you needed to be protected.”I sigh, picking at the grass under us.“The thing is, the day you were born, and I saw the coloring of your eyes, I knew exactly who your father was.I was heartbroken for a lot of reasons, and your mother and father doing what they did just shattered me.So, I built walls and tried to convince myself we didn’t need anyone but each other.”
“I’m not mad at you because of my life.To be honest, it was awesome.I’m just worried he doesn’t want me,” Rusher’s soft words nearly kill me.
“Rusher, I can promise you one thing, Raider wants you and wants the chance to be your dad.We will not force anything or make you do anything you do not want to do when it comes to Raider.What I can tell you is he is a pretty great guy and deserves the chance to get to know how awesome of a kid you are.”I put my arms around his shoulders, pulling him close to me.
“Yeah, I guess I can give him a chance.But if he hurts you, then I will choose you every time,” Rusher tells me.
“Right back at you,” I kiss the top of his head, “And lucky for us it's just going to be you and me tonight at dinner.Maybe we can do a little bit of shopping.I mean, at this point we’re both living on the bare minimum,” I whisper to him.
“That sounds good.”Rusher smiles at me.“I’m going to go shower and rest until we’re ready to go.”
We stand and make our way back to the clubhouse, talking about how practice went and how he can’t wait to start school in a few weeks.As we walk across the yard, I’m able to take in the backyard and how absolutely beautiful it is.There is a large fire pit to the right and a nice big pool with what appears to be a large outdoor kitchen and a ton of seating space.Rusher gives me the code to get in the backdoor and explains what everything is as we walk down the hallway.
“You’re really happy here?”I finally ask him.
“It’s not just that.I feel safe here.Like nothing bad in the world can touch us.”That’s when I see it on his face.He’s really relaxed and not so on edge.
“That is what matters to me,” I tell him before splitting away from him to go to the room I spent the night in.
I open the door, kicking my shoes off as I make my way across the room.Setting an alarm for an hour from now, I fall face first onto the bed and promptly fall asleep until it’s time to go out with Rusher.
Rusher and I have a great evening laughing over old stories told by Pope about Raider, Remedy, and me growing up.After dinner we go shopping, getting some much need essentials, and then Rusher asks me to go to the movies.I look at Pope, who gives me a nod, so we go.Rusher picks some comedy he and the other two guys found hilarious.As we come out of the theater, I notice a set of motorcycles with men leaning against them.Before I can do or say anything, Twitch and Pope put themselves between us and them.
“Do whatever we say, no questions asked.”Pope’s carefree attitude is gone, and in its place is the badass biker.
Rusher and I both quicken our steps to the car.We climb in on the same side, locking the doors behind us.Twitch climbs into the driver's seat, starting the engine and making a call at the same time.The phone rings exactly two times before it’s answered.
