Page 46 of Outlaws' Single Mom
Bonnie laughs. “She’ll keep a good eye on him. She knows what it’s like to be the only kid in the clubful of bikers. Got coffee or anything?”
“Oh, sorry, yeah, of course. Let’s go to the kitchen.” I gesture the way, like she probably doesn’t know the place better than I do. “I haven’t been here long, but I’m sure there’s something.”
I look over my shoulder at Anne and Logan as we switch rooms. Anne’s obviously an old hand at setting this stuff up. She’s already done plugging it in, and is patting the rug next to her for Logan to come sit. He runs over excitedly, bringing his motorcycles and the stuffed toys with him. His eyes are huge as a cartoony motorcycle game starts up on the screen. “Dirk Mayhem!” a deep man’s voice declares.
“Don’t worry. If you don’t want him spending too much time in front of screens, just let her know and she’ll handle it. She’s a smart girl,” Bonnie says proudly, rummaging through the cabinets over the kitchen counter.
“It’s fine. I don’t have a game system at home but some of his friends with older siblings do. Right now there’s so much stuff going on that I’m just happy if he’s happy.” I pull a bakery box out of the fridge. “Lash brought these over earlier. He said you’d approve.”
Bonnie glances over. “Oooh, DiMarcellos!”
I cut the string holding the box closed and check out the selection while she gets the coffee machine going. When she sees the options, her eyes light up almost as much as Logan’s did when Anne pulled out the video games.
She grins. “Lash always was one of my favorites. He’s a sweet kid at heart.”
The thought of Lash as a ‘sweet kid’ makes me laugh.
Soon after, we’re sipping coffee and I’m devouring a bear claw while Bonnie enjoys her apple fritter. She’s right, they’re fantastic. In the living room, Logan is laughing with his whole chest at something in the game, while Anne yells at the TV about something being impossible.”
“How did you end up adopting Anne,” I ask Bonnie, curious. “If you don’t mind me asking, that is.”
“Mind? Nah. It’s not a secret. Anne’s mom died when she was young, and her father was an evil son of a bitch. The club crashed with him a while back and Anne came as a package deal with Jessica, one of the other old ladies. She and Jess are still real close, but they work better as sisters than mother daughter, you know?”
Not really, but I nod.
“Anne and I clicked right from the start. We played a lot of video games together.” Bonnie’s smile is infectious. “Anne was about thirteen, so she didn’t need someone to be a normal sort of mother, and I was too old and been in this life for too long to even try. It works for us. After General died, I was living on energy drinks and spite. Having Anne around was the kick in the ass I needed to realize I had too many years ahead of me to sit and rot my life away.”
Even before Mom passed away, our family was never like this, so friendly and willing to talk. It could be really easy to get used to having a built in support network. I suddenly realize I’m not exactly looking forward to finding a new apartment and starting over when the danger is past. Is that crazy?
“You look real thoughtful, honey.” Bonnie sips her coffee mug with both hands.
“Nothing here is like I expected.” I gesture around me, meaning the whole club. “This place is like its own separate world. Like the front gate is the closet into biker Narnia or something.”
“It’s not paradise if that’s what you’re thinking,” she says with a tone of warning in her voice. “The goodparts come with the bad. I won’t speak a bad word against these boys, but if you’re getting hearts in your eyes, then you need a dose of reality, too. My old man took a bullet to the head because someone decided they’d do a better job of leading this place. Now he’s dead, and when all was done, Hellfire gave me the honor of avenging it. Every happy ending you see here was paid for in blood. Anne’s included.
These men are criminals, thieves, murderers, violent and packed with way too much testosterone for their own good, but when the world threw them away, they found each other and they’ll fight tooth and nail before they give that up again. I wouldn’t trade any of this for the world, but it’s not for everyone. It’s like being adopted by a pack of wolves. If you can’t handle getting nipped occasionally, it’s not the spot for you.” Bonnie leans in closer and grins conspiratorially. “But it’s worth it for the sex.”
I almost choke on my bear claw. Instinctively, I check over my shoulder to make sure Logan isn’t listening. It’s bad enough that he’s started pointing at everything with his middle finger. I should probably expect the first F-bomb out of him any day now, but if that’s the worst thing that happens, I’ll live with it.
“You okay, Honey?”
I clear my throat, then swallow what’s left. “Yep, fine. Just went down the wrong way.” A sip of the coffee washes the last crumbs down. “Actually, can I ask you something? It’s a little personal.”
She rubs her hands together. “This sounds good, fire away.”
“The guys seem to do a lot of… sharing. In bed I mean.”
“Or out of it, go on.”
I’m pretty sure my face is the color of a ripe tomato. “And not that I mind, but the other day, I saw a woman at the bar with a jacket from here, and it said Property of um… three different names, I think. Tex maybe? And Ghost? Like, is this just normal?”
Bonnie laughs. “You saw Jessica. Yeah, she managed to wrangle Tex, Ghost and Riot. And no, it’s not usual.” She stops to think. “Well, didn’t used to be. But now there’s Paige, with Crank, Savage and Poe, and just a few months ago, Willow managed to wrap Skyhigh, Dragon and Blackout around her little finger. Maybe it is becoming normal. Wasn’t like that when General claimed me, but I can definitely see the advantages. There’s another club called the Screaming Eagles, know them?”
I nod. Who doesn’t? They’re known across the region, if not the country.
“They came in clutch a few years ago when Hellfire took over the club. Sinner’s little sister Mila is one of their old ladies. Anyway, it’s a whole thing there, so maybe it’s contagious.” She shrugs.
“What about the property thing? It seems a little…”
