Page 53 of Outlaws' Single Mom
Dakota presses the palms of her hands against her eyes. “I have to talk to Priest and think a bit before I can say anything to Logan.”
I put my arms around her. Her whole body radiates tension at first, but then the air leaves her lungs in a soft rush and she relaxes into the hug. “We can’t make this right, but we can make the right people pay.”
“Good.” A single word is enough.
29
DAKOTA
“Mommy, look!”
The weather has been shifting, but today's warm for the season, and Logan's running around on the lawn next to the church, trying to do cartwheels, since Anne showed him how last night. His legs barely make it to the middle before he ends up in a heap on the ground, but his failures don’t bother him much. Each time he tumbles into the grass, he laughs out loud and then tries again.
“You're doing good, Lo. You'll get it.”
When do we lose that enthusiasm and willingness to just keep on trying no matter how many times we don't quite make it? Wouldn’t life be better if we kept it up as adults?
At some point life is going to have to find a new normal. As much fun as Logan is having here, he's still a four-year-old who needs a stable routine, and living inside the walls here isn’t sustainable. They’re being very nice about it, but this isn’t a safe playground for a little kid and it’s not fair to expect the members to make it one. Bonnie told me that even she chose to put Anne in boarding school until they moved into one of the houses behind the club.
When can you come back to work? Have you heard any news about when you can arrange a funeral?
I eye the text from my boss. I've already gone over what I’m allowed to take off without some sort of documentation, and I don’t know what to tell her. I brought up commuting from here instead, but the guys shut that down real quick. Until we've dealt with Jay or Dillard or whatever his name is, they want me and Logan to stay put. And they're right. I know they are, but right now I'm feeling trapped between my old life, and a new place that I can’t quite see yet.
“Come on, Paige, just a little jog. You can do this!” A woman with brown hair and glasses who looks to be in her early twenties is jogging circles around a very pregnant woman of about the same age. She’sdishing out orders like a drill sergeant, even if it's one on the verge of cracking up with laughter. “All the advice says to keep moving.”
“With all the love in the world, Jess, fuck you.” Paige is shorter and instead of mousy brown, her hair is lighter with blonde highlights. “I can barely walk, never mind jog anywhere. I don't care what you read. I'm just going to keep waddling and hope something happens. The creation of a new life is a miracle, blah blah blah, but I’m so ready for the miracle to be somewhereoutsideof my body.”
“That's quitter talk! Drop and give me 50!” Jess loses it and starts laughing.
“Seriously, Jess, I will kill you, and when I explain everything, I don’t think your guys will blame me.”
“Look!” Logan is completely unaware of our newly arrived company, and actually manages to make it almost the whole way around the cartwheel before gravity pulls him back down.
Both women snap their attention our way, and I suddenly realize why Jess seemed familiar. She wasn't wearing glasses when I saw her last, but she was the one I saw at the bar that I asked Bonnie about.
“Oh crap,” Paige says. “I'm sorry. Didn't realize there were little ears here.” She looks past me at Logan, who's getting annoyed that I haven't answered yet.
“Mommy, look!”
“I'm sorry, honey. Let me see.” He does another attempt. “Good job, Lo! You'll get it soon.”
When I turn back, Jess and Paige have come over to me. Jess is holding out her hand. “Hi. I'm Jessica. You must be Dakota.” Guess word spreads.
“And I'm Paige and a half.” She rests her hand on her swollen belly. “And seriously looking forward to ejecting the half. Well, maybe not that specific part of it, but at least looking forward to lying down on my stomach again. Jess has no idea what it’s like to feel like a stranger in your own body. But I bet you know all about that.” She nods towards Logan.
“I actually got to skip straight to the six-month-old. He was my sister's.” I shrug. “Long story.”
“I bet. We hear bits and pieces, but the guys tend to gossip more about each other than us. Right now everyone is waiting for Hellfire and Grimm to either kill each other or kiss.” Jess nudges her glasses up.
“Only you are waiting for them to kiss, Jess.” Paige says with a groan.
“Willow and Grace agree it would make a great enemies to lovers story.” Jessica laughs. “If only they weren’t both so depressingly straight. Let a girl have her dreams, okay?”
Logan finally gets too tired to keep going. He collects Mr. Larson and the helmet and flops onto the grass on his back, waving the toys over his head in some sort of elaborate story.
Paige smiles. “I hope if I have a boy, he’s as cute as yours. What’s his name?”
“Logan.”
