Chapter Fifteen
Eric
I whistled as I pulled the bike up to the house, shutting off the engine. The night with Amy had gone better than I could have imagined, and for the first time in my life I felt like I had something to hold onto, something that meant a damn. After everything I had done in my life, everything I had regretted, things were looking up.
Someone was looking out for me, giving me a second chance with Amy and our unborn child.
I couldn’t wait to be a father.
Slinging my leg over the bike, I started walking up the drive, wishing Amy had been able to stay the night. I wanted to take care of her, to provide for her and the baby, but things were too complicated right now. Her father was freaking out about her safety, and I could understand her need to comply when she could.
Things were coming to a head, and I was scared shitless of what might happen once it did.
“It’s about time you got home.”
Jenny’s voice floated through the air, and I sighed, seeing her slim form hanging out in the shadows of my back door.
“What are you doing here?”
She laughed, pushing away from the wall.
“What? No kiss?”
“Cut the shit,” I growled, not wanting to deal with her. “And tell me what you are here for, Jenny.”
She pouted as she sashayed toward me, unzipping her jacket to show me that she wasn’t wearing anything underneath it. Her breasts were in full view in the moonlight.
“Come on Eric,” she cooed, reaching for my cock and massaging it through my jeans. “Let me give you a good run. You know you want it.”
There was a time I would have taken her up on her offer, but now I saw a desperate woman who was used by her own father to his advantage.
It sickened me.
Grabbing her hand, I pushed her away.
“What do you want?”
A look crossed her face before she zipped up her jacket, pulling out an envelope from her jeans’ pocket.
“I want you to know that you don’t have any secrets when it comes to this town, Eric.”
I snatched the envelope from her, opening it and feeling the blood drain to my feet as I realized what it contained. They were pictures of Amy and I in the ultrasound room together, coming out of the doctor’s office, and pictures of the ultrasound itself. To anyone who was looking at these, it wouldn’t be hard to guess what was going on.
“Where the hell did you get this?”
She smirked, crossing her arms over her chest.
“I have friends too, you know. Just imagine if Grant Travis was to learn that you knocked up his daughter? Does she know who you are Eric? Really know?”
I swallowed, tucking the envelope into my pocket. Shit! I thought we had been extremely careful, but apparently Jenny was right on one thing. Nothing stayed a secret in Cibolo.
“What do you want?”
Realizing she had me by the balls, literally, Jenny smiled a real smile.
“I want a night, just the two of us Eric. I want to show you that I can be ten times better than she can be to you.”
I arched a brow. If I had this kind of knowledge, I would be asking for money or power, not a measly date with a nobody.
And I was a nobody.
“That’s it?”
She ran a fingertip down the front of my shirt, licking her lips.
“Well, of course, I will want sex too. You remember how good we were together, baby? Let me show you what you are missing, Eric.”
A date and sex. I would be sleeping with someone other than Amy. The thought didn’t make me feel any better about the situation, but if she were in my shoes, what would she do? I was trying to protect our future together.
“I can see that you are torn,” she said after a moment, dropping her finger to grab my cock once more, squeezing it lightly.
“Well, I would hate for this to get to your father or to her father. Give me what I want Eric, and I will back off.”
I looked down at her, my jaw clenched tightly.
“How will I know I have your word?”
She laughed.
“You have gotten really mistrusting with me, haven’t you? No worries, I’ll sign whatever you want me to sign. I’m not out to ruin your life, Eric. I want to be your life. I want to be the woman who you can’t live without.”
She would never be that woman to me. Amy was that woman, and no matter what happened to us in the future, she would still be that woman. I wouldn’t love anyone the way I loved her.
“You fuck me over, and I will kill you.”
Something flickered in her eyes, and she stepped back, releasing me.
“Give me what I want, and I promise you, Eric, you will never leave me again.”
“Get the hell off my property,” I seethed, walking past her toward the back door.
“So, we have a deal?” she called after me.
I paused at the door, hanging my head. What choice did I have? She had me by the balls, literally.
“Yeah, you have a deal.”
Her laughter followed me inside, and I made it a point to lock the door, not sure what Jenny was capable of now. She was clearly off her rocker, but I doubted she was dumb enough to give me the only set of pictures she had in her possession. Slumping against the door, I ran a hand through my hair, my earlier happiness now just a distant memory. Just when I thought things were going well, my life had taken an alternate road and derailed hard.
I didn’t think for one minute that one date and a hook-up was going to make Jenny happy. I had to figure out how to get her off my shit and onto someone else’s, make them her new obsession.
Either that or I would be forced to do something drastic, like clear the air with Grant Travis so that Jenny could hold nothing over my head.
The problem was that I doubted I would be able to get through the door once I had told him who I really was.
***
The next day, I was working on my bike, doing some easy maintenance, when my father pulled up, with Robert Baer right behind him. Since my house was out in the sticks, I guess he wasn’t too worried about being discovered.
Wiping my hands on the cloth, I stood as they approached me.
“You got a second, son?” he asked, motioning to go inside.
I shrugged, the prickling between my shoulder blades increasing as I let them in the house.
“Want a beer?”
“Sure,” Richard announced, seating himself at the kitchen table.
I walked to the fridge, pulling out two beers before handing them off, choosing to stand versus sit. I didn’t know what they wanted from me, but whatever it was, it couldn’t be good.
“Thanks boy,” my father replied, twisting off the cap and taking a long draw from the bottle.
I stood there, looking at the two men that had the power to ruin my life with a snap of their fingers. How had I thought that anything they did was in the best interest of anyone other than themselves? I should have never gotten involved, never looked for Grayson Barnes.
I should have let it stay the way it was.
“Well, now, I’m sure you are wondering what we are doing here,” Richard said after a moment. “We have a proposition for you, son, a way to show your loyalty to the new Horsemen and the Brotherhood.”
I didn’t flinch, though inside my mind was racing. What were they up to?
“Too bad you were tied up tonight,” Grayson remarked with a wink. “That auto shop went up like a tinderbox. If we hadn’t gotten Grant’s attention with the clubhouse, we sure have done it now.”
The glee in his voice unsettled me. What was my father trying to do? Get himself killed? I knew he wanted Grant Travis dead, but if he wasn’t careful, Grant would grow tired of it and really put on the pressure and smoke him out.
“So, you set fire to the auto shop?” I asked.
Richard laughed.
“Boy, did we ever!”
I looked at my father.
“So, you came all this way to tell me that?”
“Smart ass,” he responded, his grin fading. “No, we need you to do something for us. Just a little look-out, you see, while we do some more damage to the Horsemen.”
Richard eyed me, a knowing smile on his face.
“Jenny said she came to see you last night. She’s willing to keep you company.”
I swallowed, waiting for him to drop the bomb about what he knew. When he didn’t, I let out a slow breath.
“So, you want me and Jenny to be the look-out? Where?”
“I’ll text you the address later,” he said, looking over at my father. “Our kids make a good pair, don’t you think?”
Grayson’s eyes were on me.
“I think so, and if my boy was smart, he would be joshing after a woman like Jenny. She has a smart head on her shoulders. What you think, son?”
I fought the urge to tell them what I thought. Once I did, I couldn’t protect Amy. At least this way I knew what the plan was, and if it involved anything about her, I could go and protect her immediately. I had to bide my time, wait for them to fuck up, and maybe end this thing.
“That’s my fucking business.”
He held up his hands, a smirk on his face.
“Well then, you handle your business, Eric. Be ready.”
“When will this go down?” I asked as they both stood, draining their beers.
“Two nights,” Richard replied, his hand on the doorknob. “I know Jenny will keep you more than occupied.”
My father laughed, as the two men walked out of the door and I followed them, making sure they climbed on their bikes and got the hell off my property. Something was up, and I couldn’t help but think another piece of the Horsemen property was about to go up in flames.
Sighing, I walked back inside, rubbing a hand over my face. I needed to see Amy. With everything that was going on, I was nervous that someone would find us out now and try to break us apart. I had far more secrets on the line than Amy did, and just the thought of what Amy would think once she learned my big secret… I couldn’t handle it. I should tell her.
But as soon as the thought crossed my mind, I dismissed it. If I told her that Grayson Barnes was my father, she would likely shoot me, no matter how she felt about me. Also, to the outside looking in, our child would be forever seen as the bastard of a traitor. I didn’t want that for her or our kid.
I wanted to be happy.
Reaching for my phone, I fired off a text to her, asking her to meet me at the Fret house the following night. It was more than just worrying about her; I wanted to see her. She reminded me of a time when everything was right in the world and I had nothing to be concerned with.
She reminded me of what I could have if I left right now, taking her with me.
But, at the same time, we could never escape who we were, and right now I was my father’s lackey. I would have to tell her I would be indisposed for a few days, maybe even make up a story about going out of town suddenly, so she wouldn’t worry while I did this one last thing for my father.
Then… then I would be done with him, with Jenny, with the Brotherhood. I wanted nothing more to do with this fight, and if I could convince Amy to leave with me, I would take her and run.
I just had to bide my time and hope that I didn’t get killed before I could make it a reality.