Dawg sat at the table watching Emma move around the kitchen making breakfast.

Lily sat in his lap with the excuse that she was helping him with his homework.

Yeah, his fucking fudgy homework.

Emma thought it would be a good idea for him to get his GED. There was no reason for him to get it, other than it sort of being a good influence on the girls. Education was important his wife said.

Dawg didn’t need an education. He had life experience, and he was helping Pierce take the gun shop and range to the next level. Dawg’s goal was for it to bring more money into the club coffers than ever before. Pierce was a lazy fucker, and the books showed that.

Since Dawg took over as assistant manager, the cash flow looked so much fucking better. Assistant manager.

What-fucking-ever.

Hopefully, a change was coming. Sooner than later.

Though he loved the challenge of turning the gun shop around, he hated Pierce more each day. He had to step in several times when the man got handsy with female customers. He was a lawsuit waiting to happen.

Jag wanted to be the one to carve the colors off Pierce’s back, but Dawg would help him. No fucking doubt. Though, for some reason Diesel was in no rush to oust the older member. He seemed to be the most resistant on stripping the man’s colors.

He wouldn’t say why, but there was something D knew that the rest of them didn’t. So he’d have to trust D for now.

But Dawg’s patience with Pierce was running thin.

Really thin.

“Are you going to answer that?” Lily asked him, tugging on his beard. He dropped his gaze to the blonde haired, blue-eyed miniature of Emma.

His heart swelled for a moment, then it hit him what girl said. “What?”

“Your phone! Looks like Aunt Kiki is calling!” she exclaimed.

Dawg’s gaze landed on his cell which vibrated again. She was right. Kiki’s name was coming up on the caller ID.

He snagged it and swiped to answer, lifting it to his ear. “Hey, Keeks, what’s up?” Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Emma freeze where she stood and turn to face him.

“Got good news.”

“Hawk Jr. coming?” he teased. Kiki seemed ready to pop any day now.

“No! And I wouldn’t be calling you if I was in labor!”

“Ow. That wounded me.”

“You’ll get over it. It’s better than that.”

“Better than hatchin’ Tweetie Bird?” he asked with a smirk.

“Fuck,” she muttered, though he could hear her muffling her laughter on purpose. “Good Lord, I pity Emma if you two ever have a kid. You are forbidden to name it.”

“We’ll see.”

“Do you want to hear the news?”

“F...” He glanced down at Lily in his lap. “Fudge yeah. Hit me.”

Lily whacked him on the arm and laughed.

Dawg pulled the phone away from his ear. “Didn’t mean you, lady bug.”

Lily shrugged and gave him a big smile.

Putting the phone back to his ear, he said, “Go.”

“Visitation was approved!” she shouted into the phone.

“What?” he asked in shock.

“Yes! Approved! And better yet, not supervised.”

“What?”

“Yes!” Kiki yelled into the phone as if she couldn’t believe it, either.

“So what does that mean?”

“It means you get to visit with your daughter. You’ll get to know her. She’ll get to know you. For a couple hours at first. Then, eventually, if everything goes well, she’ll be able to stay overnight with you and Em. That’s if Caitlin wants to. She’s old enough to decide that for herself. And the judge wants her to be comfortable.”

“What?”

“Dawg!”

“What?”

“Stop saying ‘what!’”

“Holy... fudge.”

“I know! This is freaking exciting!”

His hand went automatically to his heart. It was beating a mile a minute. “When?”

“A schedule will be made up. I’m getting together with a mediator and their attorney to sit down and work something out. Are you okay with that?”

“Hell yeah. Soon, though, right?”

“Yes. Very soon. Like within the week.”

“So... she knows ‘bout me now?”

“Yes.”

“Was...” He hesitated. “Was she okay with it?”

Kiki got silent on the other end of the phone. A pain shot through Dawg’s chest. His daughter didn’t want to see him. Didn’t want to meet her real father.

They fucking did all of this for nothing.

There was no way he’d force her to get to know him. He didn’t want her to be miserable and hate him for the rest of her life.

No fucking way.

He never should’ve let Kiki start the process. It had been a big mistake.

“Dawg...”

“Yeah?”

“She does want to meet you. I think she’s confused, maybe even a bit scared, which is only to be expected. But she’s almost fifteen. She’s old enough to process it. Lily took to you like a fish in water because that’s how easy you are to love. Caitlin will be the same way. She’ll meet you and love you, just like Lily. Like Emma.”

Dawg pressed a hand to his eyes and dropped his head back, fighting back the burn in his eyes. “She ain’t the only one scared,” he murmured.

“It might be rough in the beginning. But, Dawg, it’s going to be worth it. I’m not sure what they told her about why you were never in her life from the beginning. I’m not sure you should talk about that right away. Maybe down the road. You don’t want to turn her against her mother, even though Regan was in the wrong.”

Dawg nodded even though Kiki couldn’t see it. As he processed what she was saying, he finally grunted, “Yeah. Got you.”

“Good. Hanging up now so you can tell Emma the good news.”

Dawg’s gaze met his wife’s across the kitchen. “Think she figured it out.”

“Good. Give her my love.”

“Take care of that kid. See you soon.” The phone went dead in his hand and he placed it on the table.

“Am I going to meet my sister?” Lily asked, staring up at him with wide blue eyes.

“Yeah, lady bug. Eventually. Maybe not at first, ‘kay?”

“But I want to play dolls with her.”

Emma rushed over to them. “Lily, why don’t you go take Oscar out back and throw the ball for him?”

Lily hopped off Dawg’s lap and screamed for the dog that was only five feet away, asleep on the floor.

Emma frowned. “No need to scream. He’s right there, Lily.”

“I know but he was sleeping!”

“Well, he’s not now,” Emma answered with exasperation.

“That was the point,” Lily told her mother with a huff.

Emma sighed as she watched Lily take the American Bulldog that they had adopted from the shelter a few weeks ago out the back door to the fenced yard.

Then she climbed into Dawg’s lap, taking Lily’s former spot. Dawg wrapped his arms around his ol’ lady and she did the same, looping her arms around his neck.

“Good news,” she murmured, pressing a kiss to his lips.

“Yeah.”

“I know you’re worried,” she said, running soothing fingers through his beard.

“Yeah.”

“Baby, it’s going to be all right.”

“Yeah.”

Emma frowned. “Take it slow. Let her set the pace.”

“Right.”

“Dawson,” Emma whispered.

He dropped his gaze to hers. “Yeah?”

“She’s going to love you.”

“Ain’t nothin’ like her mom and stepdad.”

“Exactly. That’s why she’ll love you. You’re one hundred percent genuine. She’ll see that and appreciate it.”

“Sure?”

“Fudge yeah,” Emma answered with a smile.

“Love you, baby girl.”

“Love you, too, Dawg.”

He shook his head. “Just for that, need to give you one of D’s ‘lessons.’”

“Can’t wait.” She pressed her mouth to his ear. “Tonight after Lily goes to bed.”

Dawg reached between them to adjust his now hard dick. “How soon’s that?”

Emma laughed. “Since it’s only breakfast time, hours from now.”

“Fuck,” he muttered. “Maybe she’ll take a nap.”

“She’s almost eight. I doubt she’ll want to take a nap.”

“Fuck. Maybe one of the women will wanna watch her for a few hours.”

Emma laughed. “A few hours? Since when do you need a few hours?”

“Damn, woman. That’s harsh.”

She pressed a kiss to his cheek and ran her hand through his beard again. “But true.”

“Then we’ll do it a few times.”

“I’m okay with that,” she whispered.

“Didn’t know you had a choice,” he said, keeping his face serious.

“Hmm. Bossy.”

He lifted his left hand and wiggled his ring finger which now sported a titanium wedding band in front of her face. “Remember our vows ‘bout you obeyin’?”

“I had my fingers crossed behind my back.”

“Someone needs a spankin’,” he announced quietly.

“Yes, someone does,” she breathed, brushing a hand over his hard dick.

“Keep teasin’ me an’ gonna lock the back door an’ take you right here on the table.”

“You wouldn’t do that.”

“Try me.”

With a laugh, Emma took his mouth and kissed him hard. He groaned and tangled his tongue with hers. He wouldn’t ever get enough of this woman.

And once things were on the right track with Caitlin, he was going to talk with Em about them trying to have their own kid. One that was a piece of both of them.

After their breathing became ragged, and Dawg’s dick couldn’t get any harder, Emma broke the kiss and pressed her forehead against his, whispering “Everything’s going to be all right, baby.”

“Know it. Got you. Got Lily. Gonna get Caitlin.”

“And we all have you. We’re the lucky ones.”

No. She had that wrong. No one was luckier than him.

No one.

Dawg couldn’t stop bouncing his leg. He tried. It was simply impossible. He sat at the table in the diner, waiting. He had been a half hour early, and he was ready to climb the fucking walls.

He was glad none of his brothers were there to witness what a basket case he was acting.

He thought about having this initial meeting under the pavilion in the courtyard at church. But Emma talked him out of it. She said it would be better to find a neutral location.

One where no one would be interrupting.

And he wasn’t sure how he’d act if one of the hang-arounds or prospect even remotely eyeballed Caitlin. He’d hate to be hauled off for murder before he even got to know his teenaged daughter.

His heart stopped when the diner’s front door opened and Hawk came through the door. Hawk was so fucking big he couldn’t see if his daughter was behind him. But Hawk didn’t approach the booth where Dawg sat, he stepped to the side instead and gave him a chin lift.

Dawg returned it and noticed a very pregnant Kiki leading Caitlin over to him.

When she reached the table, the club’s attorney gave him a wink. He jumped to his feet and yanked on his cut to straighten it.

“Caitlin, this is your... father,” Kiki introduced him in a gentle tone.

“Cait,” his daughter said to Kiki. Then she faced Dawg. “I go by Cait.”

“Hi, Cait,” Dawg greeted, suddenly unable to see her clearly because something was in his eyes. But he knew she had his green eyes and dark blonde hair. And she was tall for an almost fifteen-year-old. She was a spitting image of him, though much prettier and way more feminine. He rubbed roughly at his eyes. Now was no time to break the fuck down.

“I look just like you,” she stated with a curious tilt to her head.

His heart swelled. “Yeah.”

“What’s with the vest?” she asked, jerking her chin up and eyeballing his cut.

He liked how outgoing she was. Unafraid to ask questions. “Represents family,” Dawg answered.

She nodded as if she understood. Even though he was sure she didn’t. But she would. Eventually.

“We’re going to go,” Kiki said softly, with one hand to her huge belly. “Hawk and I will be waiting outside to take you back home when you’re done, Cait. Okay? Whenever you’re ready.”

Caitlin nodded without looking at Kiki since she was too busy staring at Dawg. He shuffled his feet, wanting to ask her to sit down. But he froze when she asked, “What should I call you?”

He took a deep breath, then said, “My name’s Dawg. But would love it if you called me Dad.”