CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Chris
“Fiancé, huh? Boy, your mom is going to love that,” Brand said with a hard laugh.
“What are you talking about?” I asked and tried to move so I was comfortable.
“Ky I guess told the nurse or doctor or something that he was your fiancé. I can’t stop laughing at that.”
“No,” I said in shock and tried to bite back my own laugh. “Probably so they would let him back here or something. Come on, it’s not that funny.” I glared at Brand as he broke out in hysterics.
“I’m glad you’re okay,” he said once his laughter died down. “I was scared, man.”
“Now you know how I felt when I found you sprawled out on the road.”
“So we’re even now? No more then, right?”
“Yeah, sure, it’s just as simple as that. Hey universe, Brand and I can’t have any more injuries for the rest of our lives because we are even now.”
“I love you, man,” he said with a shake of his head.
“Love you too, dude.”
“You gonna talk to me about Ky now?”
“Nope,” I said because I was still unsure of what the hell was going on. Yes, he had been right there when I woke up and he looked scared out of his mind, but I didn’t know what that meant, like at all. “I like the guy—a lot—but I don’t know if he’s there yet.”
“Oh, he’s there. Ky’s had a thing for you for a while. I see it all now. What I can’t figure out is when it happened and why? You guys were fine as friends before, then it was like a switch got flicked and he shut the fuck down.”
“He saw the kiss,” I answered with a shrug because that was something I did know.
“Kiss?” Brand said and his brows pinched tight in confusion.
“Clearly it wasn’t as memorable for you as it was for him,” I joked and then Brand’s eyes lit up with recognition. “Yeah, that one.”
“Tell me he’s not better than me though. My heart might break.”
“If I could throw something at you, I would. And I hate to tell you, your kiss doesn’t even compare. Wait, no I don’t. His kiss is way better than any I’ve ever had.”
“Just his kiss, huh?” He raised a brow at me.
“I’m not going to talk about my sex life with you,” I said with a half-smirk because I’d just turned the tables on him.
Brand was somewhat old-fashioned when it came to those sort of things, something I loved about him. He wouldn’t ever talk about what happened behind closed doors. Whereas me, I’d share, in so much detail. I wouldn’t go crazy, but I had no problem talking about the dates that I ended up going home with.
That was the moment the door opened and Ky walked back in. I couldn’t stop the smile on my face the instant I saw him.
“And, I’m out,” Brand said getting to his feet. “Ingram good?”
“All good,” Ky said with a happy face and a huge nod. “She’s in labor, the baby should be here any minute.”
“And you just left her?” I asked with a mix of shock and horror all over my face.
“Um, no. She didn’t want me there. Uh…she wanted Mouse. I figured I shouldn’t make a fuss with her about to pop out a baby and all.”
I laughed because sometimes he could be so fucking cute.
“That’s a conversation for another day,” Brand said and made his way to the door. “I’ll bring your parents when they get here.”
Then he was off and the room was almost too quiet.
“So…flowers, huh?”
Ky barked out a beautiful laugh and shuffled closer to the bed. I tried to move over but everything hurt. I managed to get a little spot on the bed for him to sit, which he did.
“Yeah, you’re not going to believe it…”
Then he went on telling me about his crazy flower adventure. Though I couldn’t see them, I got a pretty good picture in my head. I was amazed that he could describe each one in detail and that he’d actually remembered the meanings behind each one of them. It was sweet and real. Which I was surprised by, almost to the point of being speechless.
“The whole point of the flowers was to say I’m sorry. I knew they wouldn’t make everything I’ve done lately up to you, but I was hoping it would be a start. I was coming home to tell you…”
“Tell me what, Ky?” I asked as I moved my hand to his and interlaced our fingers.
“I don’t want to be grumpy anymore. I don’t want to be confused or try to hide the way I feel. I don’t know how to do any of this, but I know I want to try with you.”
His Adam’s apple bobbed with a deep swallow and I could tell he was beyond nervous.
“Are you saying you like me, Ky?” I asked in a teasing tone as a way of trying to lighten the mood.
“Yeah, I really fucking do.”
His eyes met mine. Those beautiful hazel eyes twinkled with something amazing. Ky was a little bit lighter now that he’d set himself free.
“Kiss me,” I half-demanded and half-pleaded.
Without another word, his lips were on mine, sweet and tender. He took his time with me and it was as if he wanted to savor every little thing about it.
“I don’t want to hurt you,” he said as he broke away.
“I’m good,” I said and I could feel the smile spread wide on my face. After a kiss like that, I couldn’t feel anything. Hell, I’d practically forgotten that I’d been stabbed. “Besides, I think they have me on the good shit right now.”
“You should rest,” he said then kissed the corner of my mouth before nuzzling his nose in the crook of my neck.
“Wake me when the baby gets here. It’s not like I can go see them, but at least let me know everything went okay.”
“I will. Now, sleep.”
I closed my eyes. The night had been a weird mix of insanity and relief. I couldn’t believe that I was in a hospital. That I had been stabbed and sliced. That Ingram had been taken. That she was about to bring her beautiful baby into the world. Oh, and the big one, that Ky had finally dropped his guard and come at me with everything. Not just dropped it, it seemed like he tore those walls down. I could only hope that they’d remain a pile of crumbled dust around us, that he wouldn’t go searching for huge chunks that he could rebuild with.
I didn’t think I’d been out long, but I woke to hushed whispers floating across the room.
“All taken care of. O’Shay showed up and said he’d handle the paperwork on this one. Chris went for a walk on the beach and was mugged. You came home and went looking for him when you couldn’t find him in the house. You found him not far from the house. Then, I’m sure you get the rest. That’s what happened. Clean should be done soon.” I could tell that was Iron’s voice and I had to strain to hear his words because he was talking that low.
“Yeah, got it,” Ky answered back.
I knew I shouldn’t have been listening, and normally I’d turn around and pretend that I hadn’t heard anything, but I was currently trapped in a bed.
“He gonna be alright?” Iron asked and I could hear the genuine concern in his voice.
“I’m gonna be fine,” I said then cleared my dry throat. “I wasn’t listening, I just woke up.”
“I’m glad you’re okay.” Iron got to his feet as Ky made his way back over to my side and took my hand without hesitation. “I’ll leave you guys alone then.”
“Incoming,” Brand said as he pushed open the door and walked in. “Sorry, I had like no warning, and they all showed up here at once.”
Then in walked my parents, followed by some old, familiar faces.
Reagan was the first to come hug me the moment my parents stepped away. Then sweet Ellie wrapped her arms around me as best as she could and there was no mistaking the tears in her eyes as she broke away. Diesel stepped up next. He stood tall and stoic, but I could see the emotions and concern in his eyes. He gave me a nod then stepped away.
“Glad you’re okay,” Loch said as he stepped up and placed a hand on my shoulder. With a firm squeeze, he released me.
The room was full of people and though I was feeling a little loopy and tired, I wanted nothing more than to savor this moment. Ky was standing off to the side and I could tell he felt a little out of place. I wasn’t sure why and I hoped it wasn’t because he wanted to hide away.
Brand and Ky’s phones chimed at the same time, both of them whipping out their phones with lightning speed.
Brand’s face held a smile while Ky pushed his way to me with excited urgency.
“It’s here. I mean, he’s here. That is a boy, right? That’s a blue hat on its head, so I would assume that means it’s a boy.” Ky was so cute as he stumbled over his words and shoved his phone in my face.
There was a picture of a safe and happy, but tired looking, Ingram as she held her baby in her arms. My eyes turned to look into Ky’s and he had the most amazing free smile on his face.
I was sure it was because of his excitement and elation that he kissed me right then, and couldn’t help but to grab his face and hold him to me. I was also sure that he had no idea that he’d just done that in front a room full of people, my parents being two of them.
There were more dings, alerting to new text messages and Ky broke away to check the new news.
“Chrysander Malcolm,” Ky looked at me with a scrunched up face like he’d just smelled something awful. “That’s a weird name.”
“Really?” I deadpanned. “This coming from a guy name Kynaston? I happen to like it.”
He let out a little laugh and shook his head like I wasn’t completely wrong.
“And where the hell did she get Malcolm from. I mean, I see the Chrys thing, she obviously looks up to you.”
His phone dinged again.
“She’s going to call him Chry…oooh, it’s like Kry-sander. That’s even weirder.”
“It’s like your celebrity mash-up name,” Cami said and I hadn’t even seen her slip into the room. “You know, Chris and Ky…Chry.”
I didn’t know how to respond to that and clearly, neither did Ky as he winced and scratched the back of his neck. It was cute and adorable, sure. And it really meant a lot to me that she did that because I had no doubt that Ingram knew what she was doing. She was smart like that and I knew she wouldn’t just find randomness in choosing a name. I almost hated to think about what she picked out if it was a girl.
“So,” my mother said, cutting in because it was clear we were at a loss for words. “Chris, I think you have something to tell me. Last time I talked to you, you clearly said there was no one special in your life and I can see that you were either lying to me or things have changed.”
“Ky is his fiancé, or at least that’s the word around here,” Brand said as he slung his arm around my mom’s shoulders and sent me a stupid fucking smirk.
Ky looked like a deer in headlights for a fraction of a second before he shook himself out of his stupor and stepped forward. His cheeks and the tips of his ears were tinted pink as he extended his hand toward my mother.
“I’m Ky,” he said with more confidence than I saw coming. “I’m—”
“My boyfriend,” I answered for him. Sure, we hadn’t talked about it, but I was going to go ahead and throw a damn label on it and lock him down in some way, even if it was little. “He bought me flowers.” I couldn’t resist adding that, not only because it made Ky’s cheeks turn an even brighter shade of red, but I knew my mother would simply melt at the sweetness of it.
“Oh, my. Awww. Come here,” she said as she forced a hug on Ky, wrapping her arms around him and smashing his face into her shoulder. “Just go ahead and call me Mom.”
I groaned as my head fell back against the pillow. That was what I got though for being cheeky. I was grown and able to take care of myself but my mother could still find ways to embarrass me.
“Nice to meet you, Ky,” my dad said as he extended his hand to Ky. “Alright, we can see that you’re alive and breathing. We’re going to go grab something to eat because I’m honest to God starving. We’ll give you some time to catch up with everyone.”
They gave me hugs and were off. I knew they’d be back soon.
“You good?” Diesel asked in a grunt. Not that I’d expect anything else.
“Yep,” I answered back with the same kind of caveman talk that he was used to.
“I was worried, Chris. Don’t do that to me again,” Reagan said with a smile.
Then we all sat around talking. Well, most of us. Diesel, as expected, was pretty quiet. And Ky wasn’t much better. The two of them did send a few of those manly-silent-communication-chin-lift things. So weird. But I loved it. I loved all of them. The people that filled my room right now. The ones that I knew were hanging around in the halls or in a waiting room somewhere. Even the ones that couldn’t be here because I was sure there was cleanup to be done from this whole situation.
I’d never needed for more family. I may not have been all that close to my sister and brother, but my parents were amazing. Growing up, and even now, I never felt like I lacked for support and love. But now, I had that in spades. I had people to stand beside me and behind me. Even in front of me to shield me from some of the ugly of the world. I’d always felt like I was a little on the outside of the whole brotherhood and family thing of the club. And I was fine with that because I got their friendship and that was enough for me. But I saw that I had it wrong all along. Cut or not, these guys treated me like I was one of their own.