Lilah
“You’re never going to guess what happened today,” Micah said as he got in the car outside the clubhouse. I let him hang out there after school when I was at work, and I’d swing by to pick him up on the way home. I never thought in a million years I’d be letting him hang out with a bunch of bikers on the wilder side of life, but they were taking such great care of my kid, I couldn’t imagine doing it any other way.
He was doing better in school. He seemed happier overall, and he treated people with more respect than he did before. He finally had positive male role models. His father certainly hadn’t been one.
“What happened?” I asked.
“I beat Q-Ball today, Mom,” he said, and I could hear in his tone that it was a huge, momentous occasion for him. “He didn’t even let me win.”
Now, I wasn’t exactly sure how I felt about him playing pool so well that he was able to beat Q-Ball. I had to hope that the pool shark had gone easy on him and had given him the win. Regardless, it was a real win for him.
“Way to go, kiddo,” I congratulated him. “That’s pretty awesome.”
“Thanks.” He grabbed the front of his little kid-sized biker vest and adjusted it. He had his name on it – Micah the Kid – but, of course, no official MC colors. The guys named him an honorary member shortly after I started bringing him by the clubhouse almost every day.
“Did you get your homework done before you played against Q today?” I asked him.
“Of course,” he said. He beamed with pride. Suddenly, it sounded like everything else in the world was a piece of cake.
All I could do was laugh as I drove him home to the apartment we’d been sharing with Cole for the last few months. My boy was too adorable with all his biker gear and his newfound confidence in life. The guys were good to him, and they were good for him, too.
“When’s Saw going to be home?” he asked.
“You can call him Cole,” I reminded him.
“No way. I’m an honorary junior member. I have to call him Saw.” He was totally serious, too, but it was fine because it was that seriousness that made him take other things seriously.
“As soon as he’s done tonight,” I replied.
“Man, I hope he gets home before I go to bed. I want to tell him my news. If he doesn’t make it before bed, don’t tell him, okay?”
“Got it.”
“Right on.”
“Did you eat tonight?” I asked him as we got out of the car and started toward the building.
“No, they had pizza again, so I figured I’d eat at home.”
“Whoa, you turned down pizza?” I asked, laughing, as I unlocked the door for us to go in.
“We have it all the time, Mom.”
“I guess it does get old after a while. How about spaghetti tonight?” It was quick and easy, and it made a lot.
“Perfect. Can I play video games while you cook?”
“No, you need to shower.”
He whined and complained about how other kids in his class took showers in the morning instead of at night, reminding me again that no matter how serious he was about his MC participation, he was still very much a kid. I eventually got him into the shower so I could start dinner, threatening to send him to bed hungry if he didn’t let me cook.
Cole made it home in time to eat with us. He walked in the door right as we were sitting down with our food. Perfect timing.
“Hey, Kid,” he called out as he closed the door behind him.
“Saw,” Micah shouted. If he hadn’t been eating, he would have jumped up from the table to run over and give Cole a big hug.
Cole kissed me on the cheek as he walked into the kitchen to wash up and get his food. We weren’t shy about light affection in front him. I figured it was healthy for him to understand that we were together. The three of us were a family, and the MC, of course, was our extended family.
I watched the two of them play and joke at the table. They were like two kids, but when Cole switched into adult mode, it was amazing how much Micah respected him. Micah told him about winning at pool, and Cole was amazed. He even bragged to me about how much skill it took to beat Q-Ball.
When dinner was over, the two of them went into Micah’s room to read a story. Cole had completely converted the room into a boy’s room. From the bedsheets to the posters and furniture, everything in there was tailored to Micah’s tastes.
He had really gone out of his way to accommodate us while we stayed with him. It felt permanent, even though we hadn’t discussed it. Troy was in jail, and I had sole custody of Micah, so my old life was gone. All I had was the life I’d been living since Troy tried to take everything from me.
“Man, he’s a good kid, you know that?” Cole said, coming out of Micah’s room after story time. He said the same thing almost every night.
“Yeah, he’s pretty awesome,” I told him. “But he’s got a lot of great role models to help with that, so I don’t know.”
He took me in his arms on the couch in the living room and kissed me. Our lips lingered together for a moment. I put my hand up to his face and ran my fingers along the stubble from where he hadn’t shaved in a few days.
“So, I want to talk to you about something,” he said after our lips parted.
“Okay.”
“You and Micah have been staying here for a while, and it’s been pretty nice, hasn’t it?” he asked, but he continued before I could answer. “I think it’s been pretty nice. It’s been good having the two of you here. It finally feels more like a home, you know? I don’t mind staying here now. In fact, I look forward to coming home from work every day.”
“Yeah, it’s pretty good,” I said, taking the first opening I could to speak. “It’s done a lot of good for Micah. You and the rest of the MC have provided him with a lot of great experiences, and you’ve helped him grow up a lot.”
“Well, I’ve been thinking,” he said, pausing again.
“Yeah?” I scooted back from him. I felt like something big was coming.
He slid off the couch onto one knee on the floor, taking my hand with him.
“Lilah Romero, you are the answer to so many of my hopes and dreams. I can’t begin to tell you how long I waited for you to come along. You and your son, Micah, have brought so much joy and purpose to my life. I’m not drifting aimlessly anymore. I have a reason now, beyond the MC.”
I put a hand up to my face. I felt tears starting to well up in my eyes. I knew where his speech was going already. I knew what he was going to ask me, and I had to keep myself from blurting out my answer prematurely.
“Lilah Romero, will you marry me?”
“Oh God, yes! Yes, yes, yes!” I shouted, throwing my arms around his neck.
While I squeezed his neck, I felt his arms moving. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the ring box. He opened it as I sat back from the embrace, and I saw the diamond ring inside. I had no idea how he could have afforded that ring, but I knew I didn’t want any idea.
He pulled it out and slid it onto my finger. It fit, and I held it up so we both could see how beautiful it was. I fanned myself as tears started to flow down my face.
“So, it’s official?” I asked him, starting to laugh through my tears. “I’m going to be your old lady? Finally?”
He laughed hard and pulled me into another embrace, kissing me deeply and passionately. Every time he touched me with his lips, it sent thrills throughout my body. I couldn’t help myself. I wanted him immediately.
“I love you, Lilah,” he said as we parted. “And I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want to welcome you and your son into my life permanently, and that includes being part of the Steel Devils. We are all your family.”
“If there were a way to answer with more than a yes, I would say it,” I told him. “You and the rest of the guys have been so good to us. Ever since the first time I walked into that clubhouse.”
“That’s how it’s supposed to work.”
I looked at the ring again, and I wondered how we were going to explain to Micah that we were getting married. Knowing Micah and how much he already loved Cole, he would have been as excited as I was. He was probably already wondering when it was going to happen. Now, when he woke up in the morning, I’d have to share the news with him. Hopefully, all three of us would be able to sit down for the conversation.
It was so good to finally feel like I had a family and a decent home for my son. Cole had no idea how much it meant to me that they were all so accepting of my son, or how awesome it was to see him light up the way he did when he saw them.
I had set out several months ago to change my life and to take control of it. I had definitely done that. I had found myself an amazing man who was everything I had ever wanted and everything I never thought I would have looked for.
“Now,” I said, staring into his eyes, “about that tattoo.”
THE END
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