Last night I brought up the subject of paying Reid back for my new car. He argued it wasn't going to happen. He said my car was a piece of shit death trap and it was his job to take care of Ava and me, to make sure we were safe. "My car may have been a piece of shit, but I paid for it myself, and it has gotten me where I need to go," I had fumed. Reid's face had softened at my words. He knows I struggled at times, and I did the best I could for being a single mother. I didn't have much, but Ava has never wanted for anything, even if that meant I had to drive a shitty car.

Later that day I told him I hadn't meant to get so worked up. I knew he didn't mean for his words to come across the way I took them. Reid would never intentionally hurt my feelings. I had already planned on going down to the dealer to at least look at a newer used car; Someday. He went on to tell me he wouldn't accept any money for it in return. When he said it I made sure to keep my temper in check; this time, as I calmly informed him, I was perfectly capable of paying him back.

He knows I can afford it now, at least once I have access to the money Grams left me. He had already informed me when we moved in he would be paying all the household bills. I don't have anything to spend my money on.

"I don't want to be a kept woman, Reid. I want our relationship to be fifty-fifty. I appreciate that you want to take care of me, I do. But I can still take care of myself and Ava," I stressed my point.

He had let out an exasperated sigh, telling me, "I'm tryin' not to fuck shit up, babe. I'm kinda winging things as I go. Being in a committed relationship is new for me too."

That's when I walked over to him and placed my palm on his cheek. "You're not messing anything up. We're both trying to navigate the ins and outs of this relationship together. I imagine all couples who are starting out face the same obstacles. If we keep doing like we are now and talk things through with each other, we'll be fine. So long as I don't go on the defense about every little thing and you try to keep your alpha male tendencies in check, we're good," I teased.

"What's got you thinkin' so hard over there, Kitten?" Reid asks.

Lost in thought, I tear my gaze from looking out the car window, and I turn my attention towards Reid.

Lots of things.

We are in my car on our way to the clubhouse. Reid said all the guys along with Bella and Alba are there and he asked me if I want to go hang out with everyone for a bit. When we were getting ready to leave the house, we argued over who was going to drive. I insisted he take his bike because I know how much he missed riding after his accident. Reid has been spending more time in my car than he has on the his bike. I have Ava, so unless she is staying with someone, I never get the opportunity to ride with him like I would love to do. Reid lives to ride, all his brothers do. I don't want to take any of that away from him.

"Wherever you and Ava are, is where I'll be." That's what he told me.

I decide to keep last night's reflections to myself and bring up a different topic altogether. "I was thinking about the charity event the hospital is having, and how I've decided to give this year's speech."

"Really? That's great, babe. I'm proud of you," Reid says, reaching across the center console to hold my hand.

"Yeah, Grams would have wanted me to do it. And even though I'm terrified to stand up in front of all those people to deliver the speech, I feel it's something I need to do. The cause is too important to me to turn down the opportunity to tell my story and bring more awareness to the disease."

Bringing my hand up to his mouth, he kisses it, "You're an amazing woman, Mila Vaughn."

I break our connection when I hear my phone ringing from somewhere in my purse. Reid snickers from the driver's seat when the phone stops ringing because I didn't find it in time.

"Shut up," I giggle. I know my purse is a never-ending abyss. Reid is always joking about how I have everything but the kitchen sink in there. I argue back saying I need all my stuff until I pull out not one, not two, but three hair brushes. And don't ask me why I just pulled out a potato peeler. Seeing sight of me holding the peeler in my hand Reid's head rears back letting out a bark of laughter.

"It's not the kitchen sink, but it's pretty damn close, Kitten," he jokes, and I narrow my eyes at him.

A second later I find my phone at the bottom of my purse. Seeing I have a new voice message I tap the screen and listen. Once I've finished listening, I toss my cell back into my bag. "That was the realtor," I divulge.

"What did the lady have to say?" Reid inquires.

"Grams’ house sold."

"How do you feel about that?" He asks.

I shrug my shoulders, "I'm okay with it. I didn't expect it to sell so fast considering how old it is. But I'm okay. It's bittersweet. I love that house. I have so many fond memories in that house, but selling it was the right decision. I could not imagine living there without my grandmother. It wouldn't feel right."

"I get it, babe. After my brother Pops died, I couldn't stay in my childhood home. We had some good times in that house, but after losing them both, I couldn't bring myself to stay there. So, after living in the clubhouse for months, I decided to sell. Not long after that, I bought the firehouse." Reid shares.

I love when he gives little pieces of his story to me. He has a hard time opening up, so I cherish every part of himself he shares with me.

When we pull up to the clubhouse, Reid steps out and automatically goes to get Ava from her car seat in the back. She had fallen asleep on the way here and didn't stir as she rests her head on Reid's shoulder while walking inside. Gabriel is the first to greet us.

"Hey, brother. Why don't you take Ava to lay down with Gabe. He's taking a nap in Alba's old room. I have the monitor," he says taking a baby monitor from his back pocket and showing us.

Giving Gabriel a nod, Reid turns towards me. "I'm going to put her down, why don't you go find the girls. They're probably in the kitchen with Lisa. Maybe you could offer to peel some potatoes," he smirks.

I place my hands on my hips, "You're never going to let me live that down, are you?"

"Not a fuckin' chance, Kitten," he says to my retreating back as I flip him the bird over my shoulder.

"What was that about?" Quinn pipes up.

"Nothing," Reid and I say in unison.

"Finally," Bella says when I walk into the kitchen. "Where's my sweet girl?" she inquires about Ava.

"Ava fell asleep on the way here, so Reid is putting her down for a nap with Gabe," I tell her. Speaking of baby Gabe, I see his momma Alba sitting at the table with a bowl of cereal. "How are you feeling today, Alba?"

"My back is a little achy, but other than that I feel great." She smiles.

"Well, you look great. Pregnancy agrees with you." I let her know.

I'm startled by a gruff voice from behind me.

"I agree," Gabriel says from the doorway of the kitchen, his heated gaze on Alba. "Cariño Sweetheart, Gabe's asleep," he tells her. With a shy smile and a blush, she abandons her meal and goes to her man who's holding out his hand to her. Once they leave the kitchen, Bella, Lisa, and I all look at each other before we break out in laughter, because yeah, we know what's about to go down.

An hour later we all sit down to eat. Ava and Gabe both woke up from their naps and since Gabriel and Alba were momentarily indisposed, I took it upon myself to get Gabe settled into his high chair and feed him his lunch. It was hilarious when Alba and Gabriel finally made their appearance. Gabriel had the biggest grin on his face whereas Alba was beet red from embarrassment because we all knew what they were up to. Of course, Quinn had to go and make it worse.

"You okay, sweetheart?" He asks Alba. "You look a little flushed."

It was Gabriel who came to her defense. "Fuck off, Quinn."

But it's Logan who wipes Quinn's smile off his face with his comment. "Hey Quinn, still sniffin' around Emerson? Heard she still won't give you the time of day. I think you're losing your touch, brother."

Everyone busts out laughing at Quinn's expense. It's no secret he has a thing for Emerson, only she seems to be immune to his charm.

"I'm not losing shit. I've hit a little snag is all. I'm beginning to think she may swing the other way," Quinn announces.

"Emerson is not gay," Bella replies.

Quinn eyes Bella, "How do you know?"

Bella cocks her head to the side, debating whether she wants to give Quinn her answer. The whole table has gone silent. Probably because the shy doctor is somewhat of a mystery to us all. We all know she and Bella have become good friends and she has been to the clubhouse a few times, but other than that no one seems to know much about her. I'm starting to suspect Bella does. After a moment Bella speaks up.

"She has a date tonight. With a man," she emphasizes.

He jolts from his chair at the table, "Who the fuck with?" Quinn demands.

All eyes are ping-ponging back and forth between Bella and Quinn at this point. Lunch has suddenly turned interesting.

"Some guy her parents set her up with," Bella gives.

No sooner do her words leave her mouth, Quinn storms away from the table. Moments later we hear his bike start up and the sound of his tires as he peels out of the driveway leaving us all speechless. Quinn is the more laid back of the men, and I've heard of his ventures. Reid has mentioned before Quinn has never been serious about a woman. Judging by his reaction we just witnessed moments ago, he seems serious about Emerson. Either that or he's butthurt over her rejection. My vote is on the latter. No man has that kind of reaction over a woman he's only interested in getting into bed. Nope, the doctor means more than that.

"Angel, what did you do?" Logan asks Bella.

"I'm trusting my gut."

By the somber look on my friend's face, I'd say what she did here wasn't for Quinn, but for Emerson.

* * *

The next afternoon I'm sitting on the living room floor going through some boxes of photo albums while Reid and Ava sit on the floor next to me playing go fish. The first album I come to is Ava's baby book. I smile. I haven't look at these pictures in a long time.

"Whatcha got there, babe?"

I hold the book up and show him, "Ava's baby book. You want to look with me?"

"Yeah, Kitten, I'd love to."

Not interested in what Reid and I are doing, Ava cuts in, "Momma, can I watch my movie?"

"Sure, sweetheart. The DVD is already in the player, all you have to do is press play. You remember what button I showed you to press?"

Nodding her head yes, she bounces down the hall to her room. Standing up from the floor, Reid sits behind me on the sofa, and peers over my shoulder. With the photo album on my lap, I flip to the first page. The first picture is of me, Grams, and Ava the day we arrived in Polson. It was Grams idea to start the album. I had never given much thought to it. My parents didn't have family portraits, and they weren't the type to snap pictures all the time. Not like me. I have hundreds of photos of Ava on my phone. If it wasn't for my grandmother taking pictures of me all those times I stayed with her in the summer growing up; I wouldn't have anything to pass down to my daughter. With each page I flip through Reid listens on intently as I describe in detail how old Ava was or where we were when the pictures were taken. Realizing I have never seen any pictures of his brother or dad I tilt my head back and ask him, "Do you have any pictures of your family? I'd love to see some." I wait with bated breath for his response.

"Yeah, babe. I have a few. I'll go get them," he says before disappearing down the hall to his room. A moment later he returns with what looks like a shoebox. I don't question why he stores them away instead of having them out on display in the house. I know why. The first couple of pictures are of his dad and his mom. His dad is sporting A Kings of Retribution cut, and a blonde-haired woman is standing next to him. I already know about his mom. Reid confided in me one night. He told me how she ran off with another man when he and his brother were little. The next picture is a baby boy who looks to be about a year old. "Is this you?" I ask.

"No, that's my brother. This one is me," he says handing me the next photo.

Even if he hadn't told me it was him, I would have guessed, because the young boy in the picture has beautiful green eyes. I'd know those eyes anywhere. "You and your brother don't look too much alike," I observe.

"Nah, I look like my Pops, and Noah took after our mom."

When Reid mentions his brother's name my heart rate picks up. He's never spoken his name before. "Your brother's name is Noah?"

His only response is a nod.

Continuing to flip through picture after picture, I feel my mouth go dry.

It can't be. Can it?

"Do you have a recent picture of Noah from before he passed away?" I ask with a slight tremble in my voice.

Reid looks at me with furrowed brows. "Yeah, right here," he says reaching into the box and pulling another photograph out.

With shaky hands, I take the picture from him. Closing my eyes, I take a deep breath then look at the glossy photo in my hand. The eyes staring back at me are the same eyes I have looked at for the past four years. The same eyes that burned into mine that summer five years ago.