Clay showed up on time, almost early. Lucas and Cutter stood in the same place they had the day before, in the lot of their warehouse. Joe stood with them, watching Clay and his three little rebels ride over to them.

 

“I see you have finally put your thinking caps on. Good for you. Bravo.” Clay laughed and hopped off his bike. “I don’t mind a little negotiation, but I can’t promise you’ll get anything you want.”

 

“Oh, I think we’ll be getting everything we want.” Lucas smiled. Clay squinted, the sun from behind Lucas glaring right into his eyes.

 

“A little big for your britches, don’t you think? Whatever. I don’t have time for this shit. What’s your terms?”

 

“Oh, I think…what did we say? Oh, yeah, you aren’t taking any of our routes. You won’t be pulling your shit in our town, and you can go fuck yourself.” Cutter happily gave their list of terms.

 

Clay’s smile faded away to a sneer, which quickly disappeared when the garage doors flew up behind them, and his own club started pouring out of the warehouse.

 

“Pat, what the fuck is this? You working with these piss-ants?” Clay’s voice wavered enough that Lucas had no trouble stepping to the side to let the Iron Rebels handle their own shit.

 

“No. I’m working with the club, the club you were president of until you got a screw knocked loose.” The crowd of bikers circled around Clay, pushing Lucas, Cutter, and Joe to the outskirts.

 

“Let’s go. This is handled.” Joe motioned for them to get to their bikes and get out. Whatever was coming, they weren’t going to stop it, but they weren’t going to stick around for it be pinned on them.

 

“I have the address. I’m going to the cabin,” Cutter called as he peeled out of the lot.

 

Lucas nodded, feeling the vibrations of his phone but ignoring it. He had to get to his girl.

 

Dozens of gunshots rang out behind them, but none of them stopped to think about what was happening. The Iron Rebels had gotten rid of the poison.

 

The ride to the cabin didn’t take long, but it felt like an eternity to Lucas. They turned off the highway and started down the last road, but Lucas didn’t like the feeling he was getting. His phone vibrated again, but he didn’t stop. He’d be there in a minute, then he could check.

 

“You sure this is it?” Cutter asked when they rolled up to the cabin. No truck. No bike. The house was dark.

 

“Yeah. This is it. Go see if the door is open.” Lucas pulled out his phone. He had two messages from an unknown number. He hit the play button on the voicemail while Cutter went inside the house.

 

“Lucas, it’s Cherry. Josephine’s at the hospital. It’s the baby. Fuck, Reaper, I was just— Okay, fine, here…Hey, it’s Reaper. The doctor’s doing the exam now. Fuck, Cherry, sit down and just stop already. Come see your girl, and tell that Cutter to come get his little girl off my back.” Lucas’s heard clenched.

 

“Cutter!” He yelled into the house. “Cutter! Now. The hospital” Cutter ran out of the house and down the steps.

 

“What? Who?”

 

“Josephine! It’s the baby!” He turned his bike around and took off for the highway, not giving a rat’s ass if Cutter was behind him or eating his dust. He had to get to her. She had to be fine; the baby had to be fine. If one fucking thing was wrong, one degree of a temperature causing a problem, he’d kill every one of those Iron Rebels fuckers. Every fucking one of them.

 

The hospital was in full-swing of emergencies when he ran inside the ER. He spotted Cherry right away, sulking in the corner of the waiting room.

 

“Where is she?”

 

“She’s back here.” Cherry jumped up, seeming glad to do something, and pushed past the nurse trying to stop them from entering the main rooms. She led him to the small, curtained-off room where Josephine slept.

 

“I’m here,” he announced, ripping the curtain as he threw it aside. Reaper sat in the chair beside the hospital bed and quickly stood up to hush him.

 

“She’s sleeping. Don’t wake her up.”

 

“Is she okay? What happened? Is the baby…” He dragged two hands through his hair. His stomach had taken residence in his throat, and his heart wasn’t even working anymore.

 

Nothing in his life prepared him for the terror of what he was experiencing. She looked okay, aside from a little pale but he needed her awake. He needed her to talk to him, to tell him she loved him, and he needed to know his baby was safe inside her belly.

 

She needed to wake up.

 

# # #

 

An annoying beeping sound pulled Josephine from the comfort of the deepest sleep she’d enjoyed in weeks. Her eyelids fluttered open, and suddenly, she remembered where she was and why.

 

Her hand flew to her belly, and she sat up, only to be shoved down by big hands. “No, just relax,” Lucas ordered her.

 

She looked up, finding him staring down at her. His hair was all messed up, like he’d been tugging at it for hours. His shirt was untucked, and his eyes were red.

 

“Lucas.” His name came out in a cry she didn’t realize she’d been holding back. “You’re okay. You’re here.” Tears flooded her eyes and poured down her cheeks.

 

“Shh…of course, I am. Where else would I be?” He sat on the bed and pulled her into his arms, kissing her forehead before pressing him to his chest. She wrapped her arms around him

 

“I was so fucking scared. I didn’t know what was going on. And Reaper, he’s my dad, Lucas.” She pulled back and watched his expression. “He’s a bad guy, or well, he was…is…I don’t know. Cherry said he did a lot of bad shit for his club, and he’s my dad. But he didn’t hurt me or her. He protected us. He’s been protecting me and my mom. Oh, God. Mom. Where’s Mom?”

 

“Hey, hey.” Lucas put his hands on her shoulders and gave her a little shake. “One thing at a time, babe, one thing. First thing: does anything hurt?” He looked down the length of her.

 

The hospital gown didn’t offer much of a view. She took a mental inventory of her body. “No, nothing hurts. The baby, is the baby okay? I don’t remember. The doctor said stuff, did blood draws, but I was so tired.”

 

“It’s okay. The baby’s okay.” He wiped his hand across her cheek, pushing her hair back behind her ear. “The baby is fine. You were exhausted, dehydrated, and stressed too far out.”

 

“I was bleeding.”

 

“The doctor said a little spotting is okay. He checked you, babe. You’re fine. I made him check twice.” He grinned wider, obviously proud of himself.

 

“You didn’t intimidate him, did you?”

 

“Of course not,” he answered with mock offense. “I just told him to re-do the exam, make sure you and the baby were okay.”

 

Josephine started to blush. “The exam…”

 

“I was here the whole time; he didn’t do anything he wasn’t supposed to.”

 

She could imagine Lucas standing over the doctor while he poked and prodded her. “How did I not wake up?”

 

“They gave you something to help you sleep. I don’t think a tornado tearing through the room would have woken you.” He touched her cheek again. His eyes were soft, concerned. “Are you sure nothing hurts?”

 

She gripped his hand, bringing it down to her lap. “I promise, Lucas. Nothing hurts. I was just so tired.”

 

“There was a lot of stress going on, meeting your dad like that and dealing with Clay. I’m sorry you had to go through all of that. None of that should have been brought to your doorstep.”

 

She was quiet for a moment, reflecting on what to say. He sounded as though he were starting rethink things. Rethink them? “Your life is definitely more colorful than what I’m used to.” She nodded. “But, I know you’ll always keep me safe, keep us safe.” She moved his hand to her belly. He pressed the flat of his hand against her, staring at their hands connected, covering their baby.

 

“I love you, Lucas, and I was an idiot for not saying it earlier and for thinking there was any way I could possibly live without you.”

 

His eyes snapped up to hers. “You aren’t worried that my life is too unsafe for you and the baby?”

 

“You’ll do whatever you have to in order to keep us safe. I grew up not having my father, and I don’t want that for my kids. I don’t want that for me. I want you. And if the club comes with you, it comes with you. They are your family, so they are mine.”

 

He cradled her face in both of his hands and brought his lips down on hers, stealing her breath and crushing her at the same time. “I knew you loved me, but now I know you want me,” he whispered against her lips.

 

“Excuse me.” An older gentleman walked into the room. “Sorry, but the nurses let me know she was awake.”

 

“I think they want you out of their hair.” Josephine laughed. Lucas released her and stood up from the bed.

 

“It’s not, I mean, how are you are feeling?” The doctor gave Lucas a wary smile and straightened his glasses before finally looking at Josephine.

 

“A bit tired but otherwise okay. Lucas said the baby’s okay? Are you sure? I’m worried about the blood.”

 

“You had some spotting, but when I did my exam, there was no evidence of a miscarriage or any other trouble. Some spotting during the pregnancy is okay.” He looked down at his chart. “Uh, the girl that brought you in said that you were having pains in your stomach?”

 

“Cramping. Yes.” Josephine ignored Lucas’s tense expression and focused on the doctor.

 

“Okay, well, we will want to watch you. I’ve spoken with your OB/GYN, and they want you to go in to see them in a few days but agree that you should be on bed rest until then. No getting up except for the washroom. You can shower, no baths, but other than that, resting.”

 

Josephine groaned. “You couldn’t tell me that without him here?” She tried to smile at the doctor, but he didn’t get the humor in her voice and gave Lucas a worried look. How much trouble had he caused while she slept?

 

“She’ll rest. No worries there. She works as a dental hygienist. Should she stop?”

 

“Well, I’ll leave that call up to her OB/GYN.” The nervous doctor scribbled something in the chart.

 

“And she should stay away from caffeine, right?” He gave Josephine a quick warning glance, then focused back on the doctor. Josephine grunted.

 

“Well a little…no. I mean, right, no caffeine.” The doctor nodded while keeping his eyes on Lucas.

 

“See?” Lucas gave Josephine a cocky grin, and she wished for the strength to get out of the bed to smack him.

 

“When can I go? My mother is somewhere in the hospital, and I want to go see her. She’s having surgery today, I think.”

 

“No, Josephine. They moved the surgery up. She had it yesterday. We’ll go see her on the way out but only for a minute, then it’s home and to bed.”

 

Josephine gave the doctor a pleading look. “I don’t have to actually stay in bed, right? I mean, I can sit on the couch, on the porch, something?”

 

“Well, the couch would be fine, so long as you aren’t walking around or doing any sort of lifting.”

 

“Not a finger. Do you hear me?” Lucas kept his glare on her, now completely ignoring the doctor.

 

“Can I go now?”

 

“I’ll have the nurse come by with the discharge papers and a wheelchair.” The doctor nodded once, curtly, and left.

 

“You scared him,” Josephine accused Lucas and swung her legs over the side of the bed.

 

“Where are you going?” he demanded, picking her legs back up and pushing her back in place.

 

“I want to get dressed. It’s going to take them a minute to get the paperwork. By the time they get in here, I’ll be ready to go. So, move.” She tried to shove his big hands away, but he wouldn’t have it.

 

“No. Just hold on.” He walked to the chair in the corner and brought back a folded item. “I had Cherry go get this. It will be easier than dealing with all that underwear and pants.” He gave her smile that suggested he would have his way no matter what her complaints were and showed her the cotton sundress, one of his favorites.

 

“No underwear?”

 

“Nope.” He grinned and started to help her change into the dress.

 

An hour later, Lucas wheeled Josephine into her mother’s recovery room. The sound of Reaper’s voice made Josephine put a hand out to stop Lucas from going all the way in.

 

“I can’t believe…I mean, I guess I should but so many years wasted.” Her mother’s voice cracked.

 

“Don’t worry about that now, Meredith. Right now, we’re going to worry about you getting better so we have the rest of our lives to make up for lost time.”

 

“You really never left?”

 

“I tried to. I tried to forget you, but I couldn’t. You were my life, all these years, all this time. But, I’ve done horrible shit. Bad shit that I won’t tell you about. You were right to send me away.”

 

“I should have tried. It hurt when you left, and when you came back, I just couldn’t—” A sob broke her words, and Josephine signaled for Lucas to push her the rest of the way in.

 

When they rounded the curtain, she found her father sitting on her mother’s bed, holding her. The bandage around her head was securely in place, and he was gently cradling her. Reaper must have seen them, because he sat up and helped his wife lay back against the pillows, being sure to wipe his eyes before turning to them.

 

“Josephine,” he said, standing from the bed.

 

“Hi.” She smiled weakly. She didn’t know this man, not really, but she knew one thing, he’d spent his whole life looking out for them from a distance. From what Lucas told her, he bought her mother’s house years ago, so she wouldn’t have to worry about the mortgage. He made the bank send her a letter—spewing some bullshit about financial aid to single mothers—and a fake application, which was “granted,” eliminating her debt on the house. Josephine understood then the lengths the men in her life would go to be sure they were safe, loved and cared for, even if they had to strong-arm a few people to get the job done.

 

“Honey.”

 

“Mom.” Josephine pushed out of the chair, ignoring Lucas’s growl and threw herself onto her mom’s bed, wrapping her arms around her. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t here. How are you feeling? You’re talking so good.”

 

“She’s still sort of weak, Josephine. Be careful.” Reaper gently touched her shoulder.

 

Josephine released her mom and sat on the edge of the bed.

 

“I’m doing pretty good, actually. I thought I’d be all out of it, but whatever those doctors did, my thoughts are clearer already. I’m just tired.” She wiped away tears from her eyes. “What about you? Your dad…I’m sorry I didn’t—”

 

“Enough of that now.” Reaper used the same stern voice Josephine was coming to expect from Lucas. “Both of you need rest. Josephine, you get home and get to bed, and I’ll take care of your mom. They are going to release her tomorrow or the next day.”

 

“Josephine’s going to be in bed for the next few days,” Lucas told Reaper.

 

“I’ll be by tomorrow.” Josephine promised her mother, ignoring the two bull-headed males in the room.

 

Her mom smiled at her. “You do what you have to do to keep that baby healthy. I’ll keep. Besides, your father is going to be taking care of me.” She gave Reaper a smile she hadn’t seen on her mother before, genuine and full of hope.

 

Josephine let Lucas get her back in the wheelchair and take her out of the room. He left her with a nurse, though it seemed to pain him to do so, to go get his truck. She was going home.

 

Her mother would mend; she had to believe that. Her father was back, and she had Lucas. In only a short few months, she’d gone from having next to nothing in her life to a fully rounded family.