I gently cradle my nephew to my chest, looking down at his tiny little face. He blinks up at me, opening his mouth as he lets out a soft coo. He yawns and his eyelids get heavy. I rock him back and forth, and he falls asleep.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I tell my brother. “This baby thing is easy.”

Josh gives me a dead stare. “He was exhausted from crying nonstop before you got here.”

Amusement plays on my face and I sit on the couch, moving as slow as possible to not wake the baby. I’m holding Noah, who’s the bigger of the babies. Josh has Aaron and is trying to get him to take a bottle. I lean back, letting Noah rest against me. My mind is on Sierra and the little life inside of her.

We sure as shit didn’t mean for it to happen. We were careless, getting caught up in the moment pretty much every time we fucked, and now we’re paying the price. Though right now, I don’t feel as panicked as I did before. Sierra will be a good mom, hands down. And me…I at least know what not to do thanks to my own dad.

“This is kinda nice,” I admit, looking down at the sleeping baby.

“Is it making you want one?” Josh jokes.

“Someday,” I answer, feeling the urge to blurt out that Sierra is pregnant.

“Wait until they wake up. You’ll think twice.”

“I will admit I want one at a time, though.”

“Going from one to three is quite the adjustment. When Dakota was a newborn, we were able to take turns. You’re still tired as fuck, but it’s one-on-one. Having two…it’s hard. But worth it. So fucking worth it.”

Josh pulls the bottle from Aaron’s mouth and sets it on the couch next to him. He turns on the TV, volume so low you can hardly hear it.

“How are you?” he asks. “You look a lot better.”

“I feel better. I’m sore,” I admit. “And kinda rundown. But I’m alive. Thanks to Sierra.”

“She seemed pretty upset when she called to tell me you were sick.”

I nod. “I guess things looked bad for a while. It’s weird having someone care like that.”

“So I take it you’re staying in Summer Hill?”

“I am,” I say casually. I’m never fucking leaving this place unless Sierra and our child come with me. Wherever she is—wherever they are—is where I’m meant to be. It’s home. “I never thought I’d end up here.”

“I’m glad you did.”

“You and Sierra are the only ones who think that.”

Josh raises an eyebrow. “Her family likes you though, right?”

“Hah,” I say with a snort of laughter, causing Noah to stir. I shush him back to sleep. “I’ll just say they’re not my biggest fans. I have no trust fund or background in farming. I’m their last pick for Sierra.”

Josh shakes his head. “I don’t get people like that. You two are happy together, right? Isn’t that enough?”

“You’d think so.”

* * *

“Take care of yourself, man,” I say to Jax and hand him his bag. Heat from the sun melts down on us, and mosquitos swarm around my face. I swat them away, squinting in the bright light. “Don’t get killed.”

“Rule number one,” Jax says with a toothy grin. “Same goes for you. It seems pretty dangerous here.” He raises his eyebrows and looks out at the water. “There aren’t crocodiles in there, are there?”

“Alligators,” I correct. “You’re going to fucking Florida. You should know that shit. And no. Sierra said it’s too cold for them up here, thankfully. Those fuckers freak me out.”

“You and me both.”

The taxi bumps along the country road, pulling into The Mill House parking lot. Jax claps me on the back, giving a curt nod before getting into the cab. His plan is to go visit his mistress in Miami for a few days before heading up north again. Mason, another bounty hunter, has been keeping an eye out for the Haynes brothers, who are after Jax’s head. He hasn’t seen them lately, making Jax think they gave up and moved on to something else, but I think they’re pissed enough to not let this go anytime soon.

A few months ago, the bank repossessed their matching pair of foreign sports cars and Jax tracked them down to collect on the cash. Since there were two cars, I drove one while he drove the other, taking them back to the dealership. The brothers, who owned a nightclub, weren’t happy. The matching cars, however douchy, were their pride and joy, and made them look legit when they pulled up to their club.

Having their cars taken back by the bank was an ego blow, plus proved that their club wasn’t doing as well as they claimed. Too stupid to understand that by not paying, they lost their cars, they blamed Jax, and think he still has the cars just sitting in a garage somewhere.

Once Jefferson gets back from Europe, he’ll get the proper paperwork along with a restraining order against the brothers. It’s the simplest way to get assholes off our case. Matt Jefferson is a lawyer turned state judge who resides in Indianapolis. Jax and I helped him out when his teenage daughter decided to have a party on their family boat, resulting in her twenty-three-year-old boyfriend ‘borrowing’ the boat, two jet skis, and a brand new Chevy Silverado to pull it with. He doesn’t understand what we do but appreciates it. The law can only go so far, and I wish we had more politicians like him…or maybe not.

Once Jax is gone, I go into the apartment and grumble at the mess. Even when we were working the same jobs, I could never live with Jax. He’s too much of a fucking pig. Not long into cleaning, I start to feel shitty. The skin around my incision is tight and itchy, and I’m overall tired. I lay down in my bed, and with the river in the background, I pass out, not waking again until Sierra calls me on her way home from work.

“Lisa wants to get drinks tonight,” she says, panic-stricken. “I can’t drink or sit in a smoky bar.”

“Tell her to come here,” I suggest. “Sit in the restaurant side where there’s no smoking. I’ll make you something with no alcohol and she’ll never know.”

“That’s a good idea. But you can’t work yet.”

“I can help out for a bit while you two are here at least.”

“You sound like you just woke up,” she says, and I hear her start her car. “Are you feeling okay? The doctor said to be on the lookout for signs of the infection coming back.”

“I was asleep. Jax left and I had to clean up his fucking mess. I laid down and fell asleep.”

“Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you.”

“Nah, it’s fine. When are you going out?”

“Seven. We’ll go to The Mill House. Stay there and get some sleep. I’ll bring you dinner at six. And Chase?”

“Yeah?”

“That picture you sent me of you holding baby Noah…I know we said we’d take a few days to really talk about it but I already know. I knew as soon as I saw that second pink line, actually.”

“What do you know?” I ask, needing to hear her say it out loud.

“That I, without a doubt, want to keep this baby.”

I’m grinning ear to fucking ear. “Me too.”

* * *

“These would normally be served in a copper mug,” I tell Sierra and Lisa. “This bar is not equipped for hipster drinks, apparently.”

Sierra laughs. “I’m not surprised.”

“It’s strong, you’ll probably only want one,” I say, making sure Lisa hears. The less Sierra drinks, the better. It’ll lessen the chance of her getting caught sans alcohol. “I’ll come back and see if you need a refill though.”

“I like that you’re fucking the bartender.” Lisa takes a big drink. “We get to drink for free.”

Sierra shakes her head. “Don’t work too long. I mean it. You’re supposed to take two to three weeks off.”

It’s Friday night, and we’re busy. “I’ll stay behind the bar. I won’t move around too much then.”

Sierra stares at me flatly. “I’ve seen the bar. And you behind it. You’re on your feet the whole time.” She takes another drink then makes a face, hand going to her stomach.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah. I have cramps again.”

“I hate that,” Lisa groans. “You’re so lucky you have a penis,” she tells me.

I nod, hiding the concern on my face. Sierra’s been having cramps on and off for a week now. She thought it was her oncoming period before, but now that we know she’s pregnant, it’s freaking me out. Cramps can’t be a good thing. I tried to keep her from Googling her symptoms because nothing good comes from that, though according to the internet, slight cramps like she’s been feeling aren’t anything to worry about.

Sierra’s friends Katie and Bella come to The Mill House not long after, and are trying to get Sierra and Lisa to sit at the bar and then dance. Not consuming alcohol is easy enough, but avoiding the smokers at the bar isn’t possible. Sierra meets my eye across the room, smiling and putting her hand over her stomach. I smile back as I bring drinks to another group of young women.

Cory is getting a better handle on running solo but is still struggling. I’m glad Jax was able to come down here this past week and lend a hand. I take a tray of drinks to Sierra’s table, hoping I can keep her friends happy with being away from the main part of the bar for a while longer.

Katie and Bella are drunk already, and ohh and ahh when I give Sierra a kiss. I slide into the booth next to Sierra for a minute, wanting to get my fix of her and needing to get off my feet for a minute.

“You still should go lay down,” Sierra tells me, resting her hand on my thigh. “Before you overdo it.”

“I’m fine,” I assure her. “I need to get back to my routine in order to feel better.”

“I’m not going to get you to listen, am I?”

“Nope.”

She rolls her eyes and squeezes my thigh.

“You guys are like the cutest couple ever,” Katie slurs. She drunkenly points at Sierra. “You’re like the prettiest, and he’s seriously hot. Physically, you look good together. And mentally, you look happy.”

“That doesn’t make sense,” Bella giggles. “You can’t see someone’s mental…mentalness.”

“But she looks happy.”

Bella considers her words. “Yeah. She does. You do look happy, Sierra.”

Her friends start to gush again, and I almost don’t hear what’s going on behind us. Almost.

“Where’s the big guy?” someone demands.

“I…I don’t know,” Cory stammers. I turn, not in the mood for a fucking bar fight. But what I see isn’t some drunk getting agitated. It’s the Haynes brothers. Both of them, surrounding Corey, fists clenched, looking pissed off as fuck.

“Shit,” I mutter and get up.

“He was here yesterday,” one of the brothers says. They’re not twins, but they’re both big, ugly brutes. “We saw him.”

“He…he left. I don’t know where he went.” Corey’s eyes dart to me. Fuck.

The bigger of the two whips around. I only saw them once before this, but I never forget a face. Beady blue eyes, spiked blonde hair, too-tight polo shirt with the collar up, and enough cologne to choke a horse…classic asshole apparel.

“I know you,” he says, narrowing his eyes. “You fucking stole my car!”

I roll my eyes. “I didn’t steal your car. I wouldn’t want it anyway. I’m a Ford guy.”

“Jay!” Big Haynes calls to his brother. “Look who I fucking found.”

Jay’s there in seconds, glowering at me. “Where are the fucking cars?”

I shrug. “Probably in the garage of someone who could actually afford them.”

At that, Big Haynes takes a swing. I catch his fist and twist his arm behind his back. Country music blares from the speakers above us, but a hush falls over those around me. They step back, anticipating a fight.

“Easy now.” I twist his arm hard, knowing it hurts. “You’re not starting shit in my bar,” I hiss. “Get your brother and get the fuck out before I kick both your asses and take whatever piece of shit you drove here.”

“Give us the fucking cars.”

“I don’t have them,” I say through gritted teeth and shove him into the bar top. “You lost them when you stopped making payments. The dealership took them back, dumbass. If you want the legalities of it, take it up with the judge who signed off on it. Now get the fuck out of here.”

“Fine,” Big Haynes grunts. I let go of his arm and step back, ready for him to come at me again. He gives his brother a look, and he nods. They storm out of the bar, tension hanging in the air.

Corey looks at me, unblinking. “You’re kind of my hero,” he half jokes. “Those guys were looking for Jax…who are they?”

“No one. Just two assholes looking for a fight.”

“It seemed like you knew them.”

“We crossed paths once.”

“And you stole his car?” Corey’s voice gets high-pitched with nerves, and I have a good guess what he’s thinking. If I’m the kind of person who steals from those assholes, there’s nothing that I won’t do.

“No. He stopped making payments on it but refused to give it back to the dealership. I was the one who went and retrieved it.”

“Wow,” Corey says, taken aback. “No wonder they’re pissed.”

“Yeah. Just pissed at the wrong person.”

“Are they gone?”

I glance at the door, knowing they didn’t come all this way just to let it go after a stern talking to. They’re going to be even more pissed to know they’re one step behind. By now, Jax is already in Florida fucking his cougar. “For now. I’ll handle it. Get back to work. If everyone here sees you looking rattled, they’ll leave. Give one free round to that group over there. Make them look back and think this was an exciting night.”

Sierra rushes over, pushing through the small crowd around the bar. “Are you okay?” she asks, eyebrows pinched together. Her hands fly to my waist and she starts to lift up my shirt.

“Now you want to fuck me? Right here with everyone watching?”

She purses her lips, trying not to laugh. “Good news. You’re not bleeding and your organs haven’t popped out of your cut.”

“It’s healing, remember? I’m fine.”

Sierra moves in closer and my arms go around her slender body. “I know. I just…nothing can happen to you, okay?”

“It won’t. I promise.”

“You don’t know that.” She takes in a shaky breath. “Promise me only one thing.”

“What?”

“Promise you won’t make promises.”

“I can’t do that,” I tell her and run a hand through her hair. “Because I promise you that I’m going to love you—and our baby—forever.”

“I can live with that one.” She inches closer, hooking her fingers through my belt loops. “Who were those guys? I’ve never seen them before.”

“They’re not from around here. Remember when I said people more times than not weren’t happy to see us? Those are some of the unhappy ones.”

“How did they find you?”

“They’re looking for Jax. He isn’t the best at covering his tracks.”

“Are they coming back?”

“Probably,” I say and Sierra’s face pales. “So I think you should go upstairs and lay down.”

“You mean you want me out of the way.”

“Yeah,” I admit. “I don’t want you to get caught up in the collateral damage.” I move my hand to her stomach. “Either of you.”

“What are you going to do?”

“I’ll start with calling Jax. He started this mess. Usually when this happens, we’re able to get a restraining order issued and as soon as it gets violated, the unhappy parties get arrested.”

“Doesn’t that make them even more mad?”

“Oh, for sure. But most of the time that anger is redirected at the person or company who reclaimed ownership of their stuff.”

“So ‘don’t shoot the messenger’ isn’t foolproof?”

I laugh. “Not at all.”

“Sounds dangerous.”

“It is. That’s part of why I liked it. I need to make one more promise. I promise that I like this more than the danger.”

Sierra smiles and flattens her hands against my chest. “I’m glad you’re okay.”

“It takes more than a couple of assholes like that to hurt me. Are you tired?”

“I am,” she says with a laugh. “I know I’m getting old here, but it’s barely eight o’clock and I’m ready for bed.”

“That’s all the more reason to go upstairs. Watch TV and rest. I’ll come up in a bit and check on you. Are you hungry?”

“Not really, but fries with cheese dip sounds good.” Sierra smiles, shaking her head at herself. “I’m going to gain a hundred pounds before this kid is born.”

“You’ll still be hot.” I kiss her neck. “I’ll get the key. Lie down and wait for me. If you’re still up, I’ll rub your back.”

“You’re too good to me, Chase.”

I shake my head. “I can never be good enough.” I go behind the bar to get the key to the apartment for Sierra. I get into the break room, grab them, and pick up my phone to text Jax and tell him about the shit storm he started. Then a scream comes from the bar. I drop my keys and the phone and sprint to the bar.

The Haynes brothers are back, blue eyes full or rage. Big Haynes is holding a gas can and a lighter, and Jay grabs Sierra by the arm, jerking her forward. My entire body seizes up. Nothing bad can happen to Sierra. Nothing. She is my everything. Sierra tries to pull away but Jay holds her tighter.

“Your bar for our cars,” Big Haynes growls. “And I need something new to ride tonight.” He gives a sideways glance at Sierra, then flicks the lighter and shakes the gas can. The world is spinning and all I can think about is how bad I’m going to hurt them both. The entire bar is watching, and I see two of the locals weaving their way through the frozen crowd. The people in this town might not like me, but they love this bar.

“Touch her and die,” I say, through gritted teeth. Sierra’s eyes meet mine, and I’ve never felt so helpless in my life. Sierra looks at a beer bottle on the table next to her, then back at me. Unspoken words pass between us, and I give her the smallest nod.

Big Haynes is a foot from me. I bring my fist back and hit him hard in the face right as Sierra grabs the beer bottle and hits Jay with it. The bottle doesn’t break, but hits him hard in the mouth, clicking against his teeth and causing his lip to bleed. It’s all that’s needed to make him lose his grip on Sierra. She jumps back, and Lisa grabs her arms, bringing her behind a table.

I hit Big Haynes again in the side of the head. My knuckles collide hard with his temple, knocking him out. He stumbles back, lighter falling from his grasp and clattering to the ground. Two of the locals who have been here drinking since we opened hours ago, take him by the arms and drag him outside.

Jay growls and kicks the table Sierra and Lisa are behind, shoving it into them. Lisa loses her balance and falls into Sierra, who stumbles back and trips over a chair. They both land hard on the ground. I don’t think. I just act. Consumed by rage, I grab a bottle of whiskey and bring it down over Jay’s head. The glass breaks, and blood streams from his skull. He wobbles but comes at me again, throwing punches. The smell of alcohol permeates the air. I turn away to check on Sierra. Lisa helps her to her feet, pulling her away from the fight.

In that half-second my head is turned, Jay hits me in the face. My vision blurs for a beat, and the pain adds to my anger. I charge forward at Jay, punching him in square in the nose. I feel his nose break along with hearing the sickening crack, but I don’t stop. I hit him again. And again. Until he drops to the ground.

“Chase!” Sierra calls. I kick Jay hard in the dick and turn, rushing to her side.

“Are you okay? Did he hurt you? I’m going to fucking kill him.”

“I’m scared,” she says and grabs my arms. “But I’m fine.”

I run my hands over her, needing to make sure. Behind me, Jay stirs, slowly coming to his feet. Lisa grabs the first thing she can get her hands on, and swings a dirty broom at Jay. “Move again and this handle is going up your ass,” she sneers. “No one hurts my cousin.”

Jay slumps back to the ground. No one says a word, and if it weren’t for that damn music, you could hear a pin drop. Sierra is safe in my arms, but rage still sears through me. I’m so fucking pissed.

I’m pissed at myself for not taking Sierra behind the bar with me to get the keys.

I’m pissed at Jax for creating a trail leading to Summer Hill.

And I’m pissed at these assholes.

“Are you okay?” Sierra asks softly, hands wrapping around my arms. “You just had surgery.”

“I’m fine. I’m more concerned with you. You fell. Isn’t that bad for the…the you know what?”

“On my ass. I’m okay. We’re okay.” Sierra closes her eyes and rests her head on my chest. She lets out a shaky breath then looks up and out at the bar. Everyone is still frozen, staring at Jay on the floor. Everything happened so fast, and if I would have been one minute faster, Sierra wouldn’t have gotten involved like that. She’d be upstairs, safe and sound.

“You should go up,” I tell her. “Get away from the smoke.”

She nods but doesn’t step away. “The cops are on their way. Lisa called when that guy grabbed my arm.”

“Good. That was quick thinking.” I pull Sierra to me, never wanting to let her go.

The cops show up minutes later, and with the entire bar as witnesses, the Haynes brothers are arrested right away.

Wanting to get out of the smoke, Sierra goes upstairs while I give a statement, explaining everything I know about those cocksuckers. The bar is slowly going back to normal, with people talking and laughing again.

I help Corey clean up the mess made from the fight, and get things back in order again. He’s frazzled, having never been involved like that in a fight before. Hearing the threat of someone burning down the bar sent him over the edge.

Lisa, Katie, and Bella are sitting at the table in the back. Katie is so drunk there’s a slim chance she’ll remember any of this.

“You guys okay?” I ask.

Bella’s eyes widen. “That was insane. But yeah, we’re fine. Sierra’s okay, right? She said she was going upstairs.”

“Yeah. Just shook up. Nice work with the broom,” I tell Lisa.

“Thanks. I realize it’s not the most lethal weapon, but it was the first thing I could get my hands on.”

“I think you’re wrong there. That thing has swept up the unimaginable. All it takes is one sweep across face and you’re infected with God knows what and it’s only a matter of time before you turn into a zombie.”

“So that’s how the apocalypse starts,” Lisa jokes. She’s looking at her phone, feverishly texting someone. Then her screen goes black. “Mother fucker,” she swears. “You don’t happen to have a charger, do you?”

“Not for that type of phone.”

“Dammit. Rob is freaking out right now and I need to tell him to chill the fuck out.”

“You can use my phone,” I offer.

“Thanks. He’s going to keep freaking out until I call. He’s at the station tonight and not being out here is killing him. He’s not convinced we’re okay yet.”

Wanting to get upstairs to Sierra, I pull my phone from my pocket and unlock the screen. “It’s quieter in the back,” I say and hand the phone to her.

Lisa takes the phone and disappears behind the bar. I mop up a spilled drink and take an order for a burger and fries to the kitchen. The bar-goers have settled back into their usual routine of drinking, talking too loud, and dancing along with the music. I fill another drink order and clear one more table before Lisa comes back out, holding my phone out like it’s the missing piece of incriminating evidence in a murder trial.

“I opened the phone app to dial Rob’s number,” she starts, “and it went right to your voicemail. You must have been on that page last time you shut off your phone.”

My blood runs cold, and each heartbeat echoes loudly in my ears. Fuck. No. It was the last screen I had open. Knowing Sierra and I are going to have a child together in the coming months, I knew I needed to delete all the messages. Pretend it never happened and move on.

But I didn’t because I looked up from the bar and saw Sierra walking through. And with my mind on Sierra, it didn’t even occur to me that the voicemails would be the first thing anyone sees when they use the phone.

“I saw all the messages.”

The messages. No. Fuck. Fuck, fuck, Fuck.

“I was going to make fun of you for being lame and keeping all of Sierra’s messages. Then I realized some are from over a year ago. What the fuck? I mean, how is that possible?”

I inhale, and in that moment, everything changes. I don’t want to lie my way out of this. I don’t want to build the foundation of my family on a lie.

My.

Family.

My stomach twists and I feel like I’m going to puke. What the fuck have I done? I look at Lisa, her face full of accusation. I need to come clean and get it out in the open. Sierra and I are having a baby after all. I need to tell her everything.

“When my niece broke my phone, Josh felt bad and got me a temporary one in its place in its place. He went to that secondhand electronic store in town. When I got it, I realized that the memory wasn’t properly cleared out. Out of curiosity, I listened to the first message before I deleted them all.”

Lisa’s mouth opens. She keeps her eyes on me and shakes her head. “Wait…what?”

“That phone…it belonged to Jake. The messages from Sierra are for him.”

Things start to click into place for Lisa. “I knew she called and left messages after he passed. We all tried to get her to stop and it took months. You said you listened to the first one before you deleted them. But they’re still here.”

“I know.”

“So you listened to them?” she asks.

“Some of them.”

“Does Sierra know?”

“No.”

“You have to tell her.”

“I will,” I say. “I want to. Hell, I’ve wanted to. I didn’t know it was her when I heard the first few. They were so…so tragically beautiful I kept listening. I hadn’t even met her yet when I heard the first one.”

“Then you did meet her and still listened to the messages she left for her dead boyfriend.”

Fuck. When she says it out loud, it sounds awful. I cringe. “Yes.”

Lisa rubs her temple. “This is all kinds of fucked up. And Sierra has no idea at all?”

“No.”

“You need to tell her. Or I will.”