Loving Nicole (Savage Brothers MC #3)(13)

“Nothing, Care Bear. Just asking Dragon if he needed my help with something.”

“I don’t, but if it changes, I’ll hit you up.”

Dance nods.

“You want to go home or stay here?”

Red holds up her container of dip that she got from the fridge, “Let’s go home.”

“Got what you came for?” Dance asks smiling down at her, and it feels good to see my brother happy.

“Oh yeah,” Red says.

“What do you plan on eating that with? We don’t have any strawberries in the house.”

She looks up at him and blushes a darker red than her hair. Dance throws his head back and laughs. He laughs. Shit, I still find that unreal.

“Care Bear, one of these days you are so going to tell me what I want to hear without blushing.”

“Jacob, hush.” She mumbles as he takes her in his arms and hugs her. She peeks over his arm at me and I just shake my head.

“Catch you two on the flip side.”

“You got it, brother,” Dance says as they turn to leave.

“Take it easy on my brother Red, he’s an old man you know.”

“Fuck off, Dragon,” he barks, giving me the one-fingered salute.

I laugh. I’m glad to see my brother doing so much better. We still have to get revenge for him. He asked me to hold up. He wants to do it himself, but says he’s not ready. I’ve not pushed it. Seems I have enough fires to put out.

Once they leave, I lock the doors. Anyone else wants in, they have keys. I’m starting to feel that burning in my gut all the time now. Fuck, I hope Nicole isn’t holding out on me.





Chapter 8




Nicole


“When are you leaving?” I ask Dani. It’s the next day, and we’re sitting at one of the picnic tables outside the club compound.

It’s a gorgeous summer day and with fall approaching soon, I want to enjoy it. My hand absently strokes my stomach. I do it a lot, but more so lately. Dani and I have a complex relationship, but it is close in ways no one but the two of us will ever understand. We’ve been through hell together. When I needed a friend and had no one, Dani was there. When she was actually trapped in hell, I helped to bring her out. Our secrets, our sadness bonded us together. So, the thought of bringing little Dragon into this world and not having Dani there to hold my hand, to be with me…it kills me. I can’t tell her that but I know she feels it. I know that she is terrified to leave. I also know she doesn’t have a choice now and that sucks. I hate Michael Kavanagh, despise him. I’d like to cut off his balls and deep fry… No, I want to deep fry his balls while they were still attached and then cut them off and feed them to him. That’d be infinitely better.

“Not sure. Soon though. Definitely way before my supposed meeting with the hubby.”

“Good plan. Hey, at least we got warning and he just didn’t swoop in and grab us,” I answer, trying to make light of it. I actually am surprised he didn’t take Dani forcibly, before we had a heads up.

“It’s his way. He likes to be dramatic and bigger than life.”

“Yeah, well.”

“I know…,” she says sadly, looking up at the sky. “I’m going to miss Kentucky. When you suggested I move here to hideout I thought you were insane, but I’ve loved every minute of it. Hell, even Roy likes it.”

“Will he be going with you?”

“No, he’s settled here. He’s actually met someone. My visit with him was an eye opener. I’d never seen him so happy.”

“That’s good, but I don’t want you to be alone. Maybe we should tell Dragon and face this head on. I know…”

“Not going to happen, Nic. I’ve thought about it and this is the best for all concerned. Once I’m gone Michael will leave you guys alone, most notably you.”

“Dani…”

She reaches over, grabs my hand and looks me in the eyes. I can see the moisture there, and the deep sadness. It hurts me. I wrap my hands around hers and squeeze tight.

“One of the best things that happened to me was meeting you at Three Oaks Academy.”

“Dani…”

“I mean it, Nic. When you decided to bail out of that school and tell your parents to suck it, I was so in awe of you. I wanted that kind of courage. You’ve always seen me as the strong one, but it’s you…it’s always been you.”

I swallow, but the words I want to use to respond are frozen in my throat. Clogged up with emotion so deep, I’m afraid to let it out. I forget, years of living our lie has made it an alternate reality and I just go with it. It’s completely untrue, this history I allow Dragon and everyone to believe. My history with Dani is much more twisted and confusing. I didn’t meet Dani in Kentucky, we didn’t grow up together. We didn’t go to school together, unless you count the month in hell my parents made me try out TOA (Three Oaks Academy), husband shopping. None of my carefully laid past is true, save one. Dani has and always will be my best friend, and a person who owns a large part of my heart.

“Dani, you’re strong, most women would have never survived what you did.”

“It was weak to ask you for help. It was weak to drag Roy into it.”