When I'm With You (Little Hollow Series, #2)(44)

Much to my surprise, he’s actually fully dressed as I walk back into my room so I pick up my keys, thread my arms through my cut, and motion for him to follow me. I hear him sigh but I ignore it, some fresh air will do him good.

I’ve got three hours until I have to be at work, so I need to make them count. He throws a leg over his bike and takes a moment, closing his eyes tightly.

“Get on,” I command.

He opens his eyes and I’m waiting for him to protest but he doesn’t, he just gets off his bike and swings a leg over mine. “You tell anybody I was ridin’ bitch and I’ll bury you myself.”

My laugh booms out over the parking lot. “Yeah, and if you puke on me I’ll veto that and tell everybody. Got it?”

I see him nod out the corner of my eye and back out of my spot, peeling out onto the open road.

I park up outside the florist and I don’t stop to answer his questions as I walk inside and buy a bunch of sunflowers, her favorite. I climb back on my bike and hand Jacques the flowers, he narrows his eyes at me but I still don’t think he’s caught on to where we’re headed. That is until we turn a few more corners and he tenses.

“Let me off, right now!” He grinds out through clenched teeth. I pretend I can’t hear him. “I’m not kiddin’ around, Hunter. Stop the bike.”

“We’re here, whether you like it or not!” I shout behind me.

“You can’t make me go in there,” he sneers as I park up outside.

I narrow my eyes at him. “Stop acting like a kid, you’re gonna have to go in there sometime.”

“The hell I do!” He shouts, making a couple passing by stare at us.

I lower my voice to a menacing whisper. “That’s enough. I’m going in, whether you come with me or not, I don’t care. Just wait here if you’re going to act like a pussy.”

I don’t wait for a reply, I just walk off toward the gates, flowers in my hand. I find her plot and run my fingers over her headstone.

“Hey, mom, I brought you your favorites.” I pick up the dead flowers and clean up the area in front of the headstone before placing the new ones in their place. “Jacques is here too, but you know he won’t come in. He misses you, we all do.”

I sigh and sit on the ground, one knee raised and my arms spread out behind me propping me up. “There’s something going on with him but he won’t tell me. I wanna help, but I can’t make him, yano?”

I close my eyes. “God, I wish you were here. I feel like everything around me is going to shit… sorry, mom, I didn’t mean to curse. I just feel like no one cares about the club anymore, not even pop. I’m sure you can see everything that’s happening, although that’s creepy to think about.”

“It is pretty creepy.”

I turn my head at my brothers voice. He’s staring, wide eyed at her headstone but doesn’t make a move, and I don’t push him on it.

“So as I was saying, the club isn’t worth anything anymore, our chapter at least. I seem to be getting into trouble with Tank more and more these days, all because I want things to change but it feels like I’m hitting my head against a brick wall. If you’ve got some words of motherly wisdom, now would be the time to tell me.”

Jacques snorts and I look at him. “What?”

“You’re talking to a slab of marble, you know that right? Or are you going senile in your old age?” He quips nervously, and I laugh along with him.

He takes the few steps toward me and sits down. “Hey, mom.”

I wait for him to say more but he doesn’t, he picks at the grass with shaking fingers so I carry on.

“You can probably see that Jacques is a little worse for wear today. He had a party for one last night and had to be tucked into bed by his big brother,” I tease.

He shoves me in the arm. “He did not tuck me into bed, he wasn’t that nice. He didn’t even cover me with a blanket.”

I snort. “Did you want me to sing you a fuckin’ lullaby as well?”

“Well, yeah. That would’ve been real nice of you,” he smirks.

“When did you start thinking you were funny?” I retort.

“About the same time you started gettin’ boring.”

He laughs at his joke, touche. I’ll let him have that, his mood seems to have shifted so I stand up and dust off my hands.

“Are we leaving?” He asks, looking at the headstone apprehensively.

“Nah, I gotta take a leak. I’ll be back in a minute.”

I walk off toward the gates, there’s a public toilet around the corner so it’s the perfect excuse. I don’t need to go, I just wanted to leave him alone with her.

I know it’s not really her, but talking as if she’s listening has helped me a lot these past two years. I first came two weeks after her funeral.

My heart has stopped beating, but that’s the least of my worries. My hands are sweating so much I’m scared they’re going to slip off the handlebars. I arrive and park up, not able to look at the cemetery gates. This isn’t what I’m supposed to be doing at nearly twenty-six years old. I’m meant to be taking these flowers home to her, not to her grave.

My stomach churns and the three people that are visiting loved ones of their own all turn and stare at once as I make my way through the gates, or at least that’s what it feels like. I cling to the sunflowers in my hand as I try to reign in my emotions and keep my head forward, looking for her plot.