Page 58 of Viper

The threat of her new boyfriend kicking my ass is laughable. I’m double his size, and if Maggie was thinking straight, she’d know that was a stupid threat. But what angers me more than anything, is that she’s talking about our son as a meal ticket. Something she can use to get more money out of me, not for her child, the one that she gave birth to and is supposed to love above everything else. Maybe she was that way before, but now with whatever she’s gotten herself wrapped up in, I can’t even see the woman I used to be married to. The woman who was so excited to have Archer and be a mother.

They say addiction changes you, and they’re right.

When I finally get to the clubhouse, I send Hunter a message with the gist of the call and let him know what she said and what to possibly expect. He sends me back a quick message confirming receipt and not to worry about it, he’s got it handled. I’ll have to trust him, and pray that Maggie forgets about that whole conversation and leaves things alone. But I doubt I’m going to be that lucky.

I walk into the clubhouse and see that Archer is exactly where I left him. “Archer,” I call out to him, and then jerk my head toward the kitchen when he looks over at me. He nods, pauses the game, hands the controller to Timber, and then heads my way. I smile at him as we head for the kitchen. “Having fun?” I ask him.

He grins up at me. “I’m kicking Timber’s ass, and he’s getting pissy about it. Probably good I’ve left him to try without me. It was getting kind of boring and embarrassing.”

“I heard that,” Timber yells across the room, making a few of the guys laugh.

“You might need to let him win to soothe his ego, son,” I reply loudly.

“Screw you,” Timber huffs.

Archer and I both laugh and head into the kitchen. “Are you hungry?” I ask him. It’s just past suppertime, and my kid is always hungry.

“I could eat,” he says with a nod. “Kicking ass and taking names is tough work.”

I snort and head to the fridge to see what I can find. Rose normally keeps all kinds of stuff in here for us to choose from. “How about a burger and fries?” I ask over my shoulder. Archer nods his head excitedly. As I gather the ingredients, I figure now’s the time to get things out in the open. “I’m sorry if I put you on the spot earlier about Eden, Archer,” I tell him, watching him carefully. “Eden’s right and that wasn’t fair of me to bring it up in front of everyone. I should have spoken to you about my intentions with her privately so you could feel safe enough to tell me how you feel.”

Archer looks at me in surprise. “Oh, I didn’t care,” he assures me. “I do like her, and honestly, even if I didn’t, I’d probably put up with her as long as you were happy.”

I frown at that. “Archer, you should never have to feel like you have to do anything and make yourself miserable for me. You’re my son, and you come first, always. Do I want you to like the woman I’m seeing, of course, but if you ever feel like that isn’t the case, then I hope you’ll feel safe enough to tell me that.”

Archer nods. “And I would, but you haven’t been with anyone in a long time, Dad. And Mom…Mom’s always had boyfriends. And I know you liked Raven, and I kind of thought you might start dating Peyton, so I’ve just been waiting for you to meet someone. And, I mean, I hoped I’d like her too, but I can put up with a lot. I put up with Tony, and honestly anyone is better than him.”

“And you like Eden?”

“I don’t know her other than the couple times I’ve talked to her, but she’s cool. She’s edgy, and she’s fun, and she’s wicked smart. I really didn’t want to write that book report but she made it interesting. And when we were at the courthouse, she was super nice and didn’t treat me like a little kid. She listened, and she glared at the lawyer when she was trying to mean-mug me into saying a bunch of stuff I didn’t want.” Then he grins. “And she gets along with Rose and the other girls, so I figure that means they like her, so why wouldn’t I?”

I chuckle. “I don’t know how to feel about her getting along with them so well, but you’re right. Still, I want you to know that your opinion matters and that even if it’s hard to tell me, I’ll always listen and try to understand your point of view.”

“Thanks, Dad,” he says with a warm smile.

“And just so you know, Eden is a bit nervous about this whole thing, so if she seems a bit unsure, cut her a bit of slack, okay?” I say as I get to work on frying up his burger and heating up the oven.

“Why is she nervous?”

“She’s never been in a relationship with someone with a kid, and she wants to make sure you know she’s not trying to horn in or act like your mom. She genuinely wants you to like her for who she is. But that also means she’s going to make mistakes and it might end up hurting your feelings.”

Archer sobers. “Is she worried she might not end up liking me after all?”

I shake my head. “No, I don’t think that’s the worry. She already likes you, and if she didn’t, she wouldn’t be so concerned about your feelings on us dating, right?”

Archer nods slowly. “Yeah, I guess. Do you like her more than you did Raven and Peyton?”

That surprises me and I don’t answer right away. Because how do you tell your son that the chemistry and attraction you feel for one woman is so much more than you ever felt for the others? “It’s not that I don’t like Raven or Peyton,” I finally say carefully. “But while I thought there was something more with them, it became clear there was never a chance for that to happen, so I knew that they would be better as friends. Was I disappointed? A bit, but nowhere near as disappointed as I’ll be if Eden and I don’t work out. Does that make sense?”

“Yeah. I like Raven and Peyton, but I don’t think they would be as fun as Eden. But what happens if you and Eden break up? Does that mean I won’t be able to see her?”

“I’d never stop you from seeing her, Archer,” I promise him. “Even if we don’t work out, Eden isn’t the type of person to take that out on you, so if you become close, I’ll always support that for you.”

“Even if it makes you sad?”

I smile. “Yes, even if it makes me sad. But I’m going to work really hard so that that doesn’t happen.”

“You should give her flowers and stuff,” Archer suggests. “Girls like that.”

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