“You getting your tummy full, baby girl?” I ask, picking up a napkin and wiping a bit of the sauce off her cheeks.
“Yeah, Halle let us pick anything we wanted! Rome got chicken nuggets and mozerkella- monsterell…” she says, trying to say the word. I chuckle and help her out.
“Mozzarella sticks?” I ask.
“Yeah, that’s what I said. He got chicken nuggets and monsterella sticks, and I got pizza and fries,” she says excitedly.
“So, I was thinking…” I tell them, trying to figure out the best way to break the ice on this one.
“Would you want to come stay with us? I’m in a motorcycle club, but none of the men there would ever hurt you. You’d be safe, fed, and taken care of,” I say, looking both of them in the eyes so they can see my honesty.
Immediately, Rae’s eyes light up. She starts bouncing in her seat and clapping. I smile at her, then look at Rome, whose head is still down.
“You want to take Rae with you? You will protect her? Promise?” Rome asks, finally looking up and meeting my eyes. His are still wary, but I can see the tears forming. I shake my head.
“No, Rome. We want both of you to come to stay with us. Come to live with us,” Halle says, reaching across the table and taking his hand. He looks at us in surprise.
“Me too?” he asks for confirmation.
“Of course. Who else is going to help me take care of both our girls?” I ask, pulling Halle into my side. Rome smiles but ducks his head, not wanting anyone to see. This kid has always had to be guarded and tough, always protecting his twin sister. I will make sure he gets to actually be a kid for once in his life. I never had that option, and I’ll be damned if these kids don’t.
“Alright, are y’all ready to go? My buddy just texted me. He’s here,” I say, standing. The kids finish their last bites of food, and I take the empty plates to the trash. We walk outside together, Rae holding Rome’s hand and me holding Halle’s.
“Alright, Loki, where’s the body this time, and how bad is the cleanup?” Grease asks with a roll of his eyes before he notices the kids, and his head jerks back.
“No bodies today, brother. This is Rae, and this is Rome. They will be staying with us,” I say, softly putting my hand on Rome’s shoulder. He flinches a bit before settling, and it makes me want to kill every damn foster parent he’s ever had and burn the house to the ground.
“Uh… this is new,” Grease mutters before shaking his head and nodding.
“Alright, kiddos, hop on in and get buckled,” Grease says as Halle and I walk to Kitty.
“Wait, you’re not coming with us?” Rae asks, and I see the fear take over her face. I look at Halle, who looks up at me with tears in her eyes and nods. She will never admit to those swimming tears, but I see her, and she never has to hide from me.
“Go on, pet,” I whisper before kissing her cheek.
“I’ll ride with you guys, and Loki can follow behind. How about that? Let’s rock out to some music. What’s your favorite band?” she asks them.
On cue, they both scream, “INSANE CLOWN POSSY!” which makes all of us laugh.
“Shit, now there’s four of them? The clubhouse will never survive,” Grease mutters. Halle shoots him a death glare, and I laugh loudly.
I hop on my bike, and when Grease takes off with my family, I trail him to the clubhouse. The windows are too tinted for me to see what’s happening inside, but when they all pile out of the vehicle at the compound, Rome and Rae are dancing and singing along to the lyrics of one of their songs. These kids are going to fit in perfectly with our family.
I start to walk into the building but am surprised when I feel a tiny hand in mine, smaller than my pet’s. Looking down, I see Rae staring at the building with trepidation. I give her hand a squeeze.
“I will never let anything happen to you, baby girl. I swear it,” I promise her.
She looks up at me with those light brown eyes, and I see something shift. She puts on a determined face and nods. This girl is ready to take on the world while leaving a trail of bodies in her wake. She doesn’t know it yet, but I would lay it all at her and her brother's feet. We may have just met them, but I can feel it in my soul. They are ours. The same way I knew instantly that Halle was mine, these kids mine. My fucking family. They are mine and Halle’s, and I’ll do whatever the fuck I can to keep them here, with us, safe.
We walk into the compound, and the officers are all sitting at the bar. The prospect Beau punched is serving drinks, and when we walk in, everyone stops and looks at us. It’s silent for a while before Swift speaks up.
“Uh, Loki, you got something to tell us?” he asks, raising a brow and looking from me to the kids.
“Damn, you brought home more strays?” the fucking dumbass prospect says, again not knowing when to keep his mouth shut.
“Excuse me?” I growl menacingly.
“Who the fuck are you calling strays?” Rome growls, just like me, stepping up in front of us.