Page 24 of Rolling with the Single Daddies

I stop my fist a millimeter before it slams against the steering wheel.Never wake a sleeping baby, as my wifealways said.

Is there any way to save Avery without provoking them? And what if this is all a mistake and she’s in there on accident? The things those wretches would do to her—

She walks out. She’s fine. I can breathe again.Go home… to our house. Where I can protect you.And she’s going to have to explain why she came here today even if it means I reveal that I followed her.

I can’t have anyone connected to these shits in Evie’s life.

Watching carefully as she gets into her car, my mind races, replaying every interaction. Her gentle way with Evie, her understanding smiles, the way she seemed to effortlessly slip past my defenses. Was that anything more than a carefully crafted persona designed to break down my walls and make me completely vulnerable?

I fell for it. Hook, line, and sinker.

Why the fuck isn’t she driving away?

The front door to the bar swings open and one of the younger thugs in the MC exits.

Start your car, Avery. Get away from them.

He’s in no hurry crossing the parking lot. My fingers clutch the shifter. He’s definitely headed to her car. I drop it into first. He grabs the door handle. My foot moves to the gas pedal.

Avery’s expecting him.

My world shatters as recognition dawns on me. His sister is on Avery’s roller derby team. Two of my MC brothers hookedup with her. She swore that she has as little contact with her brother as possible, and they bought it.

I was buried in my work at the time, negotiating the international expansion of our cigar shops, so I stayed out of it, trusted them to be careful. What the fuck is going on?

I tell my heart to stop feeling so torn between protecting Evie and protecting Avery. There’s only one answer.

The realization hits me like a punch to the gut. The only way Avery could have been so perfect, so exactly what I needed, was if it was a ruse.

Flooring the gas pedal, I zip onto the main road, using one hand to pat Evie back to sleep.

How the hell could I have let this happen?

Eleven

Avery

I drop Roman off at the bar, his door is barely closed when I drive forward, eager to get away from him and his creepy friends. The smaller the neon lights of the dive bar shrink in my rear-view mirror, the more I relax.

I have no idea if I changed his mind.

Yesterday with Bane and Diego surpassed my wildest dreams. That’s why I called Roman last night and admitted that he’s the father. The cheap bastard was relieved we didn’t need to do a paternity test, but no matter what I said, he insisted on being in Bella’s life.

I cringe at the risk I took letting him in my car, of seeing him in person to talk sense into him.Sense.That’s a joke. I consider looking up a detailing center to have them fumigate it to remove every trace of him.

What if my plan didn’t work? Emotions well inside of me. I don’t want him to have any influence over Bella or to fuck upmy new life. I pull into a parking lot to let my tears flow while I decompress.

Snatching my phone from the cup holder, I text Belova, my roller derby teammate who happens to be his sister. She stays as far away from him as possible, but I’m desperate.

Me:Need to talk. It’s urgent.

Seconds tick by like hours, but it gives me a chance to scream and get rid of some of my immediate anger. I need a confidante, someone who understands the mess I’m in. Belova’s been my rock, my derby sister, and the only person who knows how truly rotten Roman is.

I met Roman long before Belova joined the team. Why the fuck couldn’t that have happened in the opposite order? But then I wouldn’t have Bella, as Bane pointed out. At least now I understand that Roman was insistent about her name because it was close to a family name.

Belova:My place or yours?

Relief washes over me as I let her know I’m on my way.

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