“Where you two going?” asks Cash as we meet him and Trigger in the doorway.
“New Horizons. Craig’s dad is out of jail early and I’m worried he might try to grab the kid,” I explain as I brush past and walk quickly to my bike.
“Coming with,” replies Cash while changing directions.
“Me too,” growls Trigger.
I breathe a sigh of relief when we park behind New Horizons and I can see Craig playing in the backyard. His head snaps up and he comes trotting to the gate to greet us.
“Hey Craig, where’s Pippa?” I ask.
“She left with one of the women but said she’d be back later. Don’t know when though.”
“Is Tammy here?” Trigger asks.
“Yeah. Want me to go get her?”
“Ask her to come outside. We need to speak with her for a few minutes,” Trigger responds.
We watch as Craig runs to the house and disappears inside. A minute later, he and Tammy emerge and she comes to a quick stop when she spots Trigger standing next to me. If looks could kill, he’d be smoldering right now.
“We need a minute, Tammy,” I say quickly before she blows us off.
“Hey, Craig, want to toss that football with me?” Vex asks as he steps through the gate. When Craig nods his head excitedly, Vex leads him to the other side of the yard to keep him busy while we talk with Tammy.
“We just got word that Craig’s dad has been released early from jail. Do you think he’ll try to grab Craig?” asks Trigger.
“Holy crap! He’s out already?” Tammy asks, worriedly.
“Yeah, he is. We need to let Pippa know and you all need to keep an eye out for the dad. We should…” I start to tell her when Pippa pulls up and comes to a stop by our bikes.
“What’s going on? Is everything okay?” she asks when she closes her car door and approaches our group.
I fill her in on what’s happening and her smiling face turns to a worried look. I don’t like that at all. I much prefer her relaxed and happy instead of the concern that’s gripping her now.
“It might be best if you and Craig stay with me tonight, Pippa. His father doesn’t know where I live. I don’t think he does, anyway. I guess it depends on if he’s going to look for Katrena and Craig. We don’t know if he even cares enough to do that. But this place is easier to track down than my home if he’s looking for them,” Tammy says.
“Yeah, I agree. We’ll tell Craig we’re having a sleepover. He’ll love having us to himself,” Pippa answers.
“You have enough room for one more, Tammy?” asks Cash. “Because if he’s looking hard enough, he’ll find you. And one of us should be there, also.”
“I’ll stay with them,” answers Trigger at the same time I do.
“Pooh, yes. I have enough room for him. Trigger, no, because I don’t have enough room for him and his club girls too,” spits Tammy.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake, woman! This isn’t about you. This is about keeping a little boy safe. And I have apologized! I fucked up and I apologized! What more do you want me to do?” barks Trigger.
“Stop! Both of you, just stop. We have bigger issues to deal with than who cleans Trigger’s house and why his head was so far up his ass that he thought we’d all want to have dinner with the men’s fuck toy. We need to move beyond that and deal with more important shit,” barks Pippa surprising me, Trigger and Tammy and earning a grin from Cash.
“Ex fuck toy,” mutters Trigger.
“What-the-fuck-ever!” Pippa shoots back.
Cash, our club’s enforcer, steps back into the fray and ends it when he declares, “Pippa, Craig, Tammy and Pooh are staying at Tammy’s tonight. If anything goes down, Pooh will handle it and call any of us for help if needed. Tomorrow, we’ll keep Craig with us at the gym and we’ll figure things out from there. That work for everyone?”
Cash, who isn’t known for talking much, gets nods from everyone. Pippa heads inside to pack a bag for Craig while the rest of us wait. Trigger and Tammy are both fuming but are staying quiet. Vex and Craig jog over to us and Tammy shares the news with Craig.
“Guess what, Craig? We’re having a sleepover at my house tonight! Pippa and Pooh are coming, too! We can make popcorn and watch a movie. We can even build a blanket fort in the living room. Sound good to you?”