Page 3 of Pooh

“That’s what boys do,” I chuckle.

Pippa’s eyes light up and a small laugh escapes that perfect mouth.

“Yes, it is,” she agrees.

“Where do you want us to start putting this stuff?” interjects Toes.

Fuck, I forgot all about the prospects standing behind me. I turn, glare at Toes, and then at Horse Nuts when he barks out a laugh at my look.

“Can I see how much there is?” Pippa asks.

I step out of Pippa’s way and she walks to the back of the truck. She looks into it and then turns back my direction. Her eyes are wide open and I’m guessing it’s in surprise at how much we’ve brought. This is definitely a proud biker moment. I love my club and this is just one of many reasons why. We do good things for people who need some good in their lives.

“Your club is donating all of this? Oh my God. You have no idea how many people this will help. Thank you so much!”

“You’re very welcome, darlin’. We’d be happy to assemble the beds and get everything set up for you too. Where do you want us to start putting these things?” I ask.

“I can’t ask you to do all the assembling too. Your club has already done so much.”

“You’re not asking. We’re offering. If you don’t mind us being here for a few hours, we can have everything ready to be put to use. Sounds like little Craig would like to sleep in his new bed tonight,” I say, smiling at the excitement that had been on his face at the mention of a bed. It quickly turns to an inward frown when I realize why a kid his age would be so excited about a bed. This may be his first one. That’s not a happy thought at all.

“Then yes, please, your help would be great. I’ll show you where to put these items and in which rooms the beds belong. And, again, thank you so much.”

The truck is unloaded, the beds are assembled and the check handed over to Pippa. The bedrooms are small but clean and now fully furnished. As I’m connecting the wires for the new TV I just set on a dresser, Pippa walks into the room. Fuck, she’s beautiful.

“We’re just finishing up and then we’ll get out of your way,” I tell her.

“No hurry. I realize I didn’t introduce myself earlier. I’m Pippa Holbrook. I manage this place. And I can’t thank you and your club members enough for the donations. We get no government funding, so we operate on donations alone and it’s always a challenge to meet everyone’s needs on so little. This helps more than you can ever imagine.”

“Pooh. Cole Murray but nobody calls me that anymore,” I tell her while shaking her hand. I don’t want to let go of it either. Her hand is incredibly soft but her handshake is firm. I like both. “No thanks needed, Pippa. The club is happy to help. New Horizons just gave us another reason to have poker runs.”

“Pooh? That’s got to be an interesting story,” Pippa says with a laugh.

I almost miss what she is saying because her smile and laugh have me gobsmacked. Literally, stopped in my tracks. My mind goes blank. Fuck, this is not good. I struggle to pull my attention back to her words.

“Yeah, I guess so. Not my best moment but the name stuck,” I mumble out.

“Are you going to spill and tell me how you got named Pooh by a bunch of bikers?” Pippa asks.

“Not gonna happen, darlin’,” I answer with a smirk. “Not even torture will get that story out of me.”

Pippa throws her head back and laughs. It’s a great look on her and I love the smile you can see in her eyes.

“Now I really want to know!” she giggles.

“What do you want to know?” says a young voice.

I look down and see a little boy standing next to me. Cute kid.

“How Pooh got his name,” Pippa answers.

“Girlie ass name,” spouts the little boy.

“Craig! Language!” barks Pippa while looking sternly at the boy.

Holy shit! This kid is Craig? I didn’t even recognize him now that he is showered.

“Craig? You clean up well, little man. I didn’t even recognize you without the five layers of mud you had on you before.”

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