Page 65 of Pigeon

“Long drive to the ranch. You two are always welcome to stay when you don’t want to make it. As long as you pay your share of the rent, that is,” Horse answers before throwing a pillow at my head, laughing.

I toss it back, and Horse throws one of his boots instead.

“Knock it off, you two. This isn’t romper room,” Ivy shouts from the kitchen.

When we quit acting like teenagers, Horse asks, “Anything new on Chubs yet?”

“No, nothing. Lucy’s way calmer than I would have expected her to be, so that makes me suspicious. Ava seems to be taking his disappearance harder than her. Either Lucy knows something, has had communications with him, or she’s got the best poker face ever.”

“I have never figured out what it is about Lucy and strange things happening when she’s around, but a few of us have noticed that those things are occurring more often since Chubs came up missing.”

“Really? I’ve been too busy lately to notice that,” I answer.

“Snots won’t even come into the same room with her now. She walked through the clubhouse yesterday, and a table leg fell off, a picture fell, and Toes screamed, grabbed his back, and has been icing it since. All within seconds of each other. He swears that Lucy is cursed, and if we’re not careful, her head is going to do a 360 or blood’s going to seep through the walls,” Horse says before laughing hard, probably at the look of Toes face while he explained his thoughts.

“Toes isn’t wrapped too tight,” I answer but laugh at the havoc Lucy can wreak.

“After she left, the main gate quit working, and James walked into the clubhouse while kissing the cross necklace that he always wears. When I asked why, he said he just got a feeling that it was the thing to do. He was spooked. Funny shit to see,” Horse explains between laughs.

“Speaking of James, the club’s got to make a decision soon about him. No doubt, he’ll get voted in, though.”

“Yeah, it’s time to make him a patched member,” Horse agrees.

Chapter 14

Ivy

Looking at the club women, I shake my head no. I’m not wearing some huge white, puffy dress just because it’s the tradition. I don’t mind wearing the occasional dress or skirt, but I’m not a wedding gown type of girl. Livi grins and gives me a wink. She completely understands because that’s not the type of girl she is either.

Bella comes into the large changing area, dress over her arm, and gives me a smile. Holding it up for me to see, I nod immediately. Simple, cream-colored, and the length will hit just above the knees. It’s exactly what I had in mind. I don’t like fancy, and this dress isn’t. It’s elegant but not so much that it can’t be worn for a ranch wedding. The shoes Tessie holds up are the same color, low-heeled and look comfortable. That’s good enough for me, and I’m grateful to be done shopping.

With my new posse, I make one more stop. I wanted to get Pigeon the perfect wedding gift, and Bailey gave me the perfect idea. When I’m done here, I’ll be driving to the ranch with James as my escort. Pigeon’s spending the night at his house and will make the drive with Rex in the morning. Rex promised that Pigeon will be on time and not hungover, but I was never worried. Pigeon has proved repeatedly over the last few weeks just how much he’s looking forward to our marriage. When the guys started talking about a bachelor party, Pigeon shut it down. Said he didn’t need or want one. He just needed to make me legally his. The guys made several whip-cracking sounds, but Pigeon wouldn’t budge.

I get up early and get the chores done before heading upstairs. James is using the downstairs bathroom to get ready, and I know I’m safe to take my time today. A short time later, I hear cars and bikes arriving but continue working product into my curls. When there’s a knock on my door, I open it to find Ava and Trudy looking gorgeous and holding up a makeup bag. Entering, they set me down and get to work.

“Should I pull my hair up?” I ask.

“No! Pigeon loves your curls. I’d kill for them myself. We’re going to let them frame your face, be stunning and natural,” Ava answers.

“We’re going light on the makeup too because Pigeon was quick to remind us that you don’t need ‘all that shit’ on your face,” Trudy says with a laugh.

Dressed, hair and makeup done, I sit quietly in front of my mirror, wishing with all my heart that my Nana and Papa had met Pigeon. They would have loved him and having them miss today is painful. Taking a deep breath, I dab at the wetness in my eyes and try to concentrate on the good things in my life instead. I remind myself how lucky I was to have had them for the time that I did and ignore the feeling of loneliness of having no family of my own at my wedding.

“You have your Nana’s rings for your something old. Trudy gave you your blue garter as your something blue. Tammy gave me her pearl bracelet for you to wear as your something borrowed. Pigeon bought you this as your something new,” Ava says before placing a delicate silver necklace around my neck.

Looking in the mirror at it, tears rise again. Hanging from the necklace is a hammered silver disk with a feather engraved in it. The feather matches the tat he has on his forearm, and I smile while waving my hands in front of my eyes.

“Knew that one was going to bring on the tears. It’s beautiful, Ivy. That man is all kinds of in love with you,” Trudy says softly.

“I’d love to see his face when he gets a look at your gift to him,” Ava says with an impish grin.

I return the grin but don’t offer to video the upcoming moment.

The simple ceremony goes off without a hitch. Pigeon smiled wide, both dimples showing when he saw Craig walking me toward him. The kids did their parts perfectly. Craig handed me off to Pigeon, but not before I bent low to give him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. After I straightened, Craig leveled a look at Pigeon. Clearly a look of warning, and Pigeon acknowledged it with respect by giving a small nod to Craig. Satisfied that his look was received correctly, Craig stepped to the side.

After repeating our vows, Pigeon pulled me close and kissed me, sealing our marriage vows. Turning to the crowd, he held our clasped hands high and let out a howl. The bikers in the crowd returned it, and the reception was underway.

It wasn’t long before I ditched my shoes, and Pigeon got rid of his jacket. Looking gorgeous in all black, he leads me to the makeshift dance floor, otherwise known as the deck, and pulls me close. Music starts playing, and I recognize “Unchained Melody” and then Ava’s voice as she sings the lyrics. Pigeon keeps me close, barely moving our feet but loving every second of our first dance.

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