Page 8 of Bond

“Having all those people around to help out.”

Turning my attention from Daisy to the woman who I’d not been able to forget in the last year. “You’ll have that now, Roch,” I tell her.

She frowns slightly and says in a disbelieving tone, “But they don’t know me, and Daisy isn’t even blood.”

Laying Daisy down on the bed, I open the diaper bag. Taking out a tiny baby grower, nappy, wipes, and cream, I start to change her, telling Rochelle, “Blood doesn’t mean anything to a Crow, Rochelle. You’ll understand more tomorrow once you meet everyone. For now, go and grab a shower while I settle Daisy. Skinny and Josie will be back soon with some food for us.”

When she still hesitates, I turn my full attention back to her. Lifting my hand, I cup her cheek, tilting her head slightly towards me before reassuring her, “I promise, baby. Everything is going to be okay. You and Daisy have nothing to worry about.”

Her gaze searches mine, and whatever she sees has her nodding her agreement. “Okay,” she whispers with one last glance at Daisy, as if to ensure that she is still okay. It is only then that she goes towards the bags and starts rifling through them. Once she has what she needs, she goes to the bathroom; it isn’t long before I hear the shower start.

Turning back to Daisy, I was surprised to see her eyes open. Eyes that are the exact same colour as her mother’s.

“Well, hello, princess. Did you have a nice nap? You’re probably going to keep us up all night, huh?” I speak softly to her as I quickly finished changing her nappy and putting her in a fresh grower. Picking her up and resting her on my shoulder, I gently rub her back to be rewarded with a huge burp, making me chuckle and then sigh happily as she snuggles her head further into my shoulder, seemingly content for the moment. Looking around my room, I’m surprised that the slight messiness isn’t bothering me as much as it usually would.

My childhood had left me with many scars—messiness, being dirty, and ill-fitting clothes only being a few of them. It was how I got my name, Bond, because when I got the chance, I’d made sure that I’d never have to live like that again. I’d always been well turned out, with tidy hair and pressed clothes. My brothers understood my quirks and made allowances for them. That didn’t mean that I didn’t get dirty when I had to, because I could, as long as I knew there was a shower and fresh, clean clothes at the end of it.

Taking Daisy with me when there was a knock on the door, I opened it to find Blaze holding a plate, not Skinny or Josie as expected.

“I sent them to bed,” Blaze explains at my puzzled look. “Josie has to get started early tomorrow. This must be Daisy.”

“It is,” I told him, turning slightly so he can see her face. She is wide awake and happily gurgling away.

“Fuck, Bond, she’s tiny, man. Beautiful and strong though,” Blaze says softly, holding out his finger, chuckling slightly as she grips it tight in her little fist.

“I’ll catch up with you tomorrow,” he continues when we hear the shower shut off. “I’m happy for you, Bond, and I’m glad she’s out of there. We’ll handle whatever’s coming. Bull’s going to call Church tomorrow just after lunch.”

“Thanks, Blaze,” I tell him. None of us thought that this was over. We all expected there to be blowback; it was just a matter of time. The only good thing was that this gang didn’t know us and what we were capable of when it came to protecting ours. Luckily, we had made connections before we even arrived in the country, and Bull had organized a stockpile of weapons and ammunition should we need it.

Closing the door on Blaze, I put the plate that was piled high with sandwiches on the table. I wasn’t sure how hungry Josie thought we were, I thought with a twinge of amusement, taking in the number of sandwiches on the plate.

“It looks like your Aunt Josie thinks we haven’t eaten in days. What do you think, Daisy?” I ask the sweet little girl who seems utterly content to be carried around. Keeping my hand around the back of her head to make sure she is secure in my hold, I squat down by the fridge and open the door, perusing the contents, “What will your mum drink, hey, Daise? Coke won’tbe good for you, so it’s either juice or water.” Turning my head slightly, I look into her big green eyes; her lips give a small lift at the corners that I take for a smile. Smiling back at her, I nod my head, “Yep, I agree with you, princess, water it is.” Taking two bottles out of the fridge, I put them on the top of the fridge. Closing the door, I stand up and stop when I see Rochelle standing just in the doorway of the bathroom, watching us with a small smile, her eyes soft.

“Princess and I decided water all round,” I tell Rochelle.

Rochelle’s lips twitch slightly, “Princess, huh?” she states, amusement in her tone.

“Yep, princess,” I reply, handing Roch a bottle of water and waving a hand to the chairs before continuing, “Sit, baby, and have something to eat. You’re way too thin.”

Rochelle lets out a bark of laughter at my words, “That’s a first; usually, men are telling us to lose weight.”

Snorting a little, I tell her, “Well, they’re idiots. All I want is for you to be happy and healthy. You’re feeding Daisy, so you need extra food. That’s just common sense,” I say as I put a sandwich on her plate and nudge it towards her before taking one for myself.

Rochelle doesn’t reply to my statement, but I’m happy to see she eats a couple of sandwiches and finishes her water. When she pushes her plate away, only then do I say anything.

“How are you really, baby?”

Her eyes fill with tears, but she blinks them away and clears her throat before replying, “Honestly, I don’t know. It’s all happened so fast. This morning, I woke up in my childhood bedroom expecting my day to go as it usually did, and then Dad saw your name in the order book, and he hustled me to get packed.

“I’m not sure what lit a fire under his arse, but something did. And now I’m here in the bedroom of the man I’ve not been able to stop thinking about since I first met you last year, and you’ve taken us in like it’s nothing. You’ve taken Daisy as yours, and you’ve looked after us like you’ve always known us.

“It’s confusing. I’ve never known a man like you. Not even my dad, as wonderful as he is. I’m scared it’s all going to be taken away from us, and then Daisy and I’ll be homeless again.”

Leaning forward slightly, I take Rochelle’s hand, “I promise, Rochelle, it’s going to be okay. You’ll see tomorrow when you meet everyone. Bull’s called Church after lunch, and we’ll sit down and hash out a contingency plan to keep you and Daisy safe. I don’t want you to worry.”

“Umm, Church? Are you going to pray for answers?” she asks with confusion.

Chuckling quietly so as not to disturb the now sleeping baby, I shake my head in amusement, “No, baby, Church is what we call our meetings.”

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