Page 28 of Wild Side
Their eyes widen as they stare at me. No more sharing glances, because they’re completely frozen. I press my lips together as I watch them for a moment. I’m not sure what to do. I also don’t want to talk just to talk.
So I wait.
In silence.
Maybe this is what stunned silence means, because they’re both just watching me, staring at me, unmoving, unthinking, and I think maybe even unbreathing. Then they both smile. It’s slow, small at first, and then it consumes them, until they are grinning like fools, their eyes wide and sparkling.
“Another baby,” Dakota cries. “More family.”
MAVERICK
“So what is your grand plan if we don’t do the shop?” Piggy asks.
The guys look at one another, glancing around. “I’m open to suggestions,” Bullet states. “But at this point, I’m guessing that I’m not the only one who wants to cut losses with the supply and demand of this equipment and dealing with the port authority and whatever hoops they’ve decided to throw toward us when it comes to importing shit.”
“What about a strip club?” Viking asks.
“Fuck that,” Goose grinds out. “There is no way I’m dealing with a whole fucking club of bitches like that. No strip club, no stable.”
Agreed.
“We need diversification. Maybe we don’t do security parts. Maybe we are the security,” Bullet suggests.
“Like protection?” Ivy asks. “I don’t hate that.”
“I don’t either, but are there enough people here who need that?” I ask.
Bullet shrugs a shoulder. I have no fucking idea what the answer is here. We aren’t skilled mechanics like other clubs. We’ve always thrived on supply and demand. We’ve always done a little drug trafficking on the side, and it’s done well for us. But shit is drying up, and it’s time for us to shift.
I get that.
I just don’t know the answer.
“Private security firm,” Lightning says. “If that changes into something else, then it does. But I like the sound of that, and we have contacts. Sure, Thunder Rock doesn’t have a ton, but during the thick of summer and the thick of winter, we have plenty of tourists coming. The bars, clubs, and music venues all need security. The rich bastards who own their mansions on the hills need it, too. And we can monitor their places and whatever else they want.”
“Do you think this could bring in enough to make up for the security supply?” Bullet asks.
Lightning clears his throat, sliding his palms down his thighs before he jerks his chin. “I want to say yes, but it won’t be immediately.”
“I got bills to pay,” Razor grinds out.
“I got a baby coming,” I blurt out.
My eyes widen at my words. I can’t believe I said them out loud, no warning, no buildup, no fucking nothing. Goose growls beside me. I can’t even look at him. I know, without a doubt, he’s hurt, confused, and angry. This was never meant to be part of our plan.
“A baby?” Viking asks.
“A baby,” I confirm.
“The bitch from California?” Goose asks. “That why she came here, to tell you that you knocked her up a few months ago when you fucked her once?”
I know what he’s getting at. I don’t have to comment on that shit, so I don’t. I have no doubt he’ll have some choice words later, and I’m not sure I want to hear them, to be honest.
“Yes,” Bullet begins. “Zadie is the daughter of Halo, the president of the Rivara chapter. We’ve got some shit to smooth over there, but I know that Maverick will make it right.”
Ivy whistles but doesn’t say anything. No doubt they’re all thinking the same thing as Goose. That this is a gigantic fuckup and that Zadie may not be pregnant with my baby. Hell, I said as much to her face, but I know it’s mine. And even if it’s not, the fact that I haven’t been able to keep her out of my head is a fucking sign.
She’s mine.
