Page 13 of Dale
“You left and didn’t tell me shit. How about you tell me why you left me.”
Chapter Thirteen
Dale
Before I can go find my girl, I have to find out what happened with Natalia. I feel so lost and so fucked up right now.
She sits next to me at the bed with her hands closed in her lap. Natalia looks like she’s wanting to be anywhere but with me and I’m not sure I blame her. I want to be anywhere than where I am at this moment.
“You remember that shootout that took place at the clubhouse?”
“Yeah,” I reply. Of course, I remember all of the shootouts that take place at the clubhouse. I’m a lieutenant now and am responsible for making sure all of our shit is handled.
“I was going to tell you I was pregnant that day. I had just found out and then I saw all of that shit go down. I couldn’t stand to tell you it was because of my dad’s club.”
I try to hold up my hand to stop her. “What the fuck do you mean?”
Suddenly things are becoming clearer and I’m beginning to realize everything that has happened.
“My dad was the one who called that hit. He wanted to make sure I was going to leave you. It turns out, he didn’t want the club relationship anyway and wanted to make sure I would leave. He knew I never wanted to live this type of life. He knew from the beginning that I didn’t want this. I didn’t want to worry about my husband being shot. He also knew I didn’t want to have the phone call about you being arrested.”
I did two stints in jail over the past five years. They weren’t anything serious and the club lawyer got me out of them quickly. I got a traffic charge and some cop tried to get me for something else.
“Why didn’t you just tell me?”
She looks clearly into my eyes as she says the next part. “You wouldn’t have left the club. You always wanted to be part of the club and I was nothing more to you than your wife.”
“That’s bull shit, Nat. You know that is bull shit. You know I would have done pretty much anything for you.”
“You mean to tell me you would have given up this shit and got a legit job?”
When she puts it like that, I think back on everything I would have given up. I’m not rich, by any means, but I have enough money to support myself and my family. If I would have known where to send the divorce papers, I would have divorced Natalia from the beginning and gotten serious with Cassie.
“You coming here, really fucked everything up for me.”
She nods. “I never meant to hurt you. I didn’t want our baby to live the life I lived. I didn’t want our baby to know the kind of pain the club gave me when my dad would go to prison and then come out with a new grand scheme to make more money.”
I hold my hand up to stop her. “Your dad. Let’s talk about that.”
I am skirting around talking about Maverick. I really want to know what the deal is with my son but I got to handle the club business before I can find out about my son.
“You heard me talking to Chase?”
The question is delicate but she already knows the answer. “Of course, I did.”
“I would rather talk to the whole club and you than repeat it. If you can tell Chase, I can tell you.”
“You kept my son away from me for five years. You just blew my fuckin’ world up! I don’t owe you anything,” I retort with malice. It is true, though. I don’t owe her anything.
She holds her hand up to say something and then places it back in her lap. “It is true. I know you don’t owe me anything but I want you to be involved in Maverick’s life. I want you to be there for Maverick.”
“It would be so much easier if I just hated you again. You being here is making me not hate you,” I answer.
Natalia smiles. “I don’t want to fall back in your arms. I think we both owe it to ourselves and our lives to not do that.”
“Nat, I’m in love with Cassie. She’s my future. I don’t want that shit with you.”
“Then, I need you to let me get all of this shit out before you start getting upset.”
