Page 31 of Biker's Baby

FOURTEEN

Iris

I whippedthe batter as quickly as I could, panting as I tried to keep up with the pace I’d set in my own head. Joel loved pancakes, but if there was one thing that pissed him off first thing in the morning more than anything else, it was lumps of flour in the batter.

I gave up making him breakfast most days. He would complain about it, but I hated the fight we’d have if I tried to make pancakes and didn’t mix the batter thoroughly enough. It was a fight I could do without, so most days I made sure I was out of the house and headed to work before breakfast if he happened to spend the night.

Now, as I mixed the batter with my whisk, I couldn’t help but think about those many fights that we’d had, and how much I didn’t want to get involved in another relationship like that.

Every time I thought of being in a relationship these days, I thought back to those two weeks I’d spent under Abe’s protection before. We weren’t in a relationship, but we’d hooked up, and we’d had a wild time. I knew he would have happily committed to me back then, and it was my own fear that kept me from doing the same with him.

Now, I wondered where I would be in my life if I had just agreed to date him.

I wouldn’t be on the run from some stalker who was after me, that much was certain. On the other hand, there was no telling if I would still be in this position, either. Just because Abe was alive and well right now didn’t mean that things would stay that way for him.

I knew being part of an MC was dangerous, and I didn’t want to be anywhere near such things. But there was no taking that part out of Abe, and I had a feeling he’d wind up dying by the club before he got out of it. If he ever wanted to get out of it, that is.

“Come on, Tris! I’m out in the kitchen!” I called out when I heard Tris start to call for me from the spare bedroom. I was glad that our bedroom was on the first floor, so I was able to hear him easily from any part of the kitchen or living room.

Plus, he was able to come find me without me having to go get him. I wouldn’t trust him to climb the flight of stairs on his own yet, but he didn’t seem that interested in them when I was on the main level.

He wandered out into the kitchen where I was making the pancakes, so I picked him up and put him into his highchair. It had been a godsend that we had picked that up when we went back to my apartment a few days before.

It was nice to have something that I could strap him into while I was in the kitchen working. It gave him something to do while I was busy, and I didn’t have to chase after him and make sure he wasn’t getting into things he shouldn’t.

I spread some cereal on his tray so he had something to snack on while I turned my attention to the griddle. It was heating while I mixed the batter, so now it was ready for me to start serving the cakes.

I used the ladle to portion out the batter, then I grabbed a spatula to keep an eye on the cakes and keep them from burning. It was early, so I expected Abe to be home any minute. It was about this time that he normally showed up, but I didn’t think he’d want to hang out with us or have any pancakes.

As always, he’d want to head to his room and get a few hours of sleep before he got up to get the coffee and have whatever he felt like eating for breakfast. Some days it was normal breakfast food, then there were days when I wasn’t quite sure what he considered a decent breakfast.

Still, I never questioned what he did. It was his house, and he was an adult. He didn’t need me to make any commentary on what he chose to eat or what he did with his day. I was just a guest, and I had to mind my own business on those things.

At least, that’s what I figured he’d want from me.

I finished the first round of cakes and portioned out another round of batter on the griddle, then I turned my attention to cut the pancake for Tris into smaller pieces so he could start working on that while I cooked the rest.

I was nearly finished with all the cakes when Abe walked in the front door.

“Morning,” I said without even looking over to him.

“Morning,” he said. “Smells good.”

“Thanks,” I told him. “Pancakes whenever you’re ready.”

“I’ll be right back.”

I looked up in surprise. I figured he’d say something about how he’d get them when he woke up, but instead, he was only up in his room for a few minutes before he came back downstairs and took a seat at the table. I moved Tristan to sit closer to him, then I put all the pancakes on a platter and put them out on the table.

“You want coffee?” I asked. “It’s fresh.”

“Please.”

I served the coffee and put the butter, syrup, and jam I found in the fridge on the table, then I sat with Abe and Tristan. It was the first time he had chosen to sit with us while I served a meal, and I had to fight to keep from thinking how strange it was that this was the first time I’d had breakfast with my child and that child’s father at the same time.

“I thought you’d want to get some sleep,” I said as I served myself.

“I’m not working this weekend, and Tad’s going to need me in an hour, so I might as well stay up,” Abe told me.

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