Walk the Line (Kings of Chaos 5)

“Yes, you should.” The nervous excitement audible in his voice, and sparkle in his eyes warms me from the inside out. He’s going to be just fine. I repeat that to myself in a chant as I leave the room.

An hour later I’m answering the door.

“You finally letting him out?”

“Look. You don’t like me, fine. I really couldn’t care less, but you need to play nice and be the famil

y member Jagger sees you as. This whole event has been traumatic, and he’s trying to find his feet again so to speak. Discord between us will only slow down that process. I’ve spent the past six months teaching him how to live independently with his disability. This is his first trip out. Look after him, or I’ll show you what a bitch I can really be.”

His eyebrows arch up, and he opens his mouth to respond.

“Warp. Man, it’s good to see you.”

Saved by the Old Man. I step back and smile at the sight of him in his jeans, white and black shoes, and his cut.

“Shit man, you about to audition for an action role?”

Jagger laughs. “The Old Lady’a been working my ass off. Believe me, I ain’t been on vacation. You ready to get out of here?”

Warp looks at me with an unreadable expression on his face. “Yeah, we’ll be back tonight, or maybe not. He’s still got his dorm.”

I hold my hands. “I’m off duty. I’m just an Old Lady right now.” I wink at Jagger, bend down and kiss him breathless. The spark burns brightly between us. We also spent the past six months discovering new ways to love one another. I step back and wiggle my fingers.

“Have fun, honey.”

“You too.”

He wheels out behind Warp with confidence that comes from practice. I close the door and peek out the curtain as he puts the seat back, places his transfer car, and uses the handle in the car as leverage to pull his body onto the seat. He places his legs inside and turns to disassemble his bike for Warp to store. I jump up and down doing a silly dance as joy rockets through me. The men have done a great job of stopping by, shooting the shit, and coming to dinner, but this is special. He’s returning to his element.

The car pulls out of the driveway, and I move to turn on cheesy nineties pop music and catch up with Whitney. She choose to attend summer semester. I’ve been so busy with caring for Jagger we’ve taken to scheduling our phone conversations and face time.

I plop onto the couch ready to enjoy some much-needed downtime and avoid worrying about Jagger.

Chapter Sixteen

Freeze

Why the hell didn’t I do this before now? All my concerns about not fitting in seem stupid now that I’m seated at the table with Warp, Shadow, Skull, and Stone.

“It’s damn good to see you here, brother,” Stone said.

“It’s good to be here.”

“That bitch had you holed up.”

I clutch my beer. “You ever disrespect her again, and we’re going to have a problem. I owe that woman everything. We weren’t in the house playing grab ass. She was whipping me back into shape. You have no idea all the things you have to relearn when you lose the use of your legs. I ain’t been the most pleasant person to deal with, and yet, she brushes it off and tells me to suck it up. She’s the reason I’m going to walk again. It won’t be on my own power. It’ll be with leg braces, but I don’t give a shit. When you insult her, you’re pissing on me.”

“Shit man, I’m sorry.” Warp holds his hands up. “I didn’t realize.”

“Now you do.”

Stone places a hand on my shoulder and pinches. “Blanche is good people. I think we can all agree on that.”

“How you doing with…everything?” Shadow asks.

This was the moment I dreaded where my differences become apparent. “I’m as good as I can be. The Doc is happy with my progress, and I have a walking encyclopedia of knowledge with me daily.”

“What kind of things does she have you doing?” Skull asks.