Chaser turns my way. “Rock’s already done enough to help us out.”
“Oh yes. Your latest fuckup. How is that?”
“It’s been handled.”
DeLova shakes his head. “We’ll come back to that.”
I need to put an end to this now. “We’re not in the gun-running business.” I hold up a hand to cut off DeLova before he opens his mouth. “I have two guys in mind I’d absolutely trust to handle this. One’s a brother—one of our other charters. The other is a Nomad who does sensitive work for us from time to time.”
Wrath raises an eyebrow. But he doesn’t open his mouth to contradict me.
Mr. DeLova’s face twists with displeasure. “I hope you’re not suggesting Sway? He doesn’t seem like the word discretion ever made it into his vocabulary.”
That’s true to a certain extent, but when it comes to business dealings, Sway’s always willing to stretch his vocabulary for money. Plus he didn’t remain president of his charter this long by pissing off men like DeLova.
I try to convey that in the least insulting way possible.
“You were here a couple months ago when his crazy suka caused a scene, were you not?”
“A marital spat.” Shit, am I pissed that once again I have to defend Sway’s fucked-up personal life. “Everyone has ’em.”
“You don’t.” He makes a rippling gesture with his hands that I’m not sure how to interpret. “Your wife is lovely. Beautiful woman. And never heard a sound from her.”
I narrow my eyes, not liking the way he seems to have paid so much attention to Hope. To my knowledge, she only met him long enough for a short introduction the last time we were here.
“Everyone’s different,” Stump says. “Some ol’ ladies got more spirited ways. Sway’s ol’ lady’s been part of their club a long time now.”
DeLova jabs a finger in Chaser’s chest. “My daughter doesn’t behave like that.”
“Don’t bring Mallory into this, batya,” Chaser says in a low, threatening tone.
“Fine.” I sit up and tap my knuckles against the table. “You don’t want Sway to handle it. I got someone else in mind. Not affiliated with anyone. Sticks to himself. Harder than a motherfucker to track down.”
“It’s more than a one-man job.”
“He can put a crew together.”
“A decent crew?” He cuts a scolding glance at Stump. “Not someone who thinks it’s cool to be interviewed for some bullshit documentary.”
My gaze flicks to Chaser, who rolls his eyes. “They don’t work for us. And it’s been handled.”
“You ever hear of such a thing?” DeLova says to me. “Wearing a fucking mask like it’s Halloween. Thinking no one will figure out who they are. What the fuck kind of nonsense is that?”
“Nothing surprises me anymore, sir,” I say, although that is pretty damn fucked-up. Surprised Stump would have anyone that irresponsible working for him.
He sits back, pleased with my answer.
At least for now, he seems to accept my refusal. Never know with a guy like him.
“I’ll let you discuss this latest screwup. I want to see my daughter and granddaughter,” DeLova announces.
“She’s on her way over now,” Chaser says as he walks his father-in-law out.
Stump’s almost apologetic about the whole situation.
An apologetic Stump isn’t something you see often. I try not to be a dick about it, but the fact that I had to miss Hope’s doctor’s appointment to help him out isn’t making me feel too forgiving.
Chaser returns a few minutes later. “Sorry about all this, Rock. It’s been a rough couple of months.”
“Sounds like it.”
“It ain’t easy finding people you can trust anymore.”
“I feel you. Why do you think we stay small?”
“Not many are fit to wear a patch.”
“Nope.”
He sighs and slaps Stump on the shoulder. “I got our guy in the shed out back. You wanna come with?”
Stump heaves himself out of his chair. “Yup.”
“Hey, Rock,” Mallory greets me as I step out of the chapel after Chaser. “Look who I found.”
Teller’s standing behind her, and he half smiles when he sees me. “Sorry I’m late, Prez.”
I’m just happy to see him. “Hey, Knucklehead.”
“Mal,” Chaser calls.
“I’ll be right back.” Mallory squeezes my arm. “Don’t leave without seeing me, though. I have a gift for Hope. I felt so bad I couldn’t make it to her shower.”
“Thanks, hon. I’ll catch up with you in a bit.”
“Where you been, welterweight?” Wrath asks, thumping Teller on the back. “You missed all the fun.”
Teller ducks his head. “Yeah, sorry about that.”
Wrath pats his shoulder and takes off.
“Can we talk?” Teller asks after he leaves.
“Yeah.” I put my hand on his back and steer him outside.
Stump’s got a bunch of picnic benches behind the clubhouse, and that’s where we go.
Except for a few Demons guarding several small brick buildings farther back on the property, we’re alone.
Teller climbs on top of one of the tables and takes a seat.
“Where you been?” I ask.
“Canada.”
I let that sink in for a minute. “Find what you needed?”
He snorts and shakes his head. “No.”
“Charlotte’s worried about you.”
He runs his hand over the back of his neck and looks away. “I talked to her.”
“Murphy’s worried about you.”
“Talked to him too.”
“You didn’t answer my texts or calls.”
“I’m here, aren’t I?”
His mouth twists in annoyance, forcing me into a different role than I’m used to with him. Not an MC president itching to kick his ass for showing disrespect, but a father wanting to take away his son’s pain.
“I’m worried about you.”
“What are we supposed to do, Rock?” He bites his lip and stares up at the sky. “Am I supposed to call you Dad now?”
He sounds more confused than angry. Although, if he were angry, I wouldn’t blame him. “If you want to, yes.” I snort and elbow him in the side. “Shit, you and Murphy have been doing it for years anyway.”
The corners of his mouth twitch. “Yeah.”
We sit there in silence for a few minutes.
“Shit, just when I think I can’t hate my mother any more, something else happens.”
“She’s… something.”
He stares straight ahead. “This is a stupid question—”
“I don’t think there are any stupid questions in this situation.”
“Did you love her?”
What a question. How can facing my past hurt more than letting old wounds and painful memories die?
“Never mind. You had to be a fucking kid.” He gives me a sideways glance. “Did you like her at least?”
That’s easier to answer. “Yeah. I liked her a lot. Looked forward to her coming over.” I pause and meet his interested blue eyes. “Before we got involved, I mean.”
I take a breath and reach into my past for the sake of my son. “My father fell apart after my mom died. He earned the money and she took care of me. That was their arrangement. So, he didn’t know what the fuck to do without her.” I swallow down the pain and charge ahead. “I missed her so much. Cried a lot. He really had no patience for that.”
“Jesus, Rock.”
I can’t deal with any pity from him, so I continue. “He drowned his own sorrows in alcohol. Made him a fucking asshole and I resented the hell out of him. Really fucking hated him when he started trying to replace my mother with any woman who gave him a passing glance.”
His lip curls with disgust. “He and my mother didn’t…?”
“No. Fuck no. Not that I ever knew.” I close my eyes and try to picture th
e first time I remember seeing Tina. Unfortunately, all I get is a blurred jumble of combined memories and impressions. “He’d take me to bars and shit. I was nine, maybe ten, so he’d make me stay in the car. Got so cold one night, I tried walking home. Ended up getting picked up by the cops. I wouldn’t tell them anything, but they didn’t need my words once he showed up. Narrowly missed going to jail and having me taken away. After that, he asked one of the neighborhood girls to come watch me. Don’t remember her much, except she kicked me in the teeth with a fuckin’ wooden clog one night.” I stop and tap my front tooth. “Split my lip. Never saw her again.”
“On purpose?”
“Nah, I was probably trying to look up her dress or something.”
He shakes with laughter. “Sounds about right. Go on.”
“Tina was next. I think she worked at the gas station—”
“That makes sense.” The excitement in his voice kills me. As if he’s trying to hard to piece our shared history together. “I remember her telling me about her first job selling cigarettes before she was old enough to buy them.” He snorts. “It’s why I was always so adamant about Heidi not working when she was in high school.”
Emotion tightens my chest. “I was always impressed with you for the way you looked after her.”