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He sat forward and leaned on his elbows. “Do you like living here?”
I swallowed hard and thought about the question. At first, I hadn’t. In my mind, I’d traded one prison for another, but lately, I’d felt differently. “I do.”
He slapped his hand down on the bar. “Good.”
I smiled and gathered the courage to ask a question myself. “Do you like having a big family?”
He chuckled. “Guess I better, huh?” I felt the tension drain from my shoulders and laughed along with him, smiling when he continued. “Always wanted a big family. I grew up in a family of five, was and still am close to my brother and three sisters and wanted the same for my kids.”
“That’s nice.” I said softly.
“Do you have any brothers or sisters?”
I shook my head. “No, it’s just me.”
He looked around. “Not just you anymore from what I can tell.”
I looked around the room as well but frowned. “They’re just helping me out. I’m sure once they find Snake, I’ll have to find a new place to live.”
The thought of leaving made me feel like crying, but I had no idea why, except that the idea of starting over by myself was overwhelming.
He angled his head down, and a line formed between his eyebrows. “Why do you think that?”
I gestured to the room at large. “I helped them out, so now they’re helping me out. But once Snake isn’t a threat to the club, that’ll change.” I leaned in against the bar. “It’s okay because Gunner is teaching me to drive, and he got me a book so I can study for my GED. At least they’re helping me get ready to be on my own.”
He nodded, his eyes watching me closely, which I found a little odd, when he finally answered. “Gunner’s a good man.”
“He’s nice.” I agreed.
“You ever been on your own, darlin’?”
I nodded. “Yeah. After my mom died.”
His eyes softened. “How old were you?”
“Fifteen.” I swallowed hard when the thoughts of my mom floated through my mind.
He closed his eyes for a moment and then opened them slowly, but I could recognize the sadness in them. “I didn’t grow up easy either, darlin’, but I had my brother and sisters with me. I’m sorry you were all alone. Nobody should have to be.”
“Are your parents still alive?”
“No. They died young. Too much partying.” He lifted his hand, his palm facing me. “Don’t get me wrong, I love my parents, and they did the best they could, but they liked drinkin’ a little too much.”
I felt tears coming and blinked my eyes quickly to clear them. “My mom did her best too. She wasn’t perfect, but she tried, and she was always good to me.”
He smiled with sympathy in his expression. “She sounds like a wonderful person.”
I returned his smile, but it was watery. “She was.”
“You miss her.” It wasn’t a question, only a statement of fact, but I answered anyway. Jack was easy to talk to, and I found I actually wanted to keep the conversation going.
“I miss her every day,” I admitted quietly. “But I’m glad she wasn’t here while I was with Snake.”
His eyes softened, and he leaned forward, lowering his voice. “Something tells me Snake would never have been in your life if you weren’t grievin’ your mama.” He reached out and laid his hand over mine. “Sometimes, darlin’, when we feel like we’re drowning, we grab onto the first thing we see that might save us. That’s not a mistake. That’s surviving.” He wrapped his big hand around mine and squeezed gently. “Your mama would be nothing but proud that you survived without her. She would also be proud that she raised her daughter to be strong enough to sacrifice herself to save another.” He reached his other hand across the bar top and grabbed mine, holding them both tightly. “That’s what you did for my boy. It terrifies me to think about what could’ve happened if you hadn’t come to these boys with the information you had so they could warn Luke.”
“It wasn’t a big deal.” I answered shyly.
“It was to me, and it was to Anna. It also was to my kids, especially Luke. Family takes care of family, no matter what they have to sacrifice to do that. You are and always will be family to us.”