Page 21

“You know our names are road names. That was explained to you one night, as I recall.” Bones paused as if he thought I would say something.

I was too dazed to say anything. I was still trying to process what he had said, and that this beautiful, wonderful man wanted me, even with all my drama and two babies on the way. What man would willingly want to do that? It appeared that Bones did. I tuned back in to him when he continued.

“And I heard Joli explain that our real names are only used for official documents and by our significant other, but only when we’re alone.

In public, around the club and others, it’s always Bones, or if you want to give me a special nickname, that might be okay.

” He winked, and I giggled. I could think of a few, but maybe not ones he’d want me to say publicly.

“I’ll think one up and see if you want me to say it in front of the others,” I teased.

“I can’t wait. But in the meantime, or whenever you want, it has to be Bones. When it’s just us, alone like we are now, I want you to call me by my first name.”

“I admit, I’ve been curious about it. I know your last name is Phoenix, which is a cool name. Alright, tell me what to call you,” I prompted.

“Hello, Blythe, I’m Jagger, Jagger Phoenix. It’s a pleasure to meet you,” he said.

“That’s so unfair,” I muttered.

He frowned. “What’s unfair?”

“You’re gorgeous and have such a cool, sexy name. God, why didn’t I get a name like that?” I pouted playfully, even if I did mean it about his name being sexy.

He threw back his head and laughed. When he stopped, he smiled at me. “I’m glad you like it. But I don’t think Blythe is unsexy. It’s beautiful. I like saying it. Blythe, Blythe.” His voice dropped low, and the way he said my name made it sound sexy, and my body reacted.

I wanted to maul him. I was always horny, and it seemed that I could be this way for a while due to the pregnancy hormones. I squeezed my thighs together and prayed my bra would cover my nipples as they hardened.

“Stop, we’re having a serious discussion here. Don’t distract me. You said your name was the first thing. What is the other?”

I did it out of desperation. Instantly, Bones’ playfulness disappeared. His face became a stony mask, and he eased away from me. My stomach dropped, and a queasy feeling hit me. Whatever he was about to tell me, it wasn’t good. I braced myself for the news.

“What I’m about to tell you stays between us. No telling the old ladies. Only a few people in the club—Agony, Dare, and Hulk—know this. I prefer to keep it that way unless I decide to tell the rest. Can you do that for me?”

“Of course, I won’t say anything.”

He nodded as he took a deep breath. “Many people ask me why a doctor would want to be a biker. They ask how I came to join the club. I always evade or redirect the conversation. The reason I do is that I don’t want to remember.

The past needs to stay in the past. It can’t be changed, no matter how hard we want it to be. Of all people, you know this.”

I nodded. I sure wish I could change mine, except for the babies’ part. I would never wish them away.

“I asked to prospect with the club ten years ago. I’ve been a member for nine years.

Before allowing someone to join, even as a prospect or an old lady, they conduct a background check through Wire.

Mine revealed I was a doctor, even though I never mentioned it to Agony.

I was called on it and asked why. I didn’t want to tell him, but I knew if I didn’t, he’d never let me prospect, so I did.

I informed the three main officers and then asked them to keep it confidential.

I was lucky. They agreed. I haven’t told another soul until now.

“I went to college early, at fifteen. I was significantly ahead of my peers, and I loved learning. I decided I wanted to earn a degree and then serve a stint in the military to see if it was a good fit for me. While I did, I was trained as a medic and gained extensive experience. That was good because being a doctor was what my dad wanted me to do more than anything. He pushed for it constantly. I wanted to see if it was what I wanted. Dad didn’t understand that.

“Anyway, I did four years and got out. I’d continued to take courses while in the military, so I was advancing to another degree, this one in medicine, even while serving.

I had to wait until I was discharged to attend the classes that required lab time and clinical work.

I found it easy. I absorbed what I read and flew through it.

My professors were astonished. I’m not telling you this to brag. It’s relevant.”

“I would never accuse you of bragging, B-, I mean, Jagger. Go on,” I prompted.

“While everything on the schooling end was going great, I had a more contentious home life. I grew up with two parents and an older brother. Mom and Dad were okay in the affection department, but they didn’t express their love very well.

For them, success was key no matter what.

They were proud of me when I went to college at such a young age, and they could brag about their brilliant son.

They didn’t love it when I served in the military.

They saw it as a waste of my time. What was important was to graduate and obtain my medical license, so I could say I was a doctor.

“I did accomplish that at twenty-six. Let me set the context here. My dad is a doctor. My mom is a physician’s assistant.

She met Dad through work. My older brother is three years older than I am.

Jameson is named after my dad. As the oldest, he holds a significant spot in the family.

As expected, he also attended medical school.

He spent no time in the military. He went to college and slugged his way through until he became a doctor.

He was twenty-eight when he finished and could join Dad in his medical practice.

“That was Dad’s dream. His sons would both carry on the family tradition of being doctors and continue his legacy and practice after he retired and was gone. Our grandfather was a doctor, and his father was one before him. It was a big deal.”

I could see he was uncomfortable talking about it. “Jagger, if you don’t want to tell me, don’t feel like you have to.”

“Thank you, Firefly, but you need to know this in case it ever causes issues for us. I want you to understand why and not to take it personally. I know that statement confuses you, but I’ll get to it.

Since I went to college at a young age, I didn’t have all the experiences most kids and young people would have.

It got better in the military and then a little more in medical school, but I focused more on my schooling than on girls.

The opposite was true of Jameson. He had always had girlfriends and casual hookups since he was a teenager.

He always liked to make fun of me and say I didn’t know how to please a woman, and I probably was a virgin.

He would’ve been right until I was nineteen on the virgin part.

“I went into practice with Jameson and Dad as planned. I liked the work, but I didn’t like working with them.

They didn’t seem to care for the people they treated.

For them, it was all about money. The more they could make, the better.

They’d pack the schedule to see as many as possible in a day.

It was an assembly line. There was no opportunity to get to know or converse with your patients.

I would take my time and dig in, and they were constantly yelling at me to see more and not to blab.

“I wanted out but knew Dad would throw a fit, and so would Mom. So, being a good son, I stuck to it. To give myself a break and keep my skills up, I got a job in the ER, working every other weekend. It was there that I met Petra. She was unlike any woman I knew. She was a doctor, too. In no time, we were sleeping together. I was in love and urged her to move in with me after we’d been together three months.

She hesitated, but I ignored it and kept pushing until she agreed. ”

My stomach cramped, hearing about the woman he loved.

I knew it was going to turn into a crappy story.

What did it mean for us? Why would this affect our relationship?

Did he still have feelings for her? I wanted a man who could love me.

If Bones couldn’t due to his heart belonging to Petra, then I wasn’t doing this.

“Wait, I can see you’re about to say something. Let me finish,” he said. I shut my mouth.

“It was after she moved in that I took her home to meet my family. They seemed happy for me and liked Petra instantly. She was quickly welcomed into the family. She and Mom would go shopping and get coffee together or have a spa day. She would often come over for dinner. Even Jameson couldn’t find fault with her and treated her nicely. ”

“So what went wrong?” I asked. I couldn’t help it.

“I asked her to marry me six months after we moved in together. By then, we’d known each other for almost a year.

She was the one for me, and I didn’t want to wait.

She accepted, and she and Mom were deep into wedding plans.

I agreed to anything she wanted. It was her big day.

I was walking around happy and cocky about how wonderful my life was.

It all came crashing down a month before the wedding.

“I was at a conference out of town. Petra hadn’t wanted to go, nor did Dad or Jameson, so I went alone.

It was about advances in wound care. I wanted to know what was new and what could be used on patients.

There were several guest speakers. One speaker fell ill on the last day, so the conference concluded early.

I changed my return flight to that evening rather than wait for my original one early the next morning.

I didn’t tell Petra or my family I was coming home early. I wanted to surprise her.