Page 14

THIRTEEN

SHOTGUN

“You’re all set. You can check the patient portal in one to two business days for your results, but if anything flags, someone from the lab will reach out to you,” the phlebotomist says.

I roll down my sleeve and thank her before making my way out of the clinic. Outside, I straddle my bike. I reach into my kutte and pull out my phone.

Three missed texts. All from Jade.

Jade: I got steaks from Monty’s. Feel like grilling them tonight?

Jade: Also, I got my period this morning. So after steaks, we’ll put the kids to bed, and then you can watch me get myself off in the shower. Orgasms are good for the cramps, and we both know how much you like to watch me cum.

Jade: In case you didn’t realize it yet, I’m the queen of inappropriate texts. I kind of hope you’re with Biggie and the rest of the club right now picturing me fingering myself in the shower while you’re off doing biker shit.

Me: Biker shit?

Jade: I’m insulted that’s what you responded to first. I thought for sure that would get your riled up.

Me: Sitting on my bike with a hard on. Happy?

Jade: Yes. Extremely.

Me: Steaks sound good. Watching you cum in the shower sounds even better.

Jade: Killian is down for his nap, and Raiden and Legend are playing with the kid next door in the yard. If you come home quick, I’ll take a break from packing up these boxes and suck your cock.

Me: What boxes?

Jade: We’ll talk about it when you get home. Or maybe we won’t. It depends how long it takes you, and how full my mouth is. It’s not very lady like to speak with your mouthful.”

Me: Leaving the clinic now. Gotta make a quick stop, then I’ll be home.

Pocketing my phone, I toe my kickstand. My engine purrs to life and I peel away from the curb. The ride to the cemetery doesn’t take long, and when I arrive, I begin my assent up the hill to Irish’s gravesite with ease, recalling the day of his funeral. The ground isn’t nearly as soft as it was that day, making the trek a fuck of a lot easier. Then again, I don’t gotta worry about Jade’s heels sinking into the dirt with every step I take.

As as I reach the top of the hill, I spot Irish’s headstone.

Duke “Irish” Callahan

Beloved Husband, Father, & Brother

I’ve been here a couple of times since the stone has been set, and every time I see those words, they act as a punch to the gut. Today that feeling is intensified, but oddly enough, I don’t feel any guilt. I don’t know what kind of man that makes me. I’m not even sure I care to find out.

I lay a hand on the top of the stone and take a knee in front of it. I didn’t come here for forgiveness, nor did I come here seeking permission. I came here because I made a promise to Irish, and for nearly two years, I’ve done everything in my power to keep it.

“I know you don’t owe me anything, but I’m not here for me. I’m here for Jade, and your kids. I don’t know what’s going to happen with the club. I don’t even know where to begin when it comes to figuring it out. You made me promise to look out for them. Well, I can’t do that if the club decides my time on this earth is finished.”

I sigh, lowering my hand back to my side. I promised Jade nothing would tear me away from her, but when I went back to the apartment, I realized I may have told my first lie to her. The truth is, we’re entering unchartered waters. The club hasn’t had to deal with such a blatant act of disloyalty before. There’s a fifty-fifty shot I won’t make it out of this no matter how much of a fight I put up, and I’m not ashamed to call in some reinforcements… even if they’re fucking dead.

“Losing you destroyed her, but she pulled herself out from the rubble. It’d be a shame for her to be buried under all that debris again. So I guess I’m asking you to look after her should that happen. I might have her now, but I don’t believe for one second, she’ll be mine in the afterlife. That’s all you, brother.”

I stand, shoving my hands in my pockets.

“The boys are amazing. Legend is doing great in football, and Raiden is ham on the baseball field. They talk about you every day, and Legend is already asking for me to teach him how to ride. I figure in a year or so, I’ll buy him a quad. Get Jade used to the idea of her boy riding something a little more terrorizing than a scooter. Killian looks the most like Jade and is just as stubborn as she is. I think he might be the one that keeps us on our toes the most.” I pause, rocking back on my heels. “You’d be proud of them, and I promise to make sure they know that. You’d be proud of Jade too. She’s been nothing but a pillar of strength for your three sons. She has put them first every single day you’ve been gone. You made her happy Irish. You gave her a beautiful life, and three children whom she adores. I can’t take your place in any of their lives, and I won’t try too. But I will love them with everything I got.”

I just hope I get to do it for a long time.

I took the garbage out when I brought the boys out for breakfast this morning, so I’m really not sure where the six black, contractor bags sitting on the front stoop came from. Sighing, I toss the bag of things I stopped at the drugstore to get on the mat in front of the door and haul the trash bags to the curb.

The fucking garbage men are going to hate us.

Making my way back to the house, I grab the bag from the drugstore and enter the house. Raiden immediately runs to me.

“Uncle Shotty, guess what? Mom said the soldiers are coming to the house. Like real soldiers with guns and tanks!”

“What?”

“It’s true,” he says, looking at his older brother to back him up. “What’d she call them?”

“Veterans,” Legend supplies. “And they’re not coming today.”

“Where’s your mom?”

Legend points to the stairs. “Can we have a football catch? Billy from next door wants to play but his dad can’t throw the ball to save his life.”

“Yeah, give me a minute.”

“What about me? I want to play too,” Raiden whines.

“You can play too. I’m just going to run upstairs and talk to your mom real quick. Legend, go call for Billy. Raiden, you go in the garage and get the football.” My eyes dart around the living room. “Where’s Killian?”

“Upstairs with mom,” Raiden says.

The boys take off to do as I asked, and I head for the stairs, climbing them two at a time until I reach the landing. I find Jade in her bedroom, all the contents of her closet on the bed, and a bunch of open boxes.

“Jade, what the hell are you doing, and why do the boys think there are a bunch of army men coming to the house?”

She pops her head out of the closet. “Jesus Christ, Shotgun, you scared the hell out of me.” She tosses something into one of the boxes, and steps out of the closet, placing both hands on her hips. “For the record, you don’t greet me like that. Not anymore.”

“How would you like me to greet you?”

“A kiss would be nice.”

I kick the door closed behind me, and step toward her, bending my head to take her mouth with mine. With the boys just downstairs, and Killian up here, floating around somewhere, I make sure not to get carried away.

“That’s better,” she murmurs, smiling up at me.

“Still waiting for an answer to my question.”

“I’m cleaning out the closet, and there are no army men coming to the house. Well, at least I don’t think so. I called the Veteran’s Association to see if they take donations. They do, and they’re sending someone to pick up the bags on the porch.”

“Fuck. I thought those bags were trash. I took them out to the curb.” I guess I’ll be lugging them back. Maybe I can bribe Legend and Billy to help. I focus on the boxes. “And the boxes?”

“Well, the boxes are things I’m keeping,” she says, her gaze sweeping around the room to take in the mess she’s made. “They’re things of Irish’s I think the boys will want one day. Oh, I made a box for the club too,” she says nonchalantly, like she didn’t just blow my chest wide fucking open. I watch her turn and strut toward one of the boxes. She lifts it up and places it on top of the bed. Filtering through it, she continues to ramble on, “There are some photos from past parties, and that traffic light him and Biggie robbed from the corner of Nostrand Avenue and Avenue U, and a bunch of other miscellaneous stuff I’m not sure what to do with.”

“Jade,” I call softly, forcing her to turn around. Her eyes lock with mine, and I close the distance between us, my hand closing tight around the bag I almost forgot I’m still holding. “You don’t have to do this.”

Her chin lifts and she angles her head. “Yes, I do.”

“No, you don’t. Last night?—”

“Last night was the start of something new. Something exciting. I will always have love for Irish, and I know you understand that. But I need to do this for me.” She rolls up on her tip toes and kisses me. “And you might not even realize it, but I need to do it for you too. You and I deserve a clean slate.”

I lift my free hand, gently brushing my knuckles across the side of her face.

“You’re incredible, you know that?”

“No, but if you keep telling me that I am, I might just start to believe it.” Her gaze lowers to the bag. “What’s in there?”

I hold it out to her. “Just picked up some things I thought you might need.” She takes the bag from me, and peers inside.

“This is a bag of chocolate.”

“There’s Midol at the bottom of the bag too,” I say with a wink.

“You brought me chocolate and Midol because I have my period.”

I shake my head. “I bought you chocolate and Midol because you’re going to let me make you cum in the shower later.”

She grins at me. “I said you could watch.”

“Yeah, and I decided I much rather be a participant.” I give her another quick kiss. “I’m taking the boys into the yard to play football. I’ll grab the bags from the curb and put them back on the porch.” My gaze swings to the box she packed for the club. “Got church later tonight. If you want, I’ll take your truck, and bring that over when I go.”

She shakes her head. “I think I want to bring it by myself.”

“Whatever you want, mama.”

“Here’s Jade’s check,” Stacks, our treasurer says, handing me a simple white envelope just as he’s done every week since Irish passed. It never bothered me before, she deserved every cent. Earned it even. That doesn’t change my desire to be the one that takes care of them financially. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve done a lot of that since I moved into the apartment.

The first week into our arrangement we had a major blow out when I told her to change all the bills into my name. She refused, and we wound up fighting that whole week. Eventually she agreed to have me pay all the utilities, and I try to go grocery shopping with her any chance I can so I can pick up that bill too, but the mortgage and her car payment she insists on keeping.

Once I figure out what the hell I’m doing with her and the club, we’re going to revisit that conversation. I rather her see her bank all Irish’s checks for the boys’.

I pocket the envelope, and he hands me another. “And that’s yours.” Then he moves to hand out the rest of them.

Biggie leans back in his chair at the head of the table, seeming to weigh the envelope in his hand. “Feels a lot fatter than last month.”

“You can thank that sleezy Italian mobster, Mondestino,” Stacks retorts. “I don’t know what kind of voodoo pussy he’s peddling, but the man is rolling in it. Our take has already increased ten percent from two months ago when he opened the brothel.”

“I think we should sample it for ourselves,” Fuckface suggests. “See what all the hype is.”

“You can look and smell, but you can’t fucking touch or taste,” Jersey warns, pointing a finger across the table at him. “Got it, Fuckface?”

Suppressing a grin, I pocket my envelope next to Jades. Jersey takes pleasure in razing the newer members, Fuckface especially. I can’t knock him for it. We may have given Fuckface his bottom rocker, but we all like to fuck wit him. Jersey makes an art of it, though, continuously testing his limits like the sadist he is. Tonight his brand of torture is pussy, tomorrow it’ll be blood. He likes to switch it up, he’s generous like that.

“So pretend I’m a gynecologist,” Fuckface says, swiping the sweat from his brow. “Copy on that.”

“Some of us have sampled it,” Guido shares. “It ain’t nothing to write home about.”

“Bullshit,” Taxi says. “The two Russian girls made me see stars last night. I haven’t cum like that since Maddie Wilks blew me in her dad’s garage.”

I stare at Guido for a beat, watching as he folds his hands behind his head. “Maybe I’ll give them a try.”

I’m in no position to judge anyone, not when I had my fingers and tongue inside my dead friend’s wife’s pussy last night but the words spill from my lips before I can stop them.

“Bella was at the house the other night. Jade tells me she’s dating some guy.”

His jaw goes tight, and his eyes narrow into tiny slits as he pierces me with a glare. “Is that what you do when you dip out on us? Gossip with the girls?”

“It came up in conversation,” I say, ignoring his dig. “Jade says she’s really into this one. Just thought I’d throw it out there.”

“Maybe instead of worrying about who Bella is fucking these days, Jade should take a long look in the mirror, and realize she’s wasting years she can’t get back.”

I don’t know if he’s trying to goad me or what, but I don’t take kind to the tone of his voice, and I sure as fuck don’t like him talking about Jade.

“Keep Jade’s name out of your mouth.”

“Sure, when you keep Bella’s name out of yours.”

“Bella isn’t an ‘ol lady,” I snap, my patience thinning.

“And Jade isn’t yours,” he returns.

“Jade is off limits,” Biggie interjects. “No reason to bring her name into anything. Shotgun wasn’t telling you about Bella out of disrespect, and if your head wasn’t so far up your ass, you’d realize that.”

Guido’s eyes cut to Biggie. “I don’t need my VP informing me who Bella is dating. I’m fucking aware.” He glances back at me. “Did she happen to tell Jade that he’s a cop?”

I blanch at that. Jade wouldn’t have kept that quiet, even with our conversation taking the turn that it did.

“Yeah, I didn’t think so,” Guido growls. “Bet she left out the fact that he’s married too.”

The room goes silent, and he drops his hands from behind his head. Gripping the edge of the table, he pushes out his chair. The legs scrape against the floor as he rises to his feet. His gaze turns back to Biggie. “If we’re done discussing business, I’m going to take off.”

“We’re not, but I think it’s best if you do. One of us will catch you up to speed when you’ve had a chance to cool off.”

Guido wastes no time grabbing his cell from the box by the door before he storms out of the chapel. When he’s gone, I turn my attention back to Biggie.

“Bella definitely didn’t share all that with Jade.”

“I don’t reckon she did,” he says, leaning his elbows on top of the table. “Could be a problem for us.”

He isn’t wrong. Bella knows a lot of our secrets. Too many if I’m being honest. But until now she’s held every one of those secrets tight to her chest.

“I gather Guido knows that much, and that’s why he acted the way he did,” Biggie continues, strumming his beard, thoughtfully. “If the pig is married, there’s a good chance this doesn’t go anywhere.” He sighs. “I can’t believe I’m even fucking talking about this.” He looks across the table at Stacks. “I really wanted to open up the books and discuss our cross-country trip. June will be here before we know it, and I want to make sure we’re set.

Every year in June the mother chapter of the Kings Of Anarchy hosts a rally. Big Daddy, the current president, goes all out. Chapters from all over the country travel to attend the two-week event. With our club being in New York, it’s quite the project to get us all to Southern California. Lots of moving parts. And with our current businesses expanding, and the high demand of gun contracts, we can’t all go. So we rotate the roster every year. However, I’ve skipped the last two years. After Irish died, and Jade went into premature labor, we all agreed that my place was to stay close to home. Then last year, we put it for a vote, and again, it was decided that I stay home to help Jade and oversee the expansion of Lipstick & Lace.

Don’t know that Biggie will let me pass for a third year. It doesn’t look good if his VP doesn’t show up by side.

Irish never missed a year. He would fly Jade and the boys out to California, put them up in some five-star hotel, and while the rest of us partied our asses off, he snuck away to spend time with his family. I think he and Jade even took the boys to Disney Land one year.

I’d love to do that. Killian would fucking love it.

“We’re going to leave a week ahead of time. I arranged for us to stop at some of the other chapters along the way. They’re happy to put us up for a night, that way we’re not a bunch of fucking zombies on the road,” Stacks reveals, opening his ledger. “Kneecap, Joker, Monsignor, Cook, and Bed-Stuy are gonna stay here, and run all our daily operations.”

“The plan was for Guido to follow us with the cage,” Biggie reveals. “Not sure how that is going to pan out, but we got time to rearrange things if need be.”

“Worst case scenario, I’ll drive the cage, and hook a trailer to the hitch,” Jersey offers. That way when we’re there I can ride.”

Biggie turns his attention to me. “Do we need to make arrangements for someone to help Jade while you’re gone?”

I scratch at the scruff lining my jaw. “I uh… haven’t discussed it with her.”

Biggie narrows his eyes. “Well, it ain’t something new to her.”

“No,” I caution, trying to decide how I want to approach this. I can’t tell him I don’t want to leave her because she and I are making a go of it and I’m fucking addicted to her, and me suggesting she travel by plane like she used to do with Irish would raise the eyebrows of every man sitting at this table. “It isn’t new, but for that doesn’t mean it’s at the forefront of her mind. The last two years I skipped the trip. Never even brought it up to her. And the year before that, she flew out with Irish.”

“You afraid bringing it up is gonna open those wounds?” Jersey asks.

A couple of days ago my answer would’ve been yes, but that was before I knew she had been working on letting go of Irish for some time.

“No, I just think she’s gotten used to me being around, and it might come as a surprise when I tell her I’m gonna be gone for three weeks. With both Raiden and Legend in sports, she relies heavily on the extra set of hands.”

It’s not a total lie. Legend only has one more game of spring ball left, but he jumps right into soccer the following week. And Raiden doesn’t end T-ball until the end of June, which means I’m going to miss his last few games.

“Gavone and Bed-Stuy can be on call for whatever she needs,” Biggie says, but his eyes remain on me. I can sense there is more he wants to say, but he’s holding his tongue for whatever reason.

“What? Why are you looking at me like that?”

“I just think this is a blessing in disguise. You’re going on two years, man. Some people might say you’re enabling her.”

That grinds my gears.

“Some people? Or you?”

“Does it matter? It must be true if you’re getting defensive over it.”

“Since when does helping someone out become enabling?”

“Brother, I’m not faulting you for anything you’ve done for her or those kids. You might not have any desire to take a wife or have kids of your own, but I can’t imagine Jade being alone forever. Can you?”

“No, I can’t.”

Because she’s not alone.

She’s with me.

“All I’m saying, is maybe she needs to feel the hard. You being gone might make her realize she wants more out of life than to just play house with you.”

“Biggie has a point, Shotgun,” Stacks says. “You can’t tell me you don’t need a break from all that too. It’s gotta be exhausting looking at a woman as pretty as Jade all day and having to keep your hands to yourself. I would’ve lost it a long time ago, and that’s no disrespect to Irish.”

No, but it strangely feels disrespectful to me.

I barely get my boots off when my phone chimes.

Jade: Unlock your door and turn the shower on.

I shrug off my kutte, and toss it over the back of my couch before I pad into the bathroom, and turn the shower on. It’s small in comparison to the shower she has in her master bath, and there is no bench. It’s just a tub with a showerhead. I don’t even have a shower curtain, but that would only get in the way for what I have planned for her.

Reaching behind me, I pull my t-shirt over my head and make my way back out into the living room. The door opens and Jade enters wearing nothing but that fucking robe of hers. In her hand she holds a pair of panties and her phone.

“I thought you would never get home,” she says, tossing the panties on top of my kutte. She makes her way toward me, throwing her arms around my neck. I hook my arms under her thighs and lift her into my arms. Her mouth covers mine, and her tongue licks past my lips. I walk her back into the bathroom, and deposit her on top of the tiny vanity. My hands come up to frame her face, and I take the kiss deeper, plucking and plundering, owning her mouth with mine.

She sheds her robe, and reaches for my hands, bringing them to her tits. My thumbs roll over nipples, pinching and pulling at them as my mouth leaves hers. I bend my head, taking one of her nipples between my teeth.

“Oh, God, if you keep doing that I’m going to cum before we even make it to the shower.”

Considering I plan on making her cum multiple times, I don’t see the issue with that, so I continue to wreak havoc on her tits, jumping from one to the other. She pushes her fingers through my hair, and wraps her legs around my waist, pulling me even closer to her. My cock, thick, and hard, strains against my jeans as it rubs against her pussy.

I release her nipple and smooth my hands down her sides, squeezing her hips so hard my fingers leave indents.

“Spread your legs for me, mama. Let me take care of that pussy.”

One thing about Jade, give her a command, and she fucking obliges. Dropping her legs from my waist, she spreads her them as wide as she can, revealing her perfectly wet cunt to my hungry eyes.

I spread her swollen lips, dragging my thumbs through all that wetness. “Fuck,” I growl. “Look at how needy you are.” I plunge two fingers inside her, loving the noises her cunt makes when I move them in and out of her.

“I’m not going to last long. I’ve been aching since you left to go to the clubhouse. Give it to me fast and hard.”

“Whatever you want, mama. However you want it.”

My fingers find a steady rhythm, powering deep and hard. Her legs hang off the edge of the vanity, her back arches, and when she cums, her pussy flutters around my fingers. I don’t let up, giving it to her slow, drawing another one out of her as soon as she comes down from the first. She starts to fall backward, and I catch her with my free hand, cradling the back of her head so it doesn’t slam into the mirror. I crook my fingers inside her, and lower my mouth to hers, fucking her mouth slow and purposefully, my tongue in tangent with my fingers.

“Why is it this good?” She murmurs against my mouth. “Promise me it will always be like this. That when we’re old, and gray, we will still fuck like this.”

I pull back an inch, touching my forehead to hers. “I promise.”

She closes her eyes, sighing softly. “I’m going to need a minute before I suck you off.”

“You don’t have to.”

“Oh, I do. I’ve been thinking about it all day.”

“Yeah?”

“Mmhmm. I can’t decide where I want your cum though. Think you got enough in you to spread the wealth.”

I laugh. “I think I can manage.”

With her, I’m always hungry.

Her hand circles my wrist, and we both lower our gazes to her pussy, watching intently as she pulls my fingers out of her slowly. “I made a mess out of your fingers,” she says, taking my hand as she slides her ass across the vanity and turns on the faucet. She brings my fingers under the stream of water, washing away the hint of blood and her arousal that coats them. “There, all clean.”

“We could’ve done that in the shower,” I remind her.

She shrugs. “I just want to take care of you.” She gives me another peck on the lips before she turns off the faucet and hops off the vanity. “Now drop your pants, Shotgun, and feed me your cock.”

I stare at her ass in the mirror as she pads into the shower and drops to her knees. I don’t know what the fuck I did to get so lucky, but I ain’t complaining.

“You keep rubbing that cunt on my cock, and we’re going to have a problem,” I hiss.

A man can only take so much teasing before he cracks.

After shooting my load down her throat and watching her swallow every single drop, she checked the nanny cam footage on her phone to make sure the boys were all still asleep, then she put on her panties and climbed into my bed. For a few minutes we just held each other, then she started fondling my balls, and now she’s straddling my thighs rubbing her panty covered pussy all over my cock.

I wanted to tell her about the trip to California, and get her take on things, but we’re clearly not having that conversation tonight.

“You owe me one more,” she says, pointedly as she cups her breasts. “I want it dripping down my neck when I go to bed.”

“That was before you sucked my cock and I blacked out in the shower,” I argue, pulling her panties to the side to reveal all that pink to me.

I want to eat her out but she refuses. I’m allowed to finger her, and she’s allowed to dry hump me while she’s on her period, but she draws the line when it comes to sitting on my face. I should really ask her how she feels about taking my cock up her ass.

The thought of fucking her tight little hole makes me unbelievably hard, and I start stroking my cock. Gripping my shaft, I run the head between her lips, beating her clit with the crown. That seems to light her up, and she starts to rock over me, desperate for more friction. “That’s it mama, use my cock.”

Planting one hand on my chest, she leans forward, and picks up the pace, humping the fuck out of me, moaning and panting with every rock of her hips.

“Yes, yes, yes.”

“Who owns your pussy?” I growl. She moans loudly, her greedy little cunt vibrating against my cock. “Say it, Jade. Say it loud enough so the neighbors hear.”

“You,” she pants. “You own my pussy.”

“That’s a good girl.” Working her clit with the head of my cock, I shove three fingers inside of her. Her back bows, and she cums loudly, screaming my name.

I fist my cock harder, my movements frantic as I tug harder.

“Give me your neck,” I grind out. “Fast.”

She sits on top of my thighs, pulling her hair up and away from her face. All my marks from last night are still there, and slightly darker than they were this morning.

Groaning at the sight of them, I give my cock another pull. My cum sprays across her slender neck in thick ropes. Completely depleted and fucking exhausted, I drop my head back on my pillow. Jade hovers over me, and my eyes catch on the pattern my cum creates on her neck.

“That’s a pretty pearl necklace.”

She grins at me. “Better than diamonds.”