Page 11 of Wild Side (Vicious Reapers MC #3)

CHAPTER TEN

MAVERICK

“You’ve got to be shitting me,” Bullet growls.

I am surprised he hasn’t used harsher words yet. Although I should probably just give it a few minutes, because I have no doubt it’s coming my way. A moment of silence passes between us.

It would be uncomfortable if I didn’t want him to stay silent.

I really fucking do. There is just too much going on, and I don’t know what to do.

We’ve got surveillance and shipping issues, now I’ve added in the Rivara chapter, and my brother, plus a pregnancy.

Most of this fucking mess is mine, on me, but it is now a burden to the club, and Bullet knows this.

“Come down to the clubhouse for church. We’ll add this conversation to the meeting we were already planning to have.”

Clearing my throat, I drop my chin and look down at my feet. “She said he’s coming here.”

“Halo is coming here?” he asks.

“That’s what she claims.”

There is a moment of silence, and then I hear him hiss the word fuck. I feel the same way. He makes a noise in the back of his throat, then tells me to bring her with me.

“Lock her ass up in your room if you have to. We’re going to talk about this, and I don’t want him trying any fly shit because he’s in his feelings about his kid.”

I couldn’t have said it better. Ending the call, I turn around to head back into the room, but I don’t have to go far.

She’s there, standing in the open doorway, her eyes on mine.

I’m not sure how this gorgeous fucking woman is standing in front of me, pregnant with my baby, just waiting for my next move.

I’m also not sure what that move will be.

“Got church. Grab your shit. You’re coming with me.”

She stares at me for a moment in silence. She doesn’t move, and as much as I want to tell her to get a fucking move on, I don’t because I have no doubt she’s confused, and I’m not being overly communicative.

Honestly, I don’t know what to say.

This entire situation feels surreal. I can’t believe this has happened.

I’m not mad. I’m not really questioning it.

I know I fucked her bare, the timing is right, and now that I realize who her father is, it makes sense that she would come here to tell me.

And also why she seems almost terrified of the outcome.

“And then what?” she asks.

Taking a step forward, I reach out to cup her cheek. “And then we figure out what the fuck we’re gonna do.”

We don’t speak immediately, choosing the moment to gaze into one another’s eyes. Hers moves around, searching mine for something. Maybe reassurance, I’m not positive, but I don’t ask or offer anything, either.

Whatever she’s looking for, she must find. I watch as she dips her chin in a slight nod, then clears her throat and turns back toward the bedroom. A few moments later, she’s back in front of me, her purse in hand, along with a bakery box.

Arching a brow, I flick my gaze to the box, then slowly lift it to meet hers. “It’s a lemon poppyseed muffin. I bought it yesterday for breakfast.”

Food.

She’d need that.

“We can stop by the store on the way to the clubhouse. Not sure if there’s any real food in the kitchen there.”

Zadie gives me a small smile as I reach out for the box in her hand. She slips it into mine, and together, we walk toward the Jeep. The sun is just starting to rise, the sky full of pinks and oranges as I turn toward her.

“Maverick?” she asks.

“Whatever the fuck happens, I got you.”

I’m not sure if I’m trying to reassure her or me right now. But I need her to feel safe, and I need to be the reason she feels that way. I’m not sure why, but it feels imperative. She lifts her hand, wraps her fingers around my bicep, and gently squeezes.

We don’t say anything else. I’m not sure what needs to be said. I got her. I got them. Them. Both of them. Her and my baby, something I never in my wildest dreams could have imagined would become a reality.

But it is.

I walk her to the driver’s side of the Jeep and look over at her. She’s standing beside me, keys in her hand, eyes wide as she waits for whatever is coming next. I’m sure she has no idea what I’m about to ask for.

“Keys,” I call out.

“What about your bike?”

“I’ll drive you.”

She continues to stare at me, watching me for a moment, then clears her throat. “What about your bike?” she asks again.

“One of the guys will pick it up for me. You’re not going to the store, then the clubhouse without me.”

She wrinkles her nose but doesn’t argue. Instead, she climbs into the passenger seat of the Jeep and buckles up. Jumping into the driver’s seat, I start the engine but don’t make a move to back out right away.

I turn my head and look at her. She slowly shifts her attention from the windshield to me, her eyes finding mine. “Zadie,” I begin, “I fucking got you, babe.”

And with that, I focus my attention on backing out of the parking lot and heading toward the grocery store, then the club. I don’t know what the fuck I’m doing. I don’t know what the right thing is here, but whatever it is, I’m going to keep moving forward. I’ll figure it the fuck out eventually.

ZADIE

The grocery store was oddly… normal. Maverick didn’t say much but made sure I had what I needed, which was whatever I wanted. I stuck with some basics—fresh fruit, veggies, some cottage cheese, yogurt, eggs, and milk. I did buy a bag of pancake mix, though.

“Don’t you want more?” he asks, his gaze flicking down to my shopping cart before it meets my own again.

“I’m not sure how long I’ll be here, but I don’t want to waste money or food.”

Maverick’s eyebrows shoot up as if he can’t believe what I’ve just said. I take a step backward, wishing I could swallow back those words. He’s been nice, all things considered, but maybe I shouldn’t have ever come.

Maybe I should have told my dad I didn’t know who the father was and just suffered the punishment and anger. He would have gotten over it eventually, and if he didn’t, would it have mattered? Would anything have mattered? I have a job back home, a decent one. I could have figured my shit out.

“Babe,” Maverick calls out, and I flick my eyes up to meet his. He is watching me, his expression seemingly one of concern. I don’t know what he wants to hear from me, or what he’s waiting for me to say.

“You’ll be here as long as you need to be, and no food has ever been wasted at the clubhouse. Also, it’s my money, and I don’t give a fuck if you wad it up and throw it in the trash. Buy whatever the fuck you want.”

I open my mouth to protest when I hear someone call out his name.

His head swings around, and I watch as an absolutely stunning woman with long dark hair walks toward us.

She’s got a toddler sitting in the cart, and I hear Mavrick groan under his breath before he turns completely around to face her.

She moves toward him and wraps her arms around him in a small hug. Instantly, I want to scratch her eyes out, which is a really stupid reaction considering I don’t know him, I don’t know her, I don’t know anyone.

“What are you doing in a grocery store?” she asks as she takes a step backward, but I don’t miss the way her gaze slides over to me.

“Shopping,” Maverick deadpans.

She hums without breaking eye contact with me, then tilts her head to the side. Maverick shifts from one foot to the other, then lets out a heavy sigh, almost as if it pains him to have to introduce me to this woman.

“Dakota, this is Zadie.”

Dakota’s lips curve up into a big smile, and she shoves her hand toward me. Lifting my own, I curl my fingers around hers, and we shake once.

“Dakota is my president’s old lady and wife,” Maverick says.

Oh. Shit.

“Hey,” she says, though I can tell she’s confused.

“Hey,” I offer.

This feels awkward, like, beyond awkward. I open my mouth to say something else, though I’m not sure what I could actually say to make this less… weird. I’m not sure why, but I feel like I want to crawl into a hole right about now and vanish. I want to disappear.

“We’re heading down to the clubhouse. We got church. You wanna come down and keep Zadie company, you’re more than welcome.”

If I could actually crawl into a hole, I might do that right about now. That is, if I could. Unfortunately, I can’t, so I stand beside Maverick and wish he would shut up. He’s putting this poor woman on the spot.

“I’m going to get this stuff put away, and then we’ll come down there,” she says, her gaze flicking to meet mine again. “And I’ll bring Posey, too.”

Dakota waves, then she pushes her cart, and down an aisle she goes. Slowly, I turn toward Maverick, tipping my head back so I can look up into his eyes. He shifts his chin downward, and his lips curve up into a grin.

“You’ll want to be part of her posse. You need to get to know her.”

He touches his lips to mine, takes the cart from my hand, and then wheels it away. I watch him for a moment in a stupor. I want to be part of her posse? As if I’m going to be staying here. As if I’m going to become an old lady or something.

“What on actual earth?” I whisper to myself, but nobody responds to my question, so I unstick my feet from the floor and follow him, my feet moving double time to catch up so we can finish shopping.

Maverick buys too much, almost as if he’s stocking a full kitchen. I’m able to take a few things out of the cart before he notices and then fills it up twice as much. By the time we leave the grocery store, I’m in another stupor, because he paid a six-hundred-dollar grocery bill.

Never in my adult life have I spent that much on food.

Never have I had that much to spend on food.