CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE REVELATIONS

Rebel—

It’s mid-morning, and I’m sitting on the stairs, rubbing Tucker’s ears. Daisy scoots her nose under my arm, wanting her turn. Tucker licks my chin. It’s like they can sense how sad I am, and they’re trying to cheer me up.

I hear a car turn in.

The closed sign is in the window, and I wait for them to drive away. When the sound of a car door carries to me, I look over and see my mom approaching the building.

Just the sight, and I’m running to her. I unlock the door and throw myself in her arms, bursting into tears and crying on her shoulder. She holds me and rubs my back, like mothers do with their children, shushing me and telling me everything will be okay.

I need her, now especially. I feel like my whole world just fell apart.

“He left, Momma.”

“I know, honey. I heard what happened.”

“Who told you? Was it Daddy? What did he say?”

“He said he did what he had to do. He doesn’t want to hurt you, baby.”

“Well, he did.”

“Those boys were never going to stay, Rebel. You knew that, didn’t you?”

“Brayden loves me.”

“But you just met. He’s only been here a few weeks. How can it be love? Honey, sometimes guys say things they don’t mean.”

I pull the chain with Brayden’s club ring from my neckline. “Does this look like he didn’t mean it?”

Her mouth parts. “He gave you his club ring?”

“Yes. He loves me, Momma. And I love him.”

“Rebel, he’s been sent home to California. You have to let this relationship go.”

“I thought you’d understand.”

“I do.”

“How can Daddy be this way, Mom? Blood told me all about how Grandpa didn’t think Daddy was good enough for you. That he wanted you to be with Blood, a man from his own chapter, not some guy he didn’t know from another state’s chapter. Is that true?”

“Yes.”

“How can Daddy be so stubborn about this? I don’t understand. He was exactly like Brayden. A boy from another chapter after the president’s daughter. It’s exactly the same.”

“He’s being protective, just like Undertaker was with me.”

“But Daddy—of all people—should know you can’t stop love.”

“I get that. I do, honey. But there’s more to it than that.”

“What else is there?”

“For one thing, California is much farther away than a day’s ride.”

“That’s no reason.”

“Your father has had a real problem with Brayden’s father since back around the time I met him. Actually, it all started with me.”

“What do you mean?”

“Come here.” She leads me to a bench against the wall, and we sit. “You see, back in those days, Cole and Crash belonged to this chapter. I was best friends with Crash’s younger sister, Letty.”

“The one who died in the fire?”

“Yes. The one who died in the fire. God, that was so awful.” My mother’s eyes glaze with tears. “I miss her, still. I wish you could have known her. She was something. She had such a wild and free spirit. I wish she’d have lived to have met you. You would have loved her. I named you after her. She’s the reason your middle name is Loretta.”

“Wait, I thought you named me after some singer.”

“Nope. I named you after Letty.”

“So, you were her best friend?” I nudge her back to the story.

“We would go up to the clubhouse to party sometimes, but the brothers were all warned off us. They were to stay away from us. Not that they all did.”

“And that’s when you met Daddy?”

She nods and gets a faraway look in her eyes. “He was just a prospect then, and he was often manning the back gate. I brought him water, and we talked. I was attracted to him, and he to me. He kissed me one night. Pressed me against that wood privacy fence under the moonlight. God, I was crazy about him.”

“Then what happened?”

“One night I was walking home, and he rode up. He was pissed I was out walking alone in that neighborhood so late. So, he gave me a ride, but I didn’t want to go home. I was afraid my foster father would be mad, so he brought me here. To the garage, and that little apartment upstairs that’s yours now.”

“Why didn’t you ever tell me?”

She shrugs. “It was my love story. I guess I wanted to keep it to myself.”

“But none of this explains why Daddy doesn’t like Cole.”

“One night, Shades got a callout, and he had to go. I didn’t know any of this at the time, but Cole met him in an alley downtown and beat him. He’d found out Shades had broken his rule. He told your father he’d been warned, and he’d lied to his sponsor. Cole told your father if he didn’t stop seeing me, he’d never vote him into the club. That patch was all your father wanted, and he’d already prospected for so long trying to get it. So, he chose the club over me.”

“No,” I say in disbelieve. Nothing about their love for each other now would lead me to believe he’d ever make such a choice.

“Don’t be too disillusioned, my dear. We were both young.”

“And that’s why Daddy hates Cole?”

“Well, hate is a strong word, but that’s part of it. You see, that decision led to a lot of bad things. Your father always felt if Cole hadn’t laid down the law like that, none of it would have happened to me.”

“But that was Daddy’s decision. He’s the one who chose the club.”

“I know that. I think he feels a lot of guilt, and he’s transferred some of it to Cole.”

“So, they haven’t gotten along in all these years?”

“They tolerate each other.”

“Do you blame Cole?”

“Maybe years ago, I did, but your father lied to him. That’s not something you can do when you’re prospecting and expect no retribution. And your father made his own choice. I was angrier at him than Cole.”

“I love Brayden, Mom. Where does that leave me? This isn’t fair. Does Daddy really want me to be heartbroken because he can’t get over some age-old feud?”

“Of course not. Give it time. Maybe he’ll come around.”

“Daddy is like an immovable granite rock.”

She smiles and wraps her arm around me. “And you, my darling daughter, are a chip off that immovable rock. You may look like me, but you are definitely your father’s daughter.”

“Speaking of looking like you…”

“Yes?”

“I met your Devil King friend, Rusty. He told me to give you his regards.”

Her eyes get huge. “You met Rusty? Oh my.”

I grin. “Blood wanted me to tell you in front of Daddy. Said it would piss him off. Did you have a relationship with that guy? He was really good looking, even now. I bet he was hot when he was younger.”

“Oh, he was, and yes, we did have a relationship. There was a time I thought I loved him. But he never held a candle to the way I feel about your father.”

“Blood told me Daddy walked into the Devil King’s clubhouse to rescue you.”

“He did. He was my hero.” She strokes my hair, pulling my head to hers. “I guess you know all my secrets now.”

We sit quietly for a long moment, then she looks in my eyes.

“Are you really in love, sweetheart?”

I nod, a crushing loneliness for Brayden blankets me. “I miss him already.”

She pats my leg. “Give it time. Maybe your father will come around. I’ll talk to him. Though… I would be heartbroken if you left us to be with Brayden in California. And I know that’s how it would have to be. His chapter is there. You’d have to be the one to move.”

“I’d miss you, too, Momma.” I hug her waist and lean my head on her shoulder, thinking about leaving my home and family to live two thousand miles away. There’s no easy choice; no matter what I do, someone will be heartbroken.

Not long after my mother leaves, I crawl into bed, depression weighing me down. Tucker and Daisy curl up at the foot while I stare at the ceiling and think about Brayden. I want to call or text him, but pride keeps me from doing so. I hold my phone tight in my fist and miss him so much I feel like crying again.