Chapter 26

Doc – Two Days Later

I gently movemy hand up and down Kennedy"s back as she sleeps cuddled up next to me, her head on my chest. My dad and Tech are both sitting near the bed I"m lying in.

I woke up yesterday in fucking agony, my girl laying how she is now but with tears running down her face as she watched me like a hawk.

She did good, real fucking good, according to Paul, and I couldn"t be any prouder of her. Apparently, he wants her back in the ER, but Claudia would never allow that. NICU is her calling, but he"s unwilling to admit it.

"How are you feeling, son?" my dad asks with a low rasp. His eyes are on my girl, looking concerned.

I give him a smile and joke, "Like I"ve been stabbed," but he doesn"t laugh, and Tech shakes his head at me with a smirk. I sigh. "I"m okay, Dad, I promise. Kennedy did good."

He nods, but his concerned look doesn"t disappear. He admits, "Snake thought she was going to pass out after she finished the surgery." He shakes his head. I hold my girl closer to me, hating that she got put in that position. "She kept mumbling that it was all her fault, that everything was her fault, that she should have stayed the first time instead of running away. Her legs gave out, and he caught her just in time as she fell apart."

I wince and look at my girl with concern as Tech speaks up. "I think her leaving when she did was good for her in a way. She"s now got this amazing experience under her belt. She needs to be proud of that and not feel guilty for not hearing you out, as it got her out from underneath her mother"s thumb. Should she have told you she was pregnant? Hell, yes, but we can"t turn back time, and she needs to try and move forward and stop trying to protect you as well." He sighs, and then admits, "If anything, the brothers should feel guilty. They didn"t question you or ask about your sanity." I snort, looking at him while my dad grins. "Instead, they thought the worst, and we all, including me, who knew the real truth, missed you falling apart, and for that, I am sorry, Doc."

I shrug. "I didn"t want anyone to know, Tech. I knew where she was. I figured it out a few months after she left. I could have gone to her, I could have pleaded and begged her to listen, but I didn"t. I knew Prue was watching my every move, and I decided to let my Pixie have her dream, to live her life while hoping she"d return."

My dad"s eyes soften toward me, while Tech looks at me with awe.

I continued, "It wasn"t easy; I felt like I couldn"t breathe without her, and the only way I kept sane was when I wrote those letters. I missed her every day, and now, I wish I had gone to her. I wished I dragged her back, kicking and screaming, but I know I"d have regretted it, because she deserved to be angry with me…."

"And you deserved the knee in the balls I gave you, but you still should have come and got me,"my girl mumbles, her eyes still closed, and I smile, placing my nose on the top of her head.

"Fuc. ,Ken, you kneed him? Don"t you want more kids?"Tech gasps in shock, and I snort.

I feel her tense at the "kids" comment, and I look at her as she looks at Tech and rasps, "Of course, I do. I didn"t hit him too hard."

Pride fills me, knowing she"s up to having more kids after losing Layla, and I squeeze her to me as I chuckle. I state, "Pixie, I was on the floor, trying not to fucking cry; you hit me hard. I told you, I"m pretty sure you kicked my balls into my throat."

She grins as my dad chuckles, and I look at Tech. I notice him holding onto his crown jewels, which makes me laugh. The action pulls my stomach, and I groan.

Kennedy glares at me, and I kiss her nose, making her glare soften.

She looks at Tech. "So uh, Tech, I noticed a certain lady sneaking out of your room this morning."

I look at Tech with a raised brow, knowing she means Brook.

He sighs, shaking his head. "She"ll fuck me, but she won"t have a relationship with me, and I just don"t understand why. I"ve reassured her Nina is nothing to me, that I don"t want her back, but fucking nothing."

I tilt my head and ask, "Do you think she got to Brook?"

He shrugs and admits, "I think so, but she denies it. Something has spooked her, I just don"t know what, and honestly, I"m starting to get pissed about it. I"m ready to grab her and tie her to my bed until she fucking agrees to never leave again."

I grin as Ken snorts and says, "Do it, just tell me when so I can watch, because that would be funny."

Tech grins at her while my dad shakes his head and rasps, "I"ve seen your momma give her some dirty looks. Nina isn"t the type to get her hands dirty after what happened when you were teenagers. Your mother, however, if she wants something, she has already proven she"ll get it. Her claiming that she trapped your father is proof of that. If you want to look somewhere, look at her, but make sure your dad is aware."

Tech furrows his brows but nods, and states, "She treated Tats like shit, all because he could have been Dad's kid. She starved him. It makes you think about what else she is capable of and why Dad puts up with it. Don"t get me wrong, I love my mother, but I"ve seen her in a new light lately."

Dad and I nod, concerned for Brook, as Ken slowly traces her name on my neck and says, "She doesn"t like to be alone since her attack, and her cousin has had to go home; it"s probably why she willingly spends so much time with you. You"re her safe place."

My brows shoot up as Tech"s mouth stretches into a grin, making Dad and me chuckle. He knows if she thinks that, then he"s a shoo-in for winning her back, and I fucking hope he does. He"s struggled without her just like I did without my Pixie. The only difference, he sought solace in a clubwhore, regretfully, while I…well, I tried to hurt myself just to feel.

A few hours later, Kennedy reluctantly went to work for her evening shift, and David, the prospect, took her. Apparently, her car has finally given up, but she still won"t drive the Range Rover; something about wanting me in the passenger seat on her first drive. Paul managed to get me another leave of absence, explaining I fell off my bike. I"ll return in a week for desk duty, catching up on all my paperwork and new patients, while doing the club"s books here.

"Alright, Doc, when the cats away…."Breaker says with a grin as he walks into the medical room, and I grin back, finishing his sentence, "The mice will play."

He chuckles before walking over to the bed and helps me up. I grunt, feeling my stitches pull, and Breaker groans. "Fuck, please don"t pull your stitches; Ken will kill me. I heard what she did to your poor balls, and I like mine intact."

I snort and slowly straighten, then take my cut from him, and put it on over my bare chest. I look a little ridiculous in my pajama pants, and Breaker grins wide knowing it.

I shake my head at him, slip my feet into my boots, and walk to the door. I mutter,"We better hurry. Knowing Kennedy, she"ll video call Momma to ensure I"m in bed."

His eyes widen before he rushes out the door, making me laugh, which causes me to grunt, my stitches pulling.

Fucking Prue and her jealousy.

I walk through the common room, the women all raising a brow in mydirection, knowing my girl is going to kick my ass for this. My sister nods her head in approval, knowing where I"m going. Momma looks at me with concern, and I kiss my fingers, lifting them her way, making her eyes shine.

She should have told me about Layla, but I understand why she didn"t. She was stuck between a rock and a hard place. Dad had just started sleeping back home again. She"s suffered enough.

I'm still hurt, but she's still my momma, not by blood, but by the love she gave me and my sister growing up.

Walking out of the club with purpose, I grin. It"s time to slay the rest of our demons. I love my woman so fucking much, and I won"t lose her.We"vehad lies, secrets, heartache, and pain between us for the past year, and I"m ready for it all to be over.

I"m ready to start my life with her like we should have done years ago, and the only way to do that now is to finally tie off the last loose end.

Twenty minutes later,I"mwalking into the outhouse with Breaker behind me. All the council brothers are in attendance. My eyes go to Prue, who is strapped down on a chair in just her underwear, her makeup smeared down her face as she sobs.

When the brother"s part for me to walk forward, our eyes connect, and she cries louder, "Doc, please, please, I-I just wanted you, please. You were always mine…."

I stop in front of her and tilt my head. We never torture women; it"s our golden rule, a rule I want to break because this bitch ruined my life. She took my girl from me, the chance to hold my daughter—she took everything I held dear.

My anger builds, theanger I"ve managed to suppress since I returned from the Huntsmen"s MC, and I growl,"Nah, you knew I was always Kennedy"s. Fuck, even the club knew, but you wanted what you wanted, huh? Lying about being pregnant, hoping that would work. Blackmailing me, stalking my girl, stalking me when I didn"t give you the time of day, taking advantage of me when I was drunk because I wanted a girl I thought I couldn"t have."

Her tears fall, and she pleads,"Please, I-I"m sorry, I promise I"ll leave, please."

I snarl at her,"You leaving doesn"t give me the year of my life back, the year you stole."I step forward, my hands fisting, and I sneer at her."You leaving doesn"t bring my daughter back!"

She flinches and admits, "I was never pregnant, I lied."

I chuckle darkly and get in her face. "I"m not talking about the child you lied about, Starlight, I"m talking about my daughter, Layla."Her eyes widen. "My girl gave birth at twenty weeks without me—she had to deliver our stillborn daughter. Alone! I never got to hold or feel her in my arms, all while you wallowed in the blackmail, wearing a fake cut."

"I-I please…"she sobs, and I shake my head.

I look at the table.

We don"t torture women….

Grinding my teeth, I head to the table. The brothers are all standing straight, but I ignore them and grab the gasoline, before pouring it over Prue, who is sobbing and pleading.

She screams as the smell overtakes her senses, and she realizes what I"m about to do, none of the brothers stop me.

Standing back once I"ve emptied the can, I throw it to the side of the room, and hold my hand out. Smokey steps forward and places the match in my hand. I light it as the brothers all step back, then I throw it on the bitch.

She lights up like a fucking bonfire on the 4th of July. Her screams of terror and pain echo around the room as her body gives out. I stand and watch as she burns, and I state to my brothers,"You want to know exactly how I felt every day without Kennedy."I nod to a now-dead Prue and state, "I felt like that. I felt terror and pain every single day, like I was being burned alive."

With that, I turn and head to the exit, knowing the prospects will handle the body, ignoring the pain in my father"s and stepbrother"s eyes, because they finally realize the depth of the pain I endured, slowly dying inside without my girl.

I leave the outhouse with my dad at my back, only to pause at the top of the steps to see my girl standing at the bottom in her scrubs, her arms crossed over her chest and a scowl on her face.

"Ah shit,"my dad mutters, and I nod.

I pout playfully, and muttet,"Thecat has caught us,"making him chuckle a little, and I smile a little.

Kennedy growls and points at me. "It"s not funny. You"re supposed to be in bed, not torturing people!"I raise a brow at how easily she said that, but she just shakes her head and states, "Don"t give me that look. I"m not stupid; I know what you do and why."She throws her hands up, my eyes catching the bandage on her arm, making me tense as she states, "I mean come on, Lucas, I buried a flipping body for you after I watched you kill the guy!"

My eyes stay locked on her arm, and I growl coldly,"What the fuck happened to your arm, Kennedy?"

She winces at my anger, clears her throat, wrings her fingers together, and says,"Funny story, actually." I raise a brow as my dad snorts but coughs to try and hide it. I can feel the brothers behind me now, all watching the Lucas and Kennedy Show.

I swear if she got involved in something, putting herself at risk….

She puts her hand up in innocence. "Becky decided to screw a patient"s father in the bathroom. When the mother went to use the facilities, she caught them, and then grabbed a scalpel that Becky somehow brought to NICU instead of discarding it."My brows hit my hairline. "And then the mother went to stab Becky, which I was all for, until Becky, the coward that she is, decided to hide behind another mother and her preemie. I may have stepped between them and got cut."

I step down the concrete steps, my body vibrating—fucking Becky….

She gives me a weak smile and says,"For what it"s worth, I got to watch a woman being tackled by someone other than me. The husband instantly regretted his actions and started begging his wife to forgive him, and I got to punch Becky in the face when she started goading the woman."

I shake my head at her as I get closer while Snake asks,"Did the bitch at least finally get fired this time?"

Kennedy smiles and nods, confirming, "She did, indeed, and I got a round of applause from a lot of parents. Claudia sent me home after I…uh…." She looks at me as I stand in front of her, raising a brow, daring her to finish the sentence. She clears her throat and says,"After I got stitches,"really quickly, and I growl.

She throws her hands up and stomps her foot like a child, making it really hard not to laugh at her until she states,"Come on! I got to finally hit the bitch, you can"t be mad at that—and your out of bed!" She bites her lip and asks, "Call it even?"

The brother"s burst out in laughter, and I chuckle, pulling her into my arms, ignoring the pull in my stomach. My nose instantly goes into her neck as I rasp, "I love you, my Pixie, but please, stop putting yourself in danger; my heart can"t handle it."

I feel her melt into my body, her arms gently resting around my waist, careful of my stomach. Her face presses into my chest as she whispers, "I"ll try. I love you, Lucas, so much."

I smile, gently running my nose along her neck, and I whisper, "Let"s go home, baby; I"m done being stuck in the medical room."

She pulls back, concern etching her features, and croaks, "But…."

I gently kiss her lips, silencing her, then whisper,"Did you know that I live with the love of my life? Who happens to be the best nurse in the state? I want to go home, Pixie, just you and me."

Her eyes shine as she smiles, moving her head so her forehead rests on my chin. Then she asserts,"As soon as you show any discomfort, you"re going back to the medical room where all the equipment is."

I chuckle but nod in agreement, before looking behind me. All the brothers are grinning wide, happy that we"ve finally found ourselves together. I ask,"Which brother fancies taking us home?"

Sniper grins wide and steps forward, spinning the club"s truck keys on his finger, making me laugh as I guide my girl to the truck. But not before she throws the quad keys to Snake, who chuckles loudly.

I hold my girl tight against me, finally feeling at peace.