Chapter 11

CHAPTER

ELEVEN

Rebel

“Mr. Atchison, can I come in and talk to you and your wife?” I ask when he opens the door at my knock.

“Come on in, Rebel. You’re here early, I know that Holly said you were coming by for breakfast so you could help her and the girls get their Christmas tree. Between you and me, I’m glad you’re going, it’s a young man’s job to get on the ground and cut the damn thing down,” he says, chuckling.

I follow him into the kitchen where Mrs. Atchison is currently working on stuffing for the turkey. I can see the pies lining the counter and smile, knowing that Holly and the girls helped make them. “Would you like a cup of coffee?” she asks, smiling as she finishes.

“No, thank you, I usually only have a cup or two and will have it with breakfast,” I reply.

“Sit down and take a load off,” Paul says.

I sit at the kitchen table and clear my throat. I know from Holly that they like me, but will they think it’s too soon to give me their blessing to ask her to marry me on Christmas? I’m more than capable of providing for the three of them, as well as any other kids we might add down the line, but they lived alongside her while she was in hell, and I know she’s probably more cautious now than she was before.

“Paul, don’t glare at him,” Esther chides. “You’re making him nervous.”

Hell, I’ve had guns pointed at me by criminals that didn’t frighten me as much as seeing Paul scowling in my direction. But I love her, and I will make her mine. I just prefer to have their blessing.

“You’ve probably guessed why I’m here,” I start, “and you’ll likely tell me it’s far too soon, but I’m in love with your granddaughter and want to marry her, then adopt Mina and Ruby.”

“Normally, I would say that,” Paul replies, “but since you came into their lives, I’ve seen my girl come back to who she was a long time ago. Fierce, courageous, sassy, and independent. Little by little, all of those things were buried deep inside, and Esther and I despaired that we’d never see our Holly again. If she’ll have you, you have our blessing, Rebel. My question is, where will you live?”

“Hadn’t really thought about that, to be honest,” I say. “The clubhouse is no place to raise kids, that’s for sure, and I imagine she’s not going to want to take the girls from the first place they’ve felt safe and secure. Will that be a problem if I move into her place?”

He chuckles while shaking his head. “Eventually, this will all go to her, and having you around won’t be a hardship at all.”

“Then that’s what we’ll do,” I reply. “Guess I better head over and see what Tiny Sparkles has done since she’s supposed to show up today.”

Now it’s Esther who laughs. “I can’t believe you found a tiny hard hat to fit her, as well as tiny tools! I think the girls are going to be so excited when they see the room on Christmas Day.”

“I do too. We couldn’t find the kitchen that Holly had in mind, but one of my club brothers is a master at building just about anything, and he’s working diligently to make sure it’ll be perfect for two little girls.”

“She’ll have more family then,” Esther softly murmurs. “Seeing as we’re all she has left now, that makes my heart happy.”

“She’s never mentioned it and I was afraid to ask her, but what about her father’s parents?”

“Her father was an only child and his folks died while he was in college in a house fire. She never met them,” Paul advises.

“I’m glad she had you when her parents passed,” I admit. “The system can be hard on kids, because most people only want to adopt babies.”

“She was definitely traumatized when she first came to live with us. She was in the car when her parents died and was injured as well. We made sure she had a good therapist because she saw them but couldn’t do anything because of her age.”

My heart drops hearing this; my woman has lived through some shit, that’s for sure. I vow that those days are now over.

“Paul, he needs to get to Holly’s, there’ll be time enough to talk later on while you two watch football,” Esther says, grinning at me.

Glancing at my phone, I see I’m due at Holly’s now, so I stand and put out my hand. “I’m planning to ask her on Christmas Day. She says you’ll be coming over that morning to watch the girls open their gifts, so I’ll wait until then.”

“Oh, goody! I’ll be able to video it,” Esther exclaims, clapping her hands together. “Now, I have a few more things to get going if we’re going to eat around three. You all have a good time hunting trees and we’ll see you then.”

“Mr. Rebel!” Ruby screeches as I walk through the front door, stopping long enough to drop a kiss on Holly’s upturned lips. “Come see! Tiny Sparkles came!”

She and Mina each grab a hand while Holly laughs at their exuberance. They practically drag me through the living room and down the hallway then stop. A female elf, with a tiny hammer in one hand and a saw in the other, her hard hat on sideways, is hanging from a scaffolding, along with a note.

Hello from the North Pole!

I’m back again, but not for long, I’ll go back home with Santa Claus on Christmas Eve.

Here’s the surprise and you’ll love it, ‘tis true, I’m building something special for you!

Your Mama, your grammy, and your pappy too, are all working together to make your wishes come true!

Today’s little present is next to your breakfast plate, hurry now and don’t be late. Because you’re getting your Christmas tree today, you can’t waste your time wanting to play.

Love,

Tiny Sparkles

I glance at Holly, a smirk on my face. I can see that this will require quite a bit of ingenuity over the coming weeks. She explained that the elf moves every day, the girls are not allowed to touch her at all, and sometimes, the elf will create a bit of a mess but it’s all in good fun.

“Guess we better go eat breakfast then, right, girls?” I ask.

“Hurry, let’s go!” Mina exclaims, dragging me once again toward the kitchen, where I see Holly already has food set out.

Once the girls are seated and served, I walk to the coffee pot and fix myself a mug. Holly leans in and murmurs so they don’t hear her, “See? It’s a lot of work, but they really enjoy it and they’re little for just a few short years.”

“Babe, I can’t wait to help with this,” I reply.

“I’m gonna hold you to that,” she teases, winking at me.

Breakfast is full of laughter and chaos, and I cannot wait until it’s an everyday occurrence for me. This is what I’ve been missing in my life. I love the club and my brothers, but the love of a good woman has been just beyond my reach for so long, I thought it was unattainable.