9. Kate

Chapter 9

Kate

I stretch in my bed and snuggle into Bull’s heat. He’s right; last night was perfect. We had a good time. If his friends had any qualms about my age, they sure didn’t show it. They all went out of their way to make me feel welcome. Gage, Roxy, Ranger, Jaxon, Beckham, all the names started running together. They were a wild bunch, but it’s obvious they care about each other like family.

We had a great time, playing pool, dancing, and hanging out with his friends. And when it was time to leave, I asked him if he wanted to come to my house, mostly because I didn’t want it to end. The one-night stand has turned into so much more, and even though I knew it couldn’t last, I could at least enjoy it through the weekend.

So he took me to his house, I picked up my car, and he followed me home on his bike. I look over at him in my bed, surrounded by the white walls and furniture, with the white sheet pulled halfway up his body. He looks good in my bed, I can’t help but think.

But instead of dwelling on that, I go to the kitchen and start on breakfast. I’m only out of bed a few minutes before he’s at my back, his body surrounding mine, and he’s breathing me in. “I missed you,” he says before he kisses my neck.

I can’t help but stiffen at his words. This is good, almost too good. But it can’t last.

I turn in his arms, and when I do, I look out the window into the driveway and notice my ex-husband’s car pulling up. Shoot.

Luckily, I’m dressed in shorts and a T-shirt, and I tell Bull to stay put.

He looks surprised, but luckily doesn’t follow me as I step out the door and close it behind me. If I had to guess, he’s spotted my fourteen-year-old daughter out the window and is probably a little stunned. I never did mention to him that I have a daughter.

I walk on to the porch and wait for Charlie and Emma to come up the steps. Before I can even hug or say hello to Emma, Charlie is on me. “Whose bike is that?”

I pull Emma in for a hug. And barely refrain from answering Charlie with a “it’s none of your business,” but hopefully the look on my face tells him exactly what my thoughts are.

I ask Emma instead, “What are you doing home so early? I thought you were staying until later tonight.”

She rolls her eyes, like only a teenage girl can. “Chloe wanted to go to the mall with me and my friends. I refused to hang out with her and so I had Dad bring me home.”

I should tell her that she needs to respect adults, but Chloe is the one that Charlie cheated on me with, and I know Emma blames her for the breakup. Regardless, I’m not going to get into all that now.

“Whose bike is that, Kate?”

Finally, I do answer him. This is my house and I don’t owe him anything. “A friend of mine is inside. But really, it’s none of your business.”

“None of my business? I bought this house.” He starts to yell at me.

I hold my hand up to stop him. “Go inside, Emma. I’ll be there in a minute.”

She looks between us and walks inside, and I turn back to Charlie, the man that still seems to think he can control what I do.

Bulldog

Luckily, I went in and put on clothes before sitting back down at the dining room table. I can no longer see the man and young girl outside, but I can hear the man. The door opens and in walks the daughter, a younger image of Kate.

She looks taken back. “Who are you?”

“Uh, I’m a friend of your mother’s. I’m Bull.”

She nods her head. “I’m, uh, Emma.” She sits down on the couch and with the open concept, she’s just a few feet away from me. It’s awkward for me, and I know it is for her.

The voices get louder outside, and I ask Emma, “Does he always talk to her like that?”

Emma’s face scrunches up. “Yep, always. She always wanted me to have my mother and father in the picture and I think she thought I wanted her to put up with that mess. Thankfully, he cheated on her and that was the last straw.”

I can’t help but wonder how old she is. She seems pretty wise for a kid.

When the voices get even louder, I’ve had enough. “I’ll be right back,” I tell Emma and walk out the door, shutting it firmly behind me.

The man is staring at me incredulously, but I ignore him. I pull Kate against me. “Go inside.”

She turns in my arms with fire in her eyes, but I smile down at her. “Go inside, please?”

She snaps her mouth closed and finally nods her head. Without another look at the other man on the porch, she walks inside. When the door shuts, I turn back to him with a menacing look on my face. “Hey, Judge Hawthorne.”

“How do you know me? I don’t know you.”

I just laugh. “I’m Bulldog. I’m with the Heartlands MC and you’re on our payroll.”

He looks confused. “Payroll? I’m not on your payroll. What are you talking about?”

I shake my head and laugh again. “You’re right, not anymore. Not since we went on the straight and arrow. But before, when we did all the drug runs, the guns, all of it, you were right there with us. You were in our back pocket. We have more than enough evidence to take you down.”

He looks alarmed for a minute and then shakes his head. “No way. If you try to take me down, you’re going down with me.”

“We’re smarter than you give us credit for, Judge. We have everything tied to you. Nothing has our name on it.”

He sneers, showing me the man I know he is. “What do you want?”

“You’ll never talk to Kate like that again. And if I hear of you mistreating her or your daughter again, I’ll end you. And don’t even test me. You know I can do it.”

I expect him to argue. I expect something, but he really is a cowardly piece of shit by the way he just nods his head and walks away from me, down the steps, and to his car.

As soon as he pulls out, Kate comes out the door. “I don’t need a keeper. I can take care of myself…”

But I stop her and pull her into my arms, breathing her in. “I know. But if you think I’ll stand by and let anyone mistreat you and talk to you like that, you’re mistaken. That’s over.”

She wants to argue. I think she likes to argue with me, maybe because she likes the making up part too. I don’t know, but I’ll stand firm on this. I keep hold of her until she’s softening in my arms. We stand there for I don’t know how long, until I finally ask her, “So you have a daughter huh?”

She looks up into my face and I can see the guilt she has for not telling me. “Yep, she’s fourteen going on thirty.”

I nod my head in acceptance. I don’t know what she thought, but a kid is not going to run me off. At this point, nothing will.

I start to tell her that, but the door opens. Kate freezes in my arms and I know she wants to pull away, but I stop her. Emma looks between us and smiles. “It looks like you were starting breakfast when I got here so I finished it up. It will be ready in a minute.” She turns and goes inside.

Kate looks up at me. “So I guess you’ll stay for breakfast.”

I kiss her lips before pulling back. “I wouldn’t miss it.”

I don’t know what I expected, but sitting down with Emma and Kate is a whole new experience for me. They laugh and have a good time, making jokes. One of them being Emma’s cooking.

Emma laughs at her mother’s joke. “I’m sorry. I’m still working on the eggs.”

I jump in and take a bite, swallowing down the overdone egg. “I like mine done.”

And that wins her over. “See, Bull knows what he’s talking about.”

Kate sits back in her chair. “Okay, I know when I’m being ganged up on. Fine, the eggs are good.”

And as we all laugh, Emma asks, “So are you two seeing each other?”

Kate chokes on her food, and I reach for her, patting her on the back. When she’s finally able to breathe again, Emma holds her hands up. “I was just asking. But I like him, Mom. I think he’s good for you.” She gets up from her chair and sets her plate in the sink. “And since I cooked, I’ll leave the dishes for you all.”

We both watch her leave, and I wait for Kate to smile at me, to feel better knowing her daughter is okay with us, but it doesn’t happen. She does smile at me, but it doesn’t quite reach her eyes.

I grab on to her hand and she looks almost sad as she looks at our intertwined fingers. She’s already trying to give up on us, but I’m not going to let her.