Chapter Thirteen

Aunt Brooke leaned over to pick up the fallen potholder off the floor. Skye's dad smacked her ass on his way to steal a pickle from the plate on the kitchen island.

Skye warmed inside, always enjoying the way her parents showed their love for one another. She never realized how special of a relationship they had until she watched Mariah's parents go through a rocky divorce when she was in high school.

They never took each other for granted, and no matter how long they were separated, whether that was for ten minutes or a full day, they always sought each other out and kissed, putting all their attention toward each other. Once they got their fill of each other, they included her, the club, and their friends.

Their love created ripples within their circle, benefiting many people.

Her dad leaned over and kissed the top of Skye's head. "How was your day?"

"Long." She shrugged. "I only have two clients on Wednesday since Mr. Tenoli's doctor approved him to go back to work."

"You're a miracle worker." Aunt Brooke took out another potholder from the drawer and opened the oven.

"I'm not too sure about that," she whispered.

"Have you given it more thought to take the classes in...what was it called?" Aunt Brooke set the sheet of meatballs on the cutting board.

"Craniosacral therapy." She sighed. "I would love to. Not only because it interests me but because it would allow me to work full-time. The cancer treatment center is overflowing with those who need the treatment. In fact, many more people need the therapy than there are those qualified to perform the therapy."

"That's job security, right there." Her dad leaned against the kitchen island. "What's stopping you?"

"I don't know." She propped her chin on her upturned hand. "Myself, I guess. It hasn't been that long since I started working for myself. Even though I could take on more clients and earn more, it's overwhelming."

"You're young. Take your time. The jobs will be there for you next year or the year after." Her dad moved out of Aunt Brooke's way. "How's Mariah?"

"She's doing great." She waved her hand. "She would've been here for dinner, but she has a date."

"Oh, yeah?" Aunt Brooke's gaze came back to Skye. "I saw her hanging out with Brett a couple of nights ago. They seemed pretty comfy together."

She sat straighter. "Havlin's Brett?"

Mariah hadn't told her who she was going out with in the text, and between their schedules, she hadn't talked to her since the night she got the flat tire.

She looked at her dad. "Is Brett messing with her?"

"Don't know." Her dad walked over to the table and sat at the end. "Better come and eat before it gets cold."

She grabbed the salad bowl and carried it to the table. "Have you seen them together at the clubhouse?"

"Can't say I have." Her dad dug into the food.

She turned to Aunt Brooke. "How comfy?"

"They had their arms wrapped around each other." Her aunt set a glass of water in front of her. "I'm not saying more in case it's something Mariah wants to tell you or maybe it was nothing. You kids are touchier with each other and your friends than I ever was."

She shook her head. "Mariah wouldn't hook up with a Havlin member. She's been around the clubhouse enough times with me to realize they use women."

"There's a difference between the bitches and Mariah. The bikers know her through you." Her aunt poured the oil on her salad. "I will say Brett's a nice guy. He just bought a house down the street from Bane and Daisy."

"Brett's like twenty years older than her," she blurted.

"More like ten years older." Maverick never looked up from his plate. "They're both adults."

Her thoughts circled. She never doubted that her dad and Aunt Brooke would accept and support her having a relationship with Dio—if she could get Dio to see her as a woman available to him. Besides, an age difference wouldn't matter to them because they had a lot of years separating them.

"Do all bikers go for younger women?" she asked, throwing the question out to both of them. "I'm talking about those with an old lady at home."

"Never thought of that before," muttered her dad between bites.

"They do." Aunt Brooke wiped her mouth off on the napkin. "I've talked to Daisy about the guys hooking up with younger girls before. I noticed it when Jagger and Katrina got married."

"Why do they do it?"

"Because..." Her aunt paused, frowning down at her plate. "Because life is hard for Havlin members. Often, they don't have the time to get involved with someone when they're proving themselves to the club. A lot of the men, like your dad, spend time in prison, and it isn't until they're older that they realize what they want in life is a family and to settle down."

Dio had gone to prison for eight months when she was between the ages of sixteen and seventeen. If she remembered right, it had something to do with dirty money. It was the longest period of her life, not being able to see or talk to him. She had no idea if the letters she wrote and gave to her dad ever got to him.

Aunt Brooke reached over and held her dad's wrist, looking at him. "For us, it worked out. If I was older, I never would've met your dad."

The phone on the table vibrated. Her dad looked at the screen.

Aunt Brooke nudged Skye. "You're not eating."

She took a couple of bites of meatloaf. There was too much on her mind. Her appetite was missing the last few days .

"I need to leave." Maverick picked up his fork and ate the last two bites of his meatballs, cleaning his plate. "I shouldn't be gone long."

"Do you have to ride out?" asked Aunt Brooke.

He shook his head. "Fight at the clubhouse."

Aunt Brooke leaned back in her chair. "Over what this time?"

"It's Dio."

A chill washed over Skye. She scooted back her chair. "I'm going, too."

"You're not going." Her dad walked away from the table.

"He shouldn't be fighting. His back hurts." She followed him. "I'll follow you to the clubhouse."

"No."

"He might need me."

Her dad stopped at the door and faced her. "You're the reason why he's fighting."

"Me?"

Her dad cupped her cheek. "You're tormenting him."

Her heart sank, and she closed her eyes, not wanting to hear that she'd ruined her friendship with Dio by falling more in love with him.

"What am I supposed to do?" She blinked her eyes open and looked to her dad for advice. "I love him."

That was the first time she'd spoken to her dad about her feelings toward Dio. Of course, they'd always known she loved him.

But her feelings had changed. He consumed her. Her heart was wrapped in loving him. There was nobody else she wanted.

Aunt Brooke wrapped her arms around her from behind. "I'm sure Dio knows you do, honey."

"He doesn't understand how much I love him." She shook her head. "It hurts."

Her dad leaned down and kissed her forehead. "He's walking through hell right now, thinking that loving you is wrong."

"Wrong?" She grabbed her dad's vest. "Why would he—?"

"Because you have always been a little girl to him, and suddenly, you're not so little." Her dad straightened. "He can't love you as you want him to until he talks to me and he's having a hard time making sense of everything in his head."

"Are you kidding me?" She gawked.

Never in all her life had she heard her dad forbid her from getting what she wanted. He made it sound like he had control over who she loved.

"Nope."

She tightened her hold on him. "Tell him it's okay. Tell him he can be with me."

"Has he ever done you dirty?"

She swallowed and shook her head.

"Then, let him figure out if he can live with himself and his decisions. You take that away from him, and he'll get sloppy and reckless. That kind of shit will get him killed."

She gasped. "Don't let him get killed."

"That's why I'm going to the clubhouse to talk him out of beating himself up." Her dad looked over her head. "Lock the door behind me."

"Are you sure I can't go to the clubhouse?" She held on to the door. "Please?"

"Stay here or the apartment. Don't even circle the block around the clubhouse." He jogged to the driveway where his motorcycle was parked.

She exhaled heavily, feeling no lighter for having told her dad and Aunt Brooke about her feelings toward Dio. If all Dio had to do was ask her dad for permission to love her, there was nothing stopping him.

"Why don't you come in and eat your dinner? I'll reheat it in the microwave," said Aunt Brooke.

"I can't. I'm going to go back to the apartment." She turned around and grabbed her aunt's hand. "I'm sorry for messing up our dinner."

"There's nothing to be sorry about. Havlin makes life interesting, and our daughter makes it even more exciting." Aunt Brooke hugged her. "Let me package some food for you and Mariah."

"Thanks."

"I'm also a phone call away if you need to talk."

"I know." She hugged her aunt again. "I can't stop thinking about him fighting. I hope he'll be okay and hasn't hurt himself."

"I imagine the others would've stopped him in time." Aunt Brooke softened her voice. "You know we love Dio like family already."

"Do you think it's stupid that I want to be with him?" She followed her aunt into the kitchen. "Am I being unrealistic to think Dio loves me in the way that I want to be loved?"

"Do you really want to know what I think?"

She nodded. Part of her wanted to walk away and not find out what anyone else thought about the situation. She was afraid Aunt Brooke would tell her it was an impossible task to have Dio love her.

"Dio has always loved you. You were his princess. At first, I thought his connection with you was like a favorite uncle or a guy who wanted to be a father but lacked a family, and he turned to you to fill the love he sought in his own life." Aunt Brooke's gaze softened. "The last couple of years, you've been busy with school and working; he hasn't accepted that you've grown up. Then, suddenly, you want him to see you for a woman, and he's scared."

"But he shouldn't be scared." She pressed her hand to her stomach. "Was my dad scared of loving you?"

Her aunt put the lid on the leftovers. "Do you remember when your dad came back into your life?"

"Of course. Right after we moved here."

Aunt Brooke handed over the container. "Your dad went to the extreme to get you into his life—to make me fall in love with him. Just like Dio is doing now. I know it's hard for you to step away, but you must let him figure it out. No man wants to feel like they were pressured into a relationship."

She grabbed her phone and went to her car after saying goodbye. As much as she wanted to ride straight to the clubhouse and see if Dio was okay, she wouldn't go against her dad's orders.

Maybe Aunt Brooke was right. She had to step back and let Dio figure out how to love her on his own.