His (Hers #5) (14 page)

Scarlett and Magnolia sit at the breakfast bar, far away from the adults, talking about One Direction or some shit. Whatever it is those girls are into this week. They keep to themselves, but are always happy. I’m happy that Star found Magnolia, but also has Scarlett. Lyric and Ryker sit in the last two seats at the table. I didn’t realize Ryker would be joining us and I wonder why Journey isn’t here. Trouble in paradise? Probably after what she said the other night. I try not to put too much thought into it though, I have enough of my own shit going on to care about their high school-ish relationship drama this week. Ryker is a good guy under all that biker gruff.

“Remember that time you tried to bleach your hair so we could pretend we were sisters?” Star laughs out across the table. My face changes to twelve shades of crimson with embarrassment. I am instantly thankful we were poor and there was no photographic evidence of that disaster.

“You should have just dyed your hair brown. Why the fuck didn’t we think of that?” I laugh.

“Because blondes have way more fun.” Star laughs across the table as she tosses her long blonde locks back and forth.

“Watch it, you may hurt someone like that!” Levi interjects and we all burst into hysterics. Rarely does he include himself in these back and forths. But when he does, his comments are always priceless.

“I feel bad that we don’t have any embarrassing stories of Lyric. It’s how we indoctrinate people into our family!” Star laughs.

“My entire life as a teenager was awkward. I went to college a virgin. There is your tidbit of comedy for the night.” Lyric offers up and the table goes silent. She said the V word. Ryker’s eyes are wide as he just stares at Lyric. Utoh.

“You were a virgin till you were in college?” I ask in shock. Because if we are being completely honest here… that doesn’t really happen. Ever. Especially for an attractive girl. And even more so for a girl who grew up without a father.

Ryker, Chrome, and Levi look back and forth between each other. All wondering when it would be time for them to get up from the table and flee. Being the gentleman he is, Ryker gets up and starts cleaning the dishes in the sink. Maybe he just doesn’t want to be pulled into this conversation, because it just got uncomfortable as hell for someone like him.

“Good idea! Men do dishes!” I yell with excitement. There is no way in hell I am going to clean this all up. I watch Lyric eye Ryker as he moved around my kitchen. Her glances are not completely unnoticed. He is a nice looking guy. I will give him that. Tattoos cover his body, all the way up his neck. I’m pretty sure he has dark hair, but he always keeps his head covered with a hat of some kind.

I am sure if Ryker wasn’t so hung up on Journey he would be returning those glances. I want to save the poor girl from herself, so I throw out the subject of Star’s baby sister.

“Is Journey still dead set on leaving Woodstock?”

Star lets out an aggravated sigh.

“Yes, she is actually leaving in the morning. Talk about shitty planning. Now I have no one to babysit Rainbow during the day anymore. Well, I guess I could always ask Paisley, but Cash keeps her so damn busy now.” Star continues to ramble but no one is really listening to her. Lyric looks disappointed, but I am sure we all just helped her dodge a bullet. I don’t really want her getting mixed up with any of those womanizing bikers anyways. Consider it me just protecting her.

“You know, she was supposed to babysit for me on Friday. What the fuck? Why would she just bail out on all of us like this?” I add.

“I can tell you why,” a man’s voice interrupts us all. We turn and focus our eyes on Ryker.

“Because River asked her to. She is chasing him just like Paisley did. What the fuck does that guy have that makes all these girls go crazy? I don’t get it. He’s a dick. He is only going to use her and throw her away like he did with Paisley.” Ryker turns back around and starts slamming dishes in the sink under the guise of washing them.

“Hey, watch my plates.” I harass him.

“Sorry, he just makes my blood boil.” He looks at Chrome waiting to be chewed out for throwing his little brother under the bus.

“So you and Journey are over?” Chrome asks him.

“We never began.” he shrugs his shoulders and we all try and ignore the newfound hostility in the air.

“I know River is a sore subject, but what is he doing in Charleston?” I ask. I know I shouldn’t pry, but we all know how nosey I am.

“He opened some fetish club or some shit.” Chrome doesn’t go into detail, but I am not completely surprised. I remember Star telling me he is doing well for himself and now that the word fetish has been thrown into the
club
he is running, it all makes sense.

“So wait, while we are up here trying to buy Sinners & Swingers he moved fuckin’ eighteen hours south and did the same shit?”

Chrome nods without offering any more details.

“Think he just needed to get away from Woodstock.” Chromes adds.

“I know the feeling.”

Levi

Present

“Are we going to talk about this mystery brother?”

I knew it would only be a matter of time until my wife brought it up. I was thankful it took her two full days. Between compiling a list of qualified female candidates to take over Seven’s position at White-Woods Global and the fact that she spent every day with Lyric, I was pretty sure she forgot.

“I didn’t want to talk about it and I still don’t, but I will give you this… He was never around. I haven’t talked to him in years. He is like Blu, except not as much of a violent douche. Well, the last time I knew. I just pretend like he doesn’t exist because it makes my life so much easier. If he knew where I was today and what I was doing, he would be looking for a handout and I just don’t want to go down that road.” I run my hand through my hair and watch the look on Seven’s face while she takes it all in.

“It doesn’t bother you? That he is out there in the world somewhere and doesn’t want anything to do with you?” She asks.

“It doesn’t anymore. It did for a long time, but I eventually got over it. It took me time, a long time, but I just don’t care anymore. Why stress over someone like that when I have people in my life who actually give a shit?” It makes sense when I say it, but her question made me realize that the wound Arden left so many years ago is just as fresh as if it happened yesterday.

“I support you no matter what you do and how you feel. Okay Levi?” Seven says as she rolls over and turns off the light on her nightstand. “I’m not feeling so hot tonight, this baby is kicking my ass. I don’t think it is gonna be long before he busts out.” She tries to laugh it off, but I know she has been miserable. When she is uncomfortable, it is written all over her face. I often wonder how she made it through some of the kick ass mergers because she has the world’s worst poker face. Ever.

“You sure you are feeling okay? Do I need to call the doctor?” I ask, just out of concern. It is my nature. I don’t want to pester her, but sometimes it’s necessary. I roll over and begin to rub her back. Something that helps to comfort her in times like this. She lives for the little bit of comforting contact.

“Yeah, I think I’m good. If I don’t feel better after I get some sleep, I will call the doctor. I think I have just been over working myself.”

I know the whole hiring process for her position has really been taking a toll on her. I feel bad pushing the issue, but it is something that needs to be accomplished before the baby comes. We both agreed on that, for once.

“Hey, at least we have it narrowed down to two women. We can make arrangements next week for them to come up here and do face-to-face interviews so you can make your decision, okay?” I offer the help because I know she wants to be involved still, but she is over the entire process. She doesn’t want to let go of the company or her job. But she also doesn’t want to leave the kids behind.

“Mmm hmmm,” she says as she drifts off to sleep.

I stay up for a while sending out formal invitations to both candidates to come to Woodstock on Monday. Within minutes, both confirm and I forward the emails to Olivia to arrange their travel arrangements. Seven would appreciate their late night work ethic and obsession with checking their email. I smile because it reminds me so much of my CEO powerhouse wife.

My body shakes and the light flickers on. I try and blink my eyes open, but I am pretty sure I am still asleep. My body shakes again, as I hear a moan.

“Levi, wake up!” the voice is Seven, and it is followed by a noise that only could be described as a cat in heat. “Fuck that hurts!” She mumbles.

“GET UP LEVI PARKER BEFORE I KILL YOU!”

Her words register and I sit up in bed.

“What is going on?” I ask in a sleepy daze still.

“My fucking water broke! This baby is not waiting anymore. This is BULLSHIT! I am SO not fucking ready for this!” The only thing that silences Seven is her pain. She bites her bottom lip and growls through the contractions. Her face is red and covered in a thin sheen of sweat.

“Are you sure you just didn’t piss your pants? It’s happened before.” I shouldn’t have said that. She is going to kill me.

“Seriously Levi? I’m gonna stab you in the fucking EYE if you don’t get the doctor and my midwives on the phone.” She is serious and I am pretty sure the threat is real If she had something within arms reach right now, I would have already been stabbed.

“FUCK SHIT! JESUS! Contractions suck BALLS!” She screams through our bedroom. I fumble with the phone and make all of the necessary phone calls.

“WHY did I want to fucking do this all natural this time? OH MY GOD THIS KID IS TRYING TO KILL ME!” She screams. If she continues to be so loud, she is going to wake Marley up for sure and then we are going to have a whole other set of problems on our hands. She walks across the room, and sits down on the giant exercise ball we’ve been kicking around the bedroom for weeks.

“Love, you wanted to do it all natural with midwives because YOU insisted that Star’s birth was so beautiful.” I smile thinking about how Star welcomed Rainbow into the world in a little birth tub in the living room of their home. It was a party. Everyone was there. Star took it like a champ. Seven… well I don’t see a repeat performance of that, no matter how much she wants it.

“Natural fuckin’ smatural. I want a fucking epidural.” She pouts.

“You need to decide now if you want to go to the hospital because the longer you wait, you know they won’t give you drugs. It is your choice, Seven.” I rub her back and try and get her to relax, even if it’s a lost cause.

“I want the tub filled up. I want to soak in there and try to relax,” she whispers and I rush to the bathroom to start running the water.

“Can you call Star, Paisley, and Lyric too?” Her words take me off guard.

“Don’t you mean Journey?”

“No, I want my sister here.” Seven stands by her original words. She wants Lyric here for this. I’m not going to question her, not right now. I smile though, because I can tell that Lyric is becoming important to Seven and that is what she needs these days.

The sun slowly begins to rise, peaking through the sheer window shades in our spacious bedroom. Midwives sit in various corners of the room and the on call doctor patiently sits in Seven’s favorite reading chair, thumbing through a magazine, virtually ignoring the scene in front of him. Star lays next to Seven in bed, rubbing her back while Lyric rubs pressure points in Seven’s hand, insisting they would help with the pain.