"I love you, Meggie."

"I know. I love you, too."

"Meg-"

A knock at the door pulled Meggie away from her mother's voice. She frowned, wondering if Johnnie was visiting to continue the discussion they'd began earlier today. "I'm coming," she called when the knock sounded again. "Someone's at the door. I'll call you tomorrow."

"All right."

"Think about what I said," Meggie urged before saying goodbye and rushing to the door, throwing it open. "Christopher!"

He scowled. "You always open a f.u.c.kin' door without askin' who's there?"

Meggie rolled her eyes. "Since I have my own personal bodyguards, I figure they wouldn't allow anyone to harm me," she sniffed.

He brushed past her without waiting for an invitation. "We need to talk."

Slamming the door, Meggie stomped to him. "About?"

He narrowed his eyes. "How 'bout we start with my baby?"

Meggie gasped and opened her mouth to speak.

"Don't try to deny it," he growled, untying the belt on her robe and revealing her nightshirt. "Johnnie wouldn't lie about that s.h.i.t."

"He had no right to tell you," she huffed, the feel of his hands roaming over her b.r.e.a.s.t.s and belly burning through her. She closed her eyes when he thumbed her nipples. Her b.r.e.a.s.t.s were so sensitive and so much fuller. "It was my news to share." She gasped as his fingers found her center, already wet and empty feeling.

Christopher bent his head and covered her mouth, sucking on her tongue, destroying her thoughts of anything else. She stood on her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around his neck, loving the taste and scent of him. His hard body pressed against hers and he back walked her the few steps to the bed. He stopped a moment to remove her nightshirt before he sat on the bed and pulled her between his legs.

Meggie knew she should stop him so they could talk. But she'd missed him so much. Death had been all around them. He needed to feel life. He'd put life inside her belly. She clutched his shoulders, opened her mouth in submission, whimpering when he ma.s.saged between her legs. Arms around her waist, he laid back and pulled her on top of him before rolling over. He lifted himself up and stared into her eyes. She raised her hips, urging him to bury himself inside her.

"We need to talk, Megan," he whispered, caressing her cheeks, gliding his fingers through her hair. He kissed her again. "I love you. Stubborn, cheeky little b.i.t.c.h that you are."

She glared at him.

Christopher sighed and rearranged them on the bed. He held her in the crook of his arm, wrapped tight against his body. "That's what girls are to me. If I don't say it with no heat, I don't mean nothin' by it."

"Oh."

"Jesus. That's what I mean." He sc.r.a.ped his fingers through his hair. "You don't belong in my world. And I thought long and hard about this. About leavin' the MC. And, f.u.c.k, Megan. I can't. It's what I know. Who I am. I'm in too deep. I got my own mother killed."

His voice broke just as Meggie swore her heart was breaking, too. "Christopher, it wasn't your fault."

"Then whose was it? I got her involved."

"By bringing me to her. You must hate me. If you hadn't sought to protect me-"

"No. Don't even think such bulls.h.i.t. I could never hate you," he swore. "I just wish...f.u.c.k, my life don't have no place for wishes. Don't you see? Ain't no way we could ever be together. When you look at me, you'll always see the man who killed your pops."

Meggie considered Christopher's words. The past three months had taught her a lot about herself and her father. And the last ten days had shown her how precious and fragile life is. Living under Thomas's brutality, she'd always believed it in the back of her mind.

"As to my kid, I'll always take care of it. Just don't shut me out of the kid's life. I'll buy you a house wherever you want to go. Send you to school so you can do that weather girl thing."

"I loved-love," she corrected on a swallow-"my father. He put you in the position of having to choose his life or your own. He should never have done that. Knowing my dad, he would've done the same thing if the situation was reversed. No, he probably would've done it the moment he realized you'd started using the, um..." She frowned. "Merchandise."

"f.u.c.k. Boss was a tough f.u.c.ker. He didn't f.u.c.k around. He probably woulda cut my f.u.c.kin' fingers off first."

It was the first time Meggie heard Christopher mention her father with such reverence.

He scooted down and pressed his forehead to hers. "I came here to get you back. I f.u.c.ked enough chicks to know I don't need to keep f.u.c.kin' no random b.i.t.c.hes."

Meggie growled. He laughed.

"You a jealous little b.i.t.c.h, huh?"

"Would you stop?"

"This ain't the life for you, Megan. No matter how much I want you with me. How many babies I want to give you."

"B-but I love you, Christopher," she said softly, drawing her fingers along the angle of his jaw. "Do I want to live at the clubhouse? No. Not full time. I saw you at your mother's house. How much you enjoyed the normalcy." She swallowed, scared he'd turn her down. Besides her father, she'd never met anyone so willing to put actions behind the words to protect her. He believed she deserved better. What exactly was his idea of better? It was the height of irony that society would view Thomas as the better man. Thomas was a child molester, an alcoholic and a wife beater. The sc.u.m of the earth cloaked in middle-cla.s.s respectability. "Can't we be together? I don't want anyone else but you."

"Megan, no. I thought Johnnie would be better for you, but ain't no way now. He wants to patch back in and-"

Megan lifted herself up and glared at him. "Did you ever consider who I wanted? I like Johnnie. A lot-"

"He f.u.c.kin' kissed you."

Scrambling out of bed, Meggie stalked to the dresser and s.n.a.t.c.hed open a drawer. She pulled on her panties before finding a pair of leggings and a sweatshirt.

Christopher pulled himself up on his elbows. "What the f.u.c.k you doin'?"

"I'm going to buy myself a Milky Way," she muttered, slipping her feet into her shoes.

"No the f.u.c.k you ain't. It's been rainin' f.u.c.kin' buckets. It's stopped now but who knows for how long?" He got to his feet and pulled out his cell phone. "Lemme call Digger. He can make the run for you."

"No," she snarled. "No! You have my entire life planned out. Never mind asking me what I wanted." Hurt and angry, Meggie stomped around the room, grabbing her wallet for some money. Money Christopher kept her supplied with. She stuffed a ten in her shirt pocket. "I'm too young to know. I wasn't too young to get pregnant. No. Not at all. You wanted your baby in me. But I can't make my own decisions beyond that," she fumed.

A knock sounded at the door. Christopher sauntered past her and opened it. Seeing Digger, Meggie screamed in pure frustration.

Digger frowned. "What's wrong with your b.i.t.c.h?"

Tears rushing to her eyes, Meggie shoved Digger aside. "If either of you follow me, I'm going to kill you both," she yelled. She spun. "Just leave me alone."

"Megan-"

Her glare silenced Christopher and he ran his fingers through his hair. "Awright, you stubborn f.u.c.kin' bit...brat. You ain't back in half hour, I'm gonna find you my-f.u.c.kin-self and I swear, if I gotta do that, I'm gonna put you over my knee. You wanna act like a child, I'm gonna treat you like one." He indicated the room. "Get the f.u.c.k in here, Digger. Half hour, Megan," he warned and slammed the door the moment Digger walked inside.

"a.s.shole," she muttered, turning on her heel and heading toward the minimart, sidestepping puddles of water. Her mood lightened at the thought of having something she'd been craving all day. If she were honest, she'd been too down to make the trek, between the breaks in the rain, no matter how much her body begged her to sate its desire for the candy. She'd wanted Christopher. She'd just had to work everything out in her head. Him showing up helped speed up her foregone conclusion, but she would've made the same decision without his arrival. She gave herself two days tops before she'd have given in.

Someone grabbed her around her waist. The hand slamming over her mouth and nose cut off her air and caught her scream. "You've led me on a merry chase, Megan," Thomas whispered against her ear, shaking her. "But I've got you now and you're never leaving my sight again."

Megan elbowed Thomas, struggling against his hold.

"Keep f.u.c.king still!"

No. Never. He loosened his grip slightly and Meggie's elbow came down harder. He grunted but her action momentarily shocked him and he let her go. Meggie screamed at the top of her lungs, kicking his groin.

"You little b.i.t.c.h." He used his favorite technique-a backhand-and Meggie fell to the ground.

He dragged her to her feet. Meggie heard footsteps running toward them and she struggled more. She couldn't allow Thomas to take her anywhere.

"Your b.i.t.c.h of a ma always loved you more than she loved me," Thomas breathed. "Always wanting you around. And your f.u.c.king man should've killed me when he had the chance if he wanted to keep me away from you."

Meggie had the briefest glint of the blade arcing toward her chest and thrusting.

She screamed, a burning pain slicing through her. "My baby," she cried, falling to her knees.

"Megan!"

Mortician called her, she thought dizzily. A gunshot. Thomas hollered.

Gripping the handle of the knife, blackness swirling around her, Meggie pulled. Blood dripped from the blade and she let out a sob, feeling her life draining away.

Meggie shoved it toward the wavering ma.s.s of her stepfather. "That's for my mother." She wanted to spit the words. Instead, she gasped them.

She heard another gunshot, another scream from her stepfather, before the darkness claimed her and she heard no more.

Chapter 31.

Christopher compared his watch with the digital clock on the nightstand. Megan had been gone 28 minutes if he wanted to go by those red numbers. He didn't. According to his watch, she'd been gone 29 minutes and 34.13 seconds. If she wasn't back in 25.47 seconds, he intended to ride to that minif.u.c.kinmart and drag her a.s.s back to the room.

He paced, his gut telling him something wasn't right. He knew her. She might do her best to test him, but she never purposely worried him. She knew motherf.u.c.kers got hurt that way, and she did her absolute best to keep him calm so there would be no unnecessary blood spilled.

"Time's f.u.c.kin' up," he growled. "You wait here, Digger. If I miss her some kinda way and she gets back without me, tell her I ain't happy."

"Slack up, bro," Digger said with a laugh. "She was p.i.s.sed. Let 'er cool off."

"Megan ain't supposed to be out there alone."

"She lived on the street a whole month alone and we took care of Thomas Nicholls."

"We left him breathin'," Christopher muttered. "I don't f.u.c.kin' consider that takin' care of him."

"He can't be that much of a stupid motherf.u.c.ker," Digger reasoned. "And if you notice Meggie ain't scared-"

"Why the f.u.c.k should she be when she knows she got protection?"

"She can take care of herself, so what you sweating her for? I ain't never seen you act like this behind no b.i.t.c.h."

Christopher drew in a deep breath. Digger was right, but, s.h.i.t, he ain't never felt like this about no b.i.t.c.h. "She's pregnant."

"For you?"

Christopher slapped him on the side of the head. "Yeah, a.s.swipe. Who the f.u.c.k you think for?"

"d.a.m.n, man. All I'm saying is I thought you always kept your s.h.i.t covered. Didn't think I'd ever see a little you running round."

Christopher glared at him.

"I understand your worry," Digger said with a laugh, raising his hands. "If I was you, I'd get a better handle on my old lady. Feel me, bro?"

"Megan's fine just how she f.u.c.kin' is. Wouldn't change one hair on her head."

"That must mean you gonna keep her."

That's what Megan wanted, Christopher knew. f.u.c.k. That's what he wanted. She gave him all sorts of ideas. He'd buy a house near the club. He intended to sell the house in Long Beach. Though it was his, everything about it reminded him of his mother. That s.h.i.t wouldn't fly.

House or not, Megan could come to the club whenever she wanted. He'd never bar her. They could even keep a crib there for the baby. s.h.i.t could work out. No, s.h.i.t would work out. He didn't have his mother anymore, but he had Meggie and she loved him for him.

Whatever she wanted was hers. Whatever.

His heart twisted. Except leaving the club. Call him a selfish f.u.c.k, but this was his life and he couldn't give it up.

Someone banged on the door, hard enough to shake the s.h.i.tty frame. That same awful feeling came back in his gut.

"Who is it?" Digger called.

"It's Johnnie and Mortician," Johnnie called, the trembling words making Christopher's heart drop. "Open the f.u.c.king door."

By the time Johnnie had the words out, Digger had already swung it open. It took a moment for Christopher to process the blood on Mortician, a moment longer for him to realize where the blood was coming from. Megan. Limp and pale in Johnnie's arms. No, limp, pale, and b.l.o.o.d.y.

No. Not that either. Limp, pale, b.l.o.o.d.y, and pregnant for him.

Bile rose to his throat and he staggered back.

Johnnie shoved her into Christopher's arms. "We have an ambulance coming for her. I hope they make it in time," he rasped. "We have the f.u.c.ker. None of the usual suspects. Big f.u.c.k. Never seen him in my life."

Even now, the blare of sirens cut through the night. Within moments, EMTs and police officers were swarming the small room, pulling his beautiful Meggie out of his arms and laying her lifeless body onto a stretcher.

"Go with her," Mortician ordered. "We got this covered."