“I’m not upset with you, boy. I just don’t take kindly with her mouthing off about shit she needs to not talk about. What did she say?”
“Mostly, that Blue thinks she’s hot shit and better than us, and that’s why we weren’t seeing her as much, and she moved so far away.” Bolt looks down.
“You didn’t believe her, did you?” I ask.
“For a time I did. Aunt Blue just…she suddenly had her own life, and then I realized. She never had to take on the role of a mother like she did. That it was Mom’s failure. And that was a harsh awakening.”
“That when your feelings about your mom started to change?” I ask.
“Yeah.” He took a bite of his cone.
“Well, I can’t fault you, son. I think she sees things in your aunt she wishes she possessed, and it angers her. But I promise you this—now that I’m here, she won’t be running her mouth anymore, especially not around you. I’ll take care of it.”
Bolt met my gaze, and I saw relief. It made my heart ache. He deserved a childhood. I should’ve taken him from her a long time ago. But with the hours I pull and the need to be ready at a moment’s notice for the club, I couldn’t. “All I want you to do now is be a kid,” I say.
His eyes dance with mirth and excitement.
“A smart kid with common sense and street smarts. But a kid nonetheless,” I add.
“I can do that, Dad.” He grins.
“Good. Enjoy the hell out of it. In the blink of an eye, you’re going to be an adult. You got plans for after high school?”
“I want to pledge as a prospect.”
“Mm-hmm, and do what?” I ask.
“Whatever needs doing,” he answers with a shrug.
“You’re a smart ass, you know that?”
“Learned from the best,” Bolt shoots back.
“Yeah, yeah. If you get it in your head to go to college, it wouldn’t be a bad thing. The club’s always looking for more ways to be legit. Degrees lend to that.”
“If something strikes me, I’ll think about it.”
“All right. You know there’s always a place for you in KOC.” I finish off my ice cream cone before it can become a dripping mess. It’s almost jarring having a man-to-man with the boy I’m struggling not to see as a pre-teen. Parenthood is the most rewarding and hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life. He’s the only reason I don’t regret that night with Calla.
We finish up and head back onto our bikes.
“What do you think about an upgrade? Not a Harley, but something with a little more kick?”
“Yeah?” he asks.
“Yeah, come on, let’s go see Hank.”
He all but runs to his bike, and I laugh. Hank had been selling us bikes for as long as I could remember. The surly old man with hair more white than gray seemed to be a million years old even when I was a boy. His sun weathered face, along with the deep lines around his eyes and mouth, added to the undecipherable age. I bet he still looks the same, even though I’m different.
I tilt my head and discover I like the man I’ve become and I know who will complete me. If she doesn’t know I can complete her, I will just have show her what the truth is.
We pull onto the street, and I smile at the sound of the baby engine of the Black Yamaha SR400 with the dark blue gas tank. The used bike would get him through until he was ready to step up to a big boy. When I don’t see Blue’s car, I frown. Still running? We get off our bikes and walk into the house.
“All right, Dad, I need to get to finishing my homework or Blue will have my head.”
I smirk. “Yeah?”
“Dad, she’s crazy when she wants to be. Don’t let her fool you.”