“So why are you here? It's not that I’m not happy to see you, but it’s been seven years.” I asked her as I took a sip of my water.
“Roger can’t have kids.” I saw where this was going and placed my hand on Gage’s thigh to keep him calm. His muscles were tight beneath my palm already.
He knew it too.
Wanting her to say exactly why I prompted her, “Okay?”
“When I told him about the baby I had, he wanted to come here and get custody of it for us to finally have a family.” And the way she referred to our daughter as an it?
“Well, I adoptedit.” I spat. “Whenitwas released from the hospital after you split against doctors’ orders. On top of that, Gage adoptedita month ago.” It took everything in me to not cry when I had called Collins an it because she was anything but.
Roger tensed beside Hazel. “She is the child’s mother.”
“Wrong. Conleigh is.” Skinner said as he stepped to the table and glared. I loved that man. As soon as Roger and Hazel looked up, they shrank away.
“Assholes,” I growled. Turning to Skinner, I smiled. “Thanks, Skinner.”
“We are getting off-topic here. I want my child.” Hazel said through gritted teeth.
“You wantit. You don’t even know if it’s a boy or a girl. You don’t know what he or she likes. You don’t knowit’sallergies. Not a damn thing. You don’t even knowitsname.” I snarled at her.
And again, Roger spoke, not Hazel, “It doesn’t matter. She is the child’s biological mother. She wasn’t in her right frame of mind when she walked away.”
“She made the decision when she was six weeks pregnant, and she never wavered on that. Hell, when we had the ultrasound to find out what it was, she kept a blindfold over her eyes and headphones on so she wouldn’t have to see or hear anything regarding the baby. Not in her right frame of mind? That’s complete and total bullshit.” I growled.
“Can I kill them?” Skinner asked where he still stood, running his knife blade between his fingers.
“Sadly, no, but I might let you,” I growled.
“We have a lawyer ready to take this case to court.” The man that we hadn’t been introduced to said with a smirk.
“Bring it. We have a lawyer of our own.” Gage said as he placed his hand on top of mine where it rested on his thigh.
“Who needs a lawyer?” I turned my head to see Jacob walking into the diner and I smiled. I had been introduced to Jacob when the mother charter of Wrath MC had come to Collins’s biker party when we celebrated her release from the hospital.
“We do. This fucking man and his woman want to take you know who from Conleigh and me.” Gage growled.
“Really?” Jacob was dressed impeccably, as always, in his three-piece suit. How he managed it in this heat, I wouldn’t know.
Gage offered him his hand, which he shook. “What brings you by man?”
“Saxon wanted to come with when she heard I had some business down here. She wants to play with you know who.” He continued to play the game.
Gage nodded and smirked. “Cool, they are at the clubhouse.”
“I know. Lincoln is watching them. Wren already has them both wrapped around her little pinky.” Smiling, I turned my head to Hazel.
I had a feeling they had reported to Jacob what was going on and that was why he was really here. God love the man.
That was when Roger eyed Jacob and asked, “Who are you? You look awfully familiar?”
“Oh, I’m just Jacob Cleland.” As soon as his name came from his mouth, Roger’s face paled. He was just Jacob Cleland. I snorted.
It was indeed a sight to behold. “You’re… you’re Mr. Cleland.”
“I am indeed. And let me enlighten you. I have more money than I know what to do with and I know for a fact that Gage does too, and on top of that, so does Conleigh. You want to try and take,” he finger quoted, “you knowwhofrom them? Be prepared to have a fight on your hands.” And that fight happened three weeks later.
***