Once seated outside, in the shade, Belle nodded at the two guys huddled by the bike in deep conversation. “I wouldn’t tell anyone this but … well, you’re part of it now, and being Hudson’s niece and all. The club did a big deal a while ago, weapons, and they need distributing to buyers. It’s keeping everyone busy.Jayden needs to pull his weight.”
“Oh, I see.” She wasn’t sure if she was more worried about the guns or the fact the club didn’t think he was pulling his weight. “So, what does that mean?”
“He’s just got a job to do, is all.” She shrugged and sipped her water. “Tomorrow.”
Zak came rushing out with half a sandwich in his hand. A smear of mayo had replaced the red paint on his cheek. “Where’s my ball?”
“Where you left it.” Tammy pointed under the table.
“Cool.” He grabbed it and ran down the steps, shoving in bread as he went.
Jayden looked up at his approach. “Hey kid, you go to the beach with your ball. I’ll be there in a minute. Check the road, remember?”
Belle laughed. “Well, fuck me, he’s gone all Daddy Jayden.”
Tammy smiled and a warmth went through her. “He’s so good with Zak.” She hesitated. “Better than his real daddy ever was.”
“That sucks. It really does.”
Jayden went to his bike which was now parked on the small driveway between Tammy’s house and her neighbor—not the one with the rags always in her hair—and fiddled with the lock on the box.
Wyatt crossed the road with Zak and headed onto the beach, shrugging out of his leather jacket as he went. “Show me your best skills,” he called to Zak.
“Wyatt is so excited to be a father,” Belle said. “We hadn’t been together long, and he was all like ‘when are we having kids, Belle? You do want kids, right?’ And then this happened.” Again, she touched her belly. “Meant to be, I guess.”
“Being a mother is the best thing that’s ever happened tome.” As Tammy had spoken, Jayden appeared again.
He jogged across the road and onto the sand. “Hey, kid, this way.”
Zak turned, a huge grin on his face, and booted the ball at Jayden.
“Good shot.” Jayden tapped it back.
“You’re a good mom, getting your kid out of a shit situation like that,” Belle said.
“Thanks,” Tammy said. “But I wish I’d left sooner.”
“Hindsight and all that. These bastards who suck out a woman’s soul, make her think she’s weak or crazy or worthless, should all be shot as far as I’m concerned. It wouldn’t be allowed at the club. Any guy who beats up a chick, the brothers give him every punch back and more. Luckily, it’s not in their make-up.”
“What is it with Taff? What’s his problem?”
She laughed. “He’s a prick, a drunk, and a womanizer. It’s safest, him being a Barbarian. In the outside world, he’d cause chaos. At least he’s kept under control at the compound. He’s got a line he can’t step around.”
Tammy nodded, thinking back to Jayden slamming him up against the wall.
“You heard from Leah about your divorce?” Belle asked.
“Yes, she sent me the cell number of one of her colleagues, and I have a meeting set up for next week. She was really nice when I spoke to her on the phone, seemed understanding, you know?”
“And she thinks you can divorce without giving away your location?”
“I’ll probably have to give up the state, but not whereabouts in California.” Tammy found herself looking up and down the street. The hairs on the back of her neck tingled. Just the thought of seeing Gary strolling toward the house made her nauseous. “’Cause if he showed up here and—”
“Hey, you see those guys there?” Belle said gently, pointing at Jayden and Wyatt who were in the middle of a raucous game of sand soccer with Zak. “They’re on your side now. Nothing is going to happen to you or Zak, and if this asshole ex of yours shows his face, it would make their damn day.” She leaned closer. “You’re safer here than you would be under any kind of police protection or women’s shelter. Jayden is your ultimate bodyguard, and when bikers love, they love hard and passionately and ferociously. Ain’t no one hurting you or the kid ever again. You have to believe that and believe it totally.”
Her words wrapped around Tammy. She was finding that out for herself, but to hear it spoken was comforting.
“You are banging, right?” Belle said.