“I had no idea he was doing all of those things! I knew about the loan sharking, of course, because that’s how I ended up there, but I didn’t know anything about all of the other stuff.” A thought suddenly occurred to me. “Oh, Phoenix, were Kathleen and her husband arrested?”
He shook his head and softly smiled. “No, they were and still are legit employees of the dairy farm.”
That was good to hear. If it weren’t for Kathleen, the last 13 years of my life would have been hell. She would forever hold a special place in my heart for what she did for me and my son.
A sharp knock on my door startled me. Before I could ask who it was, the door flew open revealing Token. “Taylor, we need you out front right now!” Token shouted. That could only mean one thing.
I think my feet hit the ground once between my bed and the hallway. I ran as fast as I could to the front doors, which were luckily being held open for me. Skidding to a halt in the forecourt, I found exactly what I expected to find. My son had another young man pinned to the ground.
Nathan’s fury was palpable, but this wasn’t my first rodeo. Walking closer to my son, I softly said, “Nathan, let him go.”
His nostrils flared and he tightened the hand around the guy’s throat. “Not happening,” he grunted.
I moved a step or two closer, “Let him go, sweetheart. Token will hold him while you tell us what happened.”
“Not this time, Mom. This one is mine this time.”
I wasn’t surprised that my usual methods weren’t working. Nothing about the day had been typical. Why not end it with my son killing what looked to be one of Wave’s newer prospects?
“Give me one good reason why I should let you continue kicking this kid’s ass,” I demanded.
Nathan’s face reddened even more and I swear steam shot out of his nose. “He called you a muffler bunny and said I was nothing but a biker bastard still attached to your tit.”
Out of nowhere, Phoenix’s booted foot slammed into the side of the kid’s head, effectively knocking him out. Nathan looked up at Phoenix, his mouth agape. “Sorry to steal your thunder, kid, but nobody talks about your mother that way and gets away with it.”
“Damn straight! Strip his cut and put his punk ass on the curb!” Wave shouted, pushing his way through the crowd.
I placed my hands on Nathan’s shoulders. “Come on, baby, let’s go back inside and let them handle this.”
He reluctantly moved off of the unconscious man-child and let me lead him inside. I guided him back to my room. Once inside, I pulled him in for a hug. He’d been bigger than me for a long time, but he was still my baby. “Are you okay, son?”
He huffed. “I’m fine. I was fine, but the little fucker just wouldn’t shut up.”
“Language,” I admonished with a smile.
Phoenix and Wave came through the door, without knocking I might add. Nathan turned to Phoenix and held out his hand. “Thank you, sir.”
Phoenix grinned. “My pleasure. Nice job taking him down.”
My sweet Nathan’s cheeks flushed. Wave clapped him on the shoulder. “Our Nathan here has been working his ass off the last few years and, as of today, he is officially the newest member of the MMA team for the Northwest division of the United States Fighting League.”
“No shit? Congratulations, kid! That’s quite an accomplishment. I’m surprised you aren’t out celebrating,” Phoenix said sincerely.
“I wouldn’t have made it to where I am if it weren’t for my mom and the Knights. There’s nowhere else I would rather be celebrating tonight,” Nathan replied.
Phoenix directed his attention to me. “I’m going to head back to the hotel I’m staying at, let you and your boy celebrate your good news. We can catch up more tomorrow?”
I really, really wanted him to stay, but he was right. This was a huge moment for Nathan and I had done nothing but monopolize it. “Yes, tomorrow sounds good.”
Phoenix leaned closer, his deep voice awakening every nerve ending located in an erogenous zone, “You gonna make it easy on me and give me your number or are you going to make me hunt your fine ass down again?”
I managed to sputter out my phone number when all I wanted to do was kick everyone out, throw myself on the floor, and beg him to have his wicked way with me.
Phoenix stepped closer and pulled me into a hug. Well, what I thought was going to be a hug. He turned his body so he was shielding me from the other eyes in the room. His hand slid down to cup my ass while his lips latched onto my earlobe. He growled just low enough for me to hear, “I’m coming back for you in the morning. You best be ready for me.” He squeezed my ass cheek hard, placed a kiss on my temple, and left the room.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Phoenix
