“That’s actually what I wanted to talk to you about. She’s going to terminate her parental rights to Kalen. Would you be interested in adopting him?”
Blakely’s mouth dropped open in surprise. “What about Ben?”
“Well, it kind of looks like Ben abandoned Kalen. Even if that’s not the case, he’s involved with a gang. Do you really want to give Kalen back to him?” I asked.
She looked down and started to pick at the blanket covering her. “Of course I don’t. But that isn’t my decision to make. He’s Kalen’s father,” she said softly.
“And no one knows where he is,” I pointed out. “The club has a lawyer. Copper’s going to call her in the morning to get the papers Dani needs to sign. If you’d like to work toward adopting Kalen, we can get that ball rolling too.”
“What if I say no? What will happen to him?” she asked cautiously.
Somehow, we’d reached the point that could make us or break us. And I wasn’t ready. I didn’t know how she was going to react, but I didn’t have a choice. I had to tell her. “If you say no, then I’m going to fight for him.”
She smiled softly and reached out to cup my cheek with her hand. “I love you.”
Turning my face, I kissed the palm of her hand before looking back to meet her eyes. “I love you too.”
“And yes, I’d like to adopt him, or at least have legal custody of him.”
I leaned forward and gently kissed her lips. “I’ll let Copper know.”
22
GAME
We arrived at the warehouse in Reedy Fork thirty minutes before we were supposed to be there. Boar and a few of his members met us there to let us in.
The place wasn’t exactly what I expected. I assumed the building would be empty, but it was apparently being used for some sort of storage judging by the rows of boxes filling half of the space.
“Thanks for letting us make use of your warehouse,” Copper said to Boar.
Boar chuckled. “I was more than happy to help. I’ve been looking for a reason to put these little fuckers in their place for a while now.” He gestured over his shoulder with his thumb. “We’ll give you some space while you do your thing.”
I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I had to work to hold back my laughter when five members of RFG walked in. They couldn’t have been more cliché if they tried with their baggy clothes and low-quality facial tattoos. Not a one of them could have been older than twenty-five. Any nervousness I’d been feeling vanished at the sight of them.
They stopped a few feet in front of Copper and the one in charge stepped forward. “’Sup? I’m Worm.”
Copper lifted his chin. “Copper. President of the Blackwings MC.”
“What’s this all about?” Worm asked.
“Your boy Hook broke into a storage unit facility the day before yesterday and roughed up the owner. She’s an Old Lady,” Copper started.
Worm narrowed his eyes. “You saying one of your Old Ladies killed Hook?” he asked with an accusatory tone.
“That’s right,” Copper confirmed. “She didn’t have a choice. He attacked her and she had a baby there to protect.”
“She killed our leader. That can’t go unpunished,” Worm retorted.
“Neither can attacking an Old Lady,” Copper shot back and held up his hand. “But we’re not interested in a war with you and your boys.”
“Then why are we here?” Worm asked and glanced back at his crew.
“From what I understand, Hook was at our girl’s place looking for something that Ben stole from him. You know what I’m talking about?”
Worm sniffed and straightened. “I might.”
Copper nodded and rubbed his chin. “Hook didn’t find what he was looking for, but we did,” Copper said and pointed to a box off to the side. “You agree to leave our girl alone, and you can have it back.”
