I settled the phone on my lap and considered the snitch’s reaction. Mentioning Ryder definitely hit a nerve. The snitch might be tighter with Ryder than the other Void head honchos.
However, he didn’t immediately shoot down the idea of killing Ryder. Planting the seed might be enough to get the ball rolling.
I wanted more than to kill Ryder and protect Little Memphis. I planned to end the Void. They were the ones who attacked my territory and sent someone to kill Nova. Rumor had it that the Void was run by three assholes. Killing one wasn’t enough, but it would give me an idea about how to find the final two.
After taking a few minutes to think like a club president, I let myself look at Elle’s texts. She had scheduled an ultrasound for the week I’d be in Little Memphis for Cher’s birthday party. I would get my first glimpse of my son.
The snitch’s words came back to me. Little Memphis was off the target list for now. Elle would be safer in the short run. She could focus on Sutter and my boy.
I sent a group text to Clint, Exile, and Rock to tell them the news. As soon as I finished up, I called Elle to hear her voice. She was in bed. Sutter was already asleep. She switched to video so I could see the way her belly had rounded out over the last week. She said the flutters were getting stronger. Soon, I’d be able to feel my son.
For the first time in days, the heaviness eased off my chest. But I knew my calm would be fleeting. Elle was too far away, and I couldn’t keep riding up every week to visit her. Something would need to change soon.
ELLE
Nova had been lowkey depressed since Skylar’s first day of school. Missing her daughter left her mopey. Lyric didn’t help by asking to sit on the front porch and wait for her sister to return.
Ivy and I made it our mission to keep Nova and Lyric busy that first week. We took walks around the neighborhood and visited parks. On Skylar’s early release day, we went shopping for clothes. I bought a few outfits and several pairs of pants for Sutter. Nova found a few adorable outfits for the girls. Ivy lingered in the baby clothes section, as she weighed the pros and cons of baby fever.
Nova and Lyric were both calmer by the time Zodiac and a half dozen of his bros rode to Little Memphis. They arrived the night before Cher’s birthday party.
I had worried a week apart might have given Zodiac time to rethink our relationship. Instead, he planted a kiss on my lips and announced he was spending the night. The rest of his guys rode to the condos to bunk.
That night, Sutter, Zodiac, and I had dinner alone since my parents were at Joker and Amanda’s house. We ate outside in the mild evening before retiring downstairs to watch a silly movie. After Sutter was asleep, Zodiac worked out a week’s worth of horniness while I mostly tried to keep up.
The next day, we got dolled up for Cher’s thirtieth birthday party. Zodiac looked fine as hell in a black button-up shirt and black jeans. Iwore my new maternity shirt that made me look more pregnant than dumpy.
“What’s with the braids?” Zodiac asked as I tied Nova’s brown hair into two braids to match mine.
“They shaved Cher’s head when she got hurt. Her hair is still super short, so she wanted everyone to wear braids tonight. She claims it’ll help her dream of a day when her hair is longer than two inches.”
Zodiac didn’t react to my words. However, he kept a close eye on me while I gave Lula braids before doing the same for Ivy and the girls.
“We want to go to the party,” Skylar insisted.
“It’ll be super boring,” I told the girls before they got agitated. “We plan to talk about taxes and hemorrhoids. It’ll be all grown-up stuff. However, there’ll be cake and treats, so why don’t we bring that home for you? You can have the good stuff and skip the boring stuff.”
The girls sensed I might be full of shit. After all, I was often full of shit. But they couldn’t argue with getting treats.
“Deal,” Lyric said and smiled at Dillon, whose hair was too short for decent braids. “I like cake.”
“Me, too,” Dillon replied. “I also want cupcakes if they have them.”
After making a list of goodies to bring home, we walked with the kids to my aunt and uncle’s house. Ford and Shay were already there with Sutter.
Pax announced, “We’re having our own party with our own snacks. We’ll be ordering chicken wings and mozzarella sticks.”
With the kids sufficiently distracted, I gave Zodiac a lingering kiss and smacked his ass.
“See you at the party, lover.”
While Clint, Zodiac, Exile, and Lula rode their motorcycles around us, Ivy, Nova, and I drove to the party in my SUV. My itty-bitty sister-in-law had recently obtained her driver’s permit. Tonight, I had her take the wheel while I supervised.
Smiling at Ivy, I said, “I want you to know that I appreciate how you’re driving slowly to ensure my son doesn’t get car sickness.”
“I get it,” the tiny blonde mumbled, growing frustrated. “I’m driving too slowly.”
“No, you’re fine,” I insisted as she increased her speed by five miles, making her only ten miles below the limit.
