“Seems it,” he muttered, his eyes on Maddox.
“What’s going on here, Axel?” I blurted before I could stop myself.
“Seems like you’re going to go to work and I’m gonna watch our boy,” he stated matter-of-factly.
My eyes filled with unexpected tears. “But I’ve never left him with anyone but Jill. And you’re mad at me and…” I trailed off.
He stood, crowding my space, his face peering down into mine. “Mad doesn’t even cover it,” he countered. “I wish like hell you would have trusted me to take care of you. To protect you. I wish you hadn’t made this decision on your own that took you and my boy from me. I’ve lost a lot of time. But as mad as I am, remember that I came here for you, Soph, before I even knew about Maddox.” His voice dropped an octave as he continued. “The reasons I came back haven’t changed.”
I looked up into his earnest eyes and reluctantly nodded, biting my lip to the point of pain.
“He, um, he’ll need a nap at noon after he eats lunch,” I trailed off, looking to the side before giving him further instruction. This whole thing was so surreal. I felt so vulnerable leaving Maddox with anyone, even his daddy.
“Got it,” Axel nodded after I’d rattled off every instruction I could think of.
“Please call me if you have any questions,” I stressed. “And, Jill always knocks exactly how she did this morning. Anything else – don’t answer the door,” I said firmly, feeling mildly panicked at the thought.
He tipped my chin up. “Baby, it’s okay. I’m here. No one’s gonna get to you or Maddox,” he assured me.
“Okay,” I whispered.
“See you when you get home,” he murmured, watching my movements as I flew around the room gathering my things for my lunch shift at the restaurant.
“This is hard,” I whispered, tears filling my eyes again as I leaned down to kiss Maddox. I stood to face Axel. “I know I need to trust you. I know I robbed you of so much. But he’s all I have in the world,” I rasped, wiping my face and trying to pull myself together.
“Soph, I would never ever take him from you, if that’s what you’re worried about,” he said quietly, zeroing in on my true fear. “And he’s not all you have. You have me, too. You always did.”
Holy….wow. I wasn’t even sure what to do with that statement.
“Okay,” I agreed, knowing with crushing clarity that from that moment on, my life would never be the same.
Chapter 4
If a day could move any slower, they’d call it a month. Despite a busy lunch rush and texting Axel off and on all day, the day had dragged.
I rushed home just as the blistering sun was dipping in the sky, ready to hold my baby.
I heard commotion coming from my apartment as I neared the stairwell which made my feet move faster, running up the stairs and bursting through my front door in alarm.
What I found on the other side shocked me to the core.
It looked as though all the senior members of the Knights’ Motorcycle Club sat in my tiny living room with their women, though my brother and Kat were noticeably absent. Scarlet and Cole, Wes and Connie, Ettie and Mack all sat in various spots around the room.
“Oh, my God,” I breathed, my eyes shooting through the room until I spotted Mad sitting on his blanket with who must be Gracie toddling nearby.
She was walking? I couldn’t believe how much I’d missed.
“She’s walking,” I said dumbly, the door still hanging open behind me.
“Yeah,” Scarlet replied with a warm smile, standing to embrace me.
I couldn’t help it; she’d always been like a big sister to me. So comforting and accepting. I started to bawl like a baby.
“I missed you guys so much. But you shouldn’t be here!” I exclaimed through tears, worried beyond measure.
“Oh, honey, where else would we be? He’s so beautiful!” she gushed. “He and Gracie are best friends already,” she laughed, patting me soothingly.
“Where’s my brother?” I asked hoarsely.
