Page 288 of Devil’s Disciples

“Hi,” Andy said. “I’m Andy.”

Andy was as solid as any woman on earth. She’d entered the club through an odd series of circumstances, but had proven her devotion to the club, and to Baker repeatedly through her actions. There weren’t many people on earth that I’d give my endorsement, but Andy was sure one of them.

“Abby,” Abby said. “Nice to meet you.”

Kimberly shook Abby’s hand, and commented on her new Converse, saying that the shoe had made a recent comeback.

“It’s all I wear,” Abby said. “Chucks and a dress have become my signature outfit.”

“It looks great on you,” Andy said.

Abby smiled. “Thank you.”

“Come on,” Andy said. “I’ll introduce you to everyone.”

“I can introduce her,” I said.

Andy gave me a look. “Go hang with your brothers and let the girls have their time together.”

“Fine.”

I didn’t consciously hold back on my relationship with Abby, but for some reason, I hadn’t introduced her to the club. After being given a clean bill of health, the first thing I wanted to do was bring our relationship to light.

I suspected an inner fear of dying prevented me from outwardly admitting that I was in a relationship, and that I was sick. Admitting one required admitting the other. Keeping my diagnosis from the club was easier if I kept Abby from the club.

“So, this is what you’ve been doing with your time over the last two months,” Tito said.

“Pretty much,” I responded.

Seeing Abby interact with the girls opened a new window of opportunity in our relationship. As I watched her meet the rest of the fellas, I envisioned trips across country with her on the back of the bike, sharing one of my favorite activities.

Connecticut in the fall with Cash and Kimberly would be quite an experience. During the trip the women would develop a bond that would be unbreakable, comparable to the bond the men had developed since childhood.

Since Cash and Kimberly adopted their child, Cash’s mother moved from Montana to San Diego to be closer to the baby. She was a loving grandmother, a babysitter, and the club’s voice of reason.

“Is Erin bringing the baby later?” I asked.

“I haven’t heard,” Tito responded. “Maybe.”

Kimberly and Cash opened a nursery, which had been Kimberly’s dream for some time. It was an immediate success, consuming much of Cash’s time and all of Kimberly’s time. Their baby and Cash’s mother, Erin, had become fixtures in the nursery’s office, staying in a nursery Cash had built within the office.

Seeing Cash happily married gave me reason to believe I could to the same. I knew, beyond a doubt, that I would never want anyone but Abby. I’d given her my entire heart, and she, in turn, had given me hers.

I worried that two months into a relationship was far too early to propose marriage, but not expressing my intentions to her – when marriage was all I could think about – seemed dishonest to me.

And, as I had said since the beginning, I wanted to maintain complete transparency.

“Can you keep your little mouth shut?” I asked.

“About what?” Tito asked.

“About whatever I want to talk about.”

Reno stepped off the deck and started to walk in our direction. I raised my index finger. “Give us a minute, Brother Reno.”

He paused and gave a nod.

“Sure,” Tito said. “Why?”