chapter Twenty-Two
“Rooster, you got nothin’ on me,” William appealed to the young man he’d known since birth. “What you have is a bunch of circumstantial bullshit.”
“Pretty good bullshit though, even you gotta admit that. We have Tyler Blackfoot at Meredith’s house hours before the newscast. What she said implicated your club in the death of a prominent citizen.”
Grinning, William interrupted, “We are Harley enthusiasts.”
“You wanna talk about some bullshit? That’s the biggest load I’ve heard in a while. You’re fingerprints are all over this, William.”
“Then show me. Where are they? What can you pin on me? Because if you can’t, then cut my ass loose.”
Rooster got up from his chair and walked over to the door. “You know what? I think we might have some more questions for you. I can legally hold you for twenty-four hours, and I think that’s what I’m going to do. Maybe I can even dig up an old warrant.”
“F*ck you, Rooster.”
“My name is Officer Hancock, don’t forget it.”
William smirked. “Don’t forget who you’re talkin’ to.”
“I could say the same to you, old man.”
When the door closed, William slammed his head on the table. This was turning into one hell of a clusterf*ck.
“They should be setting bail or releasing him within the next few hours. Until that happens, there’s really nothing we can do.”
Liam sighed as he got off the phone with Lee, the club’s attorney. It sucked having your hands tied. He’d called Roni and let her know that their dad had been picked up. Now he sat at the clubhouse trying to make sense out of just what in the hell was going on.
“So, Lee says it’s gonna be a few more hours on the old man. Let’s try and see if we can make heads or tails out of the information Denise got from Meredith.”
“I think we can safely assume that the man feeding her this load of shit is Richard. The question is, why? What’s in it for him?” Steele asked, taking a drag off his cigarette. “I hate to say this, but you know who could probably tell us?”
Liam didn’t want to hear this. “Aww f*ck you, not right now. I can’t deal with her right now.”
“I think it’s time we call your mom.”
Lauren Walker was and always had been a sore spot for Liam. The betrayal and hurt of her leaving was a wound that still festered in his chest every time he allowed himself to think about it.
“If we call Lauren, it’s gonna be my sister talking to her. You know I can’t stand her.”
He knew that Roni was outside with Denise watching the kids. Before he asked her to do this, he had to get his emotions under control. Every time his mom was mentioned, he felt like a little kid again. He’d watched her leave that day, and he’d screamed through the door begging her to come back. Not once had she turned around and looked at him. With a sigh, he lit a cigarette and made his way over to where the two women sat.
“I need a favor,” he directed to Roni as he had a seat in between the two of them.
“You always need something. Why should this be any different? What do you want?
“I need you to call Lauren.”
“Are you ever going to call her ‘Mom’ again?” Roni asked. This was a point of contention between the two of them. She had somewhat forgiven their mother, he wasn’t sure he ever would.
“Look, don’t give me any shit,” he snarled. “I don’t like asking you to do this, but you and I both know I can’t talk to her.”
“Can’t or won’t?” she challenged.
Denise looked between the brother and sister, wondering just what had gone on with his mother that caused him so much pain. Behind the harsh words, she could see the eyes of a little boy. She’d seen those eyes on her own son when he spoke of the father he’d never met.
“What do you want me to ask her?” Roni asked, giving in like she always did.
“Thank you. We need to know what exactly Richard had to do with Jeffrey’s death. Obviously he knows something, but I want to know how he knows. This was supposedly kept strictly among club officers, and he never was one. Dad had a gag order in place on that shit. Do we have a leak here? Is it a bigger problem than what we think?”
“I’ll call her and let you know what she says. Why don’t you go home and try to get some sleep. By the time we put all of this together, Dad will be out – hopefully. Denise why don’t you go with him? I’ll get the kids to help me clean up the clubhouse. Ya know, keep them outta your hair for a while.”
Liam couldn’t help the shit eating grin that broke across his face. Reaching down, he grabbed Denise’s hand and pulled her up beside him “Let’s go.”
Hours later, they lay in what had become her favorite place at Liam’s house, the screened-in porch. A blanket covered them as they lounged just enjoying the quiet and each other’s company. She could hear his deep, even breathing which told her that he slept soundly. It was the first time she’d seen him sleep since she’d moved in. It seemed like he was always on the go, always doing something for the club.
When she wondered what he liked to do for fun, what his favorite foods were, and what he normally wore to bed at night, she realized just how little they knew about one another. It made her want to know everything about him. He sighed deeply, snuggling her up in his arms.
“Hey,” she greeted, smiling softly. “Did you sleep good?”
It surprised him, but he had. “Yeah, I did. I guess I needed it.” Stretching, he leaned forward, kissing her lightly. “Has my pre-pay rang?”
“I didn’t hear it, but I fell asleep for a little while myself.”
He reached over the side of the chaise, where he had thrown his jeans and pulled the cell out of the pocket. “Shit,” he breathed when he saw three missed calls and a voice mail.
“Everything okay?”
Putting the cell to his ear, he help up a finger and pressed the buttons to listen to the voicemail. After a few moments he put the phone back in his pocket and leaned back against the bed.
“Dad’s out of jail, and Roni’s interrogating Lauren as we speak. She’s taken the kids over there, hoping to soften the old witch up, then she’s taking them for the night. Darlin’, looks like we have a night to ourselves. What should we do?”
Lying back down, she bit her bottom lip between her teeth. She knew what she wanted to do but wasn’t sure if he would go for it. Inspired, she sat up, pulling the blanket tighter around her body. “I have an idea.”
“I’m all ears, I need a relaxing night.”
“One of the many things I’ve had to put off because of my kids has been dating. I haven’t been on a date in years. Do you think we could have one?” she asked, biting her nail nervously.
“Will you dress up for me and do your hair and makeup and all that shit? Ya know, look like you did the other day when you did that job for us?”
He seemed so excited, she couldn’t help but laugh. “Sure.”
“Then I’m giving you an hour. You better be down here ready to go. You want a date, baby, you got yourself a date.”
Gifting him with a gorgeous smile, she got up, holding the cover around her and leaving him in the nude. As she stepped over and around his body, his hand smacked her ass and she shrieked playfully.
“Is that a preview?”
Eyes darkening, he chuckled. As she ran up the stairs, he called after her. “It can be.”