He shut the truck off and we sat for just a moment, Bingo squeezed into the back seat behind him, Alex in his kiddie seat on the left. Joker looked at me, his eyes soft, almost understanding, grabbing my hand.
“Take all the time you need. Gonna have to let Bingo stretch sooner or later. Shit, I'm gonna need a bigger truck, next time the club share comes in.”
I smiled. There'd been one more thing on my mind, ever since we left the nursing home. Looking at him cautiously, I undid my seatbelt and popped the door, the question hanging on my lips.
I waited until we were all outside, Alex safely in my arms, and Bingo walking next to us. We headed for the picnic tables.
“Joker, what did you mean back there at the nursing home? When you told him about the promise you'd made to Freddy?”
“Blood vow,” he said, the light going out of his eyes. “Finding you and my son changes a lot of shit, babe. But it doesn't change that. Nothing fuckin' can. The Deads would've been on the chopping block because they're wearing the wrong colors and they've treated civvies like you like shit for too long. Can't let go of what happened years ago. Absolutely fuckin' not.”
I sat down on the cool bench next to him, squeezing his bicep. God, he was tense.
“I won't get in the middle of this. As long as you're safe, and you come back alive when the time comes...that's all that matters.”
“Good,” he growled, letting Bingo off his leash to run around. “Because that's all I'll accept. I'm doing this for our family and the club, Summertime. Living and dead. Nothing's gonna stop me.”
I looked at the ground, sadness flooding my heart. He talked about riding into life and death like it was nothing, and there had to be a chance it would get him killed. The men who'd threatened me, threatened Alex, they didn't care about courage.
“Listen, when the club goes on lockdown, you focus on Alex. Nothing else. You keep him safe and happy. Do it for me, no matter where I wind up.” He took my hand with both fingers, squeezed it until we locked eyes. “Promise me, babe. Fuckin' promise me.”
“I will. I'll do whatever it takes to get through this. I'm not going to screw this up when we've finally got ourselves a second chance.”
“Yeah, thank fuck for those,” he said, releasing me.
He turned, reaching for a blanket he'd pulled out of his truck. He spread it out next to a tree, a perfect spot for the big dog to rest. Also good for Alex to wander over when I set him down a minute later. We both watched as he toddled over to the dog, burying his face in his fur.
“They're so good together,” I said, shaking my head in disbelief. “Is this all just a dream? Sometimes I wonder if I woke up from a nightmare and fell straight into something else.”
Joker's hand landed on my thigh, caressing me. Slowly, teasingly, he opened his palm, gently pressing his fingers into my bare skin, underneath the skirt.
He leaned in. “Dream? Fuck, no. No man ever fucked you half as hard as I did last night. You ever start to doubt it, you just spread your legs for my dick again. I'll give you another reminder.”
Oh. My. God.
Wet, fiery heat flooded my core. I tried to keep it together, but the humidity hanging in the air didn't help. High summer was here, soft and supple as a southern sigh, the air thicker here in the Smokies than in Seddon.
“Yeah, about that. I'm going to get on more than just Plan B soon. We can't afford another mistake just yet,” I said, staring into his eyes.
His wild, hazel gems pinned mine down, as if he disagreed. “Whatever, babe. You do what you need to. I'm never gonna stop putting my come inside you. Get ready. We're working on a baby brother or sister for Alex, soon as we're hitched.”
When?! I almost said it, but my tongue held me back, my teeth digging in so I wouldn't self-combust from the desire soaking me from the inside-out.
The bastard said nothing. He pushed his fingers through my hair, pulled my face close, and kissed me. Lit me on fire for the hundredth time.
His tongue swept over mine, piling new promises into the darkness and light. These were all depraved vows, licks and swirls and pinches, hinting at everything he'd do to me tonight.
Joker only broke away a minute later – or was it more than that? – when Bingo started barking. We both looked up, and I got another shock, this one far ruder.
We heard Bingo, but we didn't see him. The dog was gone. So was little Alex.
“Shit!” Joker bolted up, realizing the full gravity before I did, stepping toward the blanket like he'd just seen it burning.
God, no.
I ran right behind him, trying not to faint, wondering how the hell we'd gotten so distracted they'd slipped away from us.
We ran on, heading toward the crop of trees, a little ways down the first trail. The park was completely deserted, except for us, which wasn't helpful.
Bingo barked like mad in the distance, somewhere in the trees. Joker looked over his shoulders, just once.
“No! Stay the fuck there, babe. Let me go.” His eyes were a killer's again.