“All right. I want to say no, but I’m not going to take any chances with the babies.”
“Good choice. Your blood pressure is slightly elevated, so I want you to get plenty of sleep and relaxation. No worrying over those clients, either,” Dr. Jones ordered in her no-nonsense voice.
“If Evie is watching over them, then I know they’ll be in good hands.”
“Did you drive yourself in?” Evie asked her suspiciously.
“Yes, I didn’t want to worry Razer,” Beth admitted.
Evie slid out her phone.
“You wouldn’t dare,” Beth said, reaching out to try to take the phone away.
Evie pressed Razer’s number, putting the phone to her ear. When he came on the line, she explained where Beth was and the doctor’s orders. She hung up after a brief word from him.
“Traitor.”
Evie shrugged unconcerned. “He would have kicked my ass if he found out you were here and I didn’t tell him.”
“Now he’s going to kick mine,” Beth said, feeling sorry for herself. Evie recognized the emotional signs of Beth’s advanced pregnancy.
“That man would never hurt one of those blonde hairs of yours,” Evie said unsympathetically.
“I’m going to pay you back for this one day,” she threatened.
“Maybe so, but you’re a hell of a lot easier to face than Razer.”
Chapter 25
King stood in the parking lot of the church, waiting for Evie to drop off the clothing she had collected for the store. The backyard of the church was filled with the town celebrating the Fourth of July, so King’s eyes traveled over the yard, looking for his daughter.
She was leaning against one of the large oak trees as she waited for Shade to finish his conversation with Viper and Rider. Shade was facing his wife while the other two men had their backs to her.
If he hadn’t been watching, he would have missed the silent communication between the couple. Lily was staring at Shade with a soft smile on her face, and for a flash of a second, her face turned to one of heated desire before she blushed, regaining her composure. Shade caught the look and returned it with one of his own. Excusing himself from his friends, he stalked across the yard to his wife who was frantically looking around to make sure no one was watching. Her husband captured her, bending down to whisper something in her ear before placing an arm around her shoulder then maneuvering her through the crowd.
“Are you spying on them?” Evie’s amused voice drew his attention.
“Shade really loves her, doesn’t he?” It wasn’t a question.
“That’s what I’ve been telling you for the last six months.”
They opened the gate to the backyard as Shade and Lily were about to reach it.
“Leaving early?” King watched as Lily turned a bright red.
“The heat is getting to Lily. We thought we would go home until it cools down then come back for the fireworks,” Shade explained with an impassive face.
King smiled down at his embarrassed daughter. “I’ll see you later tonight then.”
“You two have fun,” Lily said quickly as Shade led her to his bike.
King stared after them as Shade drove off.
“They are still considered newlyweds,” Evie laughed.
“I never thought I would see the day where she was that happy.” His voice was thick with emotion as he turned back to Evie. “I’m glad we came.”
“Me, too. I haven’t missed this picnic since I’ve come to Treepoint, but I don’t know if I would have come if Lily hadn’t told me Brooke wouldn’t be here today.” Lily had told her Brooke had taken her new niece back to Georgia for their mother to see and would be gone the next three weeks. Evie was hurt her mother and Brooke were so close while their mother had turned her back on her; Evie couldn’t imagine turning her back on one of her own children.
As they filled their plates at the many tables that had been set up, King was much more wary this time about the food; he only dumped small amounts onto his plate.
“You’re learning.”
“I learn from my mistakes,” King said, following Evie to where The Last Riders were seated at a picnic table.
He hadn’t met them yet, but he recognized them from their pictures that had been given to him when he’d had Shade checked out. They were a hard group of men that had faced many challenges. King had grown up rough, but a couple of them could probably teach him a lesson or two.
“Hell no, why didn’t someone warn me they would be here,” the one King recognized as Train groaned.
King looked in the direction he was staring at in horror.
The group of women entering the picnic were dressed flashy, to say the least. One with bright red hair was dressed seductively in a wrap dress that left her chest mostly bare. She had tattoos on her chest, which he couldn’t make out from the distance, and she was pushing a double stroller like it was a weapon of mass destruction, sending people scurrying out of their path. If he were to imagine what hard-living biker women looked like, these women would fit that picture in his mind. They were dressed in leather, boasted tats and had hair that went the gamut of colors. One of the women was taller and leaner than the rest, wearing tight, black jeans and a t-shirt with metal spikes on the shoulders. Her cold gaze surveyed the picnic guests before moving to stand behind the young girls.
The women were heading toward their table.
“Shit.”
“Calm down, Train. We’ll protect you.” Lucky laughed at his friend’s predicament.
“I don’t know what the fuck you think is so funny; you’re not a pastor anymore. They’re going to consider you fresh meat,” Train taunted.
“Hey, bitch, where have you been?” King stiffened next to Evie when he realized one of the women was addressing her. Her hand quickly lay on his thigh to prevent him from snapping a reply to her rude greeting.
The woman in the wrap dress smacked the other woman on the arm. “What did I tell you about your fucking mouth?” She then turned to look down at Evie. “You going to introduce us to your new man?”
“King, this is Sex Piston. The one with the metal spikes is Killyama. The one with the purple hair is Crazy Bitch. And T.A. and Fat Louise are over there with the little girls, breaking the line to get their faces painted.”
“Got to teach kids to take up for themselves.” Sex Piston bragged.
“They’re the ones breaking the line.” King watched the woman shrug unconcernedly, never taking her shrewd gaze off him.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Train try to talk to the one with spikes; however, she ignored him, walking to Lucky. “This seat taken?”
“Bliss was just getting us—no, have a seat.” Lucky scooted over, letting the abrasive woman sit down. King then noticed a small, attractive blonde turn on her heel, going to another picnic table. Evie just shook her head at him when he asked why the woman didn’t return to the table. Within seconds, King had his answer as the table was completely taken over by the crew of women.
Not long after they sat down, King was taking a drink of his iced tea when Sex Piston’s baby began crying. She picked the infant up, and without showing even a hint of embarrassment, she pulled her dress to the side, unsnapping a flap before letting the baby nurse in front of God and everyone at the picnic.
“One of nature’s most beautiful moments, isn’t it?” Killyama said.
“That’s easy for you to say; he isn’t chewing your nipple off.” Sex Piston replied sarcastically.
King choked, trying to blink back the painful tears in his eyes.
“They have that effect on everyone,” Train said grimly.
“I see Willa decided to come after all. I’m going to go say hello.” Evie jumped up, glad to take the opportunity for escape.
King grabbed Evie’s hand. “I’ll come with you,” he said, hurriedly getting to his feet.
“Coward,” Evie remarked when they were away from the picnic table.
“What are they?”
“They belong to the Destructors.”
“Another motorcycle club?”
“Yes.”
“And I thought Treepoint was a sleepy, little town,” King muttered snidely.
“Technically, the Destructors live in Jamestown, but Sex Piston likes to visit, a lot.”
“Sweet Jesus.”
“Hi, Willa.”
“Evie, King.”
“Did you bring dessert?” King asked, smiling down at the pretty woman. She was as short as the other blonde, but while the other was slim and perky, Willa was heavier and more reserved. There was no comparison to King when he looked into her cornflower blue eyes.
“Yes, I brought the cupcakes with the sparklers.” King started to go to the table to get one but saw the table surrounded by children.
“Sorry.” When Willa laughed at his show of disappointment, King’s mouth almost dropped open, staring at the woman in surprise. When she forgot to be shy, her face lit up, her smile showing twin dimples. A sharp pinch on his arm had him looking at Evie.