“You like to build things?” he demanded.
I moved closer, noting the complex building blocks carefully ordered all around them and crouched low just in front of ’em. “Yeah, kid. I build bikes and cars.”
“No,” he breathed, his eyes so wide thought they’d fall straight outta his head.
I beamed at him. “Better believe it. My brother Mute does too.” I looked over my shoulder at Mute who lingered awkwardly by the door still. “Come ’ere, brother.”
He stalked forward, his mouth set in a firm line and I knew it was because Lou was spendin’ time with another kid. It was one of his things, he either liked ya or he didn’t and if he did, he wasn’t a big fan of sharin’.
Loulou seemed to notice ’cause she patted the ground to the other side of her and said, “Nice to see you again, Hero. I half expected you to be wearing a cape after your heroics of the other day.”
Then, for the first time since King had gone off to university and left his best friend behind, I saw Mute’s lips twitch then turn into a full-blown grin.
He reached out to tug on her hair as he lowered himself to the carpet. “Sammy, Mute.”
Sammy stared at ’im for a minute before saying, “Loulou’s my best friend so if you wanna play with us that’s okay but she signed a contract and everything so it’s kinda up to me to share her. If you can build something really, really cool, I’ll let you play with us sometimes too.”
The two kids, more alike than I woulda thought, stared at each other for a long minute before Mute nodded and reached for the Lego blocks.
I waited a tick as they both started to play before I reached out to knock Lou gently on the edge of her chin with my knuckles. “How ya doin’, kid?”
Her face was soft from watching her charge and her hero playing together and it socked a wicked punch to my gut that took my goddamn breath away when she smiled at me and tried to lean her face into my retreatin’ hand. I hesitated then spread my rough fingers against the silk of her cheek for a sec before pulling away.
“Good now,” she told me.
Fuck me, had I ever stood a chance against her?
“Wanna take you to Smoke’s Range,” I told her, tryin’ to focus on the reason I was there in the first place.
Tryin’ to remember my own damn rule.
No touchin’.
Fuck but that was provin’ harder than expected to follow.
“BBQ?” she asked, her brows twisted up in an adorable frown.
Christ, a grown man thinkin’ a frown was ‘adorable.’ What was I becomin’?
“No.” I grinned. “Gun range.”
“You’re going to teach me to shoot a gun!?” she cried out too loudly.
Sammy immediately ducked into himself and covered his ears with a whimper. Lou cringed and took a moment to stroke his back and head, leanin’ close to pepper kisses against the back of his neck until he poked outta his shell, forgetting his discomfort in favour of Lou’s kisses.
Couldn’t blame the little guy.
“Sorry, one of Sammy’s aversions is to loud noises,” she explained then giggled softly. “Unless he’s making them himself. I’ve always, always wanted to learn to shoot a gun. Dammit, I’m not wearing the right clothes for it though!”
I took in her jeans and turtleneck. Normally that much clothin’ on a woman did nothin’ for me but I’d never seen a woman fill out a shirt the way Lou did. ’Sides, the thought of pullin’ out the knife I kept in my left boot and cuttin’ it off her was a fantasy now firmly rooted in my brain.
“Look fine,” I grunted.
She giggled again. “Okay, well in that case, hell yeah, I want to go to Smoke’s Range with you.”
I bit back my smile and nodded. “Good, now give me some a those blocks so I can show these two why I’m the boss, yeah?”
Her answering smile grabbed holda my heart and squeezed.
“Zeus, Zeus!” Lou called even though I was right fuckin’ there, one foot over her shoulder watchin’ her as I had been for the past ninety minutes. “Did you see that?”
Smoke and I chuckled but I was the one to say, “You’re a fuckin’ natural, Lou.”
She glanced over her shoulder, her pretty face obscured by ugly fuckin’ protective eyewear and ear mufflers and she was still the prettiest thing I’d ever seen, gun pressed to her tricep, finger on the trigger and massive grin on her face.
“I am, aren’t I?” she said.
Smoke laughed rough and wet the way only a man who’d smoked a pack a day his whole life could laugh. He was a hard man, an MC brother who couldn’t ride much anymore but who taught all the brothers how to handle a weapon when they prospected The Fallen. He was like a dad to me, only better ’cause my dad had been an abusive alcoholic fucktard who’d cheated on my mum and took all her hard-earned money whenever he felt like it.