Banded Together (Rebel Walking #2.5) (6 page)

"Rock and
Roll, baby, it's in your genes, to sing like your daddy and look like your
mommy.
 
The world is ready for you, my
baby girl, and I plan to be there for you every step of the way.
 
I love you, little Heaven, more than you'll
ever know............"
  
 

The song calms
her.
 
I love that my voice has this
effect on her; it tells me she knows her father.
 
Holy
shit, I'm a father.

Chapter Six

Eaven

That was the
craziest thing I've ever witnessed.
 
Ivy
is so strong and
Taron
made me proud.
 
He's really going to be a great dad to my niece.

I stay with Ivy
while they finish with her and we watch
Taron
with
the baby just across the room.
 
He's
already singing to her and falling in love with his little girl.

"She's so
pretty, Ivy.
 
You did great."

"Thanks."

"Will you
tell me her name now?"

"
Taron
decided to name her Heaven... you know, like
Eaven
, but with an 'H'."
 
Tears fill my eyes instantly and I struggle
with a response to her words.

"It's
perfect.
 
Thank you!"
 
Watching all of this happen so fast has me
emotional and so happy for them.
 
Talon
has been texting and asking for updates.
 
He went to get my camera since I didn't have it with me when we left
earlier.
 
I step out to get it from him
because I want to capture them in their first few minutes as parents.

"Oh Talon,
she is so beautiful!
 
You should see how
proud
Taron
is.
 
He loves her already."

"I knew he
would.
 
When do I get to meet my niece?"

"I'll see if
he can show her off soon.
 
I'm going back
in to take pictures."

I walk back in and
take pictures of Heaven and
Taron
, and once the
doctor is done with Ivy, I get to take their very first family photo.
 
You can just see the love from both
Taron
and Ivy when they look at their baby.

Talon enters and
the proud dad begins to show off his little princess.
 
I watch Talon's face to see how this affects
him.
 
The loss of his own baby in the
past has been extremely difficult for him, but he seems genuinely happy for his
twin brother.

"You did great,
brother, but you’re going to have a hell of a time with these two women in your
house."

"I know, but
I'm ready."
 
The room fills with our
closest friends.
 
Our parents are on
their way and the grandmas will soon take over this poor baby, leaving no one
else a chance to hold her.
 
I step toward
Talon just as
Taron
hands her to him to hold.
 
Talon cuddles her close and begins to talk to
her.

"What's your
name, pretty girl?"
 
Talon's voice
becomes so soothing.
 
It's hilarious how
these big alpha males melt for such a tiny baby girl.
 
Ivy looks over at me and grins as we wait for
Taron
to officially announce her name.

"Guys, I'd
like you to meet Heaven Walker."
 

"What's her
middle name?"
 
Talon asks the
question I'm thinking.

"With a name
like that, she won’t need one."
 
I
speak up quickly and take her from Talon to enjoy her for only a few minutes
until she’s stolen from me.
 
Once our
moms show up, we decide to leave and let the true spoiling begin.

On our way to the
truck, I can't keep from grinning for Ivy.

"She's so
cute, Talon!"

"Yeah, she
kind of is."
 
He has an all too
familiar look on his face just as he bends down to throw me over his shoulder.

"What the
hell, Talon?"

"Let's go
practice making
our
babies."
 
I know not to even fight
him carrying me.
 
He does this shit to me
all the time and I'm not going to lie, it's freaking hot.
 
He flips me onto my ass in the seat of his
truck.

"You
ready?"

"Um....
for?"

"To
practice!"

"Yes we can
practice, but after what I just saw, I have
no
desire to have a baby anytime soon."

"That
bad, huh?"
 
His laughter
lightens the seriousness of our conversation.

"It was a bit
shocking, but I know Ivy wouldn't have it any other way."

"One day
we'll be ready to have a little girl or boy, but until then, we’ll just have
lots of sex."
 
He slides into the
driver's seat and before he can start the engine, I turn to him and grab his
leg.

"You
doin
’ alright?"

"I'm okay.
 
I'm happy for them but I'm not really ready
yet."

"I'm not, either;
we have the rest of our lives.
 
We can
just spoil her like we do Avery for now."
 
Talon loves my little sister and she’s always loved
him
; the bond those two
share
is
adorable.
 
She has him wrapped up and can
get him to do anything she wants.

"What should
we do about the wedding?
 
Should we push
it back?"
 
He starts the engine and
begins to drive.

"Hell
no!
 
We push forward and do
this!"

"I still need
a dress.
 
Ivy and I didn't even get into
the store before she went into labor and I really want to do this with
her."

"Okay.
 
So go narrow it down and we'll get her
opinion when she's out of the hospital."

"That'll only
give me a couple of days, but I think it'll work."

"We need to
get with
Taron
soon, too; he may need help with the
nursery."

"Yeah, we can
figure something out for the nursery."

"No need
to.
 
That's what everyone has been
working on today.
 
Taron
was a maniac trying to get it all done when I walked in, but that's when he got
the call about Ivy so we left right away.
 
I'm just not sure how much he has left to finish."

"He was
working on the nursery?"

"Yeah."

"How
sweet.
 
He’s really stepped up for
Ivy and baby Heaven."

"Yeah, he
kinda
loves her."
 
Talon puts his arm around my shoulder and pulls me closer to him.

"I
kinda
noticed."

"Who would've
thought those two would make it?"

"I'm just
really surprised
Taron
tattooed her name around his
finger.
 
That's extreme, but then again
those two are extreme personalities."

"
He what?
"
 
Talon's face is full of shock.

"I asked him
a long time ago if he'd ever have a girl's name in ink and his response was
'HELL NO!'
 
I was teasing him and said I
would get my girl's name tattooed around my finger when I found the right
one.
 
He teased me for years about that
shit."

"Ivy wasn't
happy about it at all.
 
I stepped out to
let them talk, but it didn’t take much to tell she wasn't pleased."

"Girls
usually go nuts for that shit."

"Yeah, well
Ivy isn’t your usual girl.
 
She's not
going to fall at his feet."

"Knowing my
brother, that right there is what'll keep them going forever."
 
I watch as we pull into a small shopping area
and he parks in front of a small cafe.

"You
hungry?"
 
This definitely doesn't
look like a place he would normally choose; he must be after something
specific.

"Yeah
and
we're going to pick our cakes!"

"You really
are
planning our wedding aren't
you?"

"I like doing
this stuff with you.
 
I mean, why the
hell would I miss out on shopping trips like this morning?"

"And
cake?"

"I like cake
and I can practice smearing the frosting on your lips."

"We are
not
having sex in there so get it out of
your head right now."

"We'll
see," he says as he steps out of the truck.
 
We walk hand in hand into the small
cafe.
 
He opens the door for me, as usual,
and we enter the sweetest smelling shop I have ever been in.
 

"Why haven't
I been here before?
 
The smell is
incredible."
 

"Hello,
Miss Bennett and Mr. Walker.
 
We
have you set up over here."
 
I look
over at Talon with surprise.
 
I don't
know why anything he does ever
shocks
me.
 
Because he’s always working so hard doing
promotions and business for the band, he’s a very hard worker and can multitask
unlike any other guy I know.

We’re led to a
small, private area set with a table arrangement and very nice tableware.
 
"Please sit here and we'll begin to
bring you samples."

"You amaze me
everyday."
 
I kiss him as soon as he
sits next to me.
 

"What?
 
It's just cake."

"Thank you
for doing this.
 
How did you get this set
up?"
 

"I planned to
steal you back from Ivy this afternoon but that plan didn't work.
 
I called them and they pushed it back until
we could get here."

"How did they
recognize us?"

"Lucky
guess?
 
I have no idea how they
knew it was us walking in."

"Mr. Walker,
we have twenty different samples for you to try today.
 
I'll bring you five at a time and let you
make notes.
 
At the end of your tasting,
we'll hopefully have the perfect cakes for your big day."
 

We eat a bite of
each piece of cake they bring out while the waitress pours champagne into our
glasses.
 
Knowing we have twenty cakes to
sample, as well as different champagnes, I see some major discomfort in the
very near future.
 
He only spreads
frosting on my lips twice to 'try' how the cake will really taste on our
wedding day.
 
Eating cake
his
way is much better than the
traditional way.
   

We narrow it down
to the two we want and choose our favorite pink champagne for the
reception.
 
We order a decorated
bride/groom cake that looks like a drum set and promise to send the Rebel
Walking logo to print on the base drum for decor.
 
This cake will be massive and very
original.
 
It's perfect for us.
 

I feel as though
I’m rolling myself out the door when we’re finished.
 
After all that cake and champagne, I’m
miserable.

"Where
to now?"

"We need to
go help Luke.
 
He’s trying to help finish
the nursery with Lilly."
 

"Luke sure
has been spending a lot of time with Lilly lately."

"Yeah, I
don't think there’s anything going on with them because
Taron
and I both warned his ass about her."

"Why can't
you just leave him alone about her?
 
I
think they might make a cute couple."

"Because
I know where he's been."

"You don't
think
she
knows?"

"She doesn't
know all of it.
 
He
gets around,
Ev
."

"So?
 
Taron
did,
too.
 
I let my best friend fall for him."
 
I give him my serious look because I want him
to know just how important this is to me.
 
"Leave them alone and see what happens."

"I can do
that, but he better keep his dick to himself."
  

"You're
impossible."

"Just
protective.
 
She's been around us
forever and she pretty much has three
Walker
brothers that would kick someone's ass if she's ever hurt."

"I get it."

We arrive at
Taron
and Ivy's place and I purposely talk loudly to make
sure we aren't interrupting anything.
 
There’s
only one car and a motorcycle in the driveway.
 

"Luke.
 
Lilly.
 
You guys here?"

"Back
here."

I walk in and see
the most adorable nursery for Heaven.
 
Lilly has an awkward look on her face, so I jump in to bring attention
to myself instead of the silence between the two of them.
 
Luke moves in to properly greet me.
 
He has
always
hugged me, and when I say hug, I mean he does it right.
 
Not a slight touching, awkward hug.
 
Wrapping his big, bulky arms around me, he squeezes
me tight.
 
He hasn't always been built
like this and has really changed in the past year.
 
It must be the
Walker
influence that’s making my cousin
swell up in all the right places.