Gonzo (Rolling Thunder Motorcycle Club Book 7) (27 page)

O
ne month
later

G
onzo

A
fter wearing
nothing but jeans for years, the dress pants and shirt made me feel almost naked.

Connie had given me a large closet in one of the guest bedrooms, and she hadn’t seen my clothes when I’d brought them in.

I let her get in and out of the bathroom before I showered, and she was downstairs when I got ready. I’d planned it this way because I wasn’t terribly sure about this, and I needed some time with it before anyone saw me.

I trimmed my beard and slicked my hair back into a ponytail with the goop Brain had given me, and didn’t recognize the man in the mirror. My hair didn’t look goopy, it just looked like it was in a neat ponytail, which never happens with my hair.

My beard wasn’t short by any means, but it was neat and orderly instead of being all over the place. The clothes made me look totally different, as if I were, I don’t know — someone else. Not the person I used to be, not the person I’ve become, and I certainly wouldn’t want to ride in this, but maybe I wouldn’t mind dressing in a similar fashion for special occasions.

Chloe saw me first, and she jumped down from the booster seat in her chair to run to me as she yelled, “Daddy! You look different!”

Declan was much more reserved and I wasn’t sure he liked it, but I didn’t have a chance to ask him right away because I thought Connie was going to cry when she saw me.

I was holding Chloe and I pulled Connie to me as she said, “You said to trust you. I’ve been so worried, and I should’ve trusted you.”

I kissed her forehead as I told her, “You have to know I’d do just about anything for my kids, and if this helps them get into the best school then it’s a small price to pay.”

She let go of me as I stepped away and put Chloe down, and stepped to Declan. “You’re quiet buddy — don’t you like it?”

“I like you better as a biker. You don’t look like you.”

“This is just me dressed another way. I’m still a hundred percent biker, but sometimes you have to dress for the place you’re going, even if you’d rather wear your jeans.”

When we were finally on our way, I again contemplated the small-talk possibilities Brain had coached me through. I was pretty sure I could manage most of it, but I still wasn’t sure how to handle the question of, “What do you do?”

I mean, sure, I could say I own a portion of a number of downtown businesses and I do okay for myself, but even though it’s the truth, it felt as though I wasn’t being honest. Still, if I just said I’m in the RTMC then there’d be questions about how I earn money, and then we’d be back at me saying the club owns a number of businesses, so Brain had been right about it being the best answer.

Thankfully, most of the conversation came down to which kids were going where next year. Connie had nailed down acceptance at her second and third choices for the twins and we were still awaiting the final decision of her first choice, as was most everyone else. There were also questions about why they’d never met me before, but I discovered Connie was excellent at giving non-answers and changing the subject without the other party even realizing they hadn’t received an answer.

When we were finally seated and waiting for the ceremony to begin, she reached for my hand. I hadn’t thought to ask her ahead of time if she wanted to be there as the twins’ aunt and father, or as a couple who happen to be the aunt and father, but apparently she was fine with people seeing us hold hands.

My kids were the cutest ones on the stage. I know all of the other parents probably thought the same thing about their kids, but just let me go on record as saying they were wrong.

The kids sang some songs, a few teachers spoke about how much they were going to miss the kids who’d crept into their hearts this year, and then the owner of the preschool talked a little about the high hopes she has for our future, and talked to the kids about how exciting kindergarten was going to be for them the next year.

The kids were finally led backstage, and then brought out one at a time to receive their little certificates. They were told to go down the front of the stage and find their families, but Chloe waited for Declan at the base of the steps so they could come to us together.

I ended up with Declan on my lap this time, while Chloe was on Connie’s, and I loved how they clapped for their friends as we watched the rest of the ceremony.

Connie had gotten a little misty-eyed during the program, but she was practically in tears as we turned in their graduation gowns and said our goodbyes to all of the teachers. I was reminded once again how she’s taken on the role of mother, and how easily she’s let me step in and make changes.

Their names were now legally Chloe and Declan Wells. They no longer shared a last name with her, but she’d never once let the kids know she was anything but excited for them when they were so happy to finally have a daddy, or when they practiced writing their names over and over to make sure they had it right.

We’d made plans to eat at a nice restaurant, and the twins jabbered on about a million subjects as we drove. I held Connie’s hand and squeezed it and again told her, “Have I told you lately how glad I am you’ve become the mother to my children?”

“Would you’ve preferred it be Sandy? Am I… the second choice? The one doing it, so you had to get along with me?”

I pulled into the first parking lot we came to, parked in a space and started a movie for the kids to watch in the back as I opened the door and told her, “Out.”

She met me behind the car and I said, “I can’t believe you had to ask, but for the record I’m in love with you. Your relationship with my kids may have opened the door to my heart enough for you to get in, but if you weren’t
you
then we’d have just been good friends trying to co-parent kids we both love. I never got to know Sandy and I have no way to know how I’d have felt about her if I had, but I’ve had a chance to get to know you inside and out and it’s
you
I want in my life.”

“Sometimes I wish they really were our kids.”

I shook my head. “Those kids are yours, Connie. Maybe you didn’t give birth to them, but you’re their mother figure and no one could do a better job than you. I wish I’d known about them from the beginning so I could’ve been there for them, could’ve watched them grow, but I’m happy with what’s happened since you told me about them. I like where we are now and I can’t
wait
to see where we are five years from now.”

We were both speaking softly so the kids wouldn’t hear us over their movie, though I knew if they focused they’d be able to hear us. I also knew they almost certainly listened to our first sentence or two and then focused on the movie.

She nodded and looked in the car and then back to me. “I’m nervous about the security meeting tomorrow.”

Patrick had been with her a good part of the last two weeks, and we had a meeting scheduled with the top security guy at her company, along with Aaron Drake, Patrick, Tyler, and Brain. Tomorrow would be her company telling her whether she was basically going to have to choose between her job or me. She’d long ago signed a contract saying they could implement the invasive security already in place, and more if they wanted to. Part of the contract was that anyone she lived with, or who lived with her, would also be subject to the same measures. She’d never intended to live with a man, and she’d wanted to be sure she and her family were safe, so she hadn’t negotiated any of it.

“I know, but we’ll make it work. I’m not quite sure how, but I have faith Aaron and Brain can find a solution your company’s security expert will agree to.”

She nodded and leaned into me, and I hugged her a few long moments before we got back into the car.

W
e went
to our bedroom once we put the kids in bed. I wasn’t scheduled to work the bar, but Connie didn’t seem to be in the mood for me to drag her to the den. I was beyond tired of going to the den, the garage, or one of the unfinished areas of the bottom floor for sex, but I wasn’t sure what to do about it. I was pretty sure she wasn’t ready for me to bring up the subject of selling both houses and having one custom built for us yet, so for now I was biding my time.

Which is why I was shocked when she said, “Before we go into the meeting tomorrow I think we need to have a discussion about what kind of house will work for us, and where it might be located.”

I nodded and waited, because it sounded like she had some ideas to share.

“I love my house but we need a master bedroom that’s either soundproof, or far enough away from the twins’ rooms we don’t have to worry about being heard. I love your neighborhood but your house isn’t… well, the master bedroom is right beside the twins’ rooms at your house, too.”

“My solution would be to have a home built to our specs on land we buy from the RTMC. Ghost has mentioned wanting to buy land and build, I could talk to him about buying my house.”

“That’s one of my issues — only
you
can buy the land. If something happened to you, would we have to sell to an RTMC member? What if no one wanted to buy? Would we have to move somewhere else even though we couldn’t sell the house?”

“No. You have mother-of-my-children status now, and I’m kind of hoping at some point we take that even farther. Even if we don’t, though, you and the kids would be able to live in the house as long as you kept paying the mortgage.” I hesitated before saying, “There might be some friction if you started dating, and brought someone in who the MC didn’t approve of, but that wouldn’t get you kicked out, they’d just let him know he wasn’t welcome.”

She nodded and looked out the window a few seconds before saying, “Okay then, my house is paid for and you once told me yours is as well. I’d like to agree to use the proceeds from the sale of both houses to buy the land and build our new one. I realize the resale value may not be as high as it would be if we put it somewhere else, but I enjoy my time at your house because I’ve come to like your neighbors. It’s like one big family, and I know the kids love having other kids as strong and fast as them to play with.”

I reached for my phone and pulled up Google maps and showed her our property from the satellite view. “Our original plans put space between a few houses so we can build roads off of our circle to make use of the rest of our land. Dawg has a dirt bike we can use, so I can show you the possibilities. The RTMC will build the road and arrange for utilities, we’ll only have to clear our lot and build.”

“Okay then. I’ve been looking at some floorplans and I don’t want to get into that tonight, but I wanted to talk about it before tomorrow’s meeting.”

She agreed to riding the dirt bike easily enough, though she hadn’t been a huge fan of riding my bike in traffic. It turns out I’m okay with this, though. She’ll likely stay home with the kids while I go on rides with the MC anyway. If it ever works out so she can come with us, she can ride in one of the cars with the other ol’ladies who prefer the comfort of a roof and windows.

I went downstairs to get some wine and cheese for us to eat while we watched a movie, and called Brain to let him know the change in plans while I was downstairs. He said he’d let Aaron know, and I went back up.

She now wears the Njoy from the time she gets home after work until she awakens the next morning during the week, and
all
weekend with the exception of a little time with it out after breakfast so she can relieve her bowels. Well, it’s taken out when I use her ass, of course.

It’d been several days since I’d been in her ass, and since I wasn’t going to be in it tonight, either, I swapped the Njoy out for a plug designed to hold her wider open while she slept. She glared at me as I showed her the new one, but assumed the position without my having to tell her.

I’ve had to punish her two more times since the night she first wore the Njoy. Once when she came when I’d told her not to yet, and I fucked her four times a day for three days and didn’t let her have a single orgasm until the morning of the fourth day. The last time I’d had to punish her, I’d told her to give herself a suppository to clean herself out, and then come to me lubed and ready, and she hadn’t. I’d given her a full enema to clean her out, and then she’d received ten strokes on her ass from my belt while she held it. Once she’d had ample time to rid herself of the enema and take a long shower, she’d received another two strikes of the belt directly on her asshole before I’d told her to lube herself and assume the position.

A week later she told me she’d finally managed to successfully masturbate herself to an orgasm, and she’d admitted it was the memory of the enema and belt that had made it possible.

She doesn’t know it yet, but when we get our new house we’re going to implement a once-a-month-maintenance plan, so she can get the kind of treatment she craves without having to misbehave. My wolf wants to get rough with her around the full moon, so we’ll schedule it for two or three nights before the full moon every month.

I also planned to start teaching her to deep-throat me in the coming months, but I figured we could wait until we had our house for that, since being able to do it in our bedroom first thing in the morning without being heard would make it a lot easier.

C
onnie

I
always take
three weeks off in the summer, and usually spend a week on vacation, a week home, and then another week of vacation in another locale. Drake Security has always assigned Patrick to travel with us for the two weeks we aren’t home, and I wondered what Gonzo would think of that. He was taking off those two weeks to travel with us, though he’d be working in between. He’d made arrangements with Duke so he’d only work nights all summer with the exception of the three days around the full moon — this meant the twins wouldn’t be in day care at all this summer, because I’d already put in to take off for time around the two full moons.

The twins were at Brain and Harmony’s house right now, supposedly helping her feed and care for the horses, though I knew they were more of a hindrance than a help. Still, we’d been there enough I trusted the horses Harmony let around them — apparently it’s rare for horses to not be freaked out around wolves, but she had nearly a stable-full of horses who seemed to adore the kids.

The meeting was at the Drake Security offices, and we met Brain in the parking lot and walked in with him.

The receptionist must’ve let Aaron know when we arrived, because he met us in the lobby as we received our visitor badges, and walked us back.

“If I’d have thought about it ahead of time,” Aaron told Gonzo, “I could’ve brought the triplets and their nanny, and set them up in the play room with your twins while we were in the meeting. My kids are excited about Saturday, and Sophia’s told me she’s been in touch with Connie about the plans.”

“Yes,” I said, “I’m looking forward to it.”

I knew we were supposed to be at Aaron’s house at one, and that the kids would go downstairs with the nanny and a bodyguard at seven so the adults could have a grown up meal and conversation. The nanny would put everyone to bed at nine, and we’d collect our sleeping children and take them home when the evening was over, presumably around midnight.

As we walked in the door, Aaron introduced us to the security expert we’d be trying to convince, and the meeting began.

Gonzo and I sat quietly for the first ten minutes as Patrick talked about changes he’d like to see made based on the time he’d spent with the kids and I over the past weeks. He approved of the fact Gonzo’s ever-changing schedule made it impossible for someone to know with certainty when the kids and I would be home alone. He had some concerns about my driving patterns, and I was surprised to learn that I did a good job of alternating routes in the evening, but the patterns on the GPS data said I always travelled to work Monday morning via the same route. My morning routines in general weren’t as random as they should’ve been, and he said he’d work with me to fix it.

When it was finally Aaron’s time to give his suggestions, he started out by stating we’d be moving to a private community with its own security system, and that he’d like to take a backseat to the community’s alarm service, as they’d be able to react much quicker than Drake Security.

The security expert was aware Gonzo was with the RTMC, and he didn’t approve of Aaron’s suggestion at all.

“They use much of the same hardware as Drake Security,” Aaron argued, “and their control room is staffed twenty-four/seven. If there’s an alarm, you’ll have well-trained men surrounding the house in under two minutes.”

“Next you’re going to tell me Mr. Wells is going to refuse to wear trackers or allow passive security inside his home.”

Aaron looked at Gonzo, who answered. “I know you have to make exceptions for law enforcement and military, because no way are they going to submit to being tracked. I’m similarly trained and I’m capable of taking care of myself. I rotate my routes already, I watch for danger, and I have a lot of people watching my back. As for security, I’ll allow interior infrared and motion detectors in appropriate places, but no cameras inside. Outside cameras will be allowed, but only if they’re monitored by the RTMC control room and not Drake Security. We have an excellent relationship with Aaron Drake, so you can be assured he’ll be notified of any security issues as soon as they pop up.”

The security expert looked to me and said, “You’ll be in breach of your contract.”

I took a breath and did my best to look resolute as I told him, “I’m aware, and I appreciate all the company has done to keep me safe and work around my personal needs over the years. I also know you’ve started opening little offices around the country to keep your most important scientists safe, because of the issues with security in the New York office. Mine was the first satellite office, and I showed it was possible for lead scientists to collaborate from different locations. I’ve recently had offers from two other companies. Should I turn in my resignation then my non-compete clause is for eighteen months — I’d be fine taking that time with the twins before going back to work, if you won’t work with us to find a solution we can all live with. I want to make sure the kids are safe first of all, and I’d also like to avoid being kidnapped, but there has to be a way to do it without intruding on Mr. Wells’ privacy.”

Gonzo managed to remain silent for most of the rest of the meeting. He’d told me ahead of time he generally trusts Brain to negotiate for him. Watching Brain in action, I realized we were in excellent hands — between the biker/hacker who’d dressed in a suit for the meeting and gave the impression of a high-priced attorney, and Aaron who’d dressed in black pants and a black Drake Security t-shirt, we got most of what we wanted.