Uncontrollable (52 page)

“What?” I ask in shock.

 He nods once. “I had defended him once for his
drug use.” He shakes his head in disgust. “And he was probably the same guy
that Jeremy and Jax got the stuff they used on you from.” I watch his
expressions as his emotions get the best of him. The anger. The hate. He wears
it for everyone to see now.

 His hand grips my hip, and he swallows. I know
he’s remembering what he went through, and I don’t want him to have to keep
going through that. He feels bad for what I went through but I can’t remember
most of it. He’s the one who continues to suffer from it.

I try to change the subject somewhat. “Were all of
your clients like that?” I ask quietly making him frown. “Drug dealers? Or did
they do things to others?” He tilts his head in confusion.

I sigh. “You never talk about your job to me. So I
thought that you handled cases like drunk driving, maybe drugs…” I trail off
when I see his jaw tighten.

 “Come here.” He pulls me over into the bedroom and
sits me down on the bed as he kneels down in front of me. He runs a hand
nervously through his messy hair. “I did defend those who had such cases. I
have even defended people charged with murder,” he says slowly to gauge my
reaction, “but when I first started out I felt I had to prove something to…well
everyone. Even myself.” He pauses. “There was a case where a man was aquitted
of murdering his ex-wife.”

I sit motionless, just listening to him finally
open up about his job. The one he quit, the life he just gave up like that, for
me and our baby.

 “She had remarried just months before she was
found…” He clears his throat. “The ex-husband came to my dad wanting him to
represent him. My dad then asked me to help out on the case. He swore he was
innocent.” He shakes his head. “Said he had done some digging on her new husband
and had found that he had several domestic disputes against him. One lady had
even went as far as a restraining order.” He sighs. “So I started doing some
research as well and found where the wife had been to the hospital for a broken
arm a month after her wedding. On paper it all looked like a solid case. The
current husband was in fact guilty.” He shakes his head.

 “What happened?” I ask rubbing the tears off of my
face. How can someone kill the one person they vow to protect and love?

 He looks up to me and searches my eyes. “It was
just an illusion. He was guilty. I found messages where she was still seeing
him.”

“How did the new husband not see all the bruises?”
I ask shocked.

 “He was a pilot for a major airline. Always out of
town,” he shrugs guessing. “Maybe that’s why she kept seeking out the ex.”

“So what did you do? Did you turn him in?”

His answer is cold and sends a shiver up my body.
“No,” he says simply.

 “No?” I ask frowning. “But you knew…”

 “But knowing wasn’t my job, Angel. My job was to
defend him no matter what the situation was,” he explains flatly.

 “So you let a man walk who killed his ex-wife?” I
ask in horror.

 He continues to kneel down in front of me and
stares into my eyes. “That right there is why I will never look back and regret
quitting my job,” he says slowly. “I don’t want you to look at me that way.”

“What…? No…”

 “Don’t try to deny it. You’re looking at me like
I’m evil.” He sighs. “And I was.” He places a hand one either side of my belly.
“I did this for you and our baby. But I…” He pauses and closes his eyes
tightly. When he opens them they are filled with tears. “I needed to do it for
me. For what I want to be.” He blinks and a tear runs down his cheek.

I swallow the lump in my throat and reach out to
wrap my arms around him. “I would never see you as anything evil, Slade. I love
you,” I whisper.

He runs his hand down my back slowly. “I love you
too, baby.”

I pull back and sigh. “But Micah and your dad. They
are still going to defend the guilty,” I say softly. “You can’t keep our child
from them. They will grow up around that.”

 He nods. “And that’s okay. If our child decides to
take that path, I will support them one hundred percent. I will love them no
matter what they decide to do with their life. But that life is no longer for
me.”

 I smile, and he smiles back at me. Then I ask the
question that bothers me. He hasn’t been to work in two weeks. “When did you
quit?”

“The day you came home from the hospital,” he says
as he intently watches me.

I frown and my shoulders slump as I ask. “Why
didn’t you tell me?”

He sighs. “I didn’t want you to see me as a failure
or a quitter.”

 I take his face in my hands. “Slade,” I breathe,
and he smiles. “You want to better your life for our family. There’s nothing to
be ashamed of.”

I lie awake in bed next to
Angel as she sleeps later on that night. I place my hands behind my head and
look up at the ceiling thinking over everything I told her earlier this
morning. That murder case was really the only case that ever bothered me, and I
wasn’t even the main attorney on it. My father was.

 What I didn’t tell her about was the breakdown the
current husband had in the courtroom. He screamed, cried, and started throwing
stuff when his wife’s murderer was pronounced innocent. He was arrested at the
time, bailed out by his sister, and then weeks later he went to prison for life
for shooting my father’s client.

Back then, I didn’t quite understand. I mean, I’ve
always known love can make you do crazy things. I had witnessed it with friends
plenty of times. But he killed a man who also had a family. He was by no means
innocent, but he had loved ones as well. Wouldn’t the current husband know what
it’s like for that guy’s family to find out he had been killed as well? Why
would he throw his life away? Why was he willing to kill someone who was just
on trial for the same thing?

 Now? Now, I know what he felt like. I know how
much madness he must have felt. Now I know how much you can love someone so
much that you don’t see anything but revenge. To make things right when the
justice system fails.

And that’s why I can no longer do my job. I have to
leave that behind and start fresh. Angel deserves that, our baby deserves that,
and I deserve that.

“You’re joking, right?”
Parker asks as he sits in his and Tate’s living room holding that fat black and
white cat of his.

 I shake my head. “I quit,” I say for the third
time. “How many times do I need to repeat myself?” I ask sitting back in the
couch. I haven’t felt this relaxed in months. It’s been four weeks since Angel
was involved in the accident. I quit my job right after that but am just now
telling the guys. Angel is doing much better and told me to get out today. Go
see the boys, she had said.

“Until my mind processes it,” Parker retorts.

 “So what are you going to do now?” Tate finally
speaks. He’s just been watching me, and he did not seem surprised when I sat
down to tell them I had quit the firm.

I smile. “I want to start my own security company,”
I say with a smile. I told Angel this this morning and she cried, which isn’t
unusual, but the smile on her face and the way she said she was proud of me had
me pulling her into me.

 Tate arches an eyebrow.

 “You know,” I say rubbing my hands together. “I
think I am going to need an assistant,” I say arching mine as well.

“Oh,” Parker says with excitement. “I know this
girl, Tiffany. She would be perfect. She would wear those low cut shirts with
little short skirts.” He then throws his hand up. “I mean, she would be for me
when I come up to visit, because obviously you’re married,” he finishes.

I can’t help but smile as I continue to stare at
Tate. “I might know of someone,” he finally says before he runs a hand over his
unshaven face.

 “Well, I guarantee she’s not hotter than Tiffany.”
Parker shakes his head looking from Tate then to me.

 “I’m talking about me you dip shit.” Tate rolls
his eyes.

 Parker frowns and quits petting his cat. “You want
to play the doting assistant who does all the bitch work?” he asks frowning.

I place up my hand to stop him from talking before
I end up throwing my beer at him. “I want him to be my partner,” I shrug trying
to make it sound less than what it really is.

“Is this like a favor because I’m your wife’s
brother?” Tate asks skeptically.

I smile. “No, it’s because you don’t mind to get a
little dirty. We’re gonna need that.”

He nods his head with a smile. “I’m in. Just let me
know what I need to do to help get it on its feet.”

“Wait?” Parker says with a frown. “Why didn’t you
want me as an assistant?”

“Because you would be trying to hump every damsel
in distress,” Tate adds laughing.

 “You are just as bad as I am.” Parker points the
tip of his beer at him.

“Oh, no.” Tate laughs. “I’m much more discreet than
you.”

“You were not discreet last night when you pulled
up with that redhead who was practically already naked.”

 Tate rolls his eyes. “She was not,” he argues.

“She was topless and her pants were already undone
by the time she got out of truck in the driveway.” He looks at me. “She had a
nice set of implants on her.”

 I stand up. “Stop,” I say placing my hands up.
“Parker do you want in as well?”

“Of course,” he says before he crosses one leg over
the other as if he’s a little fucking diva getting his way.

 I sigh. “Okay. Then I will start getting things
put into place.”

 I throw what’s left of my beer away before I say
my goodbyes and walk out of the house.

“Slade?” I stop and turn to face Parker as he calls
my name.

“What’s up?” I ask pulling my cell out of my pocket
to text Angel.

 He sighs and looks down the ground. “I just want
you to know that I’m still looking for White.” Then he looks up at me. “I will
find him. I promise you.”

 I nod my head. “I know you will, Parker.” And with
that, I turn around and get into my car.

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

Mark and Vivian have been so
gracious to allow us to stay here. One of the best things about living with
them is their kitchen. It’s so freaking huge, and I love it.

 We have been here going on six weeks now and to be
honest, I’m going to hate the day we have to say goodbye and move out.

“How are things coming along with the bakery?”
Vivian asks handing me some flour as I start to make a chocolate cake.

“It’s coming along.” Since everything has happened,
Missy stepped up and helped me out a lot. She’s actually been around a lot more
than usual and when I ask her about school, she either dodges my question or
comes up with some excuse to why she’s not going that day. I still think she
feels bad about the time she missed out on. “Everything should be ready in the next
couple of weeks,” I say.

“When is the grand opening?”

“Next month,” Courtney answers from the kitchen
table. She is eating the brownies I had baked only an hour ago.

 I start to mix the batter as I speak. “I’ve been
thinking about my mom, and I want to do something for her,” I say with a smile
as I continue to mix. Sitting in a hospital bed for ten days and then pretty
much being on bed rest for weeks after that gets your mind to wandering. I wish
she was here to see that Slade turned our dream into a reality.

When I notice the room is silent I look up and turn
around. “What?” I ask when I see them both staring at me.

 “What were you thinking?” Courtney asks through a
mouthful of brownie.

“I want to start a foundation in her name and give
fifteen percent of the profits of opening month. Plus I’ll match whatever it
makes,” I say with a smile on my face.

Courtney sniffs. She places what’s left of her
brownie on the kitchen table and then walks over to me, throwing her arms
around me. “That is a great idea,” she cries.

I can’t help but laugh as I hug her back.

“Give me two minutes,” I
yell to Missy as I stand in the kitchen of the bakery.

Angel’s Dream
officially opened today. I let
Slade decide on the name of the bakery. I rolled my eyes when the first words
came out of his mouth were Angel’s Dream. But then he explained why he chose
that.
You’re my Angel. Your mother is also an angel watching over you. And
this was both of your dreams, it just makes sense.

 Let’s just say with my emotions the way they are
now, I cried to the point where he felt bad. But I kept that name because he
was right. My mother is an angel watching over me, and I know today she is
smiling as she witnesses our dream come true.

“Two minutes is too long. There’s a line,” she says
peeking her head through the door.

“Well, then start serving them,” I say with a
smile.

Missy sighs.

 “I won’t keep her long,” Slade says as he stands
in front of me.

 Missy closes the door as she mumbles about us
having sex back here. “I like how her mind works,” Slade says pulling me into
him.

I look up and smile. “Thank you for everything.” I
run my hands up his muscular arms feeling the muscles tighten as he pulls his
arms around me tightly.

“You deserve it, Angel.” His voice comes out as a
whisper, and I take in a deep breath.

Saying I have been horny is an understatement. I
want sex all the time. They say most women don’t feel sexy or have sexual wants
when they are pregnant. I have not had those problems yet. I love my growing
belly. I love the way Slade looks at it and caresses it. He always has his
hands on it. I usually wake up to him talking to it, and it’s the most precious
thing I have ever seen. And since my car wreck put our sex life on pause for a
while, I’m ready to get back on the saddle.

His hands glide down my back, and he cups my butt.
“You’re gonna make me horny,” I whine knowing we don’t have time for this.

He smirks. “You’re already horny,” he says
knowingly.

The door flings open to the kitchen and Parker
walks in smiling at us. “No time for that.” He grabs my arm and pulls me away
from Slade.

 “What are you doing?” I question with a smile.

 He spins me around and starts patting down my
hair.

“Whoa,” I jump back from him. “Why are you touching
me?” I laugh.

 He gives me a big cocky smile as his light brown
eyes look me over. “Don’t worry. Once I tell you what I did, you will be
begging me to fix it.”

Slade comes up from behind me wrapping his arms
around me from behind. “She will not be begging
you
,” he says
matter-of-fact.

“Well, then you’ll be thanking me.” He places his
hands on his hip.

 “Why? What did you do?” I narrow my eyes at him.
If Parker thinks I’ll be thanking him, I’ll probably be screaming at him.

Just then then door opens again and in walks a man
dressed in a black suit with a red tie. His hair is longer on top and he has it
combed back. His light brown eyes shine as she gives me a friendly smile.

 “Mayor O’Hare,” I say in surprise. Parker and
Braxton’s father.

 He reaches out this hand to mine. “Please. Call me
Richard.”

Parker snorts. “He really prefers Dick,” he quips
before giving his dad a fake smile.

 I gasp as I shake the Mayor’s hand.

Richard looks over to his son. “Now that is no way
to speak in front of a lady.” He frowns then turns to face Slade. “Slade.” He
holds out his hand to him. “It’s good to see you, Son.”

“You too, Sir,” he responds shaking his hand.

 “I hear you quit the firm?” he asks adjusting his
tie.

 Slade nods. “I did, Sir,” Slade places his hands
back on my belly. “It was time for me to move on.”

Richard looks down to my growing stomach and smile.
“Yes, I heard that. Congratulations.”

“Thank you,” we say in unison.

He claps his hands together once and then looks me
in the eyes. “So, my Son has told me all about your bakery and the foundation
you have started. I’m sorry to hear about your mother,” he adds softly, and I
murmur a thank you. What are you supposed to say? “I arranged for a couple of
news stations to be present and the newspaper to do a spread on the Grand
Opening,” he says excitedly.

My mouth falls open. “No?” I ask looking from him
to Parker.

“Yes,” Parker says proudly. “So get out there and
smile real big.”

I spin around and look up to see Slade smiling down
at me. “They are waiting for you,” he says before he spins me around and pats my
ass.

I wake in the darkness to an
annoying noise. Once I realize it’s my phone vibrating, I reach over to the
night stand to answer it.

 “Hello?” My voice sounds rough from sleep. I try
to clear my throat.

 “Slade. It’s Parker,” he whispers. “Were you up?”

 I pinch the bridge of my nose and blink a couple
of times noticing how dark it is in my old bedroom at my parent’s house. “No.
What time is it?” I say softly not wanting to wake Angel. We were up late last
night due to the opening of her bakery yesterday. And she has problems trying
to sleep as it is. She’s always tossing and turning and waking up with half her
body numb from the baby.

“It’s four ten.” He pauses. “In the morning.”

 “Why would I be up at four ten in the morning?” I
growl getting out of bed and making my way to the bathroom. “What do you want,
Parker?”

 He takes in a deep breath. “I found him. I found
Officer White,” he says, and I can tell by his voice that’s he’s proud of this
fact

I look up at myself in the mirror and watch my jaw tighten.
“Are you sure?” He better not be playing with me.

“I’m positive. He’s got himself holed up in a farm
house about an hour out of town.”

“How do you know it’s him?” I wanna be a hundred
percent sure before I allow myself to be excited about this news.

“Because I’m staring right at him through my
binoculars,” he growls. “I wouldn’t have called you unless I was a hundred
percent sure, Slade,” he says softly.

I swallow. “What is your plan?”

I hear rustling around in his car. “Well, I haven’t
called it in yet. I thought I would give you a few minutes with him.”

“You would do that for me?” Parker has already done
more for me and Angel than I could have ever asked for.

“Of course I would. He deserves to know what pain
feels like.”

 I allow myself to smile in the mirror. “Send me
the address. I’m on my way.”

I walk out of the bathroom after hanging up with
Parker and walk over to Angel sleeping on her side. I smile when I see her
holding onto that life-size pillow that my mother had bought her. It has
totally taken over my spooning opportunity. I frown when I see Peaches has
already made herself comfortable in my spot. That dog never leaves her side for
long.

Leaning down I give her a soft kiss on her cheek
before I throw on some clothes and am out the door.

“Now just do one thing for
me.” Parker asks as he eyes me up and down as we stand by the side of an old
farm house in the middle of fucking nowhere.

“What?” I ask impatiently.

He sighs. “Just don’t kill him. I can explain a lot
of things but death—” He shakes his head.

“I can’t promise you anything,” I say truthfully.

“That’s about what I figured you’d say. But I had
try.” He nods his head and walks toward his truck as I turn and walk to the
front of the house.

I go right up to the door and try to turn the knob.
Locked. I know he’s sitting in the front living room so I make my way to the
back of the house. I reach down picking up a rock and break the back window
hoping he doesn’t hear it. Even if he does, Parker will stop him if he runs out
the front door.

Making my way into the house I frown when I smell
cigarettes and cheap liquor. I quietly make it down the hallway toward the
front of the house. I come up to the living room and just stand there as I
stare at the back of his balding head. He sits in a recliner and laughs as he
watches reruns of Family Feud.