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recliner by the fireplace. “So,
what happened?”
    “She showed up
at the club.”
    “Fuck.
Seriously?”
    “Where the hell
has she been this whole time?” Ace demanded.
    “Vancouver.”
    “Do Mom and Dad
know?”
    “No idea,” Jaxon
said, and sipped his beer. “I wouldn’t be surprised if they did, but then
again, I wouldn’t be surprised if they didn’t.”
    “Helpful, Jax,
thanks.”
    “Sit down,
Carter, you’re making me dizzy.”
    Ace lowered
himself onto the sofa and dropped his face into his hands.
    “What are you
going to do?”
    “No fuckin’
clue,” Ace admitted.
    “You don’t have
to see her again, right?”
    Ace shook his
head.
    “But?” Jaxon
pressed.
    “But, how do I
never see her again when I know where she is?” He glanced at his brother. “She
named her kid Maverick.”
    “I know,” Jaxon
admitted.
    “Fuck!”
    “Look, she’s a
good girl, Carter. She made a mistake when she was seventeen and she lost you
in the process, but she doesn’t date, she doesn’t do anything except take care
of her son. You can’t fuck that up unless you’re willing to forgive and move
on.”
    “I have.”
    Jaxon raised an
eyebrow in disbelief.
    “What? She fuckin’
shut me out!”
    “You left ,
brother,” Jaxon reminded him.
    “She fucked some
douchebag Frog and had his fuckin’ baby! What choice did she leave me?”
    “You act like
she cheated on you, Carter.”
    “What would you
call it, Jaxon?”
    Jaxon shrugged.
“She didn’t know how you felt about her. And how many women did you fuck before
her?”
    “She knew about
them!”
    “And that makes
it better? Any scares with a busted condom, Carter? Any time where you might
have said, ‘Fuck it, I’ll go ungloved tonight’?”
    “Fuck you,
Jaxon.”
    “You’re not my
type.” He drew in a sip of beer. “How ’bout you cut her some slack?”
    Ace dropped his
face in his hands again and squeezed his eyes shut. Jaxon was right. He was
always right, but what Ace still wasn’t ready to admit was that he was more to
blame for Cassidy’s mistake than anyone. If he’d just let her know how he’d
felt, confirmed she felt the same way, then none of this would have happened.
She may have still gone to Paris, but she sure as hell wouldn’t have slept with
someone else. Of that, he was certain.
    “Better?” Jaxon
asked.
    “No.” Ace sat up
and settled his ankle over his knee. “I fucked up, Jax.”
    Jaxon took
another swig of his beer and nodded. “You gonna fix it?”
    “Don’t think I
can.”
    “Won’t know
unless you try.”
    Ace studied his
brother. “She really doesn’t date?”
    “Yep.”
    “Do I want to
know how you know that?”
    “Nope.”
    “You’re a pain
in the ass, you know that right?” Ace retorted.
    Jaxon grinned
and nodded.
    Ace grabbed his
helmet and stood. “Well, as fun as this has been, I’m gonna get out of here.”
    Jaxon pushed out
of his chair and followed Ace to the door. “I’ll run by your place and grab the
dog for the night… give you a chance to figure some shit out.”
    “Thanks.”
    “Love you,
dumbass.”
    Ace chuckled.
“Love you too, asshole.”
    He climbed on
his bike and made his way back to the club. He hoped Cassidy was still there,
because if she disappeared on him again, he might destroy something.
    * * *
    I was in the club kitchen wiping
Maverick’s face with a wet paper towel when I felt the temperature in the room
change. I glanced up to find Carter walking toward me and my heart raced as he
approached.
    “Ow, Mom,”
Maverick whined.
    “Oh, sorry,
honey.” I focused back on him and lifted his chin. “You’re good to go play if
you want.”
    He took off into
the playroom and I made myself busy with washing dishes and loading the
dishwashers. I hadn’t been alone in the room, but within seconds I was...the
rest of the women scurried out quickly and quietly.
    “Cass,” Carter
said, and settled his hip against the counter next to me.
    “Hmm-mm.” I
stepped