Hacking the Biker's Code (Dogs of Fire Savannah Chapter #6) - Piper Davenport Page 0,38
instead of at home with your husband?”
“Not really.”
She sat beside me and took my hand. “Baby girl, you cannot shut that man out.”
“I’m not shutting him out. I just need time.”
“Which is code for shutting him out,” Mom said. “What’s really going on?”
“He should be with someone who can give him everything he desires,” I rasped. “Not saddled with someone with a barren womb.”
“Honey, he loves you. You’re what he wants.”
“I don’t agree.”
“You’re not really considering leaving him, are you?”
I shrugged. “He deserves more.”
“Well, that’s disappointing.”
“It is,” I said. “I should have shut this—”
“No, you misunderstand,” Mom interrupted.
“Huh?”
“I didn’t realize I’d raised a selfish, entitled brat.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked, totally shocked by my mother’s tone. She’d never spoken to me like this before.
Ever.
“How dare you put that boy through all of this. You’ve both lost babies, and all he needs is you, and you’re not giving him that.”
“He deserves better.”
“He deserves you!” she said in exasperation.
“I can’t give him what he wants.”
“Cheese and crackers, baby girl, you already have!” she snapped, as she stood.
“I—”
“You’ve had everything you’ve ever wanted, Parker. That doesn’t negate how hard you work, or the fact that you’re a darling, sweet, and funny person, but this is the first time you’ve had real adversity in your life and you’re running away.” She shook her head. “I’m so unbelievably disappointed right now. I love you. You’re one of my favorite people on the earth. That won’t change. But I do hope you’ll pull your head out of your butt sooner than later.”
With that, she walked out of the room, leaving me to my thoughts.
Which were now in turmoil… more so than they had been.
I didn’t quite know what to make of all of this because my mom was always my biggest champion. We’d never had anything close to this kind of conversation before and I felt the walls closing in around me.
The pain was too much and I was exhausted. I curled myself into a ball in an effort to ease some of the tiredness, only managing to fall into oblivion.
* * *
Rabbit
I’d given Parker two hours of space, and I was now over it. I had been sitting in her parents’ driveway for almost ten minutes, hoping to god they didn’t try to stop me from seeing her, because I really didn’t want assault on my record. But I’d made the decision that she was coming home with me, even if I had to handcuff her wrist to mine.
Taking a deep breath, I made my way to the door and knocked, rather than ringing the bell. Parker’s mom answered quickly, pulling me in for a hug. “I wasn’t sure if I was going to have to come out there and retrieve you.”
I smiled sadly. “Was trying to figure out how far I was willin’ to go to bring her home.”
“You’ll get no pushback from us, honey. You two should be together. She’s in the family room.”
I nodded and headed that way, finding Parker curled up in a protective ball, asleep on the giant sofa. Jesus, she looked so sad, even in her sleep. I dragged my hands down my face and watched her for a few minutes. I couldn’t wake her. She’d gotten no sleep last night, and I’d know, I hadn’t either, so I sat back and waited. Waited for her to wake up and come back to me.
* * *
Parker
I woke with a start, disoriented and sad.
“You okay?” Rabbit asked, and I turned toward the sound of his voice and sat up.
“What are you doing here?”
“I’m your husband, where else would I be?”
I rolled my eyes. “You should be finding someone else is what you should be doing.”
“I’m gonna forget you said that, Pebbles. If you’re feelin’ better, I’m gonna take you home.”
“Rabbit—”
“Yeah, baby?” he interrupted, his tone one of controlled irritation.
“I am broken. Barren. We will never have children. You want children—”
“You want children as well, Parker.”
“Yes, and it sucks that all of this is transpiring, but since I am the problem, it’s important you find someone who can give you everything you need.”
“Okay, so you think that because you’ve had two miscarriages, that I should just forget about you and go find someone who won’t have any miscarriages?”
“Yes,” I said, carefully.
“Right, so what if I don’t love them?”
“Well, you should find someone who you love, obviously.”