watch Sidonie and Desi walk together to let Mom know about the food. I see Bronco keeping an eye on his baby girl in Topanga’s arms. His gaze then finds me, and I want to forget about his motorcycle club. We can be normal people. In that scenario, Summer never gets hurt, and neither does Ramona.
“Do you like steak?” Sidonie asks Mom as they enter the house. “My aunt’s restaurant has really good steak.”
“I’ll eat whatever is free.”
Sidonie and Desi giggle at her answer. They’re so happy that I swear they were snorting sugar when I wasn’t looking.
“What about Summer?” I ask Bronco.
He doesn’t answer immediately. There’s a moment when he only sees me. I realize he likes how I’m worried about his child. Is such a small gesture really so rare with the women he screws around with?
“She’s at the movies with Conor.”
Nodding, I’m overwhelmed suddenly. I want him to kiss me so badly that the lust hits me square between the legs. My pussy aches with a desire I can’t satisfy.
I distract myself by helping Desi and Sidonie with their plates. Topanga doesn’t want to hand over Carina, and she’s in the process of asking my mom a million questions. I sit at the table flanked by the girls while Bronco plops down next to Sidonie. My brain imagines us eating as a family all the time—Mom, Dad, four daughters, Grandma, perfection.
Then I try to visualize Max in the fantasy, which inserts River and Shane and Ramona into it too. Suddenly, my lust is gone, and I feel edgy. Despite the smiling faces around me, I can’t settle down until Bronco and I hash out what happened between the Executioners and the Reapers.
BRONCO
I’m not surprised Topanga talks Lana’s ear off. It’s what she does to people. Chats them up, finding out what topics they enjoy, and then uses that knowledge to get closer. Soon, she works private information out of her target. Lowell is always bragging how his wife would make a great spy.
We even sent Topanga to Shasta to talk up the Skullz’s old ladies. She’d show up at their usual haunts like the beauty salon or a little restaurant the women went for drinks. I knew more about the Skullz’s sex lives than I did about their supply routes.
One time, just to be a dick, I sent a few guys to hit a meth lab the day before I knew Fuse and his old lady, Coterie, were planning a big romantic trip. Fucked up that real nice for them.
Now Topanga works her magic on the woman I can imagine taking on a romantic trip. Then, when Lana is busy with the girls, my VP’s wife focuses her gift on Lineke.
“Topanga is the antidote to my sisters,” I whisper to Lowell after dinner. “I should have invited you over last weekend and saved myself some hassle.”
Lowell gives me a knowing look. His wife’s talent has smoothed over plenty of problems in the past that my mouthy sisters created.
Of course, if I want to hassle someone female, there are no better weapons than Barbie and Bambi. I personally do what I can to avoid making women cry. Always had trouble seeing tears without the urge to back down. For all my sisters’ faults, they’ve bailed me out with tricky women.
“Daddy,” Sidonie says when Lana is in the bathroom, and Desi holds Carina. My daughter pushes me away from everyone and gives me that panicked look she often gets when life’s bearing down on her.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, assuming she’s jealous of Desi and the baby.
“I want you to marry Lana.”
“I already explained how those things work, Sidonie.”
“She could be my mom. I never got one. Desi can be my sister.”
“Sidonie, you can’t force things,” I say, worrying she’ll sabotage her new friendship in the way she always does. “You need to relax and enjoy your time with Desi and Lana.”
My daughter looks back to where her new friend grins at Lineke. “I can have a grandma too. I never got one of them either.”
Sidonie is impossible to talk to once she gets in these moods. Soothing her was easier when she was little, and I could carry her around everywhere.
“Sidonie,” Lana says, returning to the room, “I’ll put Carina down, and then we’ll play in your room.”
My daughter stops tugging at my shirt and focuses all her neediness on the woman she met a week ago. Lana doesn’t seem to notice the child’s crazy eyes. She just takes