Everlasting - Christine Michelle Page 0,1

can’t promise me that! You can’t know! If you could know things like that, then my boy would still be on this Earth.”

“Luce,” he whispered quietly as he came to me and pulled me into his arms. He held me tightly to his body as I sobbed my grief, both old and anticipated.

“We’ve already lost so much,” I whispered.

“That’s how I know we’re not losing any more.” Merc took my cheeks into his hands and tilted my face so that I had no choice but to look him in the eyes. “I’m going. I’ll bring back your man and my boy. We aren’t losing anyone else.”

“You can’t,” I whispered, unable to find more of a voice through the glut of emotions trapping the words inside me.

“I can. I am. I will do what I’m promising you. I’m bringing my boy back to Ever. I’m bringing your man back to you. You’re right, you’ve lost too much.” He glanced over his shoulder then toward the door that led to the house. “J-Bird is here, and he brought his woman with him. She brought her new family to take our backs.”

I realized who was standing in the doorway to my house then. Jamie Murdock, the President of the Sierra High Evermore Motorcycle Club. I grinned. “You know it’s bad when they let the women come in to save the day,” I managed to get out. I tried for a teasing tone, but failed miserably, ending in a hiccup of emotion that startled both Merc and I.

“Come on, let’s get you inside,” Merc told me as he started to tug gently on my arm, while his other wrapped around my body to hold me together as we moved. I kept the box clutched tightly to my chest and refused to put it down. Luckily, Merc gave up trying to dissuade me from reading the letters.

Chapter 2

Missing

Ever

My baby girls stood there watching me as I leaned over the sink trying my best to unclog the drain. “Momma, when is Daddy coming home?” Amber asked me in her sweet little voice.

“I’m not sure baby, he’s off doing something for the club.” I hated telling them I didn’t know because it was club business. Truthfully, I didn’t know because Deck hadn’t been sure how long it would take. Normally, he wouldn’t have gone on a run like this for the club at all. It was a special deal though, and the club decided unanimously, on a national level, that the Presidents of each chapter would handle the last run they had for some mob-like organization known as The Trinity Group. No, I wasn’t supposed to know anything about that. I did though, because Deck and I didn’t have any secrets. It was our one rule. We would not allow the club to destroy us the way it had ruined or disrupted our loved ones lives over the years.

I grunted as I tried again to loosen the damn piece holding the pipe in place. “Jesus,” I grunted loudly. “This thing is really on there.”

“Maybe you should wait for Daddy,” Ashton called out.

“Yeah, well, I told you girls not to use this sink until he got home and since you didn’t listen, I have to find a way to fix it so that it will drain.” I turned in time to see Ashton’s face turning red, a clear indication that she was the guilty party. She didn’t say a word, but her sister’s laughter further drove the point home about who was guilty of using the sink after I told them not to.

“You know what?” I asked the girls as I stood and brushed my hands off. “I’m going to get your Aunt Anna over here to sit with you while I go to the clubhouse and see what’s taking your daddy so long. If I can’t find him, maybe I can get Uncle Joker or Uncle Tank to come by and fix this for me.”

“Yay! Is Aunt Anna going to bring Tabby and Devon?”

“Probably,” I hummed as I took my cell phone out and dialed my sister.

My sister had no problem coming to sit with the girls. It didn’t take long either, which meant she was probably already on her way out somewhere when I called.

“Are you sure that I’m not interrupting anything?” I asked as she maneuvered her children into my house, only for them to be immediately accosted by their cousins.

“I’m positive. I was actually on my way here. Joker mentioned that Deck wasn’t back