Beard Page 5

  “Yeah mommy that’s what you’re suppost to do,” she replied not quite getting supposed right.

  “Okay, fix me doctor.”

  I was wavering in and out of sleep when a knock sounded at the door. Mia had piled blankets on top of me and listened when I had convinced her a foot rub would make me feel better.

  “Who is it?” I called out.

  “Beard.”

  “Can I get it mommy? It’s Mr. Grant,” Mia said excitedly.

  “Okay sweetheart that’s fine.”

  Beard walked through the door with his arms weighed down with bags.

  “I come bearing food and a few other things to make you ladies happy.”

  Mmm, yes he did I thought. Too bad I was physically in no shape to accept what I wanted from him.

  “I see that look in your eye,” Beard said bending down to brush his lips on my forehead. “I can tell though you’re not doing anything tonight.”

  How was he so perceptive?

  “You don’t know how I feel?” I challenged.

  “Your eyes look tired, you haven’t moved since I walked in the door, and your shoulders are in your ears. Why didn’t you call me earlier? I would have come back so you could take something.”

  I didn’t look at him. I couldn’t ask this man to do everything for me. I may want to but it was better to maintain some independence just in case.

  “If I were Grace would you have hesitated to call?” He challenged.

  I was going to shake my head no but realized it wouldn’t work.

  “No.”

  “Don’t lump me in the same category as your ex. Don’t forget I’ve seen the uglier side of a woman too,” he said quietly.

  With his final statement he walked to the kitchen.

  I lay on the couch for a few minutes listening to the sounds of Mia and Beard getting dinner ready.

  “Dinner’s ready,” Mia shouted when Beard told her to tell me.

  “Okay sweetie. Remember use your inside voice. We don’t need to shout to hear one another.”

  “Sorry mommy.”

  I sat quietly and ate my dinner thinking about what Beard had said. He had said the same thing last night, too. He was right I shouldn’t condemn him for the actions of my ex.

  Thinking about all the things Beard had done in the few days I had known him made me realize I had never been treated as well as I had been since meeting him.

  Chapter 13

  Beard

  Regan was silent all through dinner. I could see the wheels turning in her mind. I could also see she was uncomfortable.

  “Why don’t you take something and I’ll put Mia to bed tonight,” I offered.

  “I can’t have you do that. I haven’t put her to bed for the last two nights. I feel awful.”

  “It’s okay mommy. You need to go to bed early to make your booboo feel better,” Mia said with a serious look on her face.

  Regan was trying hard not to smile.

  “Are those doctors’ instructions?” Regan asked seriously.

  “Yes,” Mia declared.

  When dinner was finished Regan took something for the aches and pains and gone straight to bed. I wasn’t sure what I was doing when it came to putting a four year old to bed. Mia however, knew exactly what to do.

  “I’ve got to brush my teeth and go potty,” Mia told me when I said it was time for bed. “I can do those by myself. You can go pick out a book to read.”

  “You got it boss,” I said and went to wait for her and pick out a book.

  I surprised myself when I walked out of Mia’s room fifteen minutes later and she was already sound asleep. I checked on Regan and then settled on the couch to watch some TV. I didn’t sleep much so I was still awake when Regan woke up around midnight.

  “You’re still here?”

  “I wasn’t going to leave you and Mia alone. Not with you passed out.”

  “I hate when I take anything. It makes me so tired.”

  “I don’t like you being in pain but I’m glad I am here to help.”

  “I can’t thank you enough. I don’t know how I’ll ever repay you,” Regan said sitting on the couch and facing me.

  I wanted to grab her and crush my lips to hers.

  “Don’t ever think you need to repay me.”

  “But still you’ve taken time out of your day to help me,” she protested.

  “If anything I’ve been the one being selfish for using you,” I growled feeling like an ass thinking about how I made love to Regan last night.

  “What? That’s ridiculous.”

  “Regan I will say it a thousand times until you trust me. I will always be there for you and Mia. If you decide you don’t want me in your bed any more than I’ll deal but it doesn’t mean I won’t be around if you need help.”

  Regan sat for a moment and then stood reaching for my hand.

  “Come to bed. It’s late and I think I’ll sleep better with you next to me.”

  I was off the couch following her in a heartbeat.

  We settled into bed and I gently pulled Regan snug against me.

  I lay awake until I heard the steady breathing of Regan sleeping. I wasn’t expecting to fall asleep but when I opened my eyes the bright light of morning assaulted me.

  Regan wasn’t in bed and I quickly got up. What time was it?

  “Mr. Grant,” Mia shouted. “You were a sleepyhead.”

  “I guess so. What time is it?”

  “Just past eight,” Regan replied.

  “Haven’t slept this late in a long time,” I said sheepishly.

  “You looked so peaceful I thought I would let you,” Regan smiled.

  “How are you feeling?”

  “Much better. Still sore but I can manage. I’ll probably need to see someone about my neck though.”

  “We’ve got a chiropractor in town I can hook you up with.”

  “Would you take Mia to school?” Regan asked.

  “Of course,” I said knowing it probably took her a lot to ask me.

  “You ready to go Mia?” Regan called out. Mia came running back into the kitchen. “Mr. Grant is going to take you to school today. You’ll need to show him where the buzzer is to get in. Can you do that?”

  “Do I get to ride on the motorcycle?” Mia asked ignoring her mom’s question.

  “Uh, no kiddo that won’t happen for a few more years. You can ride in my big truck though.”

  “Yeah,” Mia cheered.

  With Regan’s instructions I moved Mia’s car seat into my truck. A process that if I hadn’t had help I would have thrown my hands up and told Mia we were staying home.

  “Alright you have a nice relaxing day. I’ll be back to pick you up for that appointment.”

  “I’m not even sure I’ll get an appointment today.”

  “Oh you will.”

  I kissed her and Mia and I left.

  Twenty minutes later I had delivered Mia to school, after listening to her talk the entire way about some show with a pig. I was pleasantly surprised to find Mia’s preschool was harder to get into than my bar on lock down.

  I called the chiropractor in town and then went to check on a new property.

  Chapter 14

  Regan

  I was anxious about letting Beard in. What would happen when he didn’t want me anymore? Or he realized having a kid wouldn’t fit in his life. He was the president of a motorcycle club.

  I was trying to get some of the house organized when a knock sounded at the door. I was surprised to see Grace on my door step.

  “Hey lovely,” she greeted. “Wanted to stop by and make sure you were okay. I brought some coffee and scones,” she grinned.

  “Morning. I’m doing better. Still sore but I can move more than I could yesterday.”

  We settled at the table and Grace didn’t wait to get into the real reason she had come.

  “You and Beard seem to be hitting it off.”

  “Yeah I guess so,” I said not wanting to t
alk about it.

  “Look I get it. You’re freaking out because he’s coming in pretty fast and from the tiny snippets of clues I got from Mia you haven’t had much help these last few years. I know exactly where you’re coming from.”

  “How?” I questioned.

  “Before I met Dallas I was on my own with no family or friends to help me if I needed it. Then I met a man that fell instantly in love with me and would do anything to keep me safe. From what I’ve seen of Beard the last few days I suspect he’s done the same. A man like Beard will love you fiercely and do anything for you.”

  “How do you know? How do you know when things get rough they won’t leave?”

  “It’s not who they are. Dallas, Beard and the other guys are loyal. That’s part of what being in the MC is about. Loyalty and being there for your family no matter what. These guys have seen a lot of shit and they know what rough times look like. Not once have I felt like Dallas would run if times got tough. If anything he’d probably double down and get on my nerves,” Grace laughed.

  “Thanks Grace. You’re right. I haven’t had anyone to help me since Mia was born. I’m not used to asking for help,” I confessed.

  “It’s hard but you’ve got people who will help you. If one of us can’t be there then you’ve got five more right behind who will step in. Although you may want Beard to introduce Mia to Tank before he may have to help. The man is a fucking giant. Bigger than Beard. You probably won’t see too much of the old timers but the young guys are more than ready to step up to the plate and do what’s needed.”

  “I appreciate this.”

  “No problem. I thought it might help ease your mind some. I should probably get going, Dallas will wonder where I got off too.”

  My conversation with Grace played out exactly how she said it would that afternoon. Beard had gotten tied up at one of his properties. Instead of telling me he couldn’t make it he sent one of his brothers instead.

  At two o’clock a man more massive than Beard showed up at my door.

  “Are you Tank?” I asked when I opened the door.

  “Yeah. How’d you know?”

  “Grace told me about you,” I said smiling.

  “Nothing bad I hope,” he said with a grin.

  My trip to the chiropractor was like a day at the spa. The aches were less and I could move my neck again. I would need to set up a few more appointments but I had no arguments about it.

  When I got home Beard and Mia were already settled in the kitchen making dinner. I almost freaked out at the sight of Mia cutting some vegetables but stopped myself. Mia was concentrating so hard on doing exactly what Beard told her to do. The pair finally noticed me and Mia gave me the biggest grin.

  “I’m making dinner mommy!”

  “I see that. You are doing such a good job.”

  I kissed Mia on the top of her head and then without over thinking it I kissed Beard.

  “A man could get used to a welcome like this,” he smiled and kissed me on that one spot on my neck that made my body shiver with need.

  We had dinner together with Mia and Beard having a serious conversation about one of her favorite TV shows. I had to try and keep from laughing the entire time. Mia could talk for hours about the show and Beard not having a clue what she was talking about just kept asking questions.

  “Where can I watch this show Mia was talking about,” Beard asked when I returned to the living room from putting her to bed.

  “You can search it online and find episodes to watch,” I laughed.

  “I need to catch up.”

  “I had a good talk with Grace today,” I said.

  “Oh boy what did that firecracker tell you?”

  “She gave me a lot of good insight. I know you’ve said it a bunch of times already and after talking to Grace I know that no matter what, I have people I can ask for help.”

  “No matter what baby somebody will be there if you need them.”

  “My heart knows but my brain needs time to catch up and let my emotions take over a little.”

  “My heart has enough for both of us until yours comes around,” Beard smiled and brushed his lips on mine.

  “You’re going to need to be patient.”

  “I think you’ll come around sooner than you expect.”

  “But until then can we take this one day at a time?”

  “Whatever you need baby.”

  “I think I need some more dessert,” I said and pulled him toward the bedroom.

  Epilogue

  Beard

  One Year Later

  “You remember this place?” I asked Regan pulling into the parking lot of the restaurant we had gone to for our first date.

  “Oh course I do,” she smiled.

  We had a nice relaxing dinner and then drove to the overlook. The spot that I had first wrapped my arms around Regan and known that I would do anything to spend the rest of my life with her.

  “You’re such a romantic,” she teased wrapping her arms around me as we looked out over the town.

  “You don’t need to say that too loud. I don’t want people thinking I’m getting soft.”

  “I don’t think anyone could call soft,” she grinned sliding her hands up my arms. “If I remember correctly I think we need to go home and have dessert now.”

  As we rode back to the house I thought about the past year. It had been hard at times convincing Regan to let me help and even harder to get her to ask for help, even with the little things. But as time passed it became easier. She even asked me last month to move in with her and Mia. I of course insisted we need to upgrade to a larger house and as of today she was officially the owner of that house.

  The paper work changing my name to hers on the deed was waiting for us at home. I thought it was another way I could show her that no matter what she would be taken care of. She would never have to worry about sleeping on the couch again because she could only afford a one bedroom.

  We got home and I led her around to the back of the house. I had stashed a cooler with everything we need to make sundaes.

  “You really did think of everything Regan,” whispered.

  “Anything for you baby.”

  We made our sundaes and settled in.

  “I’ve got one more surprise for you,” I said.

  “It’s not a surprise if I already know what happens next,” she giggled.

  “Not that woman,” I smiled. “Here, this is for you?” I passed her a large envelope.

  Regan slowly opened it.

  “What is this? What did you do?”

  “That is the deed to this house with your name on it.”

  “But why?”

  “I want you to know that you will always have a place that you and Mia can call your own. That no man will ever have the power to leave you stranded ever again.”

  “You didn’t have to do this,” Regan said with tears streaming down her face.

  “Baby I didn’t mean for you to cry,” I whispered kneeling down in front of her pulling her to me.

  “These are happy tears not sad ones,” she said against my neck.

  “So if you’re happy why are you crying?” I asked pulling back to look at her face.

  “Because you always know the right thing to do or to say. I love you,” Regan smiled saying the words for the first time.

  “I love you to baby. I have since the moment I met you.”

  Regan pulled me in closer and kissed me.

  “What do you say we finish the rest of this evening like we did last time?”

  “How about we do even better than last time.”

  I scooped Regan in to my arms and walked across the patio to one of the padded lounge chairs.

  “Let’s be a little naughty tonight,” I growled and stripped her naked.

  Afterword

  Thank you for taking a ride with me. I hope you enjoyed reading Beard's story as much as I did writing it.

  Don’t forget to leave a review.

>   You can keep up with what’s going on in my world of being an Indy author on Facebook or Instagram

  We’ve got one more sexy Alpha Pack MC member that needed his story told. Follow me on social media to find out when Tank finds his happily ever after.

  About The Author

  Claire Rhine

  Claire has been reading romance since she was young. Her earliest memory includes sneaking one of her mom's books to school and reading it under her desk, she was only in sixth grade. Claire's love of reading romance bloomed into a teenager's attempt at writing romance which didn't go anywhere. Many more attempts and she finally got her writing career off the ground with her debut short story Dallas.

  When Claire is not writing or thinking up new stories she is a busy mom to a preschooler and she is also an avid crafter. For book updates and to get a peek into what being a writer looks like behind the scenes you can follow her on Instagram @clairerhine.author

  Books In This Series

  Alpha Pack MC

  Dallas

  Grace has been burned in love far too many times. Enter Dallas, the sexiest man she has ever laid eyes on. Grace watches him from afar and fantasizes about all the naughty things that man could do to her. Then one evening her fantasy walks into the cafe where she works and her life is never the same.

  Dallas has set his sights on the woman of his dreams. The problem, he’s not sure he should do anything about it. All that changes when he finds himself thrust into her life one evening.

  Drill

  Angie wanted to start over somewhere new. Getting to that somewhere is being littered with one obstacle after another. When Drill stumbles into her motel room in the middle of a tornado warning she figured that would be the craziest part of her week. She was wrong.

  Drill is back on dry land and back on his bike. It’s been a month since he had the wind rushing past him. He wants to get back to his life and his MC but sometimes the universe has other plans.