Chapter Twelve.
Four weeks later Elena stared at the white stick, waiting for something to happen. She didn"t know what to expect, or how she was going to handle if she was pregnant or not. It had been six weeks since Pipe and Saint had been in the ring, fighting each other. She had gone to Pipe"s bedroom, which happened to overlook the club"s grounds, and also the spot where Saint and Pipe fought.
She hadn"t been hopeful for either one to win. Her love for both men was different, and yet it meant she didn"t want either one to suffer. That entire event had been over six weeks ago, and since then she"d been suffering with morning sickness and mood swings. She hadn"t told Pipe, but her b.r.e.a.s.t.s were tender, not to mention the fact she hadn"t had her cycle either.
"Is someone in there?" she asked, glancing down at her stomach.
Nothing answered, and she took a breath. Two minutes-or was it four?-was a long time to wait.
Resting her head against the back of the toilet in the h.e.l.l"s Wolves clubhouse, she was able to reflect on everything that had been happening. So far, her brother and Pipe had come to an amicable agreement that had also seen the two clubs getting together for a tense barbeque. It had been hard, and everyone had been on edge, ready to go for their guns until Shawl had arrived with his wife and kids.
All of the Saints and Sinners had been surprised to see him with wife and kids. Shawl"s way of handling it?
"I figured if we"re going to be one big happy family, it was time to show the love of what I"ve got."
Everyone had calmed right down. She"d even been able to have some fun with her brother. What she loved most of all was the fact she didn"t have to hide her feelings for Pipe. The tension was still there, and she was sure the two men fought regularly, only this time they battled with words rather than with anything else.
"This has got to be the longest day of my life," she said, looking at the white stick.
"Elena, you okay, baby?" Pipe asked, knocking on the door.
"I"m fine. I"ll be out in a minute." She hadn"t told him that she was taking a pregnancy test, and she hadn"t told him her thoughts about pregnancy.
What if he didn"t want to have children with her?
What if he grew bored with her?
c.r.a.p.
"I know what you"re doing in there," he said.
"I doubt it."
"You think I didn"t notice the rush trips to the bathroom? Or the way you"ve been holding your stomach trying not to throw up? Don"t you know how much I love you? I notice everything about you. I notice when you"re tired, when you"re hungry, and when you need me."
Tears filled her eyes at his sweet words. "Pipe?"
"Yeah, baby."
"I"m scared."
"Then let me in, and I"ll hold you while we find out the future together. Even if you"re not pregnant now, I"m going to make sure you"re pregnant soon. That"s how determined I am to get you with my kid."
"You want a baby?"
"d.a.m.n right I do. I want a baby with you, and I can"t wait until we get started with a family."
Taking a deep breath, she smiled, and opened up the bathroom. The moment the lock was open, Pipe was inside the room, moving toward her. He wrapped his arms around her, and she held the stick tightly in her hand.
"We"ve got this, Elena." He cupped her face, wiping away her tears.
"I was so scared."
"You don"t need to be scared. We can do this together." He leaned down and kissed her lips.
He sat down on the toilet, and rested her on his lap with his hand splayed over her stomach. "What are we waiting for?"
"Two blue lines I think." She wiped underneath her nose.
"Do you want kids?" he asked.
"I don"t know. If this turns blue then I want them. I"ll never get rid of any kid that we have."
"d.a.m.n straight you won"t."
"What about Saint?"
"It"ll stop him planning my death."
"He"s not planning your death."
"He"s planning something, and believe me, if I had a sister I"d be planning the b.a.s.t.a.r.d"s death."
She chuckled. She couldn"t help it.
Taking a deep breath, they both stared at the stick, and they both watched as the lines turned blue. She was pregnant.
Elena sucked in her lip, waiting for Pipe"s reaction.
He whooped, cheered, and lifted her up, pressing her against the wall. "f.u.c.k, baby, we"re pregnant."
"We"re pregnant."
Pipe claimed her lips, sliding his tongue inside her mouth, and running his hands all over her body, cupping her a.s.s, and pressing his d.i.c.k against her stomach. "We"re going to get you in to see the doctor. I"m not f.u.c.king you until he gives the all clear."
"You"re going to become super protective, aren"t you?"
"You bet I am. You"re my woman, and I protect my woman. Come on." He took hold of her hand, and urged her toward the main part of the club. Heat filled her cheeks as Pipe called attention to them. He wrapped his arm around her waist, whistling so that all heads of the club turned toward him. Shawl was already smiling, but he"d been with her when she went to the pharmacy. He"d not entered the pharmacy, and she"d told him that she needed it for women"s things.
"I have a big announcement to make, and it could lead to my death, but I don"t give a s.h.i.t. Elena and I, we"re going to have a baby." Pipe made their announcement, and the whole club erupted, cheers rang out, and Pipe lifted her off the ground, spinning her around.
She screamed, laughed, and relished the feel of belonging as the club embraced her as Pipe"s old lady. It was one of the best days of her life.
"We"ve got to tell Saint," she said, smiling up at Pipe.
"Don"t care. We can handle anything. We"re going to be proud parents."
"You"re happy?"
"I"m so f.u.c.king happy."
She gasped as Pipe went down on one knee, and silence fell on the room.
"Elena, you"re the love of my life. Will you become my wife?" he asked.
She nodded. "Yes. A million times yes."
Eight months later Pipe paced outside of his wife"s room. He went from one end of the room to the other.
"You should be in there," Saint said.
"f.u.c.k off, a.s.shole. I was in there, and I"d still be there if it wasn"t for my d.a.m.n wife demanding that I be kicked out of the room. She is an evil woman, and right now, she"s in trouble."
Saint laughed.
Elena had woken in the middle of the night, gasping and crying out in pain. Her waters had broken, and the contractions had been close together. He"d never in all of his life felt so much fear as listening to Elena cry out. The entire h.e.l.l"s Wolves had woken up with his urgency to get her to the hospital. No one was allowed to stay in bed, and he"d taken the car, rushing toward the hospital. He"d called Saint on the way, and now he stood with his brother-in-law. From the beginning he"d been by his wife"s side, holding her hand as she screamed out in pain, encouraging her, and maybe shouting at the doctors and midwives who were in the room.
After about five minutes of him telling them how to do their job, Elena had sent him out to see her brother. She didn"t want him in the room.
He"d failed her.
Saint burst out laughing. "Women do this all the time. Penny did it a couple of weeks ago. Rage didn"t go crazy."
"Wait until it"s your woman in there. Women still die during giving birth. I"ve read all the books." The stash of pregnancy books was hidden beneath the bed, and he read them every single night when Elena had fallen asleep. He was going to be prepared for everything.
Saint stopped laughing. "I know my sister, and she"s one h.e.l.l of a fighter."
Pipe hoped she was. He sat down, and stared at the door, waiting for any sign that his wife was okay. If she died, he was going to kill every single motherf.u.c.ker in the room who allowed her to die.
Planning all of their deaths, he was about ready to go and get his steel pipe when a nurse left the room.
"Your wife will see you now."
He didn"t need telling twice, and he rushed past the woman, going straight to the main room.
Elena sat in the bed, looking exhausted, and in her arms was a little bundle. "Daddy"s here to see you."
Her eyes were twinkling, and he walked up toward her, cupping her cheek. "Are you okay?"
"I"m so d.a.m.n happy. We"ve got a daughter, Pipe. A beautiful, healthy, baby girl."
She took hold of his hand, and he allowed himself the pleasure of looking at his daughter. The moment he did, Pipe knew he was never going to be the same again. He would die for Elena and his baby girl.
Saint cleared his throat, and they both beckoned him forward.
"You"ve got a niece, Saint," Elena said.
"f.u.c.k, she"s going to be the most cared for baby girl in the world," Saint said.
Pipe kissed her head and reached out to stroke his daughter"s cheek. Right then, she opened her eyes, and stared up at him. The instinct to protect her was strong.
"Bluebell," he said. "We"ll call her Bluebell."
He held his wife, and as Elena fell asleep, he took Bluebell, who was also asleep, in his arms. Both of his girls were asleep, protected in his arms, and it was exactly how it was going to stay.
Epilogue.
Sarah"s feet hurt, and she was so d.a.m.n sad, and tired. She had missed Elena"s entire pregnancy in her stubbornness not to return to Sinners" Corner, and Elena had just given birth to a baby girl. Working at the cafe sucked, and working at the college sucked. She talked to Knife every single day, and she missed him, and part of her also missed Ralf.
Everything about her life sucked, really sucked bad.
She wasn"t making all that much money. The apartment she lived in was s.h.i.tty, and her cla.s.ses were boring.
"This is what I wanted." She made her way up toward her room, rubbing the sleep from her face.
Would she get any sleep tonight? Her neighbor had to be an escort or something. He was up half the night, constantly s.c.r.e.w.i.n.g some woman or other. She couldn"t sleep as she heard everything clearly, and he was so d.a.m.n loud. The women were like banshees. She"d not had a full night"s sleep since she had left her old life behind.
Entering her apartment, she stared at Ralf, who was standing in the center of her apartment. He"d been visiting her at the cafe at least once a week, forcing her to pretend her life was fine.
"This is the life you want. That f.u.c.ker next door is f.u.c.king everything in sight, and I bet you can"t sleep. You"re a light sleeper, Sarah."
"What the h.e.l.l are you doing in my apartment?" she asked.
"I"m taking you home."
"I"m not going home."
I want to go home. I want to go home.
"Oh, you think this is me asking you to come home? No, I"m done asking, I"m done begging. I"m not going to be asking anymore. I"m taking you."
Sarah laughed. "You really think you can just break into my apartment, and tell me what I"m going to do? You think I"m not going to fight you every step of the way?"
Ralf stepped closer, tilting her head back, and staring into her eyes. He pressed a single kiss to her lips, and she took a breath trying to absorb every single part of his touch.
"I"m sorry, baby. Did I say this is going to involve you agreeing to something? You"re mistaken. You"re stubborn, and being a pain in my a.s.s, so this is your kidnapping." He bent forward before she could argue, and shoved his shoulder into her stomach, lifting her up.