Comp’s Chance (Reckless Omens MC)

Chapter 3

Three

SUNNY

M aybe I shouldn’t have come here.

These people don’t seem too welcoming. When I pulled up to the gate, it took me a good ten minutes to work up the courage to get out and talk to the impatient asshole manning the gate. He stared my car down the whole time I tried not to hyperventilate. When I got out of the car and asked to speak to Loki, the guy looked at me like I was completely crazy before telling me he had to call his ‘prez,’ which I’m guessing means boss. I know nothing about motorcycle clubs except what I was on the one season of that Sons of Anarchy show Milani talked me into watching. When they started killing off the people I loved, I ditched the show and went back to watching reruns of Friends, my comfort show.

Luckily, Paisley slept soundly through all of this, but I can’t shake the feeling of being watched. I could have sworn I was being followed down one of the back roads leaving our town, and even after about four hours of driving. Then again, I could just be paranoid because I’m stressed or finally going crazy. All this shit is taking a toll on me, and I feel like I can’t breathe.

When the ‘Prez’ finally gets outside, he interrogates me. I feel all alone with nowhere else to go, and these people don’t seem to be the type to help outsiders. What has Milani gotten me into? When I mention Loki’s name, I swear the little blonde bombshell beside him is about to rip off his dick, but then I mention Milani’s name, and he goes fucking ballistic. When I finally calmed him down and told them my situation, they all just stood around watching me.

“Maybe I should just leave and drive as far away as possible,” I say, looking back at my car to ensure Paisley is still asleep.

“You ain’t going nowhere,” comes a growl from the back of the crowd.

The man has only spoken once since coming out here, but when I tried to look at him, he turned away, so I couldn’t fully see him. His voice and commanding tone should make me want to hop in my car and leave. I do not take commands very well. I don’t like to be bossed around, but somehow, coming from this man, all I want to do is run into his massive arms and let him shield me from all the bullshit coming my way.

“You heard the man. Come on and drive up to the front of the building. Brothers, church in ten to hear what she has to say, then go from there. I’m Swift, President of the Reckless Omens MC,” the man in charge tells me, holding out his hand for a shake. I take it but hear that increasingly familiar growl coming from behind us. What the hell is with these people? I take one more look at the road, contemplating turning around and just figuring this shit out on my own, but Swift squeezes my hand.

“No one here will hurt you or your daughter. I promise you that,” he says softly. I try to smile, but I know it looks forced, so I just give him a nod.

“Rodeo, why don’t you hop in the car with Sunny and make sure she knows where to park,” Swift says, turning to the only guy in the group wearing a cowboy hat.

“You got it, boss,” he says, making his way to my passenger seat. I suck in a breath, not sure how comfortable I am with a stranger in a car with just me and my daughter. Then again, I’m about to walk into a caged-in lion’s den, so to speak. So what could go wrong?

“No… I’ll show her,” the growly one says, pushing past Rodeo and making his way to my passenger side door.

“Alright, Comp, you go then,” Swift says with a smirk. I don’t fully understand the joke, but I shrug my shoulders, walk back to the car, and get in the driver’s seat.

I try to hold in my laughter as the giant of a man tries to fold himself into Milani’s little itty-bitty car. He grunts and hits his head on the door a few times, and I can’t hold in the chuckle.

“You can scoot the seat back if you want,” I tell him, but he just grunts and squishes his knees up nearly to his chest. I shrug my shoulders and start the car, taking off down the path when he finally gets the door closed. The bumpy gravel under the tires must wake Paisley because I hear her small voice from the back seat.

“Mama, where are we?” she asks. Looking at her through the rearview mirror, I see her staring at the man in the passenger seat, not with fear as I would expect, but with curiosity. I figured it may be fear because she has never really been around men, and this man is HUGE. Plus, he is still trying not to let us see his face. Paisley can’t see anything but the back of his head from her seat anyway, so the real question is, why is he hiding from me?

“We are at Aunt Milani’s brother’s place, baby. We are going to stay here for a while,” I tell her, hoping she leaves it at that… but that, of course, wouldn’t be my daughter. The girl has no filter and is nosey as hell.

“Why are we here? And who are you?” she asks, not in a rude tone but in a curious one. However, I don’t know this man. I don’t know if he’s a rough biker who would get offended. I don’t know how he will take Paisley if he hates kids. Especially if she gets started on her questions. She could ask question after question, and as long as you keep answering them, she will keep coming up with new questions to ask. Comp turns her way, to my shock and surprise, with a slight smile pulling at the side of his face.

“Hello, sweet girl. My name is Nix, but my friends call me Comp. What’s your name?” he asks her. For someone that was so damn growly with me not that long ago, he seems to be wrapped around my daughter's finger already. Who could blame him, though? My baby girl is the sweetest.

“My name’s Paisley. It's nice to meet you, Nix,” she says before turning back to me. “Mommy, I’m hungry. Can we get something to eat?”

“Uh… yeah, baby. Let's try to get settled in first. I have to talk to some friends and make sure we have a place to stay tonight, and then I'll make you something to eat.” I tell her, not really sure what to do right now. I should have stopped at a fast food place on the way here, but she was asleep, and I didn’t want to deal with the million questions she would inevitably ask.

“Let’s get you and your mommy settled in, and I will make sure you both get something to eat, Wildflower,” Comp tells Paisley before turning back to me and pointing to the spot I’m guessing he wants me to pull into. I look up at the warehouse in front of me. It’s huge, like ginormous, but the metal structure seems cold and uninviting. I audibly gulp, wondering if I should just find a hotel or something; not sure how much I can trust these people with my safety or my daughters. Comp must see my hesitation because I feel his hand grip mine, soft but steady.

“No one in this building will hurt you, Sunshine,” he says softly, but the endearment makes me shiver. I’ve never been given a nickname before. People who care about you do that, and I’ve only ever had my baby girl and best friend. I realize I’ve been staring into his eyes for far longer than it seems comfortable, so I quickly look away, taking a deep breath and addressing my daughter.

“You ready to go in, baby girl?”

“We really get to stay here? This place is huge!” Paisley says, looking at the building from her booster seat in wonder. Comp laughs at her, but I smile and shake my head.

That’s one thing about my baby girl; she will find the fun in everything. She looks at life as an adventure. She wants to see everything, including every bathroom in every store we go to. Well, that’s the way it seems, anyway. Paisley will also find the good in anyone and the fun in any situation. I honestly wish I had that gift. Unfortunately, life hasn’t been easy on me. I learned from a very young age that life sucks. It’s not fun, not fair, and it can be a big whopping bitch.

I have one goal in my life: to make sure my baby girl never has the rose-colored glasses ripped from her eyes. I’m not na?ve enough to think nothing bad will ever happen, but as her mama, it’s my job to do my best to protect her from it. The last thing I ever want is for my sweet, gold-hearted baby girl to know the evils of this world. I will do everything in my power to prepare her to face the world on her own, be strong and independent, and never lose sight of her heart and who she is. She was a gift and a blessing to me at an early age, one that I will never regret. This world is a much better place with her light helping to shine it brighter.

Unfortunately, I don’t know how much longer I can keep all this shit from her after today. I want to protect her, but I also want her to be able to protect herself from anything that may come her way. The hardest part about being a parent is choosing between bliss and preparedness.

“I promise everything will be alright,” Comp says, pulling me out of my worry for now. He thinks I’m still afraid of him and his friends, and honestly, I kind of am. I don’t know these scary- looking men, yet I am entrusting them with the safety of my baby girl, but that wasn't what distracted me.

I look over at Comp, giving him a small, reassuring smile. For some reason, I trust this man. There is something in his eyes that is so full of pain, trepidation, and what looks like interest, but that can’t be right. I must be seeing things, or I’m more tired than I initially thought. I’m a single mom of a baby girl who’s running from her psycho baby daddy. No one wants that baggage.

As much as I want to be loved and to finally have a father figure for Paisley, putting myself out there and getting hurt again isn’t an option. Especially not until Paisley is out on her own and grown. It would hurt to be betrayed again, but it would kill me to see someone hurt my baby.

No. I can’t let that happen. I need to protect my heart and my baby. It might be lonely, but I’ll survive; I have for this long. It’s easy to fall apart after a broken heart, but it's a hundred times harder to pick up those broken pieces and put them back together for my daughter and me.