Page 30 of Penn

“And men say we’re complicated.”

Tilting her head back, she lets out a loud laugh. “Bikers are even worse.”

“No kidding.”

Chapter 12

Penn

Acheck. Dixie actually handed me a check. Like this would solve the problem that I didn’t realize existed.

It’s no secret she doesn’t want to feel indebted to anyone. That would be ridiculous to assume isn’t happening, but I never thought it would come to this. To her handing me a check in the Seven Crows because she felt she needed to chip away at some imaginary dollar amount I haven’t been keeping track of.

It honestly felt like a kick to the gut. Or maybe a little lower, if I’m being honest. Even with her growing belly, I want to be with her so badly it hurts sometimes. The thought of her showering under my roof will have me taking matters into my own hand.

I don’t remember ever wanting someone as much as I want Dixie.

And it makes absolutely no fucking sense. She’s pregnant with another man’s child. A man who likely tried to kill her and said child.

Why the hell do I want her as much as I do? It can’t be because she’s something I can’t have. She’s not taken anymore. And she’s already living in my house.

That blonde hair and sarcastic wit have me by the balls. If she asked me to jump, I’d do it. Wouldn’t even ask how high because I’ll jump as high as my fucking body will allow me to. Just for her.

But now I’m pissed.

A check?

Really?

Fuck that.

Grabbing the phone, I shoot a text to Zep. I don’t know who else to talk to.

Hey—got a minute?

My phone rings not even a second later. “What’s up?”

“I have a problem,” I say, running a hand over my face as I pace the tile of my kitchen. “Dixie tried to give me a check today.”

“For what?”

“Rent. The clothes I bought her because her shit went up in flames. Food. Utilities. Whatever you wanna call it, she’s paying off a debt I’m not keeping track of.”

Tools clunking into his messy toolbox tells me he’s in his garage. Misty’s been annoyed with his hovering, but I have to admit, his bike has never run so well.

“You aren’t really surprised, are you?”

Definitely not the response I’d been expecting. “Excuse me?”

“She’s got a lot of pride, man. We all know it, and she ain’t living with us. You really should’ve expected this.”

“I didn’t expect her to treat me like her fucking landlord,” I snap. “I told her she doesn’t owe me anything, and I took her in because she had nowhere else to go. You know, after someone may have tried to set her on fire as well as all her shit.”

“And you don’t think she’s worried about owing someone? Especially a man? It’s not like she had a great experience that led her to your doorstep, Penn. If her baby daddy’s the one who tried to burn her alive,” Zep says.

I didn’t call him to get a dose of reality. I called him to tell me that she’s out of her fucking mind. That I have every right to be beyond livid and offended by her offer. To say… Fuck, I don’t know. Anything but this.

“I’m not trying to make a profit off her situation,” I say instead.