Through The Weeds (Nightshade MC Book 2) (29 page)

“You should go downstairs, take her on the side and tell her that. I think she'd appreciate the gesture.” She looked up at him. He couldn't read the expression in her eyes, but he didn't think that she was angry at him anymore.

“I can do that,” Buster replied. “You done being pissed at me?” If she wasn't, the question would piss her off even more, but it was a risk that he was willing to take.

“Mostly,” she replied with a small smile.

“We should head back down before Train eats all of the food, and we have to find a drive-thru later,” he pointed out.

“I've got extra in the kitchen. I know how that man eats.” She took a deep breath. “There's something else that we need to talk about.”

“Do you want to talk about it now?” Buster didn't like the expression on her face at all. “Caroline?”

“I thought about something when I talked to Amelia, something that I've been thinking about pretty often lately anyway, and I really don't know how to say it.” She moved away from him, sat down on the edge of the bed.

“That's usually not a problem for you. If you've got something to say, Caroline, just say it.” A horrible thought occurred to him. Maybe he hadn't been paying close enough attention to her and she wanted out. Was it possible she was unhappy about more than just the money weirdness? Had he once again missed something? “Just say it,” he repeated, more forcefully than he intended.

Her expression shifted to confusion and then softened. “It's nothing bad, Buster. It's just a little bit weird, I guess.”

“Is this about the money?”

“No. It's not. The money is still weird, a little, but it's not that. It's... Fuck.” She pressed her hands over her face. “Alright, I'm just going to blurt it out. I think that I was wrong when I told you not to reverse the vasectomy.”

“Say that again, slowly.” Buster took several cautious steps towards the bed.

“I think that you should have the vasectomy reversed, if that's still something that you want. All my reasons are still valid for not wanting kids. I mean, the lives that we lead, the things that happen to us....” She sighed. “Anything could happen at any time. We could die old in our sleep or get hit by a truck the next time that we cross the street. I'm tired of being afraid.”

Of all the worst case scenarios that had run through his mind, Caroline deciding that she wanted to have a child hadn't been one of them. “It's not a decision that we need to make right now.”

“Didn't you hear what I just said? Anything at any time, Buster.” She smiled. “If that's still something that you want.”

“It is.” There was no hesitation in his answer. Before he'd met Caroline, he'd have never imagined wanting a child after what had happened with Hanna. But now, he wanted one so badly that he was afraid he'd frighten her if he admitted it. “Are you sure, Caroline?”

“I'm absolutely positive, but you're sort of freaking me out just standing there looking at me.”

“If I get any closer, we won't be going back downstairs anytime soon.” Buster wasn't sure that they were going to make it back down either way. “They know where everything is, right? Or at least Jillian does.”

“We cannot hide up here and have sex during our dinner party, Buster. Besides, you need to talk to Amelia, remember?”

“Alright, but we are kicking 'em all out early, or at least the ones that we can.” Buster was more than a little glad that Ace and Jillian would be moving out soon. There were plenty of rooms in the house that they hadn't had a chance to christen yet. He held out his hand to her, noticed her hands and especially her fingers. She wore no rings. She should be wearing a ring. She should be wearing his ring. The realization hit him like a ton of bricks.

Before he could say anything else, raised voices carried up the stairs. “They're at it.” Caroline got to her feet as it became obvious that the voices belonged to Train and Amelia. By the time that they got downstairs, Danny and Train were standing toe to toe, with Ace doing his best to get between them.

“I told you to leave her alone.” Danny shoved Train. “But you just keep on picking at her and picking at her, and now, I'm going to break your fucking face.”

“Bring it on, Blondie,” Train replied. “Used to be that you didn't have to fight her battles. And you're the one saying she isn't broken.”

“Enough!” Buster stepped forward, succeeded in getting the two of them apart where Ace had failed. “This is supposed to be a nice dinner.”

“I want to go home. Now,” Amelia spoke up. “Are you taking me, Danny? Or should I just walk.”

“Yeah, running away is the answer.” Train let out a snort of laughter. “You're good at that though, right?” Even Buster between them couldn't stop Danny. He collided with Train with enough force for both of them to end up on the floor.

“Leave them,” Buster told Ace, “let them fight.” Maybe if they got it out of their systems, things could go back to what passed for normal with them. He may have reconsidered his choice if he thought about everything that they could destroy in the house. Train swung for Danny and missed; the wall took the brunt of the blow and the plaster crumbled. A table, used for keys and other odds and ends, was the next victim.

Train got the upper hand when they were both on the floor. He delivered several punishing blows to Danny's face. Now there was blood to go with the destruction. Buster stepped forward with the intent to stop them, but somehow Danny managed to throw Train off of him. Another wall would need some repair, and a blow to Train's mouth meant that both men were bleeding.

Buster expected that the fight would end after a few minutes, that they'd tire themselves out, but it kept going. He looked over to Ace and motioned that it was time to intervene when a tooth hit the ground. It took all of his strength to grab Danny and pull him back. Train fought against Ace, but eventually they were apart.

Even apart they continued to glare at once another. Buster knew that if he or Ace moved out of the way, they would just go at it again. And again. “Shake hands,” he demanded. “Now.”

“Fuck that,” Train replied. “Fuck him.” He wiped his hand over his mouth and it came away bloody.

“Fuck you right back,” Danny replied. “You say another word to Amelia and I'll cut your throat.”

“Enough!” Buster exploded. “Shake hands, right now. Bury this shit.” It was clear that it was an order, and after only a slight hesitation both men stepped forward and did as he asked. They wouldn't look one another in the eye. “Now, let's sit down and eat.”

“I'm not hungry.” Train's words were a surprise to everyone. He was always hungry. “I'm out of here.”

“And you talk about me running away.” Amelia cleared her throat. “You know what you are, Train? You're a shit-stirrer. You like to poke at people, get them worked up because you think that it's funny or cute or something. It's not. You're not funny or cute. You're a fucking asshole.”

“And you're a fucking bitch. So, are we even?” Train demanded.

Danny lunged forward, but Buster held him back. “Look at her,” he said low enough for only Danny to hear. He'd seen the change in Amelia's expression when she'd started her rant against Train. It was the first time she'd been animated the entire time that she'd been there.

“We're not even. Not by a long shot. I'm sick of you picking at me. And you've got balls to call me broken.”

“Want to see my balls instead of just talking about them?” Train grabbed his crotch. Amelia shot forward and slapped him. Train laughed. “Was that supposed to hurt me?”

“What the fuck is he doing?” Danny hissed the words at Buster.

“I'm not sure,” Buster replied.

“Fuck you.” Amelia shoved at Train's chest. She didn't budge him despite the force of it.

“I don't hit women. I might make an exception for you, though.” There was obvious amusement in Train's voice. The next thing that Buster knew she'd launched herself at him. It had been a long time since he'd seen Amelia in a fight, but it looked like she hadn't lost her edge at all. Train stood there and took the flurry of kicks and punches without even reacting. His inaction seemed to anger Amelia more. She hit him harder, landed a kick to his knee that made Buster wince. “Feel better now?”

“Fuck you.” Amelia's voice cracked and then she started to cry. No one spoke as she stepped into Train's embrace. He wrapped his arms around her.

“It's the first time she's cried,” Danny said softly. Buster felt the fight leave him, so he released him. “And it's the first time I'm actually thinking that she's going to be okay.”

“She's going to be alright. We all are.” Buster believed the words to be the truth.

“You better not get any snot on me, bitch.” Train grumbled the words but he kept his arms around Amelia. She laughed through the tears and pushed away from his chest. There was no keeping Danny back at that point, and Buster made no attempt to stop him.

<#<#<#<#

“Train likes Amelia more than he'll ever admit.” Caroline made the observation as she sat on the end of the bed with her brush in her hand. “Have you ever fought with another Nightshade member the way that Danny and Train fought today?”

“A couple of times,” Buster replied.

“It was kind of scary.” She rose to place the brush back on the dresser. “I thought that they were going to tear the house down around them.”

“We'll get the wall fixed.” Buster reached out and pulled the covers on her side of the bed back.

“I'm not worried about the walls.” She moved over and shut the light off. “I'm not sorry about the table, though, that was an ugly table.”

“Hey. There was nothing wrong with that table,” Buster protested. “It served its purpose.”

“Well, I'm glad it's kindling,” she told him. She got in the bed and stretched out next to him.

“I'm going to call the doctor in the morning, make an appointment.” He'd spent a good part of the night thinking about it. “Find out all it entails.” The original procedure had been quick and relatively easy. He'd had very little discomfort, and it had been worth it for the piece of mind.

“Are you sure?”

“I'm absolutely sure, Caroline. Don't ask me again because you'll just piss me off, and I don't want to be pissed off tonight. Today was a good day.” It had been an excellent night actually; after Amelia's breakdown, she'd been almost her normal self. They'd ate and laughed. It had felt like old times and a new beginning all at once.

“It was.” She stretched out on the bed next to him. “It was weird, though.”

“Our lives are weird,” Buster pointed out. “Got to say, though, I wouldn't have it any other way.” He slid his hand over her hip. “Why do you even bother with pajamas?”

“Would you prefer that I come to bed naked?” Even in the dark he could see she was grinning, teasing him. He'd return the favor several times before the night was over if he had his way.

“I wouldn't object to it.”

“Well, if I have to come to bed naked, I think you should have to come to bed naked, too. It's only fair.”

“And who said life was fair? You'll do as I say, woman.” Buster chuckled.

She let out a snort of laughter. “Oh, really?”

“Yeah, really. It's right there in the vows.”

“What vows?” She went to sit up but he shifted so that he was on top of her. “Buster?”

“Marry me.” The words were out of his mouth before he could stop them; this wasn't the way that he'd intended to ask her, but nothing ever happened exactly as they planned it. “And before you ask, yes, I am serious.”

“I wasn't going to ask that,” she protested. “Okay, maybe I was, but more out of surprise than anything else. You've never talked about wanting to get married. I always thought...”

“You thought right. Never really thought about it until you. There's a lot of things that I never really thought about until you came into my life. I want you to be my wife. I want to see my ring on your finger and my mark on your skin.”

“Yes, of course I'll marry you. And I'll take your mark.”

Buster grinned. “Good. I think that I'll put it right here.” He brought his hand up and tapped her forehead. “What do you think about that?”

“No.” She giggled. “I was thinking on my inner arm.”

“No. Absolutely not.” Buster shook his head. “That will be entirely too painful for you. And I'm not even sure what happens when you try to burn a scar.”

“I've got two inner arms,” Caroline pointed out. “It would be nice to look down and see something that I want there.”

“We could do ink instead, if you don't want to be branded,” Buster offered. She'd be the first Nightshade old lady not to be branded, but he was fine with that if it made her more comfortable.

“It would be your initial, right? Like Amelia's D?”

“Yes.” Buster replied. “And I wouldn't put something that you didn't like on you. I'd let you help me pick the design of the letter.”

“You choose. I trust you. I was wondering one other thing, though. Who does it?”

“The brand?” Buster asked for clarification. “I'd do it. And we can do the ink instead, Caroline. I've got a good guy.”

“No.” She shook her head. “I'll do it. Don't piss me off by asking if I'm sure,” She shifted beneath him so he was more firmly between her legs. “I'm sure. I've got another question, though.” She slid one leg over his. “Where's my ring?”