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  Lily curls forward, grunting and pushing as her face turns red.

  The doctor keeps yelling, “More! More!”

  I close my eyes, the scene before me far too much. Lily’s too sweet to be in this much pain. Now I know why Aunt Mia sent Mike far enough away. The amount of pain and noise coming out of Lily is too much for me to handle and most certainly would’ve sent him over the edge.

  “I see a head,” the doctor says. “The shoulders are next.”

  I cringe.

  Shoulders.

  Damn.

  They’re bigger than any baby’s head. The thought of being split virtually in two and a small human magically and painfully coming out of my vagina makes me want to run to Aunt Mia’s office after this and get my dumb ass an implant instead of the pill.

  “You can do this,” Jett tells Lily, kissing her forehead and trying to be so damn sweet. He’s such a great guy and her perfect match. I never would’ve thought they’d work out the way they did, but sometimes the universe has a funny way of making things right.

  “Shut up,” she snaps at him between breathing and pushing.

  “I love you.” He smiles.

  He only gets a glare in return.

  Gigi squeezes my hand, grimacing as Lily starts to push again, her face turning all different shades of red and purple. “I’m going to pass out,” Gigi whispers.

  “This is worse than the video she made us watch,” I tell Gigi before swallowing down the bile rising in my throat.

  “A few more good pushes and we’re there,” the doc says, popping his face up from between her legs to give her a smile.

  Lily curls forward, leaning against her belly like she’s trying to push the baby out with her giant tits. Those seem to be the only great side effect of pregnancy. Her rack is off the charts, and she’s always been the smallest-chested of all of us.

  “The baby’s coming,” Mia announces after moving down near the doctor to watch. “Push, Lily, push.”

  I sway again, and so does Gigi.

  We’re not built for this.

  We never should’ve been in the room, but Lily insisted. She said she needed our support, but so far, we’ve done nothing but stand here and watch in horror.

  Less than a minute later, as Gigi and I clutch each other’s hands, holding our breath, a tiny human appears from between Lily’s legs, looking slippery as hell and covered in so much stuff.

  “It’s a girl,” the doctor announces.

  I let out a loud sigh of relief, earning myself a bump in the shoulder from Gigi. I turn my gaze from the bloody little bundle of joy in front of me to her. “What?” I ask.

  “You were turning purple. I thought I was going to lose you for a minute.”

  “You almost did.” I laugh, wiping at the sweat that has formed on my forehead. “So damn close.”

  “Dad, do you want to cut the cord?” the doctor asks, and I know it’s my cue to get the hell out while I still can.

  I remember the video. The cord and then the afterbirth. I witnessed my little cousin being born. I did what I was asked to do, and I’ll always remember this moment.

  The tension.

  The pain.

  The horror.

  The freaking nightmare of childbirth.

  “I’ll be back,” I tell Gigi, speaking softly because no one is paying any attention to us. It’s all on Lily and the new baby, as it should be. “I’ll go tell everyone.”

  She nods, and I walk out the door, wanting no one else in the world other than Mammoth.

  21

  Mammoth

  I lean back, the bottom of my boots propped against the wall, watching over the family. The men pace, mumbling at one another every once in a while, and the women sit in a tight huddle, talking about childbirth and everything baby.

  Mia, Gigi, and Tamara have been inside the delivery room with Lily and Jett for hours now. Every so often, Gigi or Tamara would come out and update us on the progress, which felt painfully slow.

  “Hey,” Nick says, coming to stand next to me and mimicking my posture.

  “Hey, man.” I lift my chin, giving him my full attention.

  “So.” He jams his hands into his front pockets and rests his head against the wall. “I want to talk to you about something.”

  “Shoot.”

  “College isn’t for me. I like working with my hands.”

  I’ve heard more than a few stories about Nick and his ability to pick locks, among other skills he’s picked up from his father but never used for good.

  “You going to work with your dad?” I ask him, figuring it’s the only thing that makes sense.

  Who doesn’t want to follow in their father’s footsteps, especially a dad as cool as Thomas?

  He shakes his head, and his dark hair flops over his forehead. “We’re too much alike and I’d like to maintain my relationship with him, so working together is a no go.”

  “I can respect that.” I don’t completely understand it, but I can respect his decision. If my father had lived longer, my life would’ve turned out very differently. Sure, I still would’ve joined the service, following in his footsteps, but I can’t imagine I would’ve joined the Disciples afterward.

  He turns his head, staring at me with his dark brown eyes. “I was wondering if you could use another hand at the garage?”

  I blink, surprised he’s asking me for a job. “You serious?”

  He nods. “Completely.”

  I don’t answer right away, too busy thinking of all the ways this could go terribly wrong.

  “I promise I’ll work hard. I can work for free for a while if you want to try me out.”

  “You know anything about cars?” I ask him.

  “I know a fuckton, man. My dad and uncle have always been gearheads. Plus, I was the one who rebuilt my car over the last eight months since my ass was shipped back.”

  His ass wasn’t shipped back. He was kicked out of boarding school for breaking the law, selling fake identification to his fellow classmates.

  I rub the back of my neck and sigh. “I don’t know, kid. I need everything to be on the up-and-up. The shop isn’t a hobby. It’s our livelihood.”

  He nods, shifting until only his shoulder is touching the wall and his back is to the rest of the family. “I know. I know. I swear I won’t do anything to put your business in jeopardy. I need to start getting my shit together. If you don’t want to, I can find another garage that will take me. I just thought I’d…”

  “Yeah, kid. I’ll take you,” I tell him, knowing I can’t let him work for someone else.

  That’s not how this family works, and Tamara will love having Nick around the shop all day instead of a bunch of guys she doesn’t have any connection with.

  He raises his eyebrows. “You mean it?”

  “Of course.” I turn toward him, standing eye-to-eye before I finish talking. “But if you do anything wrong or act like an asshole, I will feel no guilt booting your ass out of the shop and not giving you another chance. I don’t run a pansy-ass place. First strike and you’re out. Hear me?”

  He smiles. “Loud and clear.”

  “You break any laws, and I’ll beat the fuck out of you before I fire you.”

  He nods, still smiling like an idiot. “I’d expect nothing less.”

  “You start next Monday at seven.”

  He blinks a few times. “In the morning?”

  “No. Most of our customers come after sundown.”

  “Really?”

  I sigh. “No, you dumb fuck. Seven in the morning.”

  Nick laughs. “Figured you were messing with me.”

  “Can you handle it, or do you need your beauty rest?”

  “Fuck off,” he says to me, punching me in the shoulder.

  I glance down to where his fist has connected with my body. “I hope you work harder than you hit.”

  He tilts his head, staring at me without any humor. “I can hold my own. Again, my dad and uncle taught me eve
rything I know. I was going easy on you. I didn’t want to hurt you, old man. It’s the whole respect your elders shit and all.”

  I bark out a laugh. “Little fuck,” I whisper. “I know I’m going to regret giving you this job.”

  He straightens, looking excited for the first time since we started talking. “I promise you won’t. No one will work harder than me.”

  “Sure, kid. We’ll see.”

  Tamara comes rushing down the hallway with her face pale and wide eyes. “The baby’s here,” she announces so loudly, I cringe.

  The waiting room full of Gallos erupts into cheers and clapping.

  “And?” Suzy asks. “Boy or girl?”

  “It’s a girl!”

  “Fuck,” Nick mutters. “Another chick.”

  I laugh at his stupidity. “If this family were all men, it would be horrible, and we’d eat nothing but hot dogs and burgers.”

  “True,” he whispers, running his fingers through his hair, pushing it back on top of his head. “At least they make some damn good food.”

  “Sparky,” Tamara says, walking up to me, still pale. “That was…” Her head falls forward into my chest.

  I wrap my arms around her, holding her tight. “You okay? You don’t look good, princess.”

  “I almost fainted,” she murmurs against my shirt. “It was the most horrific thing I’ve ever seen.”

  I bite my lip, stopping myself from laughing harder and louder. “But now there’s a baby.”

  She tips her face up, glaring at me. “Did you know a vagina can tear?”

  “Um, yeah.” I shrug, still holding her.

  “Like riiiiiiip,” she says, emphasizing the last word. “No more pretty vagina, but lots of blood and then a human comes flying out.”

  “I’m sure it didn’t fly.”

  She blinks quickly. “I swear to fuck, if the doctor weren’t there, the little girl would’ve flown across the room like a rocket.”

  I tangle my fingers in her hair, pulling her face back into my chest. “Is Lily okay?”

  “She’s crying, but they’re happy tears. If my vagina had just been obliterated like that, I wouldn’t be smiling, no matter how cute the little thing is.”

  “See, Tam. The pain is totally worth it. Lily’s proof.”

  Her head tips back again, but this time, her glare is harsher and deadly. “You’re not the one who has to squeeze a human out of his body. It’s so easy to say it’s worth it when you never have to pay the price. So, don’t give me a bunch of bullshit. I saw everything. Everything!”

  “Then it’s a good thing we’re not having a baby for a really long time.”

  “A very, very, very, very, very long time,” she corrects me. “If ever. I mean, we can adopt, right?”

  “Anything you want,” I lie, consoling her.

  I want a baby that’s a little piece of her and a little piece of me. A little girl or boy running around with long wavy hair, giggling. I won’t push her, though, especially not after what she saw today.

  She buries her face in my chest again, clutching the material near my armpits with her hands. “Thank you,” she mutters into the cotton of my shirt. “Let me stand here for a minute. I need a moment to myself.”

  I stand still, letting her breathe, grounding herself even if it’s only because she’s attached to me.

  Nick shrugs, pitching his thumb toward the rest of the family. I give him a quick nod before going back to Tamara and her moment of panic.

  “One more minute,” Tamara grumbles, twisting my shirt tighter in her hands. “Can we go home?”

  “We can do anything you want, sweetheart.”

  “I want my bed and maybe a few shots of tequila so I can pass out and not think about what I just witnessed.”

  “I can make the tequila and your bed possible, but the dreams, I can’t control,” I tell her, smiling against her hair as I kiss the top of her head. “You want to stay for a little longer?”

  “No,” she says, pulling back and taking a deep breath. “Take me home.”

  “Want to say goodbye?”

  “Just to my mom so she doesn’t worry about me.”

  “I’ll wait here,” I tell her, dropping my arms and leaning back again against the wall.

  As soon as she’s gone, Pike comes up to me. “Well, now the pressure is on us. You know that, right?”

  I nod. “I’m pretty sure you’ll get pregnant before we do. Tamara’s pretty shook up about what she just experienced.”

  Pike laughs, running his hand across his beard. “Gigi too. She texted me and said not happening anytime soon.”

  “But as soon as they get attached to the little girl, they’ll get baby fever. It’s inevitable,” I tell him, shaking my head. “They may be traumatized now, but it won’t last long.”

  “You need any extra help at the garage tomorrow? I have some free time, and I’m sure Gigi’s not going to leave Lily’s side for a few days.”

  “I could always use your help. I’m finishing up a rebuild on an old Indian.”

  Pike nods. “Text me when you’re heading to the garage, and I’ll meet you there.”

  “You got it, brother. I appreciate the extra hand.” I turn my head, seeing Gigi walking slowly down the hallway, looking paler than Tamara did when she came out. “Your girl looks like Casper right now. You better go help her.”

  Pike’s eyes follow my gaze, and he shakes his head. “It’s going to be a long night.”

  “From your lips to God’s ears,” I reply.

  “Ready?” Tamara asks, returning from speaking to her parents. “I need to get out of here.”

  I throw my arm around her shoulders, pulling her to my side. “Let’s get you home and tucked into bed.”

  “And tequila. I need tequila.”

  “I can make that happen.” I laugh and kiss her forehead as we start walking out of the waiting room.

  * * *

  The backyard isn’t a total loss. A few cups and bottles are still on a couple tables, but for the most part, the guests cleaned up before they left.

  I am pretty sure my mother had something to do with that. Her need for cleanliness and order probably overtook her exhaustion from such a late night.

  “Sit,” I tell Tamara, pushing her down into one of the chairs under the lights. “I’ll grab the tequila.”

  “Don’t bother with a glass,” she tells me as she relaxes back into the chair and stares across the yard to the back of the house.

  I take the keys from her hand, and she barely moves, too lost in thought, like she’s still in shock from everything she saw at the hospital.

  The inside of the house is cleaner than the outside. I owe Mom something big for all her hard work and not leaving a giant mess for us to clean up tomorrow.

  With the bottle of tequila and two glasses in my hands, ignoring what Tamara said, I go back outside and find her in the same spot. She is no longer staring across the yard, but upward toward the twinkling lights.

  “The party really was beautiful,” she says, tipping her face downward to smile at me. “You impressed me, sparky.”

  “I couldn’t have done it without your cousins,” I remind her, placing one glass in front of her and filling it with just enough tequila to be considered a shot.

  “Stingy,” she mumbles before lifting the glass to her lips. Her hazel eyes are pointed at me as she quickly downs the liquid and places the empty glass back on the table.

  When she reaches for the bottle, I grab her hand and pull it in front of me. “Princess,” I say, shoving my hand into my pocket to fish out the beautiful ring my mother gave me earlier. “I want to ask you something.”

  “Okay,” she says softly and slowly. “Is something wrong?”

  I smile, loving this girl so damn much. “Nothing is wrong, love. Everything is actually right for the first time ever.”

  “Sorry tonight got turned upside down.”

  I kneel in front of her, grabbing one of her hands. “Tonig
ht was absolutely perfect, and it’s just one night out of many. We have the rest of our lives together to build more memories.”

  She tangles her fingers with mine. “Thank you for always being patient and sweet, Mammoth. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

  “You’ve given me way more than I have ever given you, Tamara. You walked into my life during a time I wasn’t sure I’d ever find someone to spend the rest of my days with. There was so much darkness. So much anger around me. Then this dark-haired, hazel-eyed, fire-breathing, smartass girl walked into the compound, not giving two fucks about anyone or anything, and I knew in that moment, she was placed on this earth for me.”

  “Liar,” she teases, staring at me with those hazel eyes. “It was my breasts that caught your attention. Admit it.”

  I run my thumb across her skin, squeezing her hand. “There hasn’t been a day I’ve regretted meeting you or leaving the club. We’re building a life together, a future.”

  She smiles. “We are,” she says. “And I can’t wait to start on our life together. Feels like we’ve been waiting forever for this day when I don’t have to go back to school and we can start whatever crazy ride that is our future.”

  “I love you, princess.”

  “Love you too, sparky.”

  “There’s no one else in the world I’d rather spend the rest of my life waking up next to than you. There’s no one else who lights up my life and brings me so much damn happiness than you. I want a family. I want the babies—but not too soon,” I add because now isn’t the time to argue about her vagina and the wreckage, as she calls it, of the aftermath. “I want you to be mine forever. I want you to be Mrs. Josiah Saint.” I lift up the ring, showing it to her. The lights from above hit the diamond, scattering over the patio. “Tamara Gallo, will you make me the luckiest man in the world and do me the honor of being my wife?”

  She blinks, staring at me and then down at the diamond. Her eyes glisten, instantly filling with tears. “You want to get married?” she whispers, squeezing my hand back, but otherwise not moving.

  “Yeah, princess. I want the world to know you’re mine. I never thought I’d get married, but there’s nothing more that I want in the world than to call you my wife.”