Trial By Fire - Bouncing Back, Book 1

Twenty-Seven

Thomas had watched as his son tried hard to reach out to any of their blood family. Not that he didn’t expect it. Memphis had called his family to come to the wedding, but no one answered his calls. He’d sent invites, but no one RSVP’d.

Seeing that her soon-to-be husband was a little more than a bit upset about being ignored by the family, she pleaded with Thomas, going as far as to say that it was really all Memphis wanted for his wedding day.

It would be nice to give Memphis what he wanted for once without excusing it as a reward for something done. Other than ending up with the girl he wanted, the young man didn’t know what it was to get his own way without earning it. He didn’t want to risk his son becoming dependent on him, so he’d never spoiled him.

With Kennedy, he had someone willing to fight for his peace of mind. Her inability to see Memphis upset over people being petty was heartwarming. Now, he was sitting in his truck outside the strip club the MC manned. He was waiting for her to finish with the office work, overhauling the whole staff because of a report of missing revenue.

When she looked into the books, she realized they were doctored. The numbers weren’t adding up, and it pissed her off. In the end, that particular club lost two managers and a waitress that had been skimming funds from the register and pocketing the money. They thought their plan was perfect. It wasn’t.

Kennedy was anything but a pushover, and her club was going to keep their noses clean if they knew what was good for them. He glanced up, dropping the cigarette butt on the pave before crushing it with his steel-toe boots.

“We all good, Princess?” Thomas called as she got closer.

She blinked at him, shaking her head as she got into the truck. “Yeah, we are now. That one manager is going to need a hospital, but everything is taken care of now. Here’s the paperwork Cal needs to sign for his share of the profits.”

“I’ll get that to him this evening. So, are you serious about going shopping for a dress?” He asked, scowling as he saw that his son hadn’t come out yet.

The sound of shattering glass reached his ears, and he stared wide-eyed as Memphis threw one of the bikers out a window. The sound of cheers followed. Tempted to step in, he felt Kennedy’s hand on his arm. “He’s going to kill that man.”

“Let him. I got disrespected, so I gave him the floor. I’m under strict orders from him not to pull a stupid,” she replied.

Taking a moment to figure out what she was telling him, he raised his brows. “He… but you never listen.”

A look akin to guilt flashed in her eyes. His heart went out to the girl who was used to holding her own. Now she had a tiny, innocent life to protect. “No, I normally don’t. He’s not controlling, though. He’s trying to protect his family. I got his back when it comes to that, Thomas. Memphis is the father, and he has every right to tell me off for putting myself in any danger, so, to circumvent any hostility, I shut my ego down and did as I was told. My safety and that of our baby is important to him, and I understand that.”

Smiling, he pulled her into his arms. Kissing the top of her head, he breathed a laugh. “You’re a good woman, Kenni. Sometimes that kind of reasoning can be a control tactic.”

“Not with a martyr like me. He knows me well enough to know that I’d lose my s**t and would put myself in dangerous situations. Memphis loves me, and I see it every day in the little things he does for me.” She told him.

That stung.

For all the hate he harboured for her when she was younger, he realized he never took the time to get to know her. Despite having a foul, smart mouth, deadly aim, and an even deadlier temper, she was a sweet marshmallow of a woman. She enjoyed the simplest things, too. Just the other night, when he suggested a movie, he was expecting her to want to go to the mall or another theatre.

She didn’t.

Instead, she wanted to buy some junk food, grab a few drinks, and sit in the family room to watch a movie. Something he hadn’t done with Memphis since he was a boy. “I get that.”

Walking out of the club, Memphis straightened his jacket, brushed off his clothes, and dusted off his hands. Taking a breath, he looked up and nodded when he met Kennedy’s gaze. The man was still alive. Barely breathing, but alive. Another club member came out behind him, but it wasn’t to attack. Carefully taking in every detail of the confrontation, she watched him shake the other man’s hand before jogging over to the truck. Getting into the back seat of the king cab, he breathed a laugh.

“That was fun,” he said. “Son of a b***h tried to get me good, too. I put Keith up as the new manager and told him to do as he pleased with rowdy patrons.”

“Sounds good to me. Why Keith?” She asked.

Memphis laughed, “Cause him and the other guys we went to school with are too scared shitless of us to step outta line. I didn’t know how I was going to handle this, but it’s really no different from being Phoenix’s Enforcer.”

“Duh,” his fiancée said. “So, your father just got the rundown about why I’m flipping the script and not fighting you about anything.”

His grin fading, he let his gaze flicker to his father. He knew the man’s stance on people who didn’t respect their significant other. Then again, if they talked about it, maybe his father wouldn’t be a complete d**k about him giving Kennedy s**t. “Uh, okay. So, we’re going shopping? Despite everything?”

“Unfortunately,” she muttered. “Look, I just want something cheap and simple. I can do without the grandeur and flashy s**t Bridezilla’s ruin their make-up over. Simply elegant is my dressy style.”

Memphis laughed, “Babe, why are you stepping out of your comfort zone? You got no one to impress.”

“Not yet,” she countered. “Besides, Nix already got the team together for our second wedding. He wants to attend each union like we did for him. That said, he’s got the others convinced that they are all pitching in for the wedding. Cal’s fabled black card is going to be used a lot in the coming years.”

“You got that right,” Thomas grunted as he navigated the 401. “With the Mafia wedding, you can wear what you damn well want. However, I wouldn’t mind seeing you in a decently nice dress for this one.”

Her smile fading, she lowered her eyes to the dash. “I’ll comp, but it can’t be over-the-top, and neither of you are allowed to call Sky.”

“Deal.”

Once he parked at the mall, it took Memphis a solid ten minutes to convince her to get out of the vehicle. Though finding it secretly hilarious, it still bothered him a little when his son grabbed her roughly and carried her into the store. The disgusted, frantic look on her face when she saw the clothes had Memphis busting a gut, but Thomas was eyeing her with real concern.

Memphis shook his head as he walked closer, signalling for him to hang back and just watch. That’s all he had to do was watch how they got along. Watch how they defended and kept each other in line. “Babe, it’s one dress. You owned one growing up.”

“I had no choice in the school uniforms we were given. I compromised with Declan over my entire wardrobe, too. When it comes to me buying s**t for myself, I don’t like it. I feel like I’m wasting money when I should be saving every penny we have for hard times.” She answered.

To say that his jaw dropped was an understatement. Thomas blinked, his deep, hickory-brown eyes burning slightly as her words sank in. Here she was, literally a millionaire, and she was still frugal with her funds. Moving over to the chair she was sitting in, he crouched down. “Kennedy, why does spending money bother you so much? Help me understand why you think like that.”

Without a sarcastic comeback to the sincere way he was talking to her, she swallowed. “Temperance and I never had much of anything growing up. Dad believed in teaching us to work hard for our money, but he never once mentioned an inheritance. I know now that he asked Hans to lock it after his death, but we always had the bare basics. After Declan took us in, I kept holding onto Dad’s morals because it made me feel like he was still here.”

“You have to spend something on yourself, though,” Thomas pleaded softly.

“I… I can’t. It makes me feel selfish when there are so many people in this very country that are starving or homeless. They’re so far below the poverty line, they sometimes have no choice but to steal to make headway.” Kennedy explained.

“Want to know something,” he said, tucking her hair behind her ear. He’d never really noticed the things she kept carefully hidden, but his son did. Now, faced with her in such a unique-to-her situation, he saw just how much she really cared about others. He saw just how much she missed her parents, her father in particular. “Sweetheart, listen, we got a long way to go, but I’m right here with you and Memphis. I’m good with your vicious temper and straight-forward honesty, but I would appreciate you taking better care of yourself from now on. You might not think it, but you are worth it, Kennedy.”