Page 51 of Stone
Naomi listened as the girls recounted the tale for the fifth time, adding new memories as they told it. Then it was as if everything was good. They asked when they could head over to the barbecue.
She and Stone had both been shaken up after watching her father hold one of her daughters at gunpoint. She would have been happy hiding out for the rest of the day, but Regina had come by and reminded them that Aaron didn’t deserve to ruin the girls’ first Fourth of July at Bluff Creek.
They’d attended the barbecue for supper that the club had thrown and played numerous lawn games that were set out. Beck wasn’t shaken up at all, it seemed. She was first in croquet and came in second in cornhole with her teammate Benji.
Now, they were sitting behind Beth and Flick’s house as the kids played laser tag, waiting for it to get dark enough for the fireworks.
“How’s that heart rate, Naomi? Has it calmed down yet?” Harry asked.
After the incident, the Ellis siblings had stuck like glue to the girls. Harry especially had made sure Beck knew it was okay to be upset and talk about what happened.
“It’s better,” Naomi answered. “I’m torn, though. I want to know what happened to my father and at the same time, I don’t. Does that make sense?”
“It does. Even though my mom wasn’t what I consider a good person from the time I was ten and older, it still hurt when she left because I remembered the good times when she cuddled me on her lap in the rocking chair and sang to me,” Harry shared.
“That’s exactly how I feel. I don’t ever want to be around my father again because he didn’t help me when I needed it, but I still remember the dad who used to take me on the carousel at the carnival,” Naomi said.
A counselor would probably have a field day with her, but maybe it was time she talked about all this with someone who was a professional. She’d also ask Cannon who he and Hank went to. She didn’t want the girls to be bottling things inside instead of dealing with them.
Frankie came over and flopped down beside Emerson and Harry. Although Frankie worked at the tattoo studio and had lived with the Ellis family in the RV before Stone got out of prison, she’d been spending more time apart from them.
“What’s with the face, Frankie? Was the Kate Spade purse you wanted sold out?” Harry teased.
Naomi hid a smile at Frankie rolling her eyes. She was quite the clothes horse. Everyone else was in shorts, capris, and shirts for the holiday party. Frankie had a lacy sundress, four-inch-high heels, a large-brimmed hat, and so many bracelets on her wrists that she sounded like a wind chime when she moved her arms.
“Very funny. There are just some people who get on my nerves, but in a small town, it’s really hard to avoid him,” Frankie grumbled.
“You should fuck him out of your system, then you won’t care.” Emerson deadpanned.
“Sometimes you guys really annoy me,” Frankie huffed, getting up and walking off.
“What did we say?” Harry wondered aloud, watching her go.
Naomi had no idea what they were talking about, but she saw her man walking toward her. She got up and went to meet him, wrapping her arms around his waist as he pulled her in for a kiss, leaning his forehead on hers when he pulled back. He stared into her eyes for a minute but wasn’t saying anything.
“Just say it,” she softly prompted.
“Would you be upset if I took a short ride to deliver a package somewhere?” he asked.
Naomi stared at him, trying to decipher his meaning.
“Is my father the package and the delivery going to be to law enforcement?” she surmised.
“Yes. Locks is going to take him in because leaving Oklahoma broke his bail agreement. It would be a three-hour round trip to Dodge City jail and back,” Stone explained.
“I won’t be upset. This way, I’ll know for sure he is gone and not able to hurt our girls,” she reassured him.
“Thank you. Love you, and see you in a little bit. Finn and Ben are going to hang close and will be happy to do anything you need,” Stone promised.
“Got it. Go!” she urged, kissing him on the cheek before heading back to the girls.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
“Just so we’re clear—I picked you up from an abandoned house where you were recovering after some guys attacked you and roughed you up. They wore masks. If I find out that you try to blame any of this on my MC, Franks and Daughters Bail Bonds, or any of your girls, I will make it my mission to ensure you don’t get one day of peace in prison. Do you understand and do you agree?” Locks demanded.
Stone had never heard that tone from Locks, but if Aaron knew what was good for him, he’d agree. Stone had wanted to ride to Dodge City to see with his own eyes that Aaron was in jail and wouldn’t be able to hurt Naomi or the girls.
Locks had obviously had a lot of aggression to take out on his brother. Aaron had a broken nose, numerous cuts and bruises, along with marks on the back of his thighs that mimicked what had been done to Naomi.
