Page 88 of Grumpy

Maddie’s breath came in short, hiccupping gasps. “It was months ago. He didn’t know who I was,” she tried to justify.

“I don’t care.” Ghost’s eyes practically glowed with his honesty. “If he harmed you, emotionally or physically, I will strip him of his colors and personally ensure his punishment.”

Kelly glanced over her shoulder at Jigsaw, and though he still looked shocked, he did not look worried or offended by Ghost’s obvious threat.

“No,” Maddie insisted. “I mean, please don’t hurt him. It was mutual, I swear. We just… We were strangers. I didn’t even know his name, or his road name, until just now. There’s no way he could have known mine or put together who I was. Please don’t hurt him.” Tears started to fall down her cheeks again.

Kelly reached forward with her good hand to squeeze Maddie’s shoulder reassuringly.

Ghost studied Maddie’s face for a second before he nodded and stood. He touched her hair affectionately, uncle to niece. “You’ve only to ask,” he reminded her. Then stepped out of the way.

“Wait!” Jigsaw called after them. Kelly looked back, awkwardly turning the wheelchair so Maddie could see him too. “I need to… I mean, we need to talk,” Jigsaw said to Maddie, a note of pleading in his words. “How… How far along are you?”

Maddie nodded slowly but also begged, “Later, please. I need to go lay down, but you should know it’s twins.”

Jigsaw’s jaw about hit the floor, and Kelly recalled Maddie’s story about her mystery man on the plane saying that twins ran in his family.

Kelly struggled with the wheelchair another second before Lucky stepped forward and took control of it. “Thank you,” she sighed out her gratitude. Kelly and her mom followed Lucky out into the hallway. Everyone was silent down to the elevator.

Maddie wiped her eyes with the outside of her hands. She glanced up at Kelly and begged, “Please don’t tell my dad.”

Kelly winced, not sure if that was a promise she could make. “You really think that there’s a chance they’re Jigsaw’s?”

Maddie swallowed hard, blinking hard as she stared up at the ceiling. “Is it bad that I’m hoping they’re his? That I just want to leave Texas and Colton and my old life behind without any strings attached?”

Kelly’s heart hurt for the young woman. She leaned down and kissed Maddie’s temple. “No,” she answered softly. “I think that’s very human, and after having the pleasure of meeting Colton, completely understandable.”

They watched the elevator slowly lower to their floor. “Do you think he was telling the truth?” Maddie asked. “About twins running in his family? I know that had no effect on my being pregnant with twins, but for some reason, his story brings me comfort.”

“He’s not lying,” Lucky spoke up. He looked like he’d have rather kept his mouth shut, but Kelly also knew he also wasn’t the sort to hold onto information that others needed. “Parents, siblings, aunts, uncles… If they’re related to him by blood, they’re a twin. All but him.”

Maddie let out a shaky breath. “We’re here. We might as well do a paternity test if Dr. Lisbon is willing.”

The elevator dinged and the doors opened. Kelly, Ruth, and Lucky pushing Maddie stepped inside.

Maddie sniffled, and in her reflection on the silver elevator doors, Kelly saw tears start to fall down the woman’s face again. “Story of my life,” she mumbled as if to herself. “One step forward, two steps back. Just when I start to think something good is about to happen, two bad things follow.”

“Hogwash,” Ruth spat. “You make your own luck, neshomele. I saw the way that meshuggeneh was looking at you when we came in.”

“Mesh-a-what?” Maddie asked, wiping at her eyes.

The elevator opened again, and they walked out towards the maternity ward.

“The foolish one on the bed,” Kelly’s mom explained. Lucky walked slow enough that Ruth was able to keep pace with the wheelchair. “He likes you, my neshomele.”

Maddie snorted, clearly piecing together that “meshuggeneh” was Ruth’s name for Splinters, even if she didn’t understand the meaning of the affectionate nickname. “I doubt he’ll ever speak to me again now that Jigsaw’s here. Even if Jigsaw isn’t the father of my babies, he’s not going to want his brother’s ‘leftovers’.”

At the disgusted tone Maddie took to describe herself, Lucky pulled the wheelchair to a halt. Kelly, a few steps behind them, was grateful, because this was not something she wanted to raise her voice about and draw an audience. However, she didn’t have to say a damn thing, because Lucky beat her to it.

“Don’t you ever speak about yourself like that again,” he snapped, a father scolding a child. “I don’t give a damn if there is a question of paternity. I don’t care if you fucked that entire plane, including the pilots, and came out pregnant. You don’t ever speak about yourself like that again. Do you understand me? If you wish to pursue a relationship with either man, or hell, both men, that is between you and them and no one else. Yes, the club has rules about members and club kids, but you’re also an adult. My own daughter married my club sister, so trust me when I say that I know exactly how Grumpy is going to feel once he learns of all this.” Lucky bent down and gripped Maddie’s hand. “At the end of the day, sweetheart, you stand tall, love those babies with all your might, and know that you have an army of biker uncles at your back.”

* * *

Grumpy was still trying to process the fact that Jigsaw had slept with his daughter when the paternity results came back stating there was a 99.99999999% chance that Jigsaw was the twins’ father. Pumpkin, who’d gone through a similar experience with SJ’s bio-mom, had been standing close enough to Jigsaw to catch the man when his knees buckled.

Grumpy didn’t give a damn about Jigsaw’s reaction. All he cared about was Maddie’s, and it was killing him that he was useless in his condition to comfort her. He thanked heaven, earth, and the cosmos that Kelly and Ruth were able to in his place. Though Maddie was clearly relieved to know who the father was, and was equally thankful it wasn’t that douchebag in Austin with a broken arm, she also begged patience of both Grumpy and Jigsaw until she sorted through her emotions.

Logic tried to tell him that Jigsaw had no idea who Maddie was when he’d slept with her. Hell, the club didn’t even know Grumpy had a daughter when they’d met on that plane. But Grumpy didn’t give a damn about logic when it came to his Mads. It pained him that he was not physically able to take his frustrations on the situation out on Jigsaw, and the fact that just the sight of his club brother made Grumpy’s blood pressure spike was enough for the club to keep Jigsaw away from Grumpy for the time being.