Page 34 of Clint & Ivy
“Ford, Shay, this is Ivy,” I said, still holding her hand. “Ivy, these are my parents.”
“I’m right here, boy,” Pax said.
“Can you help Sutter grab lunch from the truck?” I asked my uncle.
Pax muttered under his breath about being treated like the help while Ford smiled wider at his brother’s irritation. Once my uncle called over Sutter, who was transfixed by his mom trying to tackle Rowdy, I turned my attention back to my parents.
“Hello, welcome to our home, Ivy,” Shay said, sounding far more “Stepford Wives” than usual.
“Yes, we welcome you,” Ford added and then winked at me.
Sounding nervous, Ivy mumbled, “You have a beautiful home.”
“If you think the porch is fancy, wait until you see inside,” Ford replied and gestured for us to enter.
Pax and Sutter walked inside with bags of food while I freed Hanzee. The little dog’s excitement over seeing Hobbs awakened Ivy from her anxiety-induced hiding place. She smiled as the two dogs sniffed each other and began running circles around the couch, where Vanessa and Xandy sat.
Next to me, Ivy looked around the family room, lifting her gaze to admire the two-story high timber-style ceiling. Her gaze lingered on the rock fireplace, where photos rested across the wood mantle.
Pax fussed over the food in the adjoining kitchen where my aunt watched us. While my uncle had embraced his “bum” phase in life, Bebe looked tidy in blue jeans and a tucked-in blue T-shirt. Her dark hair was tied back in a ponytail, and her big brown eyes sparkled with curiosity.
“I’m confused about the gas station part,” Pax announced and frowned at Ford. “I feel like you were fucking with me when you said your son picked up a woman in between getting gas and beef jerky.”
Ford muttered, “Shut up.”
“No.”
Maneuvering around her stepdad, Lula introduced herself to Ivy. My cousin was three years old when she was swept into the world of the Little Memphis Motorcycle Club. Pax soon became her new dad. A few years later, Sabrina was born. Then, Vanessa and finally Rowdy, who currently entered the house out of breath.
“Sabrina kicked me,” he whined to Bebe. “It really hurt.”
Bebe pretended to be worried about his health, babying her youngest child who smiled at Sabrina walking inside.
“He spit water at me.”
“Oh, I get it,” Pax said and pointed at his children. “You’re all acting like dum-dums to distract from Clint’s child bride.”
“She isn’t a child,” Ford growled threateningly at his younger brother before looking at me. “Is she?”
“She’s twenty-three.”
“I’ll be twenty-four in August,” Ivy mumbled as if needing to prove her age.
“And this thing between you two started when she was legal, right?” Pax asked me, just to fuck with his brother.
Lula ignored the men’s bitchiness and told Ivy, “I’ve heard only good things about you.”
Ivy nodded nervously before glancing at the couch where Vanessa and Xandy were now asleep against each other.
Sabrina and her girlfriends didn’t usually get up before two. They were barely functional until four in the afternoon. When I considered them getting up early to meet Ivy, my irritation faded. My family tended to get rowdy, but we were close. That’s why they were all here for a weekday lunch.
“You’re a lawyer?” Ivy asked, looking intimidated by Lula.
“Yes, but I ride with the club. Don’t view me any differently than my sisters and this one,” Lula explained and paused as Rowdy came up behind her to drop a kiss on the top of her head.
“Lula’s normally harmless,” Rowdy told Ivy. “Unless she goes into lawyer mode. Then, she’s a downright witch.”
Lula rolled her dark eyes and waved off his compliment. Instead of showing her scary side, she used her sweet gal routine to separate Ivy from me and usher her toward Elle and Sabrina. Soon, my petite girlfriend found herself corralled down the basement stairs.
