I locked eyes with Dante, and I knew we were both thinking the same thing: there was no guarantee I was going to be his old lady come Christmas.
“Crash didn’t like the old ladies getting involved. This was one of the ways Dante fought for you all to have a voice. I know it’s not much, and I know you’d like to be involved in the actual running of the club—”
“Which we’re working on,” Dante interjected.
“Exactly,” Trent nodded eagerly. “We’re working on making this a more female friendly place. But this is a brilliant start for you, Rachel. You’d really enjoy it.”
“Great. Brilliant. Listen, I’m going to visit my parents,” I said suddenly, surprising even myself with my own admission.
“Your parents?” Dante asked, a look of shock on his face.
“Yeah. I just realised I haven’t seen them since I’ve been back in the UK. And… well. Yeah.” I finished, not even sure what I was saying.
“Give me half an hour and I’ll come with you.”
“No need,” I said, suddenly feeling incredibly overwhelmed, and I wasn’t even sure why. “You’re busy. Club business. I’ll just get Bee from school and head straight there. You keep on… keeping on,” I gestured to the map and then walked back out of the clubhouse, sucking in a huge breath the minute the fresh air hit me.
What the fuck had just come over me?
Just hearing people make plans for me. Hearing that there were expectations for me. That people would be relying on me. It suddenly made everything feel so much more real than it had.
The last time I had been here, I had never felt that pressure or the weight of expectation. Kitty had been right when she said I hadn’t really done much to help around here, minus the odd shift in the bar or helping with paperwork in the garage.
Everything was different this time, and I was still playing games over whether or not I wanted to be here. It was time to make a decision, and the thought terrified me.
Chapter 36
Rachel
I snuck around the back of the house and collected Axel from Heather, rather than risking talking to Dante again. Heather tried to protest, saying she enjoyed picking Bee up from school, but I insisted.
I kind of got the impression that Heather was threatened by my return. It was no secret that she was incredibly fond of Bee—and Axel now that she was getting to know him—and I knew she believed my return meant she would be out of a job.
That was so far from the fucking truth. I recognised a good thing when I saw it, and Heather was an absolute treasure. I wouldn’t be letting her go without a fight. But I also had to put my foot down sometimes, and this was one of those occasions.
However, once she found out we were going to be visiting my parents, she relented, telling me that it would be good for Bee to meet some more family members.
She clearly had no fucking idea who my mother was. No one benefited from having her in their life.
The drive to school had managed to clear my head a little, at least. I put on Baby Shark for Axel, and even found myselfsinging along to it, doing the silly hand gestures whenever we were stuck at a red light.
Oh, to be a kid again. Things were so simple then.
I realised that I had overreacted somewhat at the clubhouse. But I wasn’t used to having anyone relying on me. It was different when I was working. I got paid to have these responsibilities and commitments. It was completely different to have someone relying on me because I was a member of the community. I had never been considered a valued member of anything—hell, I don’t think I had ever been considered a valued girlfriend, partner, daughter… anything. Of course I would be happy to help out with events and fundraisers. It just caught me off guard.
I pulled up at the school, parking in one of the reserved spots as Heather had instructed me to, and waited for Bee, my eyes trained on the doors.
After around five minutes, I noticed Bee sitting by herself on the school wall. I looked around, noticing other children walk straight by her. They would say goodbye to others, but most of them ignored her. My heart clenched when I noticed that every so often, Bee would try to catch the eye of one of her classmates, but not a single one of them paid her any attention.
I climbed out of the car, locking it behind me after making sure the window was cracked, and walked a few steps towards her. I never left Axel out of my sight for a second, but I did make sure that Bee could see me.
“Oh, hello!” A beaming red face appeared in front of me. “Are you here to collect?”
“What else would I be here for?” I snapped, trying to look around her to get Bee’s attention.
“I’m Mrs Baillie. Who are you here for?”
“Bee… I mean, Amy. Amy King.”
