Courtney POV. “Ok, sweetie, stop doing that unless you want me to pee my pants?” I stretch in bed and bean kicks and wiggles on my bladder. I chuckle and rub my growing bump. I push up and stand, rubbing my eyes as I enter my en-suite bathroom. I look in the mirror that is over the sinks and wince. My eyes are crusty and swollen from all the crying and my pale skin is blotchy. Dried drool on my cheek, lovely. I use the toilet and wash my hands and face. Grabbing my toothbrush, I get to work. Wiping my mouth as I walk back into my bedroom. No point in getting dressed. I’m not planning on going anywhere for the next few days. I just want to surround myself with the memories of momma. Maybe cry some more. The possibilities are endless in grief. I grab my dressing gown and put it on and my fluffy slippers and leave the bedroom. Holding my bump, I walk down the stairs. Only to stop, the fine hairs on the back of my neck stand to attention. There, sitting on the sofa holding a framed photograph of me and momma, is the sperm donor. Didn’t take him long to find me. “Why are you here? How the hell did you get in?” I say and he stands, turning to look at me. He has tears streaming down his face. He gently places the photograph on the coffee table. “Courtney, I know you don’t want to see me, but …” I cut him off. “Yet, here you are. Look, you know I want nothing to do with you. Whatever happened to make momma run with me, I’m assuming it is because of you. So please, leave me alone. I can’t deal with this right now.” I say as I try my hardest to look menacing with the way I’m glaring at him. My fists are balled tight at my side. He sighs and looks down, his emotions showing on his face. I scoff as I walk to the kitchen to make a drink. I had bad morning sickness and couldn’t drink coffee but now it has passed and I can. In moderation, of course, but still. I open the cupboard and freeze seeing momma’s mug that I painted for her when I was five years old. She always drank from it. I reach behind it and grab mine. It says, My World, My daughter, Love Momma. I take it down and softly close the cupboard and start on my drink. I know he is behind me, but I won’t turn or offer him one. I always wanted to know who he was, but here he was in my kitchen and the timing couldn’t have been worse. The way he rode up on his bike with his crew and then expecting me to run into his arms like a cheesy reunion from some kind of soap opera. He deeply hurt momma and in turn me. “Court, please, baby girl. Let me explain.” I walk round him and back into the living room. I sit down and grab the pillow and place it on my lap. It was momma’s pillow. She loved her scatter cushions and her home comforts. Like throw blankets, deep soft pillows, candles, and pebbles. We would sit on this very sofa in the winter months, in onesies, wrapped up in blankets sitting side by side with our fluffy socked feet on the coffee table, sharing popcorn watching movies. My momma was like my best friend. We would tell each other everything. Well, almost everything, giving the present unwanted guest in my home. “Go on then, explain. Why did my momma run? What did you do to her? Why now?” I fire at him. Momma always said I had a mouth on me and an inquisitive mind. I wanted to know the ins and outs of everything. She was always happy to answer my questions unless it was about her family or where I came from. That was a huge guarded secret, a secret she took to the grave. Now I’m depressed again. I look away and take a few calming breaths to stop the spiral of my emotions. I’m mad, sad, confused and scared for the answers. “I cheated on your momma. I was drugged. The woman that drugged me is no longer part of the club. When I came too and found you both gone, I knew your momma must have seen what I did. I’m sorry, baby, I was too late to tell her the truth. I have had my club and other clubs looking for you both. Your momma was skilled in hiding.” He says, looking down in shame. My heart freezes in my chest. He cheated on momma? Now I know why she always said to stay away from bikers. Hell, even Kaden did the same thing. “You are all the same. You are so eager to get off it doesn’t matter who gets hurt in the process.” I mumble and he looks at me. “A biker hurt you? I want his name.” He asks and I don’t answer him. I just sip my coffee. I sigh and just shake my head. “No point. He made his choice. I won’t see him again.” I say and rub my bump. He is watching me. “I’m sorry Courtney, you haven’t had a good impression with bikers. We aren’t all like me and whoever he is. Some are good and some well, are bad. That brings me to why I’m here.” I look up at him and he is looking at me seriously. “Did your momma ever talk about how we met?” he asks and I shake my head because she didn’t say anything about him or her family. “No, why?” I ask seeing him flinch maybe he knows and I will finally be able to learn about what her life was like before I came along. “I met your momma in a diner in a different state. She was the most beautiful woman I had ever laid my eyes on.” He smiles and looks wistful. I can see the love shining in his eyes as he speaks. “You look just like her. The only difference is …” “I have your eyes.” I say, and he chuckles and nods his head. “Yeah, you do. I went back to that diner everyday I was there. I knew then and there she would be my ole lady, my wife. She told me she was running from bad people and with me being a president of a club. It is the code that we help women and children in need. Your momma was scared about who was after her. She told me her family was attacked in the dead of night. Her momma, father and older brother were killed. She ran and never looked back. We married four moths later, and you came along eighteen months later.” He says and I’m leaning forward listening to the story. “She was the most beautiful creature on the planet. Strong, fierce and wouldn’t take anyone’s s**t, mine included. But she had a soft, loving and gentle side to her. Then she walked in or was told about what happened that night. She ran. My world collapsed that day I found you both missing. I thought the people responsible for the deaths of her family had found her and you,” he says, his elbows braced on his knees as he watches me. “What are you trying to say?” I ask him and he looks at me his jaw is ticking and I know he is angry. “You are in danger, Courtney, you and your child both. I won’t lose you. You are coming with me, you both will be safe, I promise you that,” he says and I look at him as he stands up. I blink at him and start laughing. Is he for real? Does he think I can’t protect myself? I think the bruising to his face should remind him I can, in fact, defend myself. Not to mention the guns I have in the house. “If your job as club president doesn’t pan out, I think you have a promising career in comedy. This is utter bullshit. We are not in danger. Listen to yourself, for f**k’s sake. If whoever they were had found me and momma, we would be dead by now. That is, if anything you have said is true. You are only here to try to get me to come with you. I wasn’t born yesterday, wait you already know that.” I laugh as I struggle to stand. He moves to help me, but I straighten up before he can. “Courtney, I am being serious. Why do you think you and your momma moved so much? She knew they would be looking for her. Without the protection from the club, she and you were both vulnerable.” He says as the front door opens and three huge men step inside. They all nod at my dad before they smile at me. “You are coming with me, even if it is until we figure out who it was. Please darlin, I can’t lose my daughter or grandchild. Your momma would understand.” “You have had twenty years to find out the truth, and you are no closer to it. Look, I can pack up and leave. Whoever they are will never find me.” I say more to myself than him and he sighs, stepping forward. He reaches for me and I flinch away. He doesn’t stop there. He rubs his thumb under my eye. “They will know who you are. What you look like. How do you think I found you? Your details were easy to find from the death register database. One search of your momma’s name and we found out everything about you. We don’t know who they are. But.” I raise an eyebrow at him. Waiting for him to continue. “Have you ever heard of the Devil’s Warriors?” He asks and I look at him confused. “Pretend I don’t. Who are they?” I sass back. See, my mouth gets me into a lot of s**t. “They are the biggest MC in the world. Word on the street is their club president was looking for your momma. We don’t know why. We believe whoever killed her family had requested help from them. This is serious, Courtney.” He is trying to scare me and it’s working. I rub my bump and look down, thinking about what he has told me. Who ever was after momma is after me too. I could fight my way out, but I can’t risk getting hurt while I’m pregnant. I would never forgive myself if anything happened to my bean, especially if I can prevent it. I sigh, looking up at him. “I suppose it’s better the devil you know than the one you don’t. Fine, I will come with you, but you have four months to find whoever they are. Then I leave.” I say to him and he smiles and nods his head. “Ok, boys, help her pack and load her up,” he says and I sigh. Momma, what did you get involved with?