Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 61746 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 309(@200wpm)___ 247(@250wpm)___ 206(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 61746 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 309(@200wpm)___ 247(@250wpm)___ 206(@300wpm)
I looked back forward and tried to remain relaxed on the outside, but my mind was a whirlwind. I couldn’t rely on just an online report to take Michael down. We would have to do something bigger, but what could that be? Anything we did was risky, but we were all willing to take that risk for the future we all desperately wanted.
After we picked up Chloe, who was happily surprised to see us, we headed to the park, making her think we were just going back to the tattoo shop.
“Did the other kids tell you happy birthday?” I asked as I turned to smile at her, distracting her while Marlo approached the parking lot of the park.
Chloe smiled happily and nodded, wearing a princess tiara on her head and a pin on her white shirt that said “It’s my birthday!” on it.
“They sang to me,” she said.
I put an awed look on my face.
“Really? That’s awesome!” I told her before reaching back to give her a high-five, a warm feeling filling my chest. I had always thought about having kids, but I didn’t think about it so much until I started getting closer to Madison and being around Chloe. This was the life I wanted. Surprise birthday parties. Seeing her smile when I picked her up from school. Sharing special moments with Madison and the guys.
I was going to fight like hell to not have it taken away.
“Alright, we’re here,” Marlo said once he parked the truck.
Chloe’s face contorted in confusion as she peered out of the back windows.
“We’re not at the shop,” she replied.
I chuckled as I looked through the windshield to see the guys and Madison in a gazebo in the middle of the park. I could already see green balloons and streamers to accommodate the magic forest theme that Chloe wanted.
“Let’s see what’s going on,” I told her before Marlo and I hopped out of the SUV and got Chloe out of the car. I held her against my side as I carried her toward the gazebo.
When we got close enough for her to see her mom and the others, Chloe gasped and clung onto me tighter.
“A party!” she exclaimed.
“Just for you,” I said as I stepped into the gazebo, letting her get showered with love from the others. A two-layer cake with trees and a smiling monkey drawn on top with icing occupied the middle of the long picnic table, along with chips, sodas, juice boxes, and a few boxes of pizza. There was also a notable pile of gifts on the left side of the table.
“Happy birthday, baby,” Madison told her as she hugged Chloe close. “I can’t believe you’re already seven!”
Chloe threw her arms around her mom’s neck and squeezed her tightly with a gleeful look on her face.
Madison looked over Chloe’s shoulder at Marlo and me, mouthing a thank you.
“How about we blow out some candles and open some presents?” Taj suggested as Bryce and Ti carefully arranged seven candles on top of the cake.
Chloe nodded eagerly as Madison set her down on the bench in front of the table.
We all crowded around the table and sang happy birthday to Chloe, who smiled with pink cheeks and bright eyes. She blew out the candles with only two tries, beaming happily as everyone clapped for her. I wanted her to be this happy every single day, but I knew what that meant we had to do. We had to take down her dad. One day, when she was older, we would tell her what happened during this time in her life.
Given all the things we had done in our pasts, I just hoped she saw us as heroes rather than villains.
Chapter 26
Taj
My boots thumped against the old steps of the staircase as I headed up to the attic, taking advantage of my downtime after my last client to check on Madison, who stayed upstairs whenever she wasn’t picking up waitressing shifts. We encouraged her to take a break and let us help support her during this time since she was carrying our baby and having to deal with all of the physical and hormonal consequences, but she insisted she could still handle a few shifts a week.
So, when she wasn’t working, we were adamant about taking care of her, along with helping out with Chloe. Ti and Gus would pick her up today when they were finished with their last clients. The guys and I all rotated duties, forming our own system to keep things running as smoothly as possible.
When I reached the top of the stairs, I frowned when I didn’t see her relaxing in bed. I turned toward the bathroom to see that the door was shut, the sound of groans and the sink running coming from inside. I lightly knocked on the door.