Ryker by Jeneveir Evans

Chapter 21

Biology is the least of what makes someone a mother.

~Oprah Winfrey~

Risky

October 20th, 1999

It was hard to believe that the guys and I had been prospecting for seven months. I’d been scared as shit that I’d fuck it up and get kicked out because of my bad attitude toward women. But what KJ said to me months ago had stuck with me. He had been right. I didn’t hate every woman. I’d been taking out my hatred and pain on everyone but the right woman. My incubator. Thanks to my big brother Viper, I was relieved as fuck that I knew she no longer walked this earth.

I’d also told the guys if they heard the first sign of negativity toward any woman come out of my mouth that they were to knock the ever-loving shit out of me. I had been bound and determined that I would do anything to be able to stay around Viper and my family. I needed him and I needed them. I had already learned so much from Vip and the rest of my family.

Sure I’ve learned a shit ton about vehicle restoration, but for me that wasn’t the most important thing I’ve learned. The most important thing was what a real family is and how a real family cares about its members. Vip and his mom have also taught me that family isn’t always blood related.

As I stepped into the shower to wash the grime of the day off of me, I thought back to the first time I had gone to V’s home. I’d been nervous as fuck. Not only were his women and children there, but his mom was too. A woman my sperm donor had cheated on with a club whore and I was the result of their fucking.

If it had been me, I think I would have hated the person. I wouldn’t have wanted them in my life at all, much less have him come into my home. That wasn’t what happened. Instead, I had been welcomed with open arms.

I can still remember how unsure I was about meeting all of them. I’d been sweating bullets as I stood before their front door. It had taken every ounce of gumption inside of me to knock on the slab of wood that was before me. I had expected Viper to answer it, but that hadn’t been the case. Instead a woman that could have only been his mother opened it.

I knew she was in her early sixties, but the woman looked a good ten years younger, if not more. Although Vip had told me he looked like his mom’s brother, I would have to disagree with him even though I’d never met his uncle or seen a picture of him. Because standing in front of me was a blatantly obvious feminine version of my brother. He got his good looks from her.

She had the same tanned skin and long, dark, wavy hair that he did. Her features were a delicate version of his too. Gracing her oval-shaped face was a fairly wide forehead that led to a slender classically contoured nose, separated by almond-shaped hazel eyes. The concave of her skin under her fairly sharp cheekbones sloped to a jawline that tapered to her slightly rounded chin.

While she no longer had a young woman’s body, she had a mature woman’s form. She was beautiful as fuck, not to mention hot, and my bio father had been a god damn fool. I hadn’t realized I’d said that out loud until she laughed.

“Oh, son. You are good for an old woman’s vanity.”

“Bullshit,” I spouted. I’ll admit, I was rattled. She had completely thrown me off kilter. “You have to know you’re gorgeous.”

“Well, I wouldn’t go that far, but I don’t feel like I’m dog food either.”

“Trust me, you’re stunning.”

I felt like an idiot. This woman was old enough to be my grandma. Hell, she was Reb and Pred’s. Yet, I was left reeling from looking at her.

“Why the hell do you think he did it?” I questioned. I was in shock wondering how a man could cheat on a woman who looked like her.

“Did what?” she looked confused at what I’d asked.

“Gone to other women when he had someone who looked like you at home?”

She looked sad as she responded. “Most of it was because of Satan’s constant taunting that Mark was pussy whipped, and part of it was the time we were living in. Women still weren’t looked on as being equal to men.”

“Well I stand by my statement. He was the biggest idiot around. Damn, does Vip even realize how stunning his mom is?”

“Yes, I do,” I heard my brother murmur as he walked up behind her.

“Mom, I see you’ve met Risky.”

“We haven’t officially met yet, son.”

I looked at Vip over her shoulder and muttered, “I was too busy being stunned stupid by how attractive your mom is. I was trying to figure out in my head how a man went from someone who looks like her to a ugly skinny whore. I still haven’t wrapped my head around it and I probably never will.”

“Oh, Cole. I do like him. He’s good for my ego. He may need to move in here so he can tell me daily how beautiful I am.”

Viper laughed at his mom while I grinned at her. She cocked her head and stared at me. Then she raised her hand and ran her pointer finger across my brow, down my nose and over my jaw.

“You look so much like him. I can see now how Cole recognized you immediately,” she murmured.

I had the feeling she wasn’t even aware that she was talking. It was more like she was thinking out loud. Her eyes stared deep into mine.

“You even have the same deep, chocolate-colored eyes of Mark’s that I loved so much.”

She cupped my cheek in her hand. Her thumb gently stroked my skin. As if she came to herself, her eyes became intense as she held my gaze. Her other hand mimicked the one holding my jaw.

“Risky, I’m so, so, terribly sorry for what you were put through as a child. It might have hurt me at first, but I would have welcomed you into my home. I would have taken care of you. More importantly, I would have loved you.

“I know I can’t do anything about the past, but I can the future,” she uttered softly.

Then she stepped forward and drew me into her body for a hug. For the first time in my life, I knew what it felt like to have a hug from a mom. It was beyond anything I could have imagined. I wrapped my arms around her and buried my face into her neck.

And I wept.

I let all the pain I’d been holding inside me for so long leave my body in the form of tears. She held me close and rocked me back and forth like I was a small child.

She whispered, “Shh, sweet boy. It will be okay, now. You’re out of that hell forever. You’re with your family who loves you.”

I don’t really know how long I stood there letting her hold me. But I do know that she filled a spot in my soul that had been so damaged that I hadn’t thought it was possible to repair, yet she did it. She gave me a mother’s love.

I blinked and looked into the mirror. Because I was so lost in my thoughts, I’d taken a shower and dried off without even realizing it. I quickly got ready and headed to V’s house. Once there, I opened the door and walked in.

I came here so often now that it was home to me. I’d been told during the first month not to knock, just come on in. I saw Mom, Mia and Jennie in the kitchen and made my way there. Mom had her back to me so I walked up and wrapped her in my arms. I leaned down and kissed the top of her head. Ever since that first day, she had insisted that I call her Mom and I hadn’t argued with her.

“I can tell by the smell of his cologne that this is my young good-looking son.”

I smiled as she twisted in my arms and hugged me back.

“Hey, Mom. How are you today?”

“I’m doing good now that almost all of my family is here, Risky.”

I arched a brow at her and she tilted her head toward the kitchen windows. I saw the rest of the adults on the porch and the kids were playing in the backyard.

“Grab a beer and go on out there. We’ll be through with dinner in a little bit.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

I twisted the cap off my bottle and dropped it into the trash after doing what I was told. I opened the back door and stepped outside. The chairs were all taken so I stepped off the deck then planted my ass on it and leaned against one of the porch columns. Viper, Ryker, Reb, Pred, and three other men were in the Adirondack chairs. I had met Ryker, but I hadn’t met his children yet.

“Hey, Risky. Long day at work?” Pred asked.

“Yeah, my boss is a slavedriver,” I deadpanned.

Chuckles came from Reb and Pred. Vip just smirked at me. The others looked confused.

“What the ass didn’t say is that I’m his boss. I’m training him to restore vehicles and bikes,” Vip spoke up.

“Got a good man training you,” Ry commented.

“Hell, Ry. Your ass needs to get here permanently because there’s some tricks that you can teach me,” Viper remarked.

I looked at Ryker and asked, “You restore vehicles too?”

“Used to. Now I build custom bikes and restore Harleys.”

“Dad did all of our bikes,” the girl that was sitting on the deck and leaning against Ryker’s legs spoke up.

My eyes widened in respect as I gazed at him. “Man, those bikes are sweet and the paint jobs are just sick.”

He smiled and inclined his head. “Appreciate it.”

“I’m Risky, Viper’s brother,” I said to the others sitting on the deck. “I’ve met Ryker, but haven’t had the opportunity to meet the rest of you.”

“Sorry, son. Wasn’t thinking. Sitting to my left are my sons. First is Tor, next to him is Taron, beside him is Raiden, and this young lady sitting at my feet is my daughter Bronte.”

“Nice to meet all of you.”

Murmurs of “likewise” and “same” were spoken. I looked at Ry and inquired, “Are Bane and Kenzie coming?”

“No. They still don’t want to get Dane out yet.”

I jerked my chin at him in response. I could understand that since Dane was only a couple of weeks old. Before I had the chance to open my mouth and ask where Jace was, I heard the rumble of a bike coming up the road. It turned into the driveway and it wasn’t but a minute before Jace walked around the corner of the house. He had an easy smile on his face as he took everyone in. He stopped behind me for a second and squeezed my shoulder.

“Hey, Uncle Risky,” he quipped.

I rolled my eyes and shook my head. While Reb and Pred had quit doing it, the rest of the kids still called me that. They thought it was hilarious as shit that I was the same age as Reb and Pred. Jace hopped up on the deck and shook all of Ryker’s family’s hands.

He sat down on the deck across from me against another pole and looked at Bronte. “Hey, squirt. How’s it going?”

“I don’t fall for that anymore, Jace Davis. You aren’t but a few months older than me.”

“It’s still older,” he smarted off. This time it was Bronte who rolled her eyes.

“Where’s Colt?” I uttered.

“He’s upstairs finishing up some homework.”

I nodded. Colt hadn’t started college until he moved to Arkansas. He hated that he was behind where he should have been, so the boy was taking as many hours as he could. He was even going during the summers. His dedication to his classes were paying off too. He was already a junior. I admired his determination. I’d hated school and the only thing I had wanted to do was get out.

I’d quit school when I’d left home at sixteen. After I decided I wanted to join the Army, I actually had to get my GED. That had been tough for me to accomplish, but I’d stubbornly stuck with the classes so I could earn that piece of paper that said I had the equivalent to a high school diploma. Huh, I guess the men in my family were a strong-willed lot. Because once we decide we want something, then nothing is going to stand in our way of getting it.

The door to the kitchen opened and Mia called out, “Food’s ready.”

Everyone got up, trooped in and made a plate. Then we all went back outside and settled in at the picnic tables in the yard. During our meal, there was a lot of talking, telling jokes, and laughter. After everyone was through, and that included a dessert of homemade ice cream and apple cobbler, I saw Reb glance around.

“Moms, where are Billie and Timmy?”

“They wanted to play on the Atari.”

He tipped his head at her answer. “Pops, is it okay if I tell my news?”

I wondered what the hell was up. I saw him glance briefly at Ryker’s crew and realized he wasn’t sure if he should share what he wanted to say in front of them.”

“Yeah, Reb. It’s fine. You know I trust Ry and his family. They won’t say anything.”

“Why don’t you want the boys out here?” Jennie questioned.

“I don’t want them to hear this yet. I still need to talk to the boys and let them know what’s going on.”

“Oh, okay. What’s going on Reb?” she quizzed.

“I decided I’m not going to be the guardian to the boys.”

I heard Mia and Jennie gasp in shock. I saw them open their mouths and knew they were going to tear him a new asshole.

“Hear me out, Moms. I don’t want to be their guardian, I want to be their dad. I spoke with Zane and we’ve come up with a way to make that happen.”

“Oh, Josh. I’m so proud of you,” Jennie choked out as she dabbed her napkin to her eyes.

He cleared his throat. “That’s not all. They won’t be taking the Williams last name.”

I saw the confused expressions on everyone’s face but V and Pred’s. I knew mine must have looked like most of them. I didn’t have a clue what he meant.

“How can you be their dad if you aren’t giving them your last name?” Mia queried.

“Because four weeks ago I legally changed my last name to Davis. They will take that name.”

I saw the stunned disbelief that hit first on my family’s faces, then that quickly changed to smiles. I dropped my gaze to the table as what he said ran through me. Christ. I hadn’t thought about doing that. I wasn’t sure if I had the right to do that. I looked up to find Viper gazing my way.

“Think that’s what you need to do too, Risky. Ever since I learned about this yesterday, that’s all I’ve thought about. I think it’s time you had Davis as your last name. I’ll put in a call to Jerik tomorrow and get an appointment set up with him to get the paperwork started.”

My throat felt like it had a goose egg in it. It was hard to swallow. I cleared my throat and asked in a rough voice, “You sure it would be okay?”

Before Vip could open his mouth to respond, Mom remarked, “It’s more than okay. I don’t know why I didn’t think of that. You’re one of us, you’re a Davis and you deserve the name.”

I couldn’t do anything other than incline my head toward her. I was afraid if I opened my mouth I’d start sobbing like I’d done the first time I met her. I glanced back at Viper and he was smiling at me.

“Yeah, brother. I’m like Mom, I don’t know why I didn’t think about doing that. It’s high time you had your true last name.”

There was nothing I could say to let them know how much this meant to me. Hell, it was taking everything I had not to come undone. I’d never known what a family was like until seven months ago. I know now though. They all meant the world to me. If anyone ever attempted to hurt any member of my family, I’d fight for them till my last dying breath if that is what it took.

I wish I could describe what it felt like to be accepted into the loving arms of my family, but there wasn’t any way of doing it. At least not that I knew of.

I had just been given my dream. This for a man who thought dreams didn’t come true. If I died right at this very moment, I would be good with it. Because I was loved.

~***~