Ruin and Rise (2 page)

She didn’t answer right away, and then she sat up. “I’m going to be sick.” And she was off the bed, in the bathroom, and heaving over the toilet.

She wiped her
mouth after brushing her teeth, and turned around to see Shakes standing in the doorway, a worried expression on his face. He’d come in and held her hair for her while Daniella had thrown up. She was tired, her head hurt, and she was still nauseous.

“What’s wrong? You coming down with something?” He asked and came back into the bathroom, pulled her into his arms, and just held her. Yeah, she was coming down with something, just not the flu.

After letting him hold her for a few minutes, because honestly she needed it, she pulled back and stared into his face. He lifted a piece of hair away from her forehead, smiled down at her, and she knew this would be something that would either have them moving forward with their lives, or have things spiraling downward.

“What wrong?

She swallowed, looked down at her bare feet, and knew she needed to just say it. But she couldn’t form the words, instead she turned and opened the bathroom drawer under the sink, grabbed the little white and blue stick, and showed it to him.

“I’m pregnant.”

D
aniella glanced over
at her man, her husband, as he took a seat on the toilet. She was so damn nervous. It had been several months since they’d gotten back from being on the run, and things were starting to settle down, but life still wasn’t perfect for them, not by a long shot. The tension between Shakes and her father, and that of the Soldiers had been near the breaking point. It still was with her father.

There were times she watched her father, and she was sure, he was planning to kill Shakes. It’s why she visited him regularly, to remind him that he’d lose her if he hurt the man she loved—the father of her baby. Pressing a hand to her stomach, she took a seat on the edge of the bathtub. Biting her lip, she tucked some hair behind her ear as Shakes pressed his hands together, looking at the floor. Even from where she sat, she saw the black ink where he’d had his Soldiers tattoos taken off. Every time she saw it, she was consumed with guilt.

“Have you told your father?”

“No.” It was one thing allowing a man to live with his daughter. Zeke knew she was having sex, but he didn’t have to confront that truth. Once he found out she was pregnant, Daniella didn’t know how he was going to handle it.

“It needs to come from me.”

“No, it should come from both of us,” Shakes said with determination.

“If he flies off the deep end, I don’t want you there,” she said.

Tears filled her eyes. This was why she didn’t want to have to deal with her father. Daniella would have been happier running away and never coming back. Although they had done that once, they had been found. They’d risked hell just because they wanted to be together, and this is where they’d ended up to make that happen. Not many women have to go through these kinds of things.

Whatever Zeke was making Shakes do, it was changing him, making him darker, scarier at times. She saw the truth burning in his eyes, but she couldn’t reach him.

“But I can’t do this without you, Shakes. If he flies off the deep end, and something happens to you, I don’t know if I could live with myself.”

Shakes let out a harsh laugh. “Shit life we’ve gotten ourselves into, isn’t it.”

Going to her knees, she cupped his face, and finally let the tears fall. This wasn’t the life she wanted for either of them. “Please, let me handle this.”

“You’re my woman, Dani.”

“I know. I’ll always be your woman, but I’m his daughter. He will not hurt me. I know he won’t.”

“He’s a monster, Dani.”

She took a shuddering breath in and continued to cry. Shakes caught her face and wiped the tears away.

“I know he’s a monster. I don’t know what you’re going through with him. I love you, Shakes, completely, with my whole heart, and I’d do anything for you. In all the time I’ve been with Zeke, he has never hurt me. He has done everything to protect me, even if it’s been in his screwed up way.” She pressed a kiss to his lips. “Even after all the awful things you’ve witnessed, you’ve got to see that I am safe with my father.”

“I don’t like it.”

“I know, baby. I know.” She banded her arms around his neck and held on tight. No one should have to find excuses to stay alive. Their earlier arousal had vanished. Shakes picked her up in his arms and carried her to bed. Sex was out of the question now, not after the dark conversation they’d just had. They simply held each other tightly.

Daniella bit her
lip as she waited for her father to finish with his meeting. She was in one of the strip clubs that she wasn’t supposed to know about but did. She knew a lot of stuff about her father that neither Shakes or her father realized she knew. She was good at keeping secrets. This situation with her father and Shakes was tearing them all apart. A part of her still didn’t trust Zeke, but she couldn’t live without Shakes. That was the only reason she was here.

Hearing a feminine moan come from inside her father’s office, she clenched her teeth. It was disgusting listening to her father having sex. No one knew she was here, and Shakes was working somewhere else today. She hated this, hated being here. Everywhere she turned, she saw naked men and women. Glancing at her watch, she saw it was a little after ten. Running her hands down her legs, she rolled her eyes at the sounds.

“Yes, harder, Zeke, you’re so good, so good.” The last was said on a loud scream.

She almost threw up when she heard Zeke groan. It had been so much better when she didn’t have a clue what all of those moans meant. She shuddered and held her breath as the door opened. A slender blonde wearing only glitzy underwear came out of the office. Zeke followed her out and froze when he saw Daniella.

“Dani,” he said.

“I can’t believe I just heard all of that.”

“What are you doing here?” Zeke asked, his tone as hard as steel.

“I wanted to talk to you.”

“How do you even know about this fucking club? How the hell did you get up here without security stopping you or letting me know?” he asked, looking angrier.

“I know a hell of a lot about you, and it’s not hard getting past the guys you have guarding this place. They seem more interested in the naked women walking around than someone like me.” She walked past him. “I need to talk to you.”

“Does Shakes know you’re here?”

He closed the door, and Daniella took a deep breath. “No, but he knows I was planning to talk to you.”

“Does the pussy need his woman to stand up for him and fight his battles?” Zeke asked.

She dropped her purse and glared at him. “Don’t ever say that kind of shit about Shakes. He’s not a pussy. He’s a man and the love of my life. A pussy wouldn’t have fought for me because he loved me more than anything else.”

“Dani—”

“No, you don’t get to
Dani
me. Shakes is a good man, and you’re trying to turn him into a monster. Why are you trying to take him away from me?” Daniella couldn’t stand by anymore. “You’re not going to win this. I’m in love with that man. I love him with all my heart and soul.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I don’t want you to be sorry. I want you to think about what the hell is going on, and to stop punishing him for that,” she said.

He went to embrace her, but Daniella pulled away. She wasn’t interested in hugging her father.

“Dani,” he said.

“I’m pregnant.” She spoke the two words loudly and only once; she didn’t want to repeat herself.

“What?”

“You heard what I said. I’m not going to say it again. You’re going to be a grandfather.”

Zeke walked past her, heading toward his desk. She watched as he lowered himself into his chair. “You’re going to have a baby?”

“Yes.”

She remained standing as she looked at her father. He looked shocked.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

“I always knew this day would come; I really thought I was going to be ready for this shit.”

“This isn’t your choice. This is my life, and I can’t wait to have this baby.”

“Does Shakes know?”

“Yes, he does. He wanted to tell you himself, but I thought it would be best if I come to you,” she said, finally starting to take a seat. She paused. “Did you screw her in this seat?”

“No.”

She lowered herself down and stared across at her father. Daniella saw why he had such a bad reputation. There was something so menacing about him, and at times, he did scare her. But he’d never once raised his hand at her.

“I don’t want anything bad to happen to Shakes. I want this child to have its father, Dad.”

“You were supposed to be far away from this life. You were supposed to be happy.”

“I am happy. I’m happy with Shakes. Please, don’t ruin this for me.”

They were silent for several minutes. “I won’t hurt Shakes,” he said and clenched his teeth, like it had been really hard to say. “Do you need any help?”

“No. I’m fine. It’s early days.” She pressed a hand to her stomach. “I shouldn’t have to come and warn my father that I’m pregnant. Other daughters don’t have to do this. I shouldn’t have to ask you not to hurt the man I love just because I’m pregnant.”

“We’re not like other people, Dani.”

“No, we’re not. I want a normal life. Shakes has given up so much for me, and now I’m trying to make up for everything he’s lost. The Soldiers are gone, and it’s all because of you.”

“No, him getting booted out is because he betrayed his club. He should have accepted my decision. That has nothing to do with me. He shouldn’t have taken you away from me, shouldn’t have put his
family
in danger.”

“Shakes did what he had to do in order to survive. You wouldn’t listen to him, and even if I’d come to you, you’d have found a way to get rid of Shakes. That is the kind of man you are. I had accepted that. I’m not going to accept it anymore. I’m pregnant, Shakes is the father, deal with it.”

Daniella made her way toward the door. She took a deep breath and glanced back. “If anything happens to Shakes, anything at all, I will make sure you never find me again. You will not have anything to do with me or my child.”

He spoke her name again, and she shook her head.

“You can issue threats all you want to, Dad. I can do the same.”