Page 34 of April’s Fool

“April, sweetheart,” Kenny calls, leaning forward. “You don’t have to protect her anymore. You can talk about it now. I know you, and I know you’ve hidden a lot of things that happened in that home with her.”

“You’re right, I have,” April agrees softly. “But I got myself out of there. You all helped me with that. That’s enough for me. You and Izzy don’t need to plot murder on my behalf. I’m safe. Happy. Graduating from college in a few weeks. She’s not worth thinking about anymore.”

Mikey looks at his daughter with pride in his eyes. “I know the type of dad I’ve seemed to be, but I wanted to be there for you more than I was.”

“Honestly, it was good that you weren’t. She would always go into a rage when you were. I loved having you around and spending as much time with you as we did, but it was hell dealing with her afterward. Besides, you made sure I had new clothes each school year, gave me Christmas presents to open, and helped me buy the car of my dreams. So what if you weren’t exactly Dad of the Year? You did what you could for me, and that’s enough for me.”

April looks toward Horse and Twister. “You guys stood up for me the rest of the time, so I like to think of you both as honorary dads when mine couldn’t be there for me.”

“You know you’ve always got a place with us,” Horse remarks with a grunt.

“Damn right,” Twister grumbles.

“Can we be done with this now? I don’t want to hear about it. What I want to know is how I didn’t know I had an uncle.” Her words surprise me. She lets things roll off rather than letting them simmer. She pushes through, not bothering to let the past eat at her. Or that’s what she wants others to believe, at least.

I glance at the men she’s addressing and briefly lock eyes with them all, giving them a slight nod. I’ll wait until I’m alone with April and get her to talk to me then. I won’t push her to go into it now.

Rex and Mikey explain the rest of the ordeal to all of us, claiming that keeping April safe was for the best. Mikey knew that since April was best friends with two of the girls from the Devil’s Riot MC, she’d be safe and taken care of. Rex explains it was his decision to push for the alliance between the two clubs after he found out about the relationship. The two clubs are tied together because of her.

The more they talk, the more it makes sense—all of it.

Finally, when they were done talking, we ended it with conversations about what’s going to happen next.

“We’re gonna be driving back for the graduation,” Izzy proclaims. “We wanted to do your party along with Kayla and Mercy’s, but we can do it here if that’s okay.”

“Of course, it’s okay,” Lola pipes in, smiling. “I’ll get the menu organized, and we can work together to put on a great party.”

The woman loves planning things like this, and since it’s for a niece she hasn’t had the chance to get to know, she’s going to pull out all the stops.

“One more thing,” Twister remarks, looking right at April. “Burner asked me to tell you that if you still want the tattoo you asked him about, he’ll come here to do it.”

Tattoo?

April’s skin is completely flawless, with no marks in sight. A tattoo would look hot on her.

“Yeah, that would be great, but I can always go to him if it’s easier. I don’t want to be an inconvenience.”

“Sweets, you’re not an inconvenience to anyone,” I grumble, meeting her gaze. “You’re worth being around.”

That’s something we’re gonna have to work on together. She needs to know she doesn’t come second to anyone or anything, and I’m going to need my brothers’ help. From the look on my Prez’s face, he doesn’t disagree. He lost family, and now he’s gained a cousin. He’ll want to protect her as much as I’m willing to, because she’s quickly becoming my everything.

Chapter 18

APRIL

The day seems to pass in a blur, mostly because it won’t leave my head, no matter how much I try. I keep rolling the thoughts around about what my dad shared. How my mom threatened to kill me in front of him. For as long as I can remember, I’ve known she wasn’t a great mom. I’ve always been an inconvenience to her, one she despised and put up with.

There are times I remember her calling me her funding because she received checks from the state for me. But now I’m wondering if my dad was also giving her money. I didn’t ask him outright in front of everyone. It’s not their business. That’s between him and me. Well, it’s really between him and her.

I try my best to shake off all the feelings and enjoy the day, but all I want to do is go back to Fool’s house, where there’s no furniture, and bury myself beneath the blankets we’d slept on in his living room.

I want to go back to the special moment when it’s just him and me, and no negativity can enter my thoughts. Only that’s not possible. Sure, we could go back there, but what’s to stop the thoughts from swirling?

“You okay, sweets?” Fool asks, coming up from behind, his arms engulfing me.

“Yeah,” I lie.

“Bullshit.” Fool loosens his grip and turns me around to face him. He tightens one arm around my waist while the other glides up my back and into my hair. “You’re not okay, and we both know it. Don’t bullshit me about it. The shit your dad shared is fucked up, and I know it’s gotta be fucking with you.”