Free Unacceptable by Kristen Hope Mazzola Page A

freaked out last night.”
    He chuckled a little, pulling away to dig his cigarette box out of his jeans pocket. “You’re not the only one that was freaking out. I thought I was losing you right when I finally had you.”
    I rested my cheek on his warm, bare chest. “You’re not getting rid of me that easily.”
    He let out a slow sigh. “Good.”
    “Am I ever going to be able to work again?” I questioned, pulling away from him to close the dishwasher. “My boss might get pissed if I keep missing shifts like this.”
    He lightly smacked me on my ass before putting a cigarette between his teeth. “I think he can handle it.” With a wink he started to head for the front porch. “Want to join me?”
    I followed him out onto the massive front porch, taking the lit cigarette from him before he lit his own.
    “She’s really taking to you.” Abel motioned toward the front door.
    We leaned against the railing, Abel’s arm wrapping around my shoulders. “I’m taking to her like a bee to honey. You got one freaking amazing kid there.”
    His lips dusted the top of my ear. “You’re freaking amazing.”
    I couldn’t help but laugh. “You’re insane.”
    “How do you figure?” Abel shifted to look at me as smoke blew out from the corner of his mouth.
    “I’m a fucking basket case. I ran away from home to find a man that I can barely remember and wound up here in the middle of family drama and an MC. Pretty nuts, if I do say so myself.”
    “Don’t you believe in fate?” His blue eyes were soft as he laced our fingers together.
    “Don’t start getting all soft and mushy on me, Abel Hellock. Aren’t you supposed to be some sort of badass?”
    He laughed a little. “Yeah, something like that.” He threw his half smoked cigarette on the floor and stomped it out. “Let me go throw a shirt on, Raine will freak if I’m not ready when she is.”
    Right then she came clambering down the stairs, swinging open the front door. “Daddy! Get ready! Miss Gilda and I want to scream down the slide again.”
    Abel tossed me the keys to his truck. “Start her up for me? I’ll be down in a minute.”
    Spending the better part of the late morning and early afternoon at the park with Raine and Abel was the perfect lighthearted fun I needed to relax from the night before. We all ran, swung, slid, twirled, and screamed until Raine was begging for pizza and ice cream.
    “One or the other,” Abel teased, carrying Raine back to the truck.
    “Fine! Pizza.”
    I hopped into the passenger seat and Abel made the throaty diesel engine groan to life.
    He grabbed my hand, a huge grin plastered on his face. “How does pizza sound to you?”
    I glanced back at Raine as she buckled the seatbelt. “I think it sounds like a delicious idea!”
    “Yay!” Raine cheered from the backseat.
    We got a large pie delivered to the house and after we ate, I put Raine down for a nap.
    Abel was sitting on the couch with two glasses of whiskey on the rocks resting on the coffee table.
    “Double fisting?”
    He glanced up at me from the box of Rave’s letters and paperwork that was sitting open. “I figured you might need a stiff drink after I saw all this.”
    I sighed and sunk into the couch next to him. “Thanks. You couldn’t be more right.”
    I took a nice slow sip, letting the amber liquid coat my throat.
    “Weren’t you supposed to head into work at some point today?” I propped my feet up on the coffee table and threw a blanket over my lap.
    “Yeah, but this was way more fun. Sometimes you just need to play hooky.”
    I didn’t know how to ask what I wanted to, but I needed to know. “Abel?”
    “Yeah babe?”
    I stalled, rubbing my thumb over the edge of my glass, staring at the amber liquid swirling around the ice. “What happened to Raine’s mom and yours?” I finally spit out.
    “Crickett, it’s just hard to talk about.” His eyes glassed over and his finger ran around the rim of his glass as he evaded the growing