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  Snowed In: A Royal Bastards MC Holiday Surprise, Flagstaff Chapter (Book 4)

  Copyright 2021 Maura O’Brien

  Cover: Lou Grey and Lucian Bane

  Edited: Kristin Youngblood

  ISBN:

  This holiday novella is dedicated to all the members of

  the Merin’s Babes Facebook page.

  Thank you for your friendship, humor (dirty, as it may be),

  and support.

  XO, Merin

  Snowed In

  A Royal Bastards MC Holiday Surprise

  Flagstaff Chapter, Book 4

  By M. Merin

  Chapter 1

  Declan

  “Today, woman!” I bellow up the stairs, turning when I hear Justin clicking his tongue just before Cullen lets out a wail. “Shit.”

  “Besides the obvious, whenever you do that, she mumbles then takes even longer,” the little monster says, shrugging his shoulders without looking up from the device he’s playing a game on.

  “You’re sure you don’t want to go to Holy Redeemer?” I double check, knowing how much he enjoyed the time he spent at the orphanage. Considering he’d lost his mother and his father…well, at least he knows Clive will never factor into his life again, just not the details.

  “Yep. Gemma said that the kids get their own New Year’s Eve party in the barn behind the clubhouse and she’s going to let me help her set it up. Oh! And only two adults are allowed, I don’t want to miss that,” he says, still not looking up.

  “Yeah, apple cider until you puke.” I mutter, wondering which of the prospects drew the short straw this year and will be watching over the kid’s party. Not that Gemma can’t handle the little ones, it’s more a matter of the pre-teen and teenagers needing a watchful eye.

  “Are you sure you’ll be back for New Year’s Eve?” he asks me, and I nod, testing my theory that he’s just talking versus actually caring when we get back. As I suspected, he doesn’t bother to look up at me.

  “Okay, I’m packed and ready!” Jenna calls out and I look up to see her wheeling her bag to the top of the stairs.

  “Stop!” I yell out and Jenna’s eyes widen in surprise.

  It’s not so much that we’re going to a cabin for two nights and she’s dragging a huge bag behind her, but considering our son was born by C-section only a few months ago, there’s no way I want her carrying her bag down a flight of stairs.

  “Leave it, hold the banister on the way down, and get your coat on,” I continue, heading up toward her. Jenna’s face lights up in a smile, even when I’m being a bossy bastard and I know damn well I don’t deserve it.

  She comes down a few steps, then sidesteps me, back and forth—blocking my path until I look up to see the mischief in her eyes.

  “I’m really excited about getting away together,” Jenna whispers, wrapping her arms around my neck and pulling my head in toward her chest. “This is really sweet of you.”

  I huff. I’m not fucking sweet, and she knows it. I like where my face is resting too much to say anything as she places kisses on my head, even as Justin starts making puking noises behind me.

  “Justin!” Jenna calls out, tugging my earlobe as she releases me and continues down the stairs. “You will be on your best behavior these next few days, are we clear?”

  “I know. You’ve told me a million times,” he sighs, finally putting his device down. “I shouldn’t talk Axel’s ear off when I see him, eat my veggies; even though I don’t think Gemma’s going to try to force feed me veggies during the two nights she’s here…oh, and say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’.”

  “Alright, monster, come help me pack the truck and let’s get it in gear,” I tell Justin, looking over at Jenna to make sure she’s got her winter layers on.

  I don’t get many chances to drive my classic Ford truck anymore, what with going from being single to a family of four inside of a year; so, while I’m looking forward to getting it out on the road, it’s not the best option in the winter months since there’s a lot to be said for heated seats and windows that seal tight when they close.

  We’re just heading up to my cabin that’s a little more than an hour from here, but I wanted to get Jenna away from the clubhouse for a few days and have time with her alone. As much as I love our son and her kid brother, there ain’t much privacy in a house with a seven-year-old and an infant.

  Not that I’m complaining.

  Much.

  My life’s never been so full.

  Gemma appears at the top of the stairs, and I nod at her, knowing that my Brother’s widow will take great care of the boys.

  Jenna’s uncharacteristically quiet for the first fifteen minutes of the trip and nearly jumps out of her skin when I reach over to squeeze her thigh.

  “You good?” I grunt.

  “It’s been so long since I knew I could be away from Justin and he’d be safe,” she answers after a moment, before smiling. “I’m sorry, I was kind of enjoying the quiet.”

  “Next winter we can take Justin along for some skiing, but the next couple days it’s you, me, and the hot tub,” I grin, picturing long hours spent wrapped in her naked body, while I keep my eyes on the road.

  “Forgetting someone, aren’t you?” Jenna asks, while rubbing the top of my hand.

  “We can bring Gemma along to help out with Cullen, or she can stay at home with him since there won’t be much for him to do up there yet.”

  “Do you ski? I’ve always wanted to try it,” she says, looking over at me with a wistful look on her face.

  “I went once when I was up working on the cabin. I was so fucking sore the next day, I barely got anything done,” I admit before reaching out to cup her stomach. “I’ll take you for lessons if you want to try it, just not yet.”

  “Definitely not ready for anything that strenuous yet,” she replies quickly and I’m glad she’s being cautious.

  “Oh, yeah, I’m fairly certain the doctor only cleared you to be naked and riding me in the hot tub,” I quip, letting her in on some of my plans.

  “We could go snowmobiling though!” Jenna says, her eyes lighting up with excitement when she comes up with an alternative. “Then a hot chocolate with pepperm
int.”

  I grunt, not thinking of any reason why not. “Diesel has one in his garage up at his place up there, I’ll check in with him about the keys. So, snowmobiling, hot tub, sex, and food. That’s all I’m planning on these next few days, babe.”

  “And foot rubs,” Jenna laughs before reaching over to turn on the radio. “You’re not off the hook for those just because we’re baby-free for a few days!”

  Fuck knows she’s got me on the hook a lifetime of those.

  Not that I regret the relief they give her nor what they usually lead to. Jenna’s slim dancer’s form was under a lot of stress carrying our son and the moment I heard her groaning when she stood up one morning, I took matters into my own hands.

  Getting her back into bed, I pulled her feet into my lap and started rubbing them with my big paws. I wasn’t sure if I was doing it right so that morning, I searched online for how to properly massage feet and Jenna’s face lit up the next morning when I tested out the advice I had found.

  What really surprised me was what an intimate act it became between us and how much I’ve enjoyed pleasing her in that small way.

  *

  Before long, we’re turning off onto the long driveway and I look forward to this evening, when I’ll have her in my arms as we watch all the stars and I enjoy a cigar in the crisp air.

  “How long have you had this place?” Jenna asks, turning her head to look out her window and sounding guarded.

  “Won it off a guy playing poker about a dozen years back.” I answer, wondering what she’s thinking. “Realized most of the land was undeveloped and I bought it up. I’ve been selling parcels off to some of the Bastards over the years, that way I’ll always know my neighbors.”

  “And how often…wait! Stuff like that actually happens? Like here, take my house!?” she interrupts herself to ask about the cabin, but not before I guess what she’s getting around to asking me.

  “It was a private event, some California jerk-off was getting divorced and put the title up when he started losing – it was either going to his ex or to whomever won the pot. And no, I’ve never brought anyone up here before—other than the guys I needed to help with renovations.”

  “I didn’t ask that,” Jenna says, looking at me all wide-eyed and innocent, before quickly changing the subject. “What changes have you made to it?”

  “The windows were for shit and the chimney was crumbling. So, those had to be upgraded, and I changed out the furniture plus added the hot tub. There was really only one place level enough for the hot tub, so I extended the back of the cabin to that point. All you have to do is open a sliding door and step into it.” I tell her. “Stay put, I just want to turn the heat on and plug the fridge in. We’ll make have to make a quick run to town, but I don’t want you walking into an icebox.”

  Jenna leans over to kiss my cheek but I turn my head to capture her mouth with mine. I swear, I’m always hungry for more of her.

  “Let me come in and peek?” She murmurs against my lips.

  “Nope.” I chuckle, knowing that’ll take at least an hour.

  Giving her a stern look, I grab our bags and head inside – relieved when the lights turn on without any issues and I start pulling the old sheets off the furniture as I make my way to the kitchen. Exiting out the door beyond the living room, I drop a chlorine tab into the hot tub and am relieved to see that it has been kept clean as per my deal with a guy who lives locally.

  Walking around the side of the cabin, I grin when I hear Jenna’s door open and wave at her to stop before I get back to the truck. Before long, I’m slowing down for the turn that will take us to the local grocery store.

  With the rush of getting Jenna out of the house and making sure the boys were well situated, I left our supplies in the fridge I keep out in the garage. My Ol’ Lady sits up straighter as we approach the town square, and I can see her eyeballing all the stores—which tells me I should plan on bringing her back here tomorrow afternoon.

  The few short streets are overflowing with tourists, mostly those who are taking a break from the nearby slopes. I’m surprised at all the activity around the market and from the moment we get inside I find myself bulking out to guard Jenna.

  “Wow, I guess everyone’s out of leftovers,” Jenna says, laughing at all the people loading up their carts.

  “Stay close, but let’s get what you want for the next couple days, so we don’t have to deal with this bullshit again.” I bite out.

  “Hey! There are children around.” A woman with two crying children calls out, glaring at me.

  “Fucking doubt they can hear me over that noise they’re making.” I calmly reply, trying not to smile when Jenna pokes me between my ass cheeks.

  “I’d tell you to be nice, but I know you too well,” she cracks after the woman hurries off, frustrated that she couldn’t cow me. “Let’s get two carts and meet up front, it’ll be faster.”

  I slant my eyes down at her and reach for her hand. No fucking way.

  “I love you, too,” Jenna whispers after a moment.

  We make quick work of getting twice as much food as we’ll need for the next few days before we finally get in the checkout line, and to keep me calm, Jenna ducks between my arms and the cart; leaning up to make out with me while we wait.

  Keeping my eyes open, to make sure no one cuts in ahead of us, I catch a dirty look from the woman we first encountered. Pretending I don’t notice her staring daggers at me, I snake my hand down to grab Jenna’s ass and pull her tight against my groin.

  “You better not get us thrown out before you buy my ice cream,” Jenna says, laughing against my neck.

  “Nice to know where I am on your priority list,” I grunt out.

  “What can I say, babe? You gotta work your way up,” my Ol’ Lady sasses back and I throw my head back, unable to contain my laughter.

  Pushing forward when the couple ahead of me finishes, I throw a wink at the clerk who’s gawking at me like she’s a schoolgirl even though she must have a decade or two on me.

  “What’s going on?” I ask, jutting my chin out to get her to look around us.

  “Some weather system’s supposed to hit us hard tonight – no one got word until this morning, so it’s been a madhouse. You’re lucky you wandered in, if you didn’t know about it,” she answers me as she starts ringing up our items and Jenna wiggles around the cart to help speed up the bagging process.

  Just then, a man makes an announcement over the intercom system that the store will not be letting anyone else in and to immediately proceed to the check-out lanes. The clerks all seem to let out a collective groan.

  “This is when it’ll get ugly,” our clerk confides in us. “Happens a couple of times every year. Watch yourselves getting to your vehicle.”

  Nodding my thanks, we next have to queue up to get outside since there are people jamming up the exit as they try to talk their way inside.

  “Damn, Jenna,” I mutter once we’ve loaded up the truck. “Looks like Diesel’s snowmobile just became a priority.”

  Giving him a call, I explain that I want to pick it up for either a fun ride or in case the roads get impassable, and we might need a way back to town. I really shouldn’t be surprised but he tells me he’ll keep an eye on his camera feeds and open the garage for us when we get to his cabin.

  Passing well beyond the town, I turn down the dirt road that will take us the long way around a small lake, this way brings us to Diesel’s just as the first snowflakes hit the windshield. As promised, he remotely opens his garage and I reverse back toward the trailer that the snowmobile is sitting on.

  “Prez, there are fuel cans off to the far side under the work bench,” Diesel’s disembodied voice scares the crap out of me when I get out of the truck to see how close I am to the trailer. That shithead barks out a laugh before continuing, “Sorry, the camera to the side of the garage door has a two-way speaker.”

  “Asshole.” I grumble, flipping off the camera with my longest fing
er.

  “There should be cases of water, beer, and probably even, whiskey in there also, feel free to take what you need.”

  “Yeah, appreciate it, man.” I answer, deciding to load up a little bit of everything, knowing he can just as easily pick it back up from my place when needed. Unlike him, my place is decidedly low-tech, with a spare key in a fake rock

  “No, worries. I’ll lock it back up once you leave, just talk if you have any questions.”

  Once everything is loaded, I climb back in and sigh as I pull off onto the road, frustrated about the other thing I didn’t do.

  “What’s wrong?” Jenna senses my unease and turns to me.

  “The weather wasn’t supposed to turn like this. I usually put snow tires on this time of year, but I’ve had my hands full lately.”

  Jenna bites her lower lip and I know her mind immediately went dirty and sassy, but she’s trying to be serious also. “Maybe it’ll just a dusting? I’m sure there would have been more of a warning if a big storm was coming. Okay, this road’s a bit bumpier!”

  “Just the backway down to my place,” I say, throwing her a wink. “We’ll get all tucked in, in no time.”

  Chapter 2

  Joey

  “Wedding?” I ask, wondering what in the holy hell they’re talking about.

  Diesel and Axel exchange a look before Brick starts laughing.

  “We’re going to need their help if we’re going to pull this off in a few days,” Brick says after throwing back his beer. “I’m not even sure what we’re supposed to do with the dresses he ordered for her.”

  “Dresses?” I ask, pinching the bridge of my nose. “Start at the beginning. Now.”

  “Declan’s going to marry Jenna on New Year’s Eve, to sort of kick off the party that night,” Axel tells me before pointing to the boxes of decorations in front of him. “He bought all this stuff online and left it for us to arrange. Brick’s in charge of the menu, and already had ordered most of the food for the party anyway, so we figure he just needs to add a cake to the mix.”