Page 100 of Elling & Jackie

Chapter 38

Jackie's heart raced, echoing in her head. As if her whole life came down to that one moment, she looked her father in the eyes.

"Who is he?" asked Chief.

Her dad held his coffee mug and studied Jackie. Chief, big, stubborn, proud, would never accept Elling because of the colors he rode under.

Though she wished it could be different, she was ready to accept the fallout of loving someone her family hadn't picked out for her.

She stood, needing to feel just as big, just as stubborn, just as proud. "His name is Elling Halvorsen. He's Slag Motorcycle Club's Sergeant of Arms."

Chief continued to watch her with his head tilted. The silence in the house suffocated her. Refusing to look at her mom for help in convincing her dad that everything would be okay, she stood her ground. She could face anything Chief threw at her. He would never be able to convince her that loving Elling was wrong.

She grew stronger with the confession. Believing in Elling and what they shared, she wanted a life with him. Nobody could doubt her love for her family, but she was living her own life now. She had a right to love with all her heart.

And, Elling. She lifted her chin. He was her life.

The gentle shift of breathing in the room got her attention. Chief sat forward and pushed to his feet. Her heart beat rapidly, fearing the worst and he would order her out of his life and off of Brikken property.

He set his coffee mug down. "Let's take a walk."

A walk? Now? She looked at her mom, who secretly shrugged behind Chief's back. What was her dad going to do? Walk her to her car, open the gate, and order her to leave?

She swallowed and followed Chief to the door. He gave no indication of what he was thinking or planning to do.

Outside, he stepped off the deck and stopped. "Are you going to walk with me or tag behind me like you did when you were a child?"

She hurried to walk beside him on the path. More than anything, she wanted to stop him and throw her arms around him and make him believe in her.

Several yards from the house, he said, "See that piece of concrete in your mom's flowerbed?"

She nodded, having heard the story about how Rollo had built the first house on Brikken land for the love of his life and when it burnt to the ground, taking her grandmother—who she was named after—it wasn't until Chief had built a house that the pretty spot on the other side of the creek had a home again.

"Rollo, he was a smart man." Chief paused. "Unless it came to my mom. He let his heart make his decisions, and I think that had a lot to do with him getting killed by an enemy. I don't know how old I was when I realized that all men have weaknesses. Maybe I learned that when I found your mom. Or, it could've been when I had my first child. The timing doesn’t matter."

She walked slowly, listening to him ramble.

"I always pictured you taking after your grandma but that might've been because you share her name." Chief glanced at her. "Now I can see you take after Rollo, too."

Her attention sharpened. Rollo was a legend in her family. Though Chief just finished telling her that there were times Rollo wasn't smart.

"Are you calling me dumb?" she asked.

"No, but there are certain things you refuse to see. It could be because you're young. It could be because you're a girl." Chief inhaled deeply. "Let's walk to the bridge."

"What do you think I'm blind to?"

"I think you get distracted and can't see what is in front of your face. You've been like that your whole life. I used to tell you to ride your bike on the asphalt and to stay off the gravel, and you'd go right where I told you not to go. Next thing I knew, you were screaming like someone had a gun pointed at you and two skinned-up knees because you were sure you could ride in the gravel." He held his hand up, cutting her off from replying. "Sometimes, you're going to get hurt."

She looked at the ground as she walked. "You don't think Elling is who he has shown me? You think I like the excitement of loving someone who could end up hurting me?"

Chief had always given her life lessons. Sometimes by example. Sometimes by talking. Sometimes he let her learn on her own. But, he never stopped her from questioning his reasons.

"I think it'll be difficult for a man to separate his woman from his duties and loyalty to his club."

"You've done it. My brothers do it. Their wives don't know half the things Stassi and I do. Why can't I believe that Elling can have his club and me, too?" She stepped onto the bridge. "I'm okay not being involved with his MC. Just like he has no plans to grow close to Brikken. I already know he won't stop me from visiting my family—if you allow me back. We want to have a life together. I have to believe that it's possible."

Chief stopped and leaned against the railing, gazing into the creek. After several minutes, he said, "If you had to choose, could you walk away from Brikken, away from your family, and not look back?"