Page 65 of Elling & Jackie

"If I think of anything, I'll let you know. I'll be away for a couple hours in the morning. Lizzy's got a doctor appointment."

"Isn't she about ready to have the kid?"

"Three weeks."

"You're going to chance traveling away from her? What if she has the baby?" He tapped the pen on the surface of the desk.

"It's only an hour away. I'll be part of the lookout crew in case she calls. I can get to the hospital and meet her within a half hour if it happens. Plus, she always has Coco by her side." Roar remained standing behind him.

He waited for more instructions. If it was him and he was going to be a father, he wouldn't risk the ride. People died on the road being in a hurry. His mom had rushed back home after dropping him off at school because of his urging her to sign his permission slip for football. That mistake had killed her.

Roar's hand landed on his shoulder. "About downstairs...I didn't mean to put you on the spot. If you want to talk about what went down with you and the Stanton woman, I'll listen."

"I'm good." He typed Bull Ramchett into the program.

"She's out of your life?"

"Ja."

Several seconds passed. Roar removed his hand. "I don't know, brother. Once I fell for Lizzy, there was no one and nothing that would've stopped me from seeing her. I get—"

"You don't get it." He grabbed the mouse and clicked a few buttons. "I've lost everyone I've ever loved. Maybe that has something to do with me, and she's better off without me."

Roar huffed. "Maybe she thinks differently."

"I know what's best."

"I've known you for a long fucking time, brother. I've never seen you shut yourself off this bad. I'm just saying...as the president of Slag, I respect what you're doing for the club. As a man, as a brother, I want to see you happy."

The conversation over, Elling went to work hunting down all the information he could find. Unaware of when Roar left the room, he concentrated on the trails. Searching for the little details that would help Slag go after Bantorus Motorcycle Club and fulfill their obligation toward the Norway Chapter.

"Elling?"

He snapped his head around, spotting Peer holding Tyr against his chest. "Ja?"

"I knocked a few times, but you must've had your head deep into whatever you're looking at." Peer stepped into the room and put his hand on the light switch. "Can I?"

He nodded, turning back to the screen. There was a picture of Jacqueline staring at him. Pushing the button, he turned the monitor off. He had no recollection of ever going back to her on his search.

Flipping his notebook over to keep the information secure, he faced Peer. "What's up?"

"You missed dinner, so I thought I'd come and see if you want to walk over to the bar and eat before it closes." Peer looked at Tyr when he babbled. "It's a slow night and Dinah's serving drinks while I hang out with my son during my break."

Knowing he had to eat today, but the idea of having a beer tempted him more, he stood. "Sounds good."

Tyr held out his arms in Elling's direction and grunted. He scooped the kid up and held him with one arm while he locked the bedroom door. Peer was a good father. He always let Tyr go with whoever he wanted around the clubhouse and yet drew the line on bedtimes and sticking his fingers in electrical plug-ins. Granted, not even a year old, there wasn't much Tyr could do.

Downstairs, he asked, "Do you want Tyr going with us?"

"He can. I promised Coco I'd bring him back. She wanted to see him on her break."

Elling double looked at Peer, trying to read into the situation between him and Coco. They'd moved into a rental house together and split kid duty. As far as he could see, there was nothing romantic going on with them.

But maybe Peer was keeping things secret. It seemed to be a popular way of doing relationships lately.

"How's living away from the clubhouse working out?" He stepped outside into the alley.

"It's different. I miss being around everyone, but I want my son to have a quiet home like I had growing up. My father always left club business at the door when he came back to us." Peer opened the back door of the bar. "They say you parent how you were raised."