a/n so I know I said originally this story would be four or five chapters long, I'm thinking it will be six or seven now. But never fear I have it all planned out, it's just ending up longer than originally planned. Than you so much for all the reviews and favorites and follows for this story. If I missed thanking you personally I'm very sorry. Either way I hope you enjoy this next installment of I'm Breathing.
Megan's life soon fell into a casual routine. She bartended most days only really taking Wednesday and Sunday nights off regularly. Sunday she did inventory and books at the club during the day before relaxing with a good book and a glass of wine during the evening. Wednesday a girlfriend might come over or she might go out with another girlfriend for dinner. All and all life was relaxing. She lived outside the city so she was able to separate work from home. Megan enjoyed her life. Contrary to one might believe about being the owner of a strip club her life felt relatively quiet and settled.
For the past three months at least once a week Quinn would stop by. Megan smiled at the thought. They weren't anything, nothing that deserved a label at the least. Just a good time.
A bit more than that. Her head whispered to her when she caught herself thinking of him. It was true though. They didn't label anything but it was more than just a good time. She looked forward to his visits. Every time her bar door opened she glanced to see if he was walking through the door. Sometimes he'd call ahead to let her know he was coming into town but she could always expect him at least once a week.
He stayed a night, maybe two at a time. During the day they'd talk of what ever came to mind, skipping over their respective pasts. Bit by bit however, he told her about his niece and sister, bit by bit she told him about her days when she danced on the stage instead of running things behind the bar. It worked well for the both of them. He never demanded anything from her- no promises, no words of love that were just a little to hard for a jaded ex-stripper to say. Not to mention she had spent more than one night on her back making her money when times got tough. After selling the fantasy of love to make your rent check it became hard to say the words even if you meant it. Which she didn't, not yet.
Quinn set up shop at his sisters. Normally he could stay for a week or two on end with out being called by the club, bonus of being president. Not only that but most of them men who patched Nomad stayed with their former charters, doing jobs for what ever charter they crashed with or backing up their brothers close by. Quinn only went out on special jobs or when Annie's treatment needed more money and the once a month meeting the nomads gathered for in the middle of the Utah dessert. Bikes gathered in a circle on a no-bit back road and the brothers would circle and check in. Nomads were paid on a by the job basis. Church for them was to check in, make sure no one needed a bit of help on a job. Mostly they were trackers, hunters, finding someone who hurt the club and deliver them to whatever charter wanted them hunted down. All jobs went through Quinn as did all new members. Nomads didn't need a unanimous vote to patch someone from another charter, just the presidents' word. Most days Quinn received three or more calls at his sisters. He ended up converting half of the guest bedroom into an office of sorts so he could keep better tabs on his men and keep his phone calls more private.
At least once a week he found himself making the ride to Baton Rouge. He rode with out colors, not wanting to draw attention. After the first month Megan brought him to her house, a comfortable two story out in the Louisiana countryside. The master bedroom contained a large queen bed with soft sheets. Soon Megan's house became an oasis for Quinn. Away from Sons, away from Annie being sick, away from everything complicated in his life. Annie seemed to be better some days but she'd have to go for chemo again and would look like shit the next day. Mrs. Cobbs still came in every day to help out. Quinn could get Lily dressed and off to school on time, mostly but he couldn't cook and was rubbish with cleaning. Mrs. Cobbs was a godsend, or she would be if Quinn could force himself to believe in a God anymore.
Either way he didn't have to search hard to find reasons to visit Megan's. More and more often he found himself mounting his bike and riding off toward Baton Rouge. If he had a job with another charter he usually swung through Louisiana to get there. Church in the middle of the Utah desert? Might as well leave a day early and spend the night in a warm bed. Quinn didn't label what they had. Didn't want to make her an Old Lady and drag her into his world. Most of that could be traced to him being selfish. He didn't want to share her with his world. She didn't make any demands of him either. She didn't demand he always call before he came- he'd push open the bar door to see her glance up at him with that goddamn half smile playing across her lips as if she had a secret she didn't quite feel like sharing. She didn't demand the answers from him that most women would- was he bedding anyone else (yes), what exactly did he do for work (not really an easy topic), did he think they had a future (he had no idea but he kind of wanted one) or did he care about her (yes). He didn't ask her if she took any man to bed (although he doubted it) or for anything else. What they had was plain and simple and worked for them.
"Lily has a recital coming up next week for her dance class." Quinn said one night, as they lay naked in bed the sheets tangled around them. Megan was the first woman he'd ever really talked to after sex.
"She must be excited." Megan commented. They'd been seeing each other- if you could call it that- for four months now. He'd shown her pictures of his sister and her kid and Megan loved hearing about Lily.
"She is. Don't have a clue in hell what's she's going to wear though." Quinn said running his huge hand over his face. "Don't suppose you know where to find a sugar beet fairy costume off of the top of your head?" Quinn asked half hopefully. Lily had come home the night before from practice to tell him she needed a costume for the recital next week. He called the dance teacher and asked about it and apparently a note had been sent home weeks ago. He didn't have a clue how the note got lost from the door of the dance studio to Annie's cage but some how it had.
"Sugar plum fairy." Megan corrected laughing.
"What?" Quinn asked.
"It's a sugar plum fairy, for the Nutcracker." Megan explained.
"You know ballet?" Quinn asked surprised.
"Not really. Lola wanted to go to the show a few Christmases ago, dragged me along. We saw the Nutcracker and I loved it." Megan shrugged- it had been her first time at the ballet. "I don't suppose you have Lily's sizes off hand?" She asked.
"No, why? Do you know where to find a costume?" Quinn asked hopefully.
"No but I'm pretty handy with a needle and thread." Megan said. "I used to sew most of my dance costumes myself to save money."
"Oh… well she's about three feet… maybe four…" Quinn said lifting his arm off the bed as if to show just how high his small niece was.
"You're going home tomorrow?" Megan asked lifting her head from his chest to look at him.
"Was planning to." Quinn told her.
"Well call me when you get there and I'll tell you the measurements I need and you can just come pick it up before the show." Megan said. She didn't really know why she was offering, but she liked to sew and a costume for a dance recital wouldn't be a huge challenge.
"Really? You could do that?" Quinn asked.
"Sure, shouldn't take more than a day or so." Megan told him. "Of course I'd expect payment." She said draping her leg over his waist.
"Oh really? What kind of payment?" Quinn asked guiding her hips over his until she straddled him.
Megan rolled her hips with a practiced movement, "I'm sure you'll think of something." She said leaning down to kiss him before he rolled her over on to her back.
A few days later Quinn found himself driving Annie's cage with a bouncing eight year old in the back seat. Megan mentioned over the phone the other day that if it wasn't too much trouble he should bring Lily with him so the little girl could try on the costume. That way Megan could fix anything if it was needed. It seemed practical at the time but now that he guided the car carefully onto the highway it seemed like a bigger deal- bringing your niece to see the woman you regularly fucked.
Megan bit nervously at her nails as she waited for Quinn to arrive. It seemed like nothing to mention him bringing Lily with- after all she knew how big a deal a little girls first dance recital was and wanted her costume to fight right. Or at least Megan would know how big of a deal a dance recital would be if she'd ever had one. But she remembered listening to the other girls talk about them when she was in school and about the costumes their mothers made them. Megan felt bad for the little girl she'd never met. From everything Quinn told her his sister was an amazing mother and stilled tried to do everything for her daughter despite being sick. So at the time telling him to bring Lily seemed logical, but now as she waited she wondered if it might be a bigger deal in reality.
After what felt like much longer than three hours of driving Quinn pulled into Megan's drive.
"Now remember to say thank you." Quinn reminded his niece.
"I will Uncle Rane. I'm not little you know." Lily said as she bounced up and down in her seat excited to see her costume. None of the other girls in her class had costumes that were made in Baton Rouge. Baton Rouge was far away from Mobile and sounded a lot fancier. Lily thought she'd be the prettiest fairy ever with Uncle Rane's friend from Baton Rouge making her costume. The eight year old quickly unfastened her seat belt and waited impatiently for Uncle Rane to tell her she could get out of the car. They walked into the pretty tan house. Lilly noticed that Uncle Rane didn't knock. He just walked in. Mommy said the only time you could just walk into someone's house was if it was yours.
"Megs," He called out, "we're here!"
"Coming!" A ladies voice called from a different room. A pretty brown haired lady came into the room holding something white and pink and purple.
"Hi, you must be Lily. I'm Megan." She said happily.
"Hello Ms. Megan." Lily said politely just like her mommy taught her.
"Hey Megs, mind if I use the can?" Quinn asked quickly.
"Yeah sure go ahead." Megan told him.
"Alright, I'll be right back Lil Bill, be good and remember what you're mom said." Quinn began to walk to the bathroom.
"What did your mom say?" Megan asked curiously. She'd never spent much time around children before.
"Mommy said I have to be a nice, polite little girl while I'm here so Uncle Rane will finally grow a pair of balls, stop pussy footing around and bring his lady friend to meet her before bones dry up." Quinn overheard what his niece said and stopped abruptly in case Megan needed help.
"Your mommy said all of that?" Megan asked shocked. Sure that sounded like something her parents might have said to her but they hadn't exactly been gunning for mom and pop of the year award. From what Quinn had told her Annie did her best to be a great mom.
"Well… not exactly. She did tell me to be nice and polite. She said the other stuff to Mrs. Cobbs when she thought I was watching T.V." Lily told Megan.
"What did Mrs. Cobbs say about that?" Megan asked barely holding in a laugh.
"She said men couldn't help being idiots. God made them that way and only God knew why." Lily recited. "Ms. Megan, do you know why God made men stupid?"
The words "because they try to think with two heads" popped into Megan's mind but she figured that wouldn't be the best thing to say to a child.
"I think Mrs. Cobbs is right, only God knows why." Megan didn't much believe in God- if one existed she reckoned he was a bit of an ass anyway, but she figured that wouldn't be the best thing to say to a child either. In Louisiana, with its special blend of Catholic and voodoo traditions on one hand and strict protestant churches on the other a person could get away with flitting from one form of religion to the next. From what Quinn told Megan about Annie she knew the woman kept her child going to Sunday school at a Southern Baptist church. Questioning God in front of the eight year old would be a bad idea.
Quinn listened to the whole exchange until Lily began telling Megan about the details of the up coming recital before heading to the bathroom. When he came back his niece was sitting at the kitchen table her legs kicking the air in front of her and sipping juice.
"Why don't you go try on the costume Lil Bill," Quinn said to the eight-year-old girl.
"OK!" Lily said excitedly. She snatched the offered costume out of Megan's hands before running out of the kitchen. She stopped at the doorway.
"Uh… Ms. Megan, where is your bathroom?" Lily turned and asked.
"Go on up the stairs and it's the first door on your left." Megan told her smiling.
"Umm… What sides my left?" Lily asked half turned out the door.
"The side where your thumb and first finger make an L." Megan told her.
Lily nodded and scampered off to find the bathroom. Reaching the top of the stairs she held up her fingers like her mommy taught her but she wasn't exactly sure which was which. She decided to just guess and hope for the best. She tiptoed quietly over to the first door on the right and opened it softly. Inside sat a small daybed and the walls were painted light blue. She quickly shut the door and went to the other side of the hall. Opening the door she found a bathroom painted light yellow with an old claw foot tub against the far wall. She darted in and shut the door before quickly beginning to change.
"Thanks again for doing this Megs." Quinn said downstairs as they heard first one door slam and then a second.
"It's no problem Quinn, every little girl should have a good time at their dance recital." Megan told him, grabbing two cold cokes out of the fridge.
"Rane." Quinn said abruptly. Megan raised one eyebrow opposed to a spoken question as she poured the cokes into glasses.
"My first name. It's Rane." Quinn said awkwardly gesturing with his hands as Megan set the cokes in front of their respective seats.
"Rane." Megan repeated. She already knew it was his first name, after all she'd been sleeping with him for months and Lily called him Uncle Rane but this was the first time he asked her to call him by it. They quietly sipped their cokes while the waited for Lily to come back down.
"Uncle Rane! Ms. Megan! Its perfect!" Lily called out as she ran down the stairs in the white costume with the pink and purple tutu skirt.
"Let me see." Megan told her walking around the eight-year-old checking to make sure everything looked right.
"What do you think Uncle Rane?" Lily demanded.
"You look like a princess kiddo." He told her beeming.
"I think its perfect Lily, I don't have to change a thing." Megan said smiling proudly at her handy-work.
"Ms. Megan can you come to my dance recital! I want to show my friends the nice lady who made my costume." Lily asked. Megan didn't answer right away not knowing what she should do, she wouldn't mind going but she didn't know if Rane would want her to go. Going to the man your fucking niece's dance recital seemed kind of big.
"Lil, why don't you run back up stairs and change so you don't get your costume dirty." Quinn suggested. After Lily had disappeared he turned to Megan, "Don't feel like you have to go, you can say no." He told her. Part of him wanted her to come with but he knew that it would be a turning point for what ever they were if she did.
"I don't mind going Rane, I'd even like to but are you ok with it?" Megan asked.
"I'm ok with it." Quinn said.
"Ok." Megan said, "It seems kind of big." She told him.
"Yeah it does." Quinn agreed.
"Like we might have to talk about what we are soon big." Megan elaborated.
"Probably." Quinn agreed, he honestly thought it might be time to do that anyway. He wouldn't say he was in love with her yet but he would say he was getting close.
"Ok." Megan said leaving the subject there, she wouldn't say she loved him yet but she would say she could see it happening.
Soon Lily came back into the kitchen. "So can you come Ms. Megan?" She demanded.
"Yes Lily I can come. It's tomorrow right?"
"Yes. Friday at seven o' clock." Lily recited happily.
"You should just ride back with us tonight, I can drive you back here Saturday morning." The words popped out of Quinn's mouth without a second thought. "We can take my bike back." In the past four months Megan had ridden on the back of his bike several times and Quinn knew she loved it.
"Uncle Rane lets you ride on his bike?" Lily asked in awe.
"Sometimes he does." Megan replied, "That sounds like a perfect plan Rane. Just let me back a small bag."
"He must really like you." Lily said, "He never lets me ride his bike. He says only big people can and the person has to be special."
Megan smiled at Lily's words. "I can be ready to go in half an hour." She told Quinn.
"Alright. We'll head out whenever you're ready." Quinn told her. Twenty minutes later all three were loaded into the car and heading off to Mobile.