Claimed by the Biker Giant (Maxine and Tank) novel Chapter 176

Fixer POV

Savage was okay in my eyes. Under all the shielding he had put around himself, I think it would take a while before we both lowered our armour, and as we got to know each other.

Baby steps. I tell myself. Baby steps.

We are both like a skittish animal, ready to flee back inside ourselves where it’s safe, and put on a ‘l don’t care’ attitude, and that won’t get either of us anywhere, I am guilty of doing that most of my life, it was something I learned to do to survive a lot of rejections, and losses of friends.

I was so glad when the suggestion of bed came; I was not sure how much longer I could keep this neutral face while listening to Savage tell his story and of how much I had meant to him. That I was the reason he tried to keep alive when he was captive. It was like he had come full circle and no longer wanted to die, to be with his wife, but be here for his wife’s clone, or something like that.

Did I look like my mother enough for him to see me as that? I know I had a lot of her features, but as a person. Am I anything like my mother?

Most of this was Uncle Simon’s doing, the bringing him back, I mean. Getting him to fight for his life, he must have seen Savage before his last mission, or sometime before, and had been working

on getting him home. I need to ask him more about that later, when life settles down a bit. My Uncle has been a mystery, even Gramps had mentioned him when we talked, and how he helped bring us together, he didn’t know Savage was their son, Uncle Simon had my DNA researched, to confirm I was his grand-niece, because of all the BS that went around, he wanted concrete proof, he hadn’t known that Tandy had been in my life since before birth, and could have confirmed it at any time, but that DNA showed that I was related to not only Savage but the connection to the Astore family, a link that Tandy hadn’t put together, as he had worked hard to keep my mother’s side alive and working. Tandy only started getting involved in bringing the Astore family’s grandchild to them after the DNA reports. Uncle Simon, who knew the Astore’s due to his status and connections, although he didn’t go to networking and galas very often, hadn’t placed me as their Granddaughter, partly because the Astore’s didn’t know they had one, and he didn’t put Savage and Astore’s together as family.

It’s all a vicious circle, but at least we’re headed in the right direction now, all because of Uncle Simon and Tandy working together to resolve finding my father, and getting the other surprise along the way.

Tank was great; he let me cry on his chest.

A pool of tears formed in the center of his chest, and when I moved to get some tissues, I saw the mess I had made on him and was appalled at the tears I had shed and left on him. I used the tissues to mop up the mess, and Tank grabbed my hand, stopping me.

“Wipe your tears from your eyes, and blow your nose; those on my chest are mine to remove.” He said softly, taking a tissue himself and dabbing at the tears with care, he was claiming my tears as his own. I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. Was it cute, or yuck?

Tank climbed out of bed and returned with a bottle of water and a warm face cloth to wash my face. He placed his finger under my chin and began to wash my face gently, his eyes focused on his task as he wiped around my eyes, down my cheeks, chin, and mouth, and, lastly, my nose. Then placed the cloth down, picked up the bottle of water, removed the cap, handed it to me, and left me with the bottle as he took the cloth to the bathroom. I felt treasured, and I could see his love shining through his actions, his gentleness, and his kind, thoughtful care. Other than my Grandparents, no one has cared for me like this, not even Jenny, who tried but didn’t know how, because we were both kids, learning to deal with life the best either of us could. We would hug each other, and cry on each other’s shoulders, more her crying than me, but yeah, you get the drift. We were never this gentle. Jenny had always been an out-there girl, while I was the quieter one, not wanting to stand out, because when I did, bad things happened to me or to those I was with, so it was best to stay hidden, keeping everyone safe.

Tank climbed back in, and I rolled over, giving him my back. He wrapped his arms around me, pulling me against him, and held me firmly till I relaxed. Sometime later, when my mind stopped running around inside my head, sleep found me.

The next morning, I left Tank sleeping, headed to the bathroom, opened the drawer, and took out the test kit. I was a few weeks late, and I knew what that meant, but this little test would confirm it.

I peed on the stick and left it on the sink whilst having a shower. I was happily humming to myself as I thought if I was ready for what that stick might reveal.

With my life so full of drama, was I ready for that to happen?

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