No Man Left Behind: A Veteran Inspired Charity Anthology by Elizabeth Knox (black authors fiction TXT) 📕

beautiful girl. The perfect mixture of her mother and myself. In the few minutes I was around her, I memorized the features of her face. Long hair like her mother’s, eyes like mine, fuck if she wasn’t the perfect combination of the two of us together. Like a damn angel. She’s that perfect.

Pissed that I didn’t know anything about her, a small part of me is thrilled to know she at least had my last name in hers. However, it doesn’t stop the pain at the fact she calls another man her dad. I’d been denied that small gift.

My ol’ man always told me growing up that being my dad was a gift. He said it was a gift he’d hold onto since my mom wasn’t able to have more kids after me. Her body strained throughout her pregnancy with me and the doctors advised her not to have any more children. They said it could kill her, so they were one and done. Sucked for my parents since they wanted a large family and ended up with one biological child.

I remember nights where Charlee and I would lay curled against one another in the back of my old truck, in the middle of a field, talking about our dreams. How I wanted to be able to one day give my mom the grandkids to help ease the pain of not being able to have anymore of her own. Shit, this just means there’s another reason Charlee’s deception’s a hit to the gut.

Koda lifts his head, looks at me then to the door and releases a disgruntled woof.

“What’s up, Koda?” I ask as someone knocks on the door. “Yeah,” I call out, not wanting to move and lift the bottle of Jack to my mouth.

The door opens and Snowden fills the doorway. “What’s up, prospect?” I mutter, not wanting to be bothered right now.

“Some chick is in the main room looking for you,” he states, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Who is it?” Stupid question to ask but I ask it all the same.

“Didn’t catch her name but she’s fuckin’ hot and holding a bag of gourmet cookies in her hands talking to Bones.” Snowden shrugs.

Fuckin’ hell. There’s only one woman who’d bring me gourmet anything.

“I’ll be right out,” I growl, the anger coming back up full force.

Nodding, Snowden drops his hands from his chest, grips the doorknob, and pulls my door closed leaving me secluded in my room with Koda once again.

“Koda, what am I gonna do?” I grumble to my dog looking for answers. Koda simply tilts his head to the side and gives me a bark as if to say, ‘how the hell do I know’.

Sighing, I put the bottle of Jack on my nightstand, climb out of bed, and put my boots back on.

“Come on, Koda, let’s go see what the fuck Charlee’s doing here,” I mutter, making my way to the door. “Might as well take you outside while I’m at it, kill two birds with one stone.”

As I step into the main room of the clubhouse Koda barks to make it known he’s in the room, drawing Charlee’s attention in our direction.

Fuck, seeing her in the clubhouse pisses me off even more, knowing she threw what we had away. Took the life we could’ve had and put it in the garbage.

“Outside,” I bite out through clenched teeth, nodding to the door.

“Um, okay,” she murmurs, licking her lips nervously.

My dick twitches at the sight, remembering the many times those velvet lips have been wrapped around it.

“Koda, come,” I command, heading for the door without looking back, knowing not only my dog was behind me but Charlee. I can feel her eyes burning into my back and I wish I had let her go ahead of me since I didn’t take the time to put a shirt on. I don’t need or want her questions about the scars covering my back.

Soon as the door slams shut behind Charlee, I round on her to find tears welling in her eyes.

Ignoring the pang her tears cause, I curl a lip. “What are you doing here?”

Clearing her throat, Charlee shakes her head as she holds the bag up for me to take. “Mom wanted me to bring you these. She was sorry she missed you earlier and asked me to go get you some cookies since she was unable to make you her homemade ones like she normally does,” she blurts without meeting my gaze.

“That the only reason you came here, or did you come here to make excuses as to why I knew nothing about my fuckin’ daughter?” I snap, crossing my arms. I don’t bother taking the bag from her.

Charlee drops the bag to the ground, and finally meets my gaze, with a glare of her own. “Don’t go there, Kaden,” she mutters.

“Kinetic.”

“What?” she asks baffled.

“You don’t have a right to call me Kaden anymore. Only those I give permission to are allowed. To you, I’m Kinetic,” I snarl, leaning in her space so she gets my point.

Koda woofs from next to me, demanding my attention.

Glancing to him, I point to the yard. “Go do your business,” I command otherwise he’ll stay at my side unless I give him the order.

“Yeah, I should’ve known. It’s obvious you’re no longer Kaden. He wasn’t an asshole like you are. And don’t you dare think you can tell me what to do. We broke up a long time ago—”

The nerve she has. I can’t do anything but interrupt her. “This asshole is who I’ve always been, you just never experienced it because I loved you, but you ended us. Now are you going to explain to me why you never told me about Vivi?” I growl, interrupting her before she could spew anymore shit out of her mouth.

“I kept her away from you to protect her,” Charlee snaps.

“Bullshit, you kept her from me because you’re selfish and you knew you fucked up. And, baby, when I say you fucked up,