Epilogue
Aria
One Year Later
The afternoon sun streams through the windows of Reaper's Ink, casting golden light across the station where I'm putting the finishing touches on a phoenix rising from flames.
The client—a firefighter who survived a near-fatal house fire—watches in the mirror as I complete the final details of the wing feathers.
"It's perfect," she breathes, tears gathering in her eyes.
I set down my tattoo gun and clean the area gently. "You survived something that should have destroyed you. This is your reminder that you rose from the ashes stronger."
As I wrap her new ink and give her aftercare instructions, I catch Hawk watching me from across the shop, that familiar heat in his golden-amber eyes. Even after a year together, that look still makes my pulse quicken.
The bell above the door chimes as the client leaves, and Hawk crosses to me in three long strides, his hands finding my waist.
"Goddamn, I love watching you work," he growls against my ear, his breath warm on my neck.
I turn in his arms, my fingers tracing the fresh ink on his chest—my design, my artwork permanently etched on his skin.
A sparrow in flight over his heart. Just as he bears my mark on his body, I wear his on mine: "Property of Hawk" in elegant script across my ribcage, with a reaper's scythe woven through the letters.
"The party’s in less than an hour," I remind him, though my body has other ideas as he presses me against the counter.
His lips find that sensitive spot below my ear. "We've got time."
"Hawk," I protest weakly, but my head tilts to give him better access. "Angel will kill us if we're late to this year’s Halloween party.”
He pulls back with a groan, his forehead resting against mine. "Tonight then. I'm keeping you up all night, little sparrow."
"Promise?" I grin up at him, loving how his pupils dilate at my teasing tone.
"That's my girl." He claims my mouth in a kiss that promises exactly what kind of night we're in for.
The clubhouse is transformed into a Halloween wonderland—orange and black lights strung everywhere, fake cobwebs, smoke machines, and some kind of bubbling green slime in cauldrons. There are enough carved pumpkins and candles to cast eerie shadows throughout the entire compound.
I stand between Angel and Luna, wearing my official “Property of Hawk” cut. The weight of it, the meaning behind it, still fills me with pride.
"I can't believe it's been a year since you stumbled into our lives," Angel whispers, linking her arm through mine.
"Best breaking-and-entering story ever," Luna adds with a grin.
I laugh softly, remembering that terrified girl who hid in a dusty bedroom, never imagining she'd find not just love, but an entire family. These women have become my sisters, their men my brothers, and this club my home.
Rose catches my eye from across the room, little Lucas sleeping peacefully in her arms. She winks, and I know what she's thinking—the same thing all the women have been hinting at lately. When will Hawk and I have one of our own?
Soon, I think, my hand unconsciously moving to my stomach. Very soon.
As the evening progresses and couples sway on the makeshift dance floor, Hawk pulls me close, one hand splayed possessively on my lower back.
"You're thinking about something," he murmurs, reading me the way he always does.
I look up at the man who saved me, who claimed me, who loves me with a fierceness that still makes my heart flutter. The man who helped me find my voice, my strength, my purpose.
"I'm thinking about how different my life is now." I press my palm over his heart, feeling its steady rhythm. "A year ago, I was alone, terrified, convinced I'd never escape. Now..."
"Now you're mine," he finishes, his voice rough with emotion. "My ol' lady. My little sparrow. My whole goddamn world."
"Now I'm free," I correct softly. "And I choose you. Every single day, I choose you."
His kiss is tender this time, reverent, and when he pulls back, his eyes are suspiciously bright.
"I love you," he says, the words still sounding slightly awed, like he can't quite believe this is real.
"I love you too." I take a deep breath, deciding this moment is as perfect as any. "And I know our baby will love you just as much."
Hawk freezes, his entire body going still. "Our...what?"
I take his hand and place it on my stomach. "I'm pregnant. About eight weeks along. I found out yesterday."
For a moment, he just stares at me, processing. Then his face transforms—joy, wonder, and that fierce protectiveness all crashing together in an expression that makes my eyes sting with happy tears.
"A baby," he breathes, dropping to his knees right there on the dance floor, pressing his forehead against my stomach. "We're having a baby."
The music stops. Conversations halt. Every eye in the clubhouse turns to us.
"Hawk's gonna be a parent!" Blade shouts, and the place erupts in cheers.
The brothers rush over, clapping Hawk on the back, while the women surround me with hugs and excited chatter. Ghost raises his beer, his commanding voice cutting through the noise.
"To new life," he toasts. "To family. To the Reaper legacy continuing."
Everyone cheers.
Later, as the party continues around us, Hawk drags me to a table in the corner and pulls me onto his lap, wrapping his arms around me, his hand finding my stomach again.
"I never thought I'd have this," he admits quietly. "After losing my family, after all those years of anger and grief. I never imagined I'd get another chance at this kind of happiness."
I turn in his arms. "We both got second chances. We both rose from the ashes of our pasts."
"You saved me, little sparrow,” he says, “You brought me back to life."
"No," I shake my head. "We saved each other."
He kisses me then, long and deep, pouring every ounce of love into it. When we finally break apart, he rests his forehead against mine.
"Marry me," he says suddenly. "I know you wear my patch, I know you're my ol’ lady in every way that matters to the club. But I want it all. I want you to be my wife. I want you and our kid to have my name."
"Yes," I answer without hesitation. "Yes, yes, yes."
His whoop of joy can be heard above the music. He sets me on my feet, stands up on a chair, and bellows to the entire room, “She said yes!”
Suddenly, we're again surrounded by the club—more backslapping, hugging, hooting, and hollering their congratulations.
As I look around at these people—my family—I think about that terrified girl who broke into the haunted mansion that stormy Halloween night. She was looking for shelter, for safety, for a place to hide.
Instead, she found everything she never knew she needed.
She found love.
She found family.
She found herself.
And she found home.