Chapter 37 Bonnie
BONNIE
Ipress my hand to my stomach and stare at the blank skin on my forearm.
I wish I’d gotten pregnant later. Just a few more months so I could have worn their ink first. So the world could have seen me marked by all three of them before my body started changing for this baby.
But I can’t regret the timing. Not when Ghost is alive and healing. Not when the Savage Legion is ashes. Not when I’m standing in the compound courtyard on a sunny afternoon with my hand on my growing baby and my men all safe.
“You coming or what?” Jackal calls from across the lot.
I look up. My brother sits on his Harley, engine idling, helmet in hand. He’s been home for two weeks now, but we haven’t had much time alone. Too much cleanup after the war. Too many funerals. Too many strategy meetings about rebuilding.
“Where are we going?” I ask.
“You’ll see. Come on.”
I grab my helmet and cross to where my Softail waits, purple paint gleaming in the sunlight. I haven’t ridden in months. Ash made me promise to stay off bikes once I started showing, worried about the baby.
But Jackal asked, and I can’t say no to him. Not after everything.
I swing my leg over and fire up the engine. The rumble feels like coming home.
Jackal grins. “Don’t tell Ash I’m corrupting his pregnant wife.”
“Don’t tell Ash a lot of things.”
“Fair enough.”
He pulls out of the lot, and I follow, keeping pace as we hit the highway. Wind whips against my face. My stomach presses against the tank. The baby shifts inside me like she’s excited too.
We ride for thirty minutes, leaving the city behind. Jackal takes an exit I recognize immediately, and my throat tightens.
He’s bringing me to our spot.
Ten more minutes down back roads, and we pull off onto a dirt path that leads to a clearing overlooking the valley. This is where we used to come as kids before Dad got too paranoid to let me leave the compound. Before Jackal got patched and the club became his whole world.
We park our bikes and kill the engines. Silence settles over us except for birds and wind through the trees.
“I forgot how beautiful it is up here,” I say.
Jackal pulls off his helmet. “Yeah. Me too.”
We walk to the edge of the clearing, where a fallen log makes a natural bench. I sit, and Jackal drops down beside me. The valley spreads below us. Green and gold and peaceful.
“Remember when you broke your arm up here?” he asks.
“I was nine. You dared me to climb that tree.” I point to the massive oak behind us.
“And you did it. Got halfway up before the branch snapped.”
“You carried me back to your bike and drove me to the hospital with one hand because the other was holding me steady.”
“Dad wanted to kill me.”
“You told him it was your fault. That I didn’t want to climb, but you made me do it.”
Jackal shrugs. “It was my fault. I should have known better.”
“I would have climbed it whether you dared me or not. I was a stubborn little shit.”
“Still are.”
I laugh. He’s not wrong.
We sit in comfortable silence for a while. Watching clouds drift across the sky. Listening to the world breathe around us.
“So,” Jackal says finally. “You and three of my best friends.”
Here it comes. The conversation I’ve been dreading since the church meeting.
“Yeah.”
“That’s…unconventional.”
“That’s one way to put it.”
He picks up a stick and snaps it between his fingers. “I’m not gonna lie, Bonnie. It’s weird as hell. I leave for a few months and come back to find my baby sister married to Ash and fucking Ghost and Titan on the side.”
“It’s not like that—”
“I know. I was there when they all claimed you publicly. I saw how they looked at you.” He tosses the broken stick away. “Still weird.”
“Are you pissed?”
“I don’t know what I am.” He leans forward, elbows on his knees. “Part of me wants to beat the shit out of all three of them for touching you. But the other part…” He trails off.
“What?”
“The other part sees how happy you are, how they look at you like you’re the center of their world. How they’d die for you without hesitation.” He turns to look at me. “You are happy, right?”
“Yeah.” The word comes easy. True. “I am.”
“Even with the baby? Even with everything that happened?”
I press my hand to my stomach again. Feel the gentle flutter of movement. “I never thought I’d want this. Never thought I’d be ready. But now that she’s here…” I swallow past the lump in my throat. “I love her already. So much it scares me.”
“She?”
“Ghost thinks it’s a girl. He won’t shut up about it.”
Jackal smiles. “Ghost is going to be a terrifying father.”
“All three of them are going to be terrifying. Can you imagine Titan with a daughter?”
“No. I really can’t.”
We both laugh. The image of my giant, crude, wonderful man trying to handle a tiny baby girl is almost too much.
“For what it’s worth,” Jackal says, “I think you’re going to be an amazing mom.”
My eyes burn. “You think so?”
“I know so. You’re the toughest person I know, Bonnie. You survived Dad selling you off. Survived Marcus. Survived a war. You can handle one baby.”
“One baby with three men who are going to argue about everything.”
“True.” He grins. “But you’ll keep them in line.”
“I’ll try.”
Another comfortable silence. The sun shifts lower in the sky, painting the valley in shades of orange and gold.
“I need to tell you something,” Jackal says.
His tone makes me tense. “What?”
“I’m not sticking around much longer. My chapter out of state needs me. We’re still building, still recruiting. I can’t abandon them just because the war here is over.”
Disappointment crashes through me. “How long?”
“Another week. Maybe two.”
“Jackal—”
“I know. I just got back. But they need a leader and I’m all they’ve got right now.” He looks at me. “I’ll visit as often as I can. And when the baby comes, I’ll be here. I promise.”
“You better be. She needs her uncle.”
“She’ll have three men who worship the ground you walk on and an entire MC ready to kill for her. She’ll be fine.” He bumps my shoulder with his. “But yeah. I’ll be here.”
I lean my head on his shoulder. He wraps an arm around me and pulls me close.
“I’m sorry,” he says quietly.
“For what?”
“For not figuring out what Dad was doing sooner. For letting it get as far as it did. For not being there when you needed me.”
“You saved me. You turned him in and stopped the wedding.”
“Barely. You were seconds away from being trapped with that monster.”
“But I wasn’t. You got me out.” I sit up and look at him. “You did what Dad should have done. You protected me. You chose me over the club. Over family loyalty. That took guts.”
“It was the right thing to do.”
“Still. Thank you.”
He pulls me in for a hug. Holds me tight like he used to when we were kids and I had nightmares.
“I love you, Bonnie. Weird-ass love life and all.”
“I love you too.”
We pull apart, and he stands, brushing dirt off his jeans. “We should head back before your husbands send a search party.”
“They’re not all my husbands. Just Ash.”
“Semantics.” He grins. “You’re claimed by all three. That makes them all your husbands in my book.”
I roll my eyes but don’t argue. He’s not wrong.
We walk back to our bikes. I stop beside my Softail and look back at the valley one more time.
“Hey, Jackal?”
“Yeah?”
“Do you really think no one can protect me better than they can?”
He walks over and cups my face in his hands.
“Bonnie, those three men would burn the world down for you. Would walk through fire. Would take a bullet without blinking.” He kisses my forehead.
“You’re the safest woman alive. And that baby?
She’s going to grow up knowing she’s loved and protected by an army of brothers. ”
Tears spill down my cheeks. “Damn hormones.”
“Sure. Blame the hormones.” He wipes my tears with his thumbs. “Let’s go home.”
“Wait.” I pull back. “I need to stop by Snake’s shop first.”
Jackal’s face goes carefully blank. “What? No. Why?”
“Because I haven’t seen him in weeks and he’s been texting asking if I’m okay.” I study my brother’s reaction. “Why do you look like that?”
“Like what?”
“Oh my god.” I grin. “You still have feelings for Snake, don’t you?”
“Bonnie—”
“Jackal. That was six years ago, and you’re acting like—”
“Drop it, Bonnie.”
But I can see it in his eyes. The way his shoulders went rigid. The muscle twitching in his jaw. My big, tough brother still has it bad for my tattoo mentor.
Six years ago, before Dad sent Jackal to Mexico to help set up a supply line, Jackal and Snake were inseparable.
I was thirteen and didn’t understand what I was seeing—just knew my brother spent more time at Serpent’s Ink than he did at the compound.
Then Jackal left for three months, and when he came back, Snake had stopped coming around.
Stopped returning calls. Started dating other people.
I found out later that Jackal had ghosted him. Didn’t call once from Mexico. Came home and acted like nothing had happened between them.
Snake met Louie a few years after that, and they’ve been solid ever since.
“Does he know you still think about him?” I ask softly.
“I don’t think about him. We messed around. That’s it.” Jackal pulls out a cigarette and lights it. “I’ve been with plenty of people since then. So has he. It doesn’t mean anything.”
“Then why do you look like you’re about to have a panic attack?”
“I’m not—” He takes a long drag. “It’s been six years, Bonnie. People move on.”
“Uh-huh. And that’s why your hands are shaking?”
He looks down at his cigarette, then shoves his free hand in his pocket. “Fuck off.”
“You broke his heart.”
“Yeah, well. He got over it. He’s with Louie now. I’m not gonna fuck that up for him.” He flicks ash onto the ground.
“And you?”
“I’m fine. Got a whole chapter to run. Don’t have time for—” He waves his hand vaguely. “That.”
“Jackal—”
“You wanna visit Snake? Fine. But I’m staying on my bike. And we’re not talking about this anymore.”
I follow him back to our bikes, fighting back a smile. This is the most flustered I’ve seen Jackal in years. For someone who claims not to care, he sure is working hard to convince himself.
We ride in silence to Snake’s shop in the industrial district. The neon sign flickers in the fading light—Serpent’s Ink in green letters.
I park and pull off my helmet. Jackal stays on his bike, engine still running.
“You’re not coming in?” I ask.
“I’ll wait out here.”
“Coward.”
“Fuck off.”
I laugh and head inside. The shop smells like antiseptic and ink. Heavy metal plays from speakers mounted in the corners. Snake looks up from the counter where he’s sketching.
“Bonnie!” He comes around and pulls me into a hug. “Look at you. You’re glowing.”
“I’m sweating. There’s a difference.”
He laughs and steps back, eyes dropping to my stomach. “How are you feeling?”
“Fat. Tired. Ready for this to be over.”
“You look beautiful.”
“Liar.” But I’m smiling.
The door chimes. Louie emerges from the back room, wiping his hands on a rag. He’s covered in fresh ink from his fingertips to his elbows—a new sleeve he’s been working on for months.
“Hey, Bonnie.” He kisses my cheek. “Good to see you out and about.”
“Yeah, well. Ash is letting me have a little freedom now that the Savage Legion is gone.”
“About damn time.” Snake leans against the counter. “You been doing okay? Really?”
“Really. Peace is good for us. Ash is already talking about expanding territory. Setting up new revenue streams that don’t involve guns and drugs.”
“Smart move. Especially with a baby coming.” Louie grins. “You scared?”
“Terrified.”
“You’ll be great. And you’ve got three men who’ll spoil that kid rotten.”
I laugh. “Don’t remind me.”
The door chimes again. We all look up.
Jackal stands in the doorway, helmet under his arm. His eyes lock on Snake and something passes between them. Something electric and unspoken.
Snake straightens. “Jackal. Didn’t know you were back.”
“Got in a couple weeks ago.”
The tension is thick enough to cut. Louie glances between them, eyebrows raised.
“Well,” Louie says slowly. “I should…check on that order in the back.” He looks at me. “Good seeing you, Bonnie.”
He disappears through the curtain, leaving the three of us in awkward silence.
“I was just telling Snake that peace is finally here,” I say, trying to fill the void. “And that I’ll be setting up my own shop soon. Once the baby comes and I’m ready.”
“That’s great,” Snake says, but he’s still looking at Jackal. “You deserve it.”
“Yeah.” Jackal shifts his weight. “You still doing good work?”
“Always.”
Another beat of silence.
I bite back a smile. This is painful to watch.
“We should go,” Jackal says abruptly. “Don’t wanna be out past dark.”
“Right.” I hug Snake one more time. “I’ll come by again soon. Maybe you can start designing something for me. For after the baby.”
“Anytime. You know where to find me.”
I follow Jackal out to the bikes. He’s already on his, engine roaring to life.
“That was smooth,” I say.
“Shut up.”
“You couldn’t even look at him without—”
“I said shut up.”
I laugh and climb onto my Softail. “This is gold, Jackal. Pure gold.”
He flips me off and peels out of the lot.
I follow, still grinning. My brother, the fearless MC president, completely undone by a tattoo artist he can’t have.