Chapter 34 Marcus
MARCUS
One Year Later
“You know, sometimes I wonder about that dog. He doesn’t seem to be altogether… there sometimes,” Marcus said, watching Puppy as he rolled around in their yard.
Puppy… yes, they decided to keep the name Puppy after all—confusing as shit as it may be, but Gavin grew attached to the name, and Marcus had quickly learned that whatever Gavin wants, Gavin fucking gets.
Puppy would be running around the backyard, then he would stumble, fall, and roll onto his back. Then he’d spread his doggy arms and legs wide, as if letting the sun warm his nuts, before turning back onto his stomach and repeating the whole course all over again.
At Marcus’s last count, this was his fourth time warming his nuts.
“Well, which one of us isn’t altogether there?” Ace asked, turning his head toward Lucas, his best friend and part-time psycho.
Lucas nudged Ace with his foot before taking another sip of his sangria.
It was summer, and Marcus was having one of his summertime barbecues at his place—well, now that the little monster had moved in, he guessed it was technically both of their places. Either way, the whole Shadow Viper crew had shown up for the event.
They had just finished chowing down on some delicious steaks and sausages—plant-based “burgers,” if you can call them that, for Gavin—and were now enjoying a few drinks out in the sun.
“Well, he did save my ass by leading you to that murder cabin before that psychopath could have his way with me and carve up my beautiful skin,” Gavin added.
Marcus reached over and took Gavin’s hand. He hated thinking about how close he had actually come to losing his love forever. “Yeah, I guess you have a point. But still. Look at him.”
Puppy was rolling onto his back and spreading his legs once again up at the sun. His tongue hung lazily out the side of his mouth, and he seemed to be happier than a pig rolling around in shit.
Gavin gave a chuckle. He stood up from his chair, then walked over to where his beloved dog was staring at him from the side of his eye.
“Oh, don’t listen to Daddy number two,” Gavin said as he reached down and scooped up his dog. He nuzzled his face into his fur before walking with him back to his seat next to Marcus. “He’s just jealous that he isn’t as flexible as you and can’t lick his own balls.”
The guys around them began to chuckle.
God, he loved the sense of humor in his boy.
He placed his hand on Gavin’s thigh and gave it a gentle squeeze. “Now, why would I ever need to lick my own balls? That’s what I have you for, sweety.”
Gavin’s mouth dropped open in mock offense. He punched Marcus in the arm, appearing to regret it immediately. Marcus was a solid wall of muscle, so the only thing he accomplished was practically breaking his hand on Marcus’s bicep.
Marcus couldn’t help but laugh as Puppy began barking at Gavin. It appeared that he didn’t like Daddy number one beating up Daddy number two.
“Traitor,” Gavin said, nuzzling his head into Puppy, clearly trying to keep his smile buried in his fur.
It had been about a year since the babbling spitfire came tumbling into Marcus’s life. And it was the happiest, most annoying, and greatest year of his life.
Who needs peace and quiet, or covers at all, when you can spend your days with a man who doesn’t stop talking, who insists on sleeping with you as their blanket, and never stops making you smile?
He used to believe that love was a luxury he couldn’t afford. That, because of who he was and the responsibilities that came with being the leader of the Shadow Vipers, being in love would only be a distraction. One that could put everybody’s lives at risk.
But as it was quickly pointed out to him, his crew were not children. While they might act like them at times, they were fully functioning adults who knew how to take care of themselves and what needed to be done to keep the crew safe and the money rolling in.
It helped, too, that Gavin seemed to understand the family he was stepping into—the chaos, the complications, and the kinds of situations he would inevitably find himself tangled in if he chose to stay in Marcus’s life.
And thankfully, Gavin appeared way too obsessed with Marcus’s dick to ever think about leaving his sorry ass.
Marcus chuckled at that thought.
“What?” Gavin asked, staring up at him with those gorgeous blue eyes of his.
“Nothing. I just love your stupid ass,” Marcus said, leaning in and kissing him on the forehead. Puppy jumped in on the excitement and started licking them both excitedly.
Gavin laughed and reached for his phone.
“Smile!” He laughed as he snapped a photo of the three of them. He opened his social media app and posted the picture for all his followers to see.
While Gavin no longer needed their validation, he once told Marcus that he wanted to continue posting about his life, giving his followers hope that they, too, could find their Prince Charming and a happily ever after one day.
Of course, Gavin heavily edited what he posted online—no crew business or anything illegal. But his followers did know he was dating a handsome biker dude, who rocked his world in more than one way.
When it came to Gavin and coping with the execution of the Valentine Killer, Marcus believed Gavin was doing well. He stopped having nightmares almost immediately after Clive’s death and no longer seemed as jittery when left alone in the house.
Marcus offered to take him to therapy, but Gavin just smiled and said his dick was all the therapy he would ever need. So Marcus made sure they attended “therapy” every night and occasionally in the morning when Gavin was feeling a little… antsy.
Staring out at the yard full of laughter and family, Marcus still couldn’t believe that this was his life.
He had a guy who loved him. A brother who always had his back. And a crew full of people who would step in front of a bullet for him.
This was love.
This was family.
This was his world.
The End