Chapter Twenty-One #2
“We don’t know,” South admits. “Kaia’s going to be a single mom with newborn twins, and she already has Immy.
The club is in chaos with Hurricane gone.
Kaia needs Ingrid, and the club needs brothers to help…
” he trails off, shifting Louis to his other hip.
“We might need to stay for a while, maybe permanently.”
The words hang in the air like smoke, impossible to ignore but too painful to fully process. Phoenix’s arm tightens around me, and I realize I’m trembling.
“We’re leaving tonight,” Ingrid says softly. “Driving straight through. I need to get home to my family. It’s killing me not being there right now.”
They’re leaving.
Two people who’ve become essential parts of my world are packing up their lives and driving away, and I don’t know when, or if, I’ll see them again.
My bottom lip trembles, and I excuse myself, walking quickly toward the bathroom, needing a moment to collect myself before I completely fall apart in front of everyone. But I don’t make it that far before the tears start, hot and immediate and completely beyond my control.
Phoenix finds me in the hallway, of course. He always seems to know when I need him before I even realize it myself.
“Hey,” he says softly, pulling me against his chest. “It’s okay.”
“It’s not okay,” I mumble into his shirt. “Nothing about this is okay. We just got everyone back, we just won, and now they’re leaving. What if something happens to them on the road, or what if they decide they want to stay in New Orleans permanently, or—”
“Breathe, baby,” Phoenix interrupts gently, his hand stroking down my hair. “Just breathe.”
I try to follow his instructions, but my chest feels tight, like there’s a band wrapped around my ribs that keeps getting tighter. “I don’t want them to go,” I whisper.
“I know,” he says, and there’s understanding in his voice that tells me he gets it, really gets it. “But they have to. You know they have to.”
I nod against his chest because I do know.
Because Maverick and I were in New Orleans with Ingrid and her family, and I saw what it was like being around them, being a part of that family.
I felt the closeness, the craziness, and when Maverick told me that we were moving to LA the same time as Ingrid and South, the only person, besides Maverick, that I knew here was Ingrid.
She was my safe place for a while.
Someone I could lean on.
Someone I could look to as the mother figure I needed.
She’s been my rock, and now she’s going back home, and I am going to miss her more than I ever thought I possibly could.
Because I didn’t spend enough time with her.
I just assumed she would always be here. Her, South, and little Louis.
I didn’t make the time, and she’s leaving.
And my heart hurts for a friend who’s grieving, and now I will be grieving for my friends.
We stand here for a few minutes, Phoenix holding me while I try to get my emotions under control. Finally, I pull back and wipe my eyes with the back of my hand.
“I should go say goodbye properly,” I whimper.
“You sure you’re ready?”
I take a deep breath and nod. “Yeah. I’m ready.”
When we return to the main room, I find Ingrid sitting on one of the couches, Louis crawling around on the floor at her feet. She looks up when she sees me approaching, and I can tell from her expression that she knows I’ve been crying.
She weakly smiles, patting the couch beside her. “Come here,” she says.
I sink down next to her, and for a moment, we just watch Louis try to capture Dracula’s tail. The cat is being surprisingly patient with the baby’s attempts, occasionally swishing his tail just out of reach in what looks like a game.
“I’m gonna miss you, so freaking much,” I finally say, trying to fight back a wave of fresh tears.
“I’m going to miss you too,” Ingrid replies, her voice thick. “More than you know.”
“Will you call? When you get there, I mean. Let us know you made it safely?”
“Of course.” She reaches over and takes my hand.
“And Clover? This doesn’t change anything between us.
You’re still going to be my friend, no matter how many miles are between us.
” I squeeze her hand and nod, not trusting my voice.
“Besides…” she adds with a watery smile, “… someone needs to keep an eye on all these idiots. Make sure they don’t do anything too stupid. You can be their mother figure now.”
That startles a laugh out of me. “I think I can manage that. Please give Kaia a huge hug from me.”
Ingrid fights back her emotions and nods. “I will.”
I lean in, embracing her again, breathing her in, and taking in as much of her to memory as I can. Then I let her go, she smiles at me, and she stands to continue packing.
The rest of the evening passes too quickly. Brothers drinking in celebration, everyone passing by South and Ingrid to say their goodbyes. There’s an undercurrent of sadness beneath the celebration, the knowledge that tomorrow will mark the end of something important.
Around ten o’clock, I find myself standing in the parking lot with almost the entire club, watching South load his bikes into the back of a borrowed truck. Ingrid has Louis strapped into his car seat, double-checking the buckles for the third time.
“You sure you don’t want an escort?” Alpha asks. “At least for the first few hours?”
South shakes his head. “We’ll be fine. Besides, you guys have enough to deal with here.”
Maverick steps forward, extending his hand to South. “You take care of them,” he says simply.
“Always,” South replies, gripping Maverick’s hand firmly.
South turns to Alpha, giving him a back slap. “Thanks, Pres. For taking us in when I needed it. You will never truly understand what it meant to me to be here for the final days with Bella.”
“Oh, brother, I understand perfectly. And if there’s ever a time when you and Ingrid wanna come back, our house is your house,” Alpha replies.
Ingrid smiles, a tear sliding down her cheek. “Thank you… all of you,” she says.
Then it’s time for the real goodbyes, the ones that matter. Ingrid hugs each of us in turn, lingering longest with the women. Haven, Rhyan, and me.
When she gets to me, she holds on tight. “Thank you,” she whispers in my ear. “For everything. For being a surrogate daughter when I needed one the most.”
“Thank you for teaching me what it means to be strong,” I whisper back. “And for being the mother I needed.”
We pull apart, both of us crying now, and I watch as she climbs into the passenger seat of the truck. South gives Louis one last kiss on the forehead before closing the back door and walking around to the driver’s side.
He gives us one last final wave, then he ducks into the truck, closing the door.
I inhale sharply, clinging to Phoenix for dear life as the engine starts with a rumble that seems too loud in the quiet parking lot.
Slowly, the truck pulls away from the clubhouse, taking with it two people and a baby who’ve become essential parts of our family.
I stand here watching until the taillights disappear around the corner, Phoenix’s arm warm and solid around my shoulders. Around us, the rest of the club begins to disperse, heading back inside the clubhouse, but I’m not ready to move just yet.
“They’ll be okay,” Phoenix says quietly.
“I know,” I reply, and I do know. South and Ingrid are survivors, fighters. They’ll take care of each other and build something beautiful in New Orleans with Ingrid’s family, but that doesn’t make watching them leave any easier.
When we head back inside, the clubhouse feels different now, quieter somehow, even though most of the brothers are still in the main room. It’s the absence that’s noticeable, the lack of Louis’ happy babbling, the missing sound of Ingrid’s laughter.
I settle onto the couch next to Phoenix, curling into his side as the conversations around us gradually shift.
Ink and Nighthawk are deep in discussion about something that’s making Nighthawk blush, their body language suggesting their friendship is definitely evolving into something more.
Navy and Theo are playing pool, their usual competitive banter laced with an undercurrent of flirtation that’s become impossible to ignore.
“Looks like we’re not the only ones figuring things out,” I murmur to Phoenix, nodding toward Ink and Nighthawk.
Phoenix follows my gaze and grins. “About time. Ink’s been mooning over her for weeks.”
“And Navy and Theo?”
“Even more obvious. Theo’s been finding excuses to hang around Navy every chance he gets.”
I smile, watching our found family navigate their own relationships. There’s something comforting about it, this evidence that life goes on, that people find ways to connect, love, and build something good even after everything we’ve been through.
“Phoenix?” Maverick’s voice cuts through my observations.
We both look up to find my brother approaching, his expression serious but not angry. This is the conversation I’ve been dreading since we got back from Vegas, the one where Maverick and Phoenix finally hash out everything that’s happened.
The wedding—both of them.
What happened in the prison.
The clear tension between them when it comes to me.
This chat has been coming for a long time. I just hope it doesn’t end up with someone, or both of them, coming out of it with a black eye.
Or worse!
“Mav,” Phoenix replies, straightening slightly but not pulling away from me.
“Can we talk?” Maverick asks. “Outside?”
Phoenix looks at me, and I see the question in his eyes. I give him a small nod, trying to project more confidence than I feel. “Go,” I tell him. “I’ll be right here.”
I watch them walk toward the door, my stomach churning with anxiety. I hope Maverick won’t actually hurt Phoenix. We’re past that now, but the thought of them fighting, of this finally being the thing that breaks apart what we’ve built, makes me feel sick.