Chapter 22
Chains POV
The kiss followed me home. Not because I couldn’t stop thinking about it, but because I couldn’t stop feeling it. That surprised me more than anything. I’d spent years convincing myself I didn’t need any of it: a relationship, a future, or a family.
Then Cleo kissed me, and suddenly I was sitting in my truck outside my cabin, staring through the windshield like I’d forgotten how to function. I laughed quietly and rubbed a hand over my jaw. Forty-three years old. Vice President of Devil Creek MC.
One of the most respected men in the club, and one woman had managed to turn my brain to mush.
Pathetic.
The thought should have bothered me. Instead, it made me smile, because for the first time in years, driving home hadn’t felt lonely.
I’d left Cleo’s porch because it was the right thing to do, because she’d trusted me with her heart, because after everything we’d shared, she deserved patience. That didn’t mean leaving had been easy. Hell, it had taken every ounce of self-control I had.
Eventually, I went inside, slept surprisingly well, and woke the next morning feeling something I hadn’t felt in a long time.
Peace.
Then my phone rang. I didn’t even need to look at the screen. Only one person would be calling this early on a Saturday. I answered. “Morning.”
“Morning, lover boy.” I shut my eyes.
“Fucksake, it’s too early to deal with your shit, Rage.”
Rage laughed. The bastard sounded entirely too pleased with himself.
“So…”
“No.”
“You don’t even know what I was going to ask.”
“Yes, I do.”
“Did you kiss her?”
I hung up.
----
Cleo POV
I woke up smiling for exactly three seconds. Then I remembered why. The smile came straight back. I stared at the ceiling and let myself enjoy it.
The conversation, the honesty, and the kiss. Most of all, I remembered Gabe leaving. Not because he’d wanted to, but because he’d respected me enough to.
After everything we’d shared, he’d kissed me and gone home.
No pressure, no expectations. Just trust.
My chest squeezed because somehow that meant almost as much as the kiss itself.
The sound of footsteps thundered down the hallway. I smiled immediately. Tommy.
Three.
Two.
One.
My bedroom door burst open.
“Mom!”
I laughed. “Good morning, Tommy.”
“Can we go now?”
I blinked. “Go where?”
He stared at me. “The clubhouse.” Of course.
“It’s seven-thirty.”
“So?”
“So normal people are still sleeping.”
Tommy considered that. Then shrugged. “Grandpa isn’t.”
Honestly? Fair point. Dad was probably already awake, coffee in hand, annoying somebody. The thought made me smile. Tommy pointed immediately.
“You’re happy.”
I narrowed my eyes. “You’re nosy.”
Skylar appeared in the doorway carrying her sketchbook. “She’s definitely happy.”
Traitor.
“Get dressed.”
Both children cheered. Apparently, that was all the confirmation they needed.
----
The clubhouse felt like home now, that thought still surprised me sometimes. Six months ago, I hadn’t known any of these people. Now they were family.
The moment we stepped inside, Tommy vanished. Skylar lasted slightly longer. Right until she spotted Maddox. Then she disappeared too. I smiled and shook my head. Before looking up and finding Gabe.
He was sitting at one of the tables with a coffee mug in his hand. His eyes found mine instantly. A slow smile appeared, and just like that, the room felt different.
Warmer.
“Morning.” His voice settled somewhere deep in my chest.
I smiled back. “Morning.”
Dad appeared carrying coffee before either of us could say anything else. Completely oblivious, or pretending to be. Honestly, it could have gone either way.
“Morning, sweetheart.”
“Morning, Dad.”
Mom followed behind him, carrying pastries. Her eyes moved between Gabe and me. Then she smiled. Uh-oh. I knew that smile.
“Mom.”
“What?”
Dangerous woman. The chair beside Gabe sat empty. Without really thinking about it, I sat down, and his arm brushed mine. Barely.
Yet suddenly I was aware of everything, the smell of his coffee, the warmth of his shoulder, and the way his mouth twitched like he was trying not to smile.
Across from us, Mom looked delighted. Dad groaned. “Oh no.”
“What?” I asked.
Dad pointed at his wife. “She’s happy.”
“I am,” Mom shrugged.
“That’s never good for the rest of us,” Dad groaned again.
Gabe laughed.
The traitor.
The peace lasted exactly four minutes. Then Tommy came running into the room.
“Captain!”
Silence. Gabe blinked, slowly.
“Captain?”
Tommy nodded enthusiastically. “You.”
“Why?” Gabe asked, shocked.
Tommy looked personally offended that he had to explain. “Because every club needs a captain.”
I bit my lip, Dad looked interested, Mom covered her mouth, and Gabe pinched the bridge of his nose.
“That’s not how motorcycle clubs work.”
“Too late.” Tommy laughed.
“Tommy.” Gabe sighed.
“Captain.”
The room erupted. Laughter bounced off every wall, even I couldn’t stop laughing.
Unfortunately for Gabe, it got worse because that was exactly when Roman walked in, coffee in hand, with Bolt and Mia behind him.
“What did I miss?”
Tommy pointed. “Captain.”
Roman stopped walking. A slow grin spread across his face. The kind that promised trouble. He laughed and said, “Oh, that’s outstanding.”
“NO,” Gabe shouted.
“Oh, absolutely,” Roman smirked.
“Rage.”
“Morning, Captain.”
The laughter started all over again. Gabe looked toward the ceiling, like divine intervention was his only remaining option.
Sadly, none arrived.
----
The teasing continued for most of the morning.
Mostly because Roman had the maturity of a twelve-year-old when given new ammunition. I was still smiling about it when Skylar appeared beside our table. Sketchbook hugged against her chest.
“Can I show you something?”
I smiled. “Always.”
She looked at Gabe. “Only if you want to,” he smiled at her.
“I do.”
He set his coffee down immediately. Giving her his full attention, the way he always did.
Skylar handed over the sketchbook, and Gabe looked down. For a moment, neither of us spoke.
The drawing was of the clubhouse, mountains behind it, bikes parked outside, people scattered across the yard. Dad stood beside one of the bikes, Mom was next to him. Lola sat in the grass, Maddox stood nearby. Roman leaned against the clubhouse wall, looking mildly annoyed, which felt accurate.
Then my eyes drifted to the center of the page, and my breath caught because Skylar had drawn herself there. Tommy was beside her, I was on one side, and Gabe was on the other.
The four of us are standing together. Not separated. Not scattered around the page.
Together.
Like she’d never questioned it. Like it was simply where he belonged.
Gabe went very still. “You put me in the middle.”
Skylar frowned. Confused. “That’s where you stand.”
Gabe looked back at the drawing. “The middle?”
She nodded. “You’re always with us.”
The simple certainty in her voice hit me straight in the chest because she wasn’t making a statement. She was drawing her world, and Gabe was in it.
His jaw tightened slightly. Then he smiled. Soft. Warm. “It’s beautiful, sweetheart.”
Skylar beamed. “Really?”
“Yes, really,” he smiled at her.
A moment later, she wandered back toward Lola and Maddox. Already focused on something else. The silence she left behind settled around us.
I looked at Gabe. He was still watching her. Something deep and thoughtful was moving behind his eyes. When he finally looked at me, neither of us spoke.
We didn’t need to.
----
Mom found me later that afternoon, or cornered me, depending on who you ask. I was helping dry dishes when she appeared beside me.
“You’re happy.”
I nearly dropped a plate. “Subtle.”
“I wasn’t aiming for subtle.” I sighed.
Mom’s smile softened. “You deserve it, sweetheart.”
The words caught me off guard because part of me still wasn’t entirely sure they were true. Mom saw it immediately, of course she did.
“You spent years surviving, Cleo.”
My throat tightened. Mom reached for my hand. “But surviving and living aren’t the same thing.”
Silence settled between us. Gentle. Honest.
“You don’t have to carry everything alone anymore.”
My eyes burned. Damn it.
Mom pulled me into a hug before I could pretend otherwise. The woman cheated; she used affection as a weapon.
“I’m okay,” I muttered.
“I know.” She kissed the top of my head. “And that’s why you’re finally ready.”
Maybe she was right, because for the first time in a very long time, the future didn’t feel frightening. It felt possible.
----
Chains POV
The day passed more easily than any day had a right to. I found myself watching Cleo more than once, not because I couldn’t help it, but because I genuinely enjoyed it. Watching her laugh with Stella, rolling her eyes at Rage, watching her mother Tommy, and encouraging Skylar.
For years, I’d convinced myself that wasn’t something I wanted: a family or a future. People depending on me. Yet standing there in the middle of the clubhouse, listening to Tommy argue with Rage and Skylar explain a drawing to Maddox and Lola, I felt something settle inside me.
Evening arrived quietly. Families drifted toward rooms, brothers headed home. The clubhouse settled. Tommy was half asleep on his feet, and Skylar looked exhausted, too. I found Cleo near the entrance to the common room, and her smile still managed to hit me square in the chest.
“You ready?” She nodded.
Together, we gathered the kids. Tommy immediately grabbed my hand. Completely unconcerned by the fact that it nearly stopped me breathing.
“Come on, Captain.”
I sighed. Behind us, Rage nearly fell over laughing. The nickname was never going away.
#######
The hallway was quiet. Tommy and Skylar disappeared into their rooms ahead of us, arguing over whose turn it was to use the bathroom. I smiled, listening to them. Then looked at Cleo. Neither of us seemed particularly eager to say goodnight, which felt new and strangely wonderful.
“Today was nice.”
Her smile softened. “Yeah.”
My chest tightened. In the best possible way. “Tomorrow.”
She smiled. I smiled back. Then I leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her forehead.
Simple. Gentle. Perfect.
“Goodnight, Cleo.”
“Goodnight, Gabe.”
I walked toward my room, feeling her eyes on me the entire way, and for the first time in a very long time, tomorrow felt like something worth looking forward to.