Chapter 41
Sophia
The sun was warm, the sky a perfect stretch of blue, and the rebuilt clubhouse stood tall behind the picnic tables, stronger, reinforced, gleaming with fresh paint and new steel. The Bloodline Saints MC had rebuilt not just walls, but hope.
Today was the first family picnic since the attack. And everyone came. A week ago, she couldn’t breathe in the dark. Now she was walking into sunlight with Grim’s hand on her back. Healing wasn’t linear, but today… today felt like another step forward.
Kids ran across the grass, shrieking with laughter.
Sweetbutts lounged under umbrellas, gossiping and sipping sweet tea.
Wives and girlfriends set out dishes on long tables covered in mismatched tablecloths.
The smell of grilled meat, fresh tortillas, and Havoc’s questionable “famous chili” drifted through the air.
Sophia stood beside Grim, holding a tray of empanadas she’d made that morning, golden, flaky, still warm. Grim carried the cooler like it weighed nothing, his hand brushing her back every few steps, as if reminding himself she was here, safe, real.
Avery spotted them first. She walked over, glowing, a little softer around the edges, one hand unconsciously resting on her small bump, with Rook hovering behind her like a guard dog.
“Sophia!” Avery squealed, hugging her carefully. “Oh my God, you look amazing.”
Sophia laughed. “You’re the one glowing.”
Rook grinned, resting a hand on Avery’s belly. “She’s reorganizing the entire apartment. I’m scared.”
Avery smacked his arm. “It’s called preparing, Noah.”
Grim actually smiled, a small, rare, soft thing, watching them bicker. Sophia’s heart warmed.
Lacey appeared beside them with a bright smile, slipping an arm around Sophia in a quick, warm squeeze. “You look beautiful,” she said softly, the kind of compliment that felt like a hug. “And those empanadas smell insane.”
Havoc, from across the yard, shouted, “BACK OFF, LACEY, I SAW THEM FIRST!”
Lacey rolled her eyes. “Ignore him. I always do.”
Brick and Ghost were manning the grill, Ghost flipping burgers while Brick tried (and failed) to keep Havoc from dumping half a bottle of hot sauce into the chili.
“Dude, stop,” Brick groaned. “People gotta eat this.”
Havoc climbed onto the picnic table — not dramatically, just Havoc being Havoc — waving an empanada like it was evidence in a court case.
“Alright, everybody shut up,” he announced. “I need to make something clear.”
The yard quieted, mostly because Havoc making declarations usually meant trouble.
He pointed at Sophia. “These empanadas? They’re dangerous.”
Sophia blinked. “Dangerous?”
Havoc nodded solemnly. “Yeah. Because if you keep cooking like this, Grim’s gonna have to fight off half the damn club.”
A few guys laughed. Grim did not.
Havoc held up the empanada. “I’m just saying, if she ever dumps you, Grim, I’m putting in my application.”
Grim’s head snapped toward him. “Havoc.”
Havoc shrugged. “What? I’m being respectful. I’m waiting my turn.”
Sophia snorted. “There is no turn.”
“See?” Havoc said, pointing at her. “Heartbreaker.”
Grim took a step forward, eyes narrowing.
Stone grabbed his arm. “Grim. He’s joking.”
Havoc grinned. “Mostly.”
Sophia laughed — really laughed — and the whole club lit up with it. Havoc puffed his chest like he’d won a prize.
For a split second, just one, Havoc’s grin softened. Not the wild, reckless one he wore like armor, but something quieter. Warmer. Proud. Like her laughter meant something to him in a way he’d never admit out loud.
His eyes flicked to Grim, then back to her, and there was understanding there. A kind she didn’t expect from him. A kind that said he saw more than he let on.
Then, just as quickly, the moment vanished beneath his usual chaos.
“Worth it,” he said, taking a huge bite of the empanada. “Totally worth dying for.”
The yard erupted in warm, familiar laughter, the kind that felt like home.
Grim glared at Havoc like he was calculating the exact number of punches required to make a point.
But when Sophia leaned into Grim’s side, still giggling, his arm slid around her waist automatically, possessively, protectively.
From the edge of the yard, Fish lifted two fingers in a subtle nod, the closest thing he ever gave to a smile. He’d been watching the perimeter the whole time, quiet, steady, making sure nothing and no one got too close.
It wasn’t belonging that struck her; she’d felt that for weeks.
It was joy. Real, bright, unexpected joy.
The kind she thought she’d lost forever.
And watching Grim laugh with Havoc, nod at Rook, trade quiet words with Stone…
that was what hit her. He wasn’t on the outside anymore. Neither of them were.
As the sun dipped lower, Stone called everyone together.
Ghost stepped forward when Stone called his name. “Ghost, you’ve been steady. You’ve been reliable. You’ve earned this.”
Stone held out the fresh patch.
Ghost didn’t smile, but his jaw tightened, eyes bright with something he didn’t let spill over. “Thank you,” he said quietly.
Havoc shouted, “He’s buying the first round!” The crowd roared. Ghost let Stone settle the cut on his shoulders, now complete. A full member. A brother.
The cheers rolled through the yard.
Brick drifted toward Grim as the noise swelled around them.
“I heard what you said,” Brick murmured. “About thinking before I move. About surviving the experience.”
Grim’s expression shifted, subtle but real. “You listened. That’s a start.”
Brick swallowed hard. “I’m trying. I know I’ve got a lot to learn.”
“You do,” Grim said. “But you’re getting closer.”
Brick nodded once, a quiet promise. “Thanks for coming for me. For not giving up.”
“I don’t give up on my own,” Grim said.
Brick blinked hard, then straightened, the moment settling between them like a step forward.
Sophia felt her throat tighten. This wasn’t just a club. It was a family.
As the noise died down, Grim stepped forward.
Sophia blinked. “Maddox?” He didn’t answer.
He faced Stone. “I’ve got something to say.”
The crowd quieted instantly.
Grim turned to Sophia, and the world seemed to fall away.
His voice was low, steady, rough with emotion he rarely let anyone see. “Sophia… you’re it for me.”
Her breath caught.
He swallowed hard. “My woman. My future. The only one I’ll ever choose.”
He took her hand.
The crowd erupted. Cheers. Whistles. Clapping.
Avery cried. Rook grinned. Havoc shouted something inappropriate. Stone gave a proud nod.
Sophia’s eyes filled with tears. She stepped into Grim’s arms, whispering against his chest, “I choose you.”
Grim cupped her face, voice breaking. “And I finally believe it.”
Sophia smiled through her tears, soft, certain, and fierce. “Then hear it again. I choose you every time.”
He kissed her, slow, deep, and reverent, as the Saints cheered around them, the rebuilt clubhouse standing strong behind them, and the sun dipped below the horizon like a blessing.
Family.
Found.
Forever.