Chapter 39 Dakota
DAKOTA
With Stiff’s broad body between my legs, his muscular torso to cling to, and the predatory rumble of the engine underneath me while the wind cools my face, I totally understand why they love motorcycles so much.
Maybe when I’m not covered in blood spatter and have a chance to process the trauma of…
of everything, we can try again and I can relax into it and enjoy the feel of the road beneath us and the wind in my hair.
But for now, all I want is to curl up somewhere safe and squeeze and hug Logan and tell him I love him, and maybe be squeezed and hugged by someone who’ll tell me the same thing.
Logan, on the other hand, is having the time of his life.
He’s sitting in front of Lash, who’s got his arm protectively around him.
Even they aren’t happy with having Logan ride like this, but it’s a risk we needed to take if we wanted to get out of there before the police showed up.
Jackal seemed confident that there wouldn’t be any repercussions for what happened to Dillard, but being found at the scene of the crime wouldn’t exactly make things any easier for us.
So with my heart in my throat, I put my trust in Lash to keep my boy safe.
Logan’s face is one big smile, completely unafraid of the high speed and the wind in his hair.
The biker genes run strong in him, another sign that Ice truly was his real father, I suppose.
I foresee a lot to handle in my future as he grows up.
We roar into the club and finally slow down in front of the church. I climb off with wobbly legs, mostly held up by adrenaline. Almost before the engines die, Hellfire comes charging down the front steps, eager for news.
Jackal holds up a hand. “Dillard’s out of the picture. We’ll report fully later. We’re taking Dakota and Logan to the apartment.”
Hellfire takes a look between me, Logan and the guys, then with a resigned sigh like something he had long expected to happen finally happened, he nods.
“Fine. As long as I know the fucker’s dead, and you come by my office before the end of the day.
This could get messy.” He heads back in, but turns at the top of the stairs.
“The end of the day, boys. Don’t fucking forget.
” And then, more mumbling to himself than to us, “I fucking knew it. The moment they brought her to the fucking club, I fucking knew it.” And then he’s inside.
Jackal leads the way, seeming as eager as me to get back to decompress.
Lash herds a laughing Logan ahead of him while making dinosaur sounds.
He’s got the helmet with him, and I’ve had to promise to get Mr. Larson back ASAP from our car.
Stiff holds my hand in a firm grip while he walks with me, like my emotional support biker.
Inside, Jackal and Stiff squeeze me in between them on the couch. Lash sits close, and Logan climbs into his lap and curls up. Lash puts a hand protectively on his back.
And then I just deflate, like a popped balloon.
A shiver chills me when I realize how close today was to going completely, fatally wrong, in so many ways.
I can barely believe I’m actually alive, that Logan is alive, that all of my guys are alive, and it was so close so many times.
Pile on all the ugly things Dillard said, and I can’t hold it in anymore.
A sudden sob racks me right before the floodgates open.
Jackal pulls me in tight, pressing my face against his broad chest, while Stiff wraps his arm around my waist and presses in close behind me.
“Is Mommy okay?” Logan looks at me with concern.
“She will be, big guy,” Lash says and ruffles his hair. “It was a difficult day. You were super brave, though. We’re all so proud of you. You’re a real motorcycle man.”
The way Logan beams at the praise has me smiling, even through the tears. And when Logan leans in close and hugs Lash tightly, I can feel my heart swell.
“Yeah, you did real good, little man.” Lash sends me a little smile while he strokes Logan’s back.
After a good while of just sitting together and letting them comfort me, I finally brush the last of the tears off my face and find my voice again. “So does that mean it’s over?”
“Depends on what you mean.” Stiff runs his fingers up and down my arm in a soothing motion. “Dillard is gone.”
I nod, brushing my cheek against Jackal. “I guess what I mean is, am I safe?” I should be happy, but it doesn’t bring Georgia back.
“I feel like you could do with some protecting still. I’d hate to see all our hard work wasted,” Jackal muses.
Lash nods in agreement. “We’ve invested a lot of time and effort, after all. If we just let her go now, who knows what kinda trouble she might get into?”
“Know what you mean,” Stiff chimes in. “We better keep her close.”
“Um, I’m right here guys.”
“I know you are, that’s the whole point.” Stiff captures my jaw and kisses me softly.
Jackal looks more serious. “I think it would be a good idea to give things a couple days to settle before you start wandering on your own. The worst is probably over since almost all of this was a product of Dillard protecting his own ass, but he used his position as a cop to get a lot of people to help him with his dirty work.”
Lash nods. “Besides, why would you need to go back out there when you’ve got three men in fucking love with you here?”
“Wait, say that again?”
He cradles Logan to his chest and moves to crouch in front of me. There’s a whole world of emotion in his beautiful eyes as he cradles the back of my head and pulls me into a kiss. “I love you.”
The sound of those words hits like a lightning strike. Like the sheer power of them sends electricity arcing across my skin.
I don’t get a chance to respond before Jackal yanks me up into his lap. He places a kiss on me that has my toes curling and me clinging to him with my arms around his neck. When he finally lets me up, he says, “I fucking love you. We’re not letting you go.”
Stiff watches us all with a wistful look on his face. “I didn’t think I’d ever get this fucking chance. I don’t want to let it go, so yeah, I’m all in. I love both of you.”
In Lash’s arms, Logan settles sleepily and wraps his little arms around his neck. “Love you, too,” he mumbles then starts snoring again.
It takes a second before we’re all laughing, trying not to make it too loud, so we don’t wake him again. “Well, if Logan says so, I guess I can’t argue with that. You know, Jessica warned me. She said that bikers fall hard and fall fast.”
“We do a lot hard and fast,” Lash teases.
I chew my lower lip nervously for a moment. Loss brought me to them, but it gave me so much as well. “I love you, too.”
The guys look at each other for a moment, and I swear there’s a whole silent conversation that flashes between them in the span of a micro second. Then Stiff nods with a hint of a smirk. “Sounds good to us.”
Better than good.
It sounds perfect.