Chapter 63
Reaper
“Keep her busy for the day,” I told Finn that morning.
He gaped at me with his eyebrow cocked. “You want me to take your girl out for the day?”
“I want you to distract her, not flirt with her.”
He grinned. “Wouldn’t dream of it, Pres, but she’s gonna ask questions.”
“Then lie better than you usually do.”
He laughed, clapped me on the shoulder, and walked off muttering something about sainthood and babysitting duty. I watched them ride out, Lucy perched behind him, and the knot in my chest tightened.
I had work to do. Big work.
The backyard was a mess, but the brothers showed up for me. Even some of the club girls pitched in—Honey with her easy laugh, Sasha with her sharp wit, and Raven with her sly smirk. They’d taken to Lucy fast, pulling her into their drinks and their conversations.
We strung fairy lights from the fence posts over the old oak tree, wrapped beams until the place looked like it belonged in a dream.
Fake flowers lined the railings. The rough picnic tables were wiped down and set with mismatched tablecloths and drinks.
Music hummed through the air. Link manned the grill like a warrior. Nobody, not even me, was allowed near.
It wasn’t fancy, but it was ours.
Hours passed as the sun dipped low, and then I heard her sweet laugh before I saw her. She walked into the backyard beside Finn, boots crunching gravel, eyes wide, shopping bags falling from her hands.
She stopped, mouth open, wide eyes darting around the space, taking in all the changes.
Everyone turned.
Club girls smiled. The brothers raised their beers. Riot gave me the faintest nod, and Finn winked at me before gently guiding her towards the fire pit, where we’d made her a seat.
She was glowing and surrounded by people who loved her, laughing at something Finn said, looking like she belonged. Because she did. She always had. She just didn’t know it. Hell, I hadn’t known it to start. It had crept up on me.
My palms were sweating, which was ridiculous because I’d survived wars, betrayal, and come near death. But this was something else entirely.
I walked towards her, and her eyes found mine, soft and curious.
I dropped to one knee, and the entire world stilled.
“Lucy,” I said, voice shaky, nerves showing. “You brought fire into my life when I was standing in ash. You gave me a reason to breathe again. To fight again. I can’t—no, won’t—imagine this world without you in it.”
Her lips parted, and her eyes filled with tears.
“I didn’t think I’d ever be the kind of man who got to have someone like you. I’ve done too much. Lost too much. But you... you stayed. Now, I need to prove to you that I’m worth the fire you lit in me.”
I pulled out the ring. It was simple silver. Engraved inside were the words, ‘Burn with me.’
“You’re already my old lady,” I said, my throat tight, “but will you marry me?”
A long heartbeat, then she launched at me, arms around my neck, laughter in my ear, yeses coming fast and breathless. “Yes, yes, yes, of course, yes!”
The ring slid onto her finger perfectly.
Cheers erupted. Riot barked approval. Someone, probably Link, whistled loud enough to startle the birds. Finn whooped like it was his own wedding.
I stood, still holding her, and pulled my kutte off.
“Just until you get your own,” I murmured.
Her hands trembled as she pulled it on. It drowned her a little, but she looked right in it. Like she’d always been meant to wear my colours.
She beamed at me. Pure light. Pure home. My woman. My future. The wife I never thought I’d deserve.
But she proved me wrong every day. She wasn’t going anywhere, and it was my turn to prove I’d never let her down. Not once. Not ever.
She stood, glowing in the firelight, my patch over her shoulders, my ring on her finger, and all I could think was mine.
Not in a possessive way. She was mine the way a soul finds its match.
Mine, because she chose me. Even after all the shit I’d dragged her through with Caleb, Gabby, and nearly losing her to the Fangs.
Maria stepped forward, her coffee mug still in hand. Her voice carried over the cheers, calm and certain. “Family. That’s what she is. Don’t any of you forget it.”
The noise softened, turned reverent. Nods rippled through the crowd, a couple women wiping at their eyes. Maria brushed her hand over Lucy’s arm, steady and protective, and Lucy’s breath hitched. Maria had anchored her in ways I couldn’t.
Across the fire, Riot leaned back, grin sharp as a blade. He lifted his beer high.
“’Bout damn time, Pres. Thought I was gonna have to drag your stubborn ass there myself.” The club roared with laughter, but his voice dropped low when he leaned towards me. “You got her. Don’t let go.”
I nodded once. He’d been watching me fight it from the start. Now, he knew I’d finally stopped running.
Maria tried to step past, but Riot’s arm hooked her waist and tugged her down onto his lap. She yelped, swatted at him, but her laughter betrayed her. He kissed and sucked her neck bold as ever, and the brothers jeered good-naturedly. Maria rolled her eyes but melted into him, smiling wide.
Lucy laughed beside me, and damn, I was smiling too. Riot and Maria. Me and Lucy. The club watching, not with suspicion, not with knives drawn, but with pride and acceptance.
I pulled Lucy closer, kissed her temple, and let Riot’s voice cut through the noise.
“Raise ’em high, brothers. To the Pres and his old lady!”
Bottles shot up. Glasses too. Even Maria’s mug.
The roar rattled the trees as beer spilled, smoke curled, and voices thundered into the night. For Lucy. For us.
Lucy hid her face in my chest, laughing through her tears. My arms tightened around her.
The night rolled on with beer, burnt barbecue, and music from the old jukebox. The girls pulled Lucy into their circle. The brothers clapped me on the back, muttering some version of “’Bout damn time.”
Even Keno came over, cigarette dangling, scowl in place. He jerked his chin at Lucy, who was laughing with Maria and Finn by the fire.
“She’s good for you,” he said, flicking ash. “Brings your walls down.”
I didn’t dodge it. “She makes me want to be a man Caleb would’ve been proud of,” I told him.
Keno’s eyes flicked from Lucy back to me. He exhaled slow.
“Then don’t mess it up.”
“I won’t,” I said. “I can’t.”
He nodded once, then clapped my shoulder.
Later, when the fire burned low, Lucy curled against me on the porch couch, her head on my shoulder, my arm wrapped around her.
“Do you feel different?” she asked softly.
“Yeah,” I admitted. “I feel like I finally stopped running.”
She was quiet for a moment. “Do you still want that house you were looking at?”
“You know about that?”
“You mentioned it to Riot last night.”
“I was gonna show it to you tomorrow.”
She looked up at me, eyes warm. “Then tomorrow,” she whispered, “you’ll show me the place where we start the rest of our life.” My heart grew two sizes with her words as warmth flooded through me.
“Tomorrow,” I promised. “Wherever we start, it’ll be home because you’re there.”
She smiled and curled closer. The fire cracked. The night hummed with my brothers, my family.
And for the first time in my life, I wasn’t afraid of tomorrow.