The Epilogue
Arden
Two Weeks Later
I walk through the garage, running my eyes over all the new perks.
The place has really come together over the last two weeks, and I can hardly see the damage the fire did.
The walls are up, all the tools are back in their places, and everything has a fresh coat of paint on it.
What’s more, my new process is still working, and our men are moving efficiently through their projects, getting the work done more quickly than ever.
The place is full of cars and bikes, too, with several up on lifts to keep more of the floor open. Mars is bringing in more business than ever, and I know he feels like things are finally going his way.
But I have a surprise that’s going to make him even happier.
“Are you ready?” I ask, coming to a stop at his side.
He looks up and gives me that soft, gentle smile that I love so much about him. His hair is a bit shorter than it was, so he looks less like a lion, but that golden glow is still there. Those bright blue eyes and the love leaking out of them.
And when I look beyond him to the third in our little trio, I see a man whose darkness is growing a bit lighter. Orion will always be shadow to Mars’ flame, but his eyes don’t hold that wounded, secretive scar they used to. These days, he smiles more often.
Even lets Mars win arguments sometimes.
I’m about to give the two of them something that I hope will make their lives even easier.
“Follow me,” I say, my tone intentionally mysterious.
I lead them through the garage to the door in the back, which I’ve been telling them is for a storeroom that we don’t need yet.
I’m the only one who has the key to this ‘storeroom.’ And there’s a good reason for that.
I didn’t want them to see it until it was finished.
I pull the key from my pocket and unlock the door, then look over my shoulder at the two loves of my life, savoring the moment. They look like kids about to go to Disneyland, like they know that this is going to change their lives, but don’t understand how.
And God, do I love them.
My wonderful, trusting men. The ones who started out saving me, and now let me take care of them.
I turn the knob and throw the door open, walking through into the space I’ve spent two weeks designing.
Mars follows me, and then Orion, and I watch their faces, loving every second of it. They looked shocked, delighted, and then confused.
“What is this?” Orion asks.
I turn to look at what he’s seeing, and grin to myself.
The space turned out beautifully. It’s half library, half bar.
An old jukebox takes up a section of one wall, while a bar with a full selection of whiskey sits on another.
Books line the third wall, and I’ve made sure they include some of Mars’ favorite.
A drafting desk takes up a corner, for Orion to design new projects, and four large leather easy chairs take up the space in the middle.
At the edge, right in front of the books, is a long couch big enough to fit three people who want to lay down.
“I built you a speakeasy,” I say casually. “Daniel and I have been working on it for weeks.”
“What?” Mars whispers, running his finger along the back of a chair and turning in wonder. “You did this? Why?”
I give him a soft, secret smile. “I heard a rumor that sometimes you need to get away from the noise of the world. Now you can do that in your own garage. No one else has the key. It belongs to the three of us, and that’s it. That’s all.”
I watch his face go from shocked to deeply, deeply affected, and I know I chose right.
I was hoping this could be a sanctuary, but I wasn’t sure. Now, looking at him, I know it will be. And I know that making it our special club–with special keys–gives it just enough exclusivity.
One more thing that belongs to the three of us.
Orion walks to the final wall, which I haven’t seen yet, and runs his fingers across it. “Cam’s work.”
It’s not a question, and when I turn to see what he’s looking at, I gasp. I asked Cam to do some artwork for the room but left it up to him, and never saw his final plans.
He’s branded an enormous oak into the wall, and I’ve never seen anything more perfect. It’s Mars, with his steady presence, and it’s Orion, with his beauty and constantly movement.
It’s the motorcycle club. And the garage.
And it’s the roots we’re putting down here. Together.
The three of us.
“Can I stay?” I finally whisper. “Can I... stay?”
Mars and Orion turn at the same time and envelope me in their arms, the two of them surrounding me so completely that they cut out the light.
“Do you actually think we’d let you go?” Orion whispers, his lips against the top of my head. “Do you actually think any of us would survive that? You’re ours, Arden. And that’s never going to change.”
I don’t answer.
My heart, healthy for the first time in months, has climbed right into my throat at the thought that I’ve finally, finally home. And it’s with these two men, my fire and my shadow, in this mountain town that I came to by accident.
A town I never meant to find.
And a town I know I’ll never leave again.