Chapter 9 - Wilder #2
He sets down his papers, giving me his full attention. That cold gray gaze has made hardened criminals confess their sins. Right now, it feels like it's piercing straight through me.
"I'm listening."
I take another deep breath. "It's about Emma."
His expression doesn't change, but something shifts in his eyes. "What about my daughter?"
"We've been seeing each other," I say, the words coming out in a rush. "For the past week. I should have told you sooner, but I wanted to be sure it was serious before I came to you."
Silence falls over the office, heavy and oppressive. Reaper doesn't move, doesn't blink, doesn't give any indication he's heard me except for the slight tightening of his jaw.
"And is it?" he finally asks, his voice dangerously quiet. "Serious?"
"Yes," I say without hesitation. "For both of us. I know how this looks, like I took advantage of the situation, of your trust. But it's not like that. I care about her. Deeply."
Reaper stands slowly, his palms flat on the desk. "You expect me to believe you developed genuine feelings for my nineteen-year-old daughter in the span of what? A few days?"
"It started the day I picked her up from the train station," I admit. "When I took that knife for her, it wasn't just because she's your daughter. It was because I couldn't bear the thought of her getting hurt."
"So you decided to fuck her instead?" His voice rises slightly. "While I was out risking my life, you were back here seducing my child?"
"It wasn't like that," I insist, though I know how it sounds. "Emma made her own choices. She's an adult, Reaper. A strong, independent woman who knows her own mind."
"She's barely nineteen!"
"And I'm thirty, I know." I don't back down. "The age difference matters less than how we feel about each other. How I treat her. How I respect her."
Reaper circles the desk slowly, like a predator stalking its prey. I force myself to remain seated, to not show fear even as my every instinct screams to run.
"You went behind my back," he says, his voice deadly calm. "With my daughter. After I trusted you to protect her."
"I did protect her," I respond. "I still am, and I always will. Nothing matters more to me than her safety and happiness."
"Pretty words from the man who's been secretly dating my daughter for a week." He stops directly in front of me. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't put a bullet in your head right now."
I stand to face him, refusing to have this conversation looking up at him. "Because Emma would never forgive you," I say simply. "And because I love her."
The words hang in the air between us. I hadn't planned to say them, haven't even said them to Emma yet, but I know in my bones they're true.
"Love," Reaper repeats, like he's testing the word. "You expect me to believe that?"
"I don't expect anything," I tell him honestly. "I'm here out of respect. Because Emma deserves better than secrets and lies. Because you deserved to hear it from me directly."
"Did Evelyn know about this?" he asks suddenly.
I nod. "She figured it out the night of the Charles raid. She gave me a week to tell you myself. I should have told you sooner, but I was a coward. I kept finding reasons to put it off."
Reaper stares at me for a long moment, his expression unreadable. Then, to my surprise, he laughs—a short, humorless sound.
"Jesus Christ," he mutters, running a hand over his face. "Of all the men in the world, my daughter chooses one of my soldiers."
"If it helps," I offer, "she spent most of her life hating everything about the MC world. I'm the exception, not the rule."
"That doesn't help at all," he snaps, but there's less heat in it. He walks to the window, staring out at the compound. "Does she make you happy? Truly happy?"
The question catches me off guard. "Yes," I answer without hesitation. "Happier than I've ever been."
He nods, still facing away from me. "And you? Do you make her happy?"
"I think so," I say. "I hope so. I try every day."
"She's going back to college," he points out. "She has a life, a future that doesn't include outlaw motorcycle clubs."
"I know. I support that. Her education, her dreams… They matter to me because they matter to her." I take a step closer. "We're figuring it out. She's planning to spend the summer here."
Reaper turns back to face me, his expression softening slightly. "You realize what you're asking? To date my daughter, knowing the life we lead? The dangers, the enemies we make?"
"I'm not asking your permission," I say, then quickly add, "though I'd like your blessing. I'm telling you how things are. How they're going to be. I love Emma, and I'll stand by her whether you approve or not."
For a tense moment, I think he might throw a punch. His hands clench at his sides, his jaw working as he processes my words. Then, surprisingly, he extends his hand.
"If you hurt her," he says as I take it, "I'll kill you slowly. That's not a threat. It's a promise."
"I understand." I meet his gaze steadily. "I'd expect nothing less."
"And if you ever put the club at risk because of your relationship with my daughter, I'll strip your patch and exile you so fast your head will spin."
"Also fair."
He releases my hand and returns to his desk. "I'm not happy about this, Wilder. But Emma's an adult. I've spent too many years pushing her away to start controlling her life now." He sits heavily in his chair. "Just... be worthy of her. She deserves the best."
"On that, we completely agree," I tell him, relief washing through me. It's not approval, but it's not a bullet either. "Thank you."
"Don't thank me yet," he warns. "I reserve the right to change my mind if you fuck this up."
I nod, understanding the dismissal.
Emma is waiting in the common room, her face anxious. "Well? Am I planning a funeral or a celebration?"
I pull her into my arms, not caring who sees. "Neither."
She laughs in disbelief, the sound muffled against my chest. "He didn't threaten to kill you?"
"Oh, he definitely threatened to kill me," I clarify. "But he's not going to. At least not today."
"Progress," she says, looking up at me with those amber eyes that captured me from the first moment. "I guess we'll take it."
I kiss her softly, right there in the middle of the clubhouse where anyone can see. For the first time in a week, I don't have to worry about who might be watching, who might tell Reaper.
"I love you, Emma Kane," I whisper against her lips.
Her eyes widen in surprise, then soften with emotion.
"I love you too, Rex Torres," she whispers back. "Even if you are an outlaw."
"Your outlaw," I correct her, pulling her closer. "Always."