by A. J. Downey
“Hey! What’s going on out here!?” Reaver was trudging across the sand, his wife leaning into his side, arm around his waist. Her eyes were so very green and glowed fiercely with a happiness and relief I could almost begin to imagine. I’m pretty sure I felt some of the very same the night Thirteen had been shot, when he’d touched my hair and proven that he was very much alive and I could believe that he really was okay.
“I think Dani just asked me to marry her.” Thirteen held up his hand and I felt myself blush furiously. Reaver’s wife, Hayden, laughed.
“Did you say yes?” she asked.
The silence behind me lasted a hair’s breadth too long, I whipped around when he didn’t deny it and blinked. Thirteen was considering my face very carefully, his eyes gleaming with a combination of mischief and, underlying that, a grave seriousness.
“I think, if she really wanted, that I would let her make an honest man out of me.”
My butt planted into the sand as we held eye contact for what felt like forever. I thought about it, I mean really thought about it…
“Are you playing with me?” I asked softly.
“Serious as a fucking heart attack, Baby Girl. Think about it, I’ll leave it up to you.”
“I don’t have to.” I blurted. This was crazy, this was insane, did Thirteen just agree to marry me?
“Good, it’s settled then. We’ll work out the details later.” Reaver stretched luxuriously, Hayden taking the opportunity to lean into him harder.
“We were sent down to fetch you for breakfast,” she said and she winked at me as I sat in the warm sand stunned.
“You okay, Rocket?” Reaver asked.
I nodded mutely, not trusting my voice, and glanced back at Thirteen, who was smiling, an amused look on his face as his gaze roved me from head to toe.
“You should keep that suit,” Hayden said judiciously, “It wears better on you than it does me.”
“I’m sorry?” I said.
Reaver laughed, “Okay, you two. Breakfast. Club only, on the back patio. Ashton’s gonna have a fit if the food gets cold so let’s move it.”
Thirteen picked up his cup of coffee and downed it in three large swallows. He hoisted himself out of the hammock and reached down to help me to my feet. I let him heave me onto mine and retrieved the sunscreen and my cup of coffee.
“I have something for you,” I said to Reaver, “If it’s okay?” I checked with Hayden with a look and she smiled at me broadly and nodded.
I slipped Reaver’s switchblade from the Crown Royal bag at my hip and held it out to him.
“I don’t think I need this anymore and since it was your favorite…” I swallowed nervously and he beamed a smile at me.
“You sure?”
I glanced at Thirteen and smiled, “I’m sure.”
Reaver plucked the knife from my fingers and in a blink, simply made it disappear. He winked one of his bright blue eyes at me and his wife smiled up at him adoringly.
“Seriously, Ashton is a sweetheart and I don’t want her all butt hurt that we let breakfast get cold, let’s get a move on people.” Reaver steered his wife around and back toward the house and Thirteen curved his arms around my shoulders.
“You doing alright, Baby Girl?” he asked me low, so the two in front of us wouldn’t hear.
“Do you really mean it?” I asked.
“I don’t say things I don’t mean, Dani. I don’t ever want to let you go. It’s a weird as fuck way to get engaged and I feel kind of like a jackass for not doing it right –“ I stopped and pressed gentle fingertips to his lips.
“You’re really sure?” I asked and he smiled beneath the pads of my fingers, his blue green eyes dancing with laughter and light, and he nodded. I slipped my arms around his neck and hugged myself to him, his hard, strong arms going around my back he held me back.
“I love you,” I murmured, and he kissed my shoulder lightly.
“Hey! Food now you two!” Revelator yelled from the patio and with a slight laugh I pulled back from Thirteen.
“Shut the fuck up, Man! I just got engaged!” Thirteen hollered back and all movement on the back patio ceased.
I smiled, my heart taking flight when Ghost yelled down, “No shit!?” Shelly elbowed him in the ribs and the shouts and the cheering started. I laughed and Thirteen picked me up and swung me around.
Holy shit. I accidentally got engaged and it felt amazing!
“Really, forever?” I checked one last time.
“And ever,” he promised and we kissed.
We joined the rest of the MC for breakfast and I handed out the rest of my tokens of appreciation for all that they’d done.
For Dragon, a hair clasp of silver made into his namesake that was fashioned to hold his thick horsetail of hair. The eyes a rich garnet, a tourmaline in a rich amber color grasped in its jaws to give the appearance of breathing fire.
I’d made a tail holder for Trigger too; his was a silver disc with raised crosshairs like you would see through a sniper’s scope. Ghost had let me look through one. At the center of the disc, a perfectly round ruby. I’d made a heavy white gold ring for Ghost with the same motif at the center. A thank you for saving my life using their particular skillset.
For Revelator, a silver band fashioned with ivy vines around its circumference. Dray, I made a heavy silver ring, a rose in full bloom, a deep red garnet at its center to match his bike, which was singular to him. For Rush and Nox I made tags, each with the other brother’s name etched into them. I gave each to the opposite brother.
Duracell I gave a wide black leather bracelet with an old-fashioned silver key plate bolted to it. I gave the key on a black leather cord to Blue. Both of them traded looks and smiled at me, Duracell wickedly so, before hooking me around the back of my neck and kissing my forehead unexpectedly. I’d startled and he’d let me go as quickly as he’d grabbed me, and I smiled.
I was safe here, and I felt it keenly in that moment. I gave Doc a wide leather bracelet as well, only I’d fashioned a caduceus to his. He hugged me and let me go with a murmured thanks.
Finally I stopped in front of Archer, who was watching me curiously. I picked up his hand and dropped the hair tie into it and curled his fingers around the gold.
“Why?” he asked.
I smiled, “Because you’re family. I understand it now.” I murmured. He cocked his head to the side and opened his hand and looked down at it and his face collapsed into near tears. It was a gold disc, set with a tiger’s eye stone. Simple. Rush and Nox had told me it was their brother Grinder’s favorite stone and had told me about how close he and Archer were growing up. It felt right. Fitting.
“I don’t understand,” he said and tried to hand it back. I pushed his hand back towards him.
“Because you were there too, when Griz tried to take me. You were standing there side by side, ready to fight, to do whatever it was you needed to do to get me back for Thirteen and you did it without a second thought. Even though you don’t even like me that much.” I gave a brave little smile. Truthfully, Archer still intimidated and scared the ever living hell out of me with how intense he could be.
He nodded and looked thoughtfully out to sea and that was okay. I moved on to Disney and smiled.
“Me too?” he said, smiling.
I gave him a pin, a simple silver bar set with seven stones. Seven round cut stones. Ruby, yellow topaz, citrine, emerald, blue topaz, sapphire and finally amethyst. He blinked and smiled and took the delicate but strong pin in his long fingers and turned to his boyfriend.
“Pin this on me?” he asked. Aaron smiled warmly and pinned the rainbow pin to Disney’s cut, over his heart, just below his name flash. I smiled and hugged the slender man.
“Thank you.”
“Any time, Dani,” he said and pressed a kiss to the top of my head.
“Thank all of you, for what you did for me. For what you did for Thirteen, for us, so that there could be an ‘us’.” I sniffed and went to T
hirteen, who was seated at the table, and dropped into his lap. He put his arms around me and kissed my shoulder.
“Darlin’ you know you didn’t have to do any of this for any of us right?” Trig asked gently. “You’re supposed to be rebuilding a life for yourself out of these bits of metal and pretty rocks.”
“I have more,” I said softly and smiled. Ashton was braiding her man’s hair and smiling softly to herself as she bound the end with my gift. Her face was alight with pride and love.
“I think what the Big Man is trying to say is: we ‘preciate it, and thanks.” Dragon said with an affable grin. I smiled broadly.
Thirteen cuddled me close and the rest of the women were similarly close to their men. Reaver slid the ring with a bright blue topaz, the match for his eyes around and around on his thumb. Hayden smiled at her husband and raised the palm of his hand to her lips to press a kiss at its center. Reaver’s eyes closed and it was the most at peace I had ever seen the man. Like whatever demon resided inside him was kept at bay simply by his woman’s touch.
Thirteen gave me a gentle squeeze and I looked down at him and smiled.
“I love you, Baby Girl.”
“I love you, too.”
Safe. Loved. Family.
Never in a million years did I dream I would live to see the day, but I had, and it was here, and I vowed to be a smart girl and seize it. I kissed Thirteen under the bright, Florida summer sky and felt a little less damaged, a little more together and with a whole bright future in front of me.
Epilogue
Cutter…
“You doin’ alright, Captain?”
I blinked and looked up from where I’d been staring off into space, my gaze drifting downwards to Hannah Hossler crouched at my feet, her hands pressed to my knee. I smoothed fingers through her long blonde hair, an affectionate touch, and pursed my lips. She gave a sigh that was somewhere in between exasperated and pained.
“I can’t believe her. You carry her ass for six fucking months then he shows up and she’s right back to him like you never existed.”
“Hossler…” I growled, warning in my voice.
“No, it was a bitch thing to – “ The crack of the back of my hand silenced her quick. The back of my hand stinging. She brought her head back around and glared up at me.
“I warned you.” I told her, and gave her a pointed look. She lightly tongued the spot of blood forming at the corner of her mouth and nodded.
“That you did. Doesn’t stop you from being a real son of a bitch.” She pushed herself to her feet and stalked out of the back room of my bar and out to the front.
“Don’tcha think that was a bit harsh, Cap’?” I looked over at my best buddy and Road Captain of my club. Pyro put up his hands and leaned back in his chair, cocking one knee out further to give his bitch some more room to work his cock.
“Just sayin’, Hoss is worried about you. Hell, we all are. You ain’t been the same since Li’l Bit left town with her man. Shit, we all knew you had it bad for her since the minute you laid eyes on her…”
“It doesn’t matter.” I grated, and it was true. It didn’t. I liked Reave. Bonded with him pretty fast and pretty fierce, he was just that kind of a guy. He’d asked me to take care of his woman. I knew he was alive but I couldn’t tell her and it killed a part of me watching her spiral down; diminishing more and more each day with her grief. I promised Reaver I would take care of her and I did. I just hadn’t counted on falling in love with her myself in the process. I didn’t envy them their pain, but I sure as fuck couldn’t keep myself from envying their happiness.
I stared out the porthole set in the wall and took another pull off my beer. I was brooding and I knew it but fuck all… I missed her and I was probably going to keep missing her until a suitable distraction came through the front door. Which was likely to happen about, oh, the time it started fucking snowing outside.
“You’re a cruel son of a bitch, you know that?” I muttered at God, Fate, the Universe or whatever the fuck it was.
I sat on my throne in my tiny little castle in my kingdom by the sea, and wallowed in the deep, tearing ache of my loneliness.
“Man, you should’ve fucked her rather than hit her. Now the bitch is going to put a snake in your underwear drawer.”
I scoffed, “Might just fuck her yet, now shut up and get your dick sucked.”
“Aye, aye, Captain.” Pyro saluted me with his drink and settled into a more comfortable position. The bar was closed to the public so there was no concern there. I sighed and returned to my brooding and staring off into space… haunted by a pair of emerald green eyes and the loss of a woman that was never mine to begin with.
About the Author
A.J. Downey has been a resident of Seattle, WA her entire life, that being said she has lived in many different places and many different worlds through her imagination. She enjoys music, coffee, writing (obviously) and a bunch of other boring things that you probably don’t really care about. She is ever so grateful that you either picked up her writing or that you continue to read her stuff!
You can find her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/authorajdowney
