When he presses his forehead against mine, we just breathe each other in for a moment. Loving. Trusting. Being.
“You know,” I tease him, “when I first met Opal, I tried to not be her friend because I thought everything I touched was ruined. But she wouldn’t give up.” One side of Turner’s mouth tips up and my belly flutters. “She talked a lot,” I admit, “and one thing she told me was how her brother didn’t do complicated.”
“I didn’t,” he murmurs, his voice gentle and his touch firm. “But that was before I experienced your brand of complicated, Angel. I’m in,” he breathes, “all in. Always.”
“Always,” I whisper back.
Turner glances toward the stairwell before sliding his hand down my arm and lacing our fingers together. He pulls me out the door and right to his bike. While reaching inside one of his saddle bags, he glances at me with something I’m not used to seeing on his face—uncertainty.
“I was going to wait to do this and make a big deal out of it because you should be celebrated, but waking up without you in bed this morning made me realize waiting is stupid. You’ll still be celebrated because everyone who is lucky enough to experience your light loves you. Your family loves you,” his voice is so earnest that my eyes fill with tears.
I believe him.
I can feel it.
Not just part of me, the sliver of hope I’m trying to cling to even though I shouldn’t bother, but all of me can feel it.
A family.
I’m part of a family now. A real one built on love, trust, and respect. One who will show up. One who will worry when you’re gone and celebrate when you come home.
A family.
“And I want everyone to know you’re mine, Graycie,” his voice breaks slightly before he pulls a cut out of the saddlebag and holds it up for me to see.
On the front is my nickname—Angel.
On the back, the words wrap around me and make me feel whole in a way I never thought was possible. Property of Snake.
When I turn around and let him slip it on me, the relived breath my man heaves makes me bite my lip to stop the laugh trying to make itself known. He’s being very serious and sweet.
And fucking adorable.
I do a slow spin before turning toward him and running my hands over the leather. It’s supple and soft, but I feel the weight of it, the importance.
“You look sexy as fuck,” Turner groans before reaching down an adjusting himself. “Later you’re putting that on and nothing else.”
“Later,” I promise.
My biker kisses me one more time before climbing on the back of his bike. He gives me a long, heated look, his gaze roaming over me like a caress.
Later.
The word echoes around us, even as he heads back to the clubhouse to get a little more rest before he has to go to work. Because life keeps going, even when demons are slain. Even when you find out love, the kind of love that burns in your gut and holds you hostage, isn’t just a wish and a prayer. It’s real.
And I’ve found it.
With him.
I didn’t move to Dogwood Ridge intending to charm my Snake, but I’m not going to apologize for it. No, I’m going to hold onto him and the life he’s offering me with both hands. I’ll fight for it like the devil himself is coming for me.
Always.
EPILOGUE
TWO MONTHS LATER
GRAYCIE