That absolutely wild man.
When the door to the bar opens, all conversation ceases, and we watch as the men begin to file in. My eyes scan them all, one by one. They are still in their wedding attire, not a single one of them worse for wear.
But I don’t see Gunnar.
The door closes, and my heart sinks. I can’t believe something happened to him. I suck in a breath, holding it as I wait for someone to tell me what the hell is going on. I attempt to fight back the tears, and thankfully, before they fall, the door opens again, and then he’s there.
I don’t say anything. I stand where I am, my feet planted to the floor like cement. I can’t move. I can hardly breathe. I just stare at him and hope he’ll make his way toward me, wrap his arms around me, and tell me that everything is okay.
He walks toward me, and the rest of the room completely fades away. It’s just him and me standing in the middle of this dirty bar, surrounded by everyone we love. But I don’t see them, can’t hear them. It’s only Gunnar.
Then I feel his hands on my cheeks as he cups them, bending his head slightly, and then his mouth on mine. He doesn’t deepen the kiss, no matter how badly I want him to. Reaching up, I wrap my fingers around his wrists as I wait for him to slip his tongue inside me and taste me.
All of me.
But instead of kissing me deeper and harder, he speaks. “I love you, Lainey. I love every fucking part of you. Will you be my old lady?”
“You know I will,” I exhale. “I love you, Gunnar.”
His tongue slips inside me, and he finally tastes me. As soon as he breaks the kiss and shifts backward slightly, the rest of the room comes back around me, including the shouting, hooting, and hollering.
Biting my bottom lip, I look around at all the people I love. It’s in this moment that the realization slams into me. This is what I was going to give up in the name of protection. The people who love me, all of me, every damn inch of me.
Never again.
This is where I’ve always belonged.
This is my home.
EPILOGUE
VIKING
ONE MONTH LATER
Leaning back in the chair,I look at the man across from me. He doesn’t seem the same. He’s weathered. His eyes appear tired. I want to ask him if he’s getting enough sleep. I doubt he is. He’s likely got a whole lot of shit on his plate that he’s been dealing with the past month.
“I trust you received the bikes back in pristine condition.”
“We did,” Bullet confirms.
Lorenzo clears his throat, shifting slightly in his chair. “I can’t even begin to explain what has happened this past month, and it is not your business, as we’ve cut contractual ties with one another. I do appreciate you still working the Gilded Room as security. I trust you’ve been properly compensated?”
“We have,” Bullet answers.
Lorenzo has been a boss for years. He knows how to run a crew, but he’s let his hope for a protégé cloud his judgment. And now he’s fucked. Lorenzo scrubs his palms down his face before he places them on the table and drops his chin.
I’ve never seen a man like him so defeated before. It actually makes me feel really fucking bad for the guy. Nobody wants to be disappointed in their own men like that. Betrayed. That’s how he feels, betrayed, and I have to wonder if my father’s president felt that way when he did what he did and betrayed him.
“The girl, Lainey, she’s okay?” Lorenzo asks.
I think about not telling him anything about her. But then I decide that would make me just as much of an asshole as Paul, well, close enough anyway. So I answer him.
“She’s good. Really good.”
A smile twitches on Lorenzo’s lips, and just for a moment, that weathered gaze shifts to something a bit brighter, then it falls right back into place. He nods a couple of times, makes a noise in the back of his throat, then he speaks.
“I’m getting out of the business,” he announces.