“Even better.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
After the ceremony, I proudly slipped on Wrath’s patch on over my dress, not caring if any of Hope’s friends thought it was weird.
I know it’s not my wedding, but I can’t remember the last time I was this happy. I’m really proud of the way everything turned out.
“I think you have a bright future in wedding planning,” Lilly says when I take a break and sit down next to her. I glance over and see she’s being sincere.
“Hope was an easy bride though. She didn’t have strong opinions about any of it, except the dress and the location.”
A soft smile plays over Lilly’s mouth. “She’s never been materialistic or fussy.”
“Trinity?” A rough voice pulls me out of our conversation. My chest tightens in fear for a reason I can’t even figure out.
“Chaser? Oh my God.” I stand and say hello.
“Shit, I haven’t seen you since you were like this big,” he says while holding his hand somewhere in the vicinity of his knees.
“Oh, stop.” I glance to the tall, thin blonde at his side. “Hi, Mallory.”
She leans in and gives me a quick hug. They’ve been together for as long as I can remember. Even more impressive, they still seem to actually like each other.
Chaser nods at my vest. “I knew you’d been down here for years, but didn’t realize you were with Wrath until I ran into him a few months ago.”
My cheeks heat, but I’m saved from saying anything, by Wrath coming up and slipping his arm around my waist. “How’s it going, Chaser? Take over for your dad yet?”
Chaser snorts. “No. That fucker will go to his grave with the gavel in his hand. You seen him yet? He wanted to talk to you or Rock while we’re here.”
“No. I’ll go find him in a minute.”
“Good deal. Good to see you, Trinity.”
“You okay?” Wrath asks after they leave.
“Yeah.” Shit I don’t want him thinking— “I knew him when I was a kid. Remember how I told you my mom used to hang at the Demons’ clubhouse sometimes—”
He gives me a gentle squeeze. “I know. I didn’t think anything else,” he says. One thing I love about my man, he’s direct.
“I’m glad he’s still with Mallory. She was always nice to me.” While I only have fond memories of Chaser and Mallory, seeing them still stirs up a lot of bad feelings from my childhood.
Wrath must sense my mood shift, because he wraps me up in a tight hug and holds me until I relax.
“Since Chaser mentioned it, I’m gonna go find Stump. I don’t want him bugging Rock with club business. You okay?” he asks.
“I’ll be fine. I might run back to the clubhouse to check on Mariella.”
He runs his gaze over me, then looks over my shoulder. “Take Murphy with you.”
I open my mouth to protest, but he shakes his head. “This isn’t a negotiation, Trinity.”
Murphy and Serena end up walking back to the clubhouse with me. Mariella’s out front with Teller, so I guess checking on her was sort of pointless. Serena ends up joining them and Murphy follows me into the kitchen to help me carry out drinks. Once we load up one of the UTVs and send Birch back to the party, Murphy and I are alone.
“How you doing, Maid of Honor?”
I chuckle before answering. “Fine.” I tip my head toward Serena. “How’s that going?”
He shoves his hands in his pockets and stares at the ground. “Fine.”
“Heidi was spitting mad this morning—”
His head snaps up. “She was?”
Man, that foot-in-mouth thing Hope’s always doing must be contagious. “Forget I said anything. Do you like her or did you just want to make Heidi jealous?”
“I like her. She’s not you, but you’re one of a kind.”
I snort and give him a shove. “Living dangerously, Murphy.”
“It was always Wrath for you, wasn’t it?”
“Yeah. I didn’t know how to figure my shit out. But yeah.”
“Shit.” He rubs his hand over the back of his neck and flicks his gaze at me. “You were one of the prettiest girls I’d ever seen. That you paid any attention at all to me…”
“Murphy—”
“I should have treated you better.” He stops when he sees the look on my face. “Not ‘cause I wanted you to fall in love with me. Because you’re a good girl.” His mouth quirks into a cocky smile. “You made me into a man, you know.”
“I didn’t do a very good job.”
He bursts out laughing. “Ouch. That hurts on so many levels, Trin.”
I punch him in the shoulder. “Hey. We’re good. We’re friends. You and Wrath are on good terms, right?”
“I think so.”
I’m about to tell him that’s all that matters, when one of Sway’s guys, Bull, interrupts us. The asshole is drunk. “Flirtin’ with a brother when you’re wearing another brother’s vest, Trinity? That’s low.”
Correction, the asshole’s drunk and stupid.
All traces of humor from our conversation wipe clean off Murphy’s face. “You got a fuckin’ death wish, Bull? Just ‘cause her man ain’t standing here right now don’t mean I won’t fuck you up before I hand you over to him.”
“Don’t get your panties in a twist, Murph. I’m just fuckin’ around. I know you wouldn’t disrespect your brother.” As if I would. God, I hate this asshole. How can Sway’s club be full of so many assholes and Rock’s isn’t?
Ignoring me now, Bull stands next to Murphy and bumps him with his elbow. “I heard Serena came with you. All the upstate whores becoming old ladies now?”
In the time it takes me to roll my eyes, Murphy has Bull laid out on the ground.
“Jesus, Murphy!”
He grins and shakes out his hand. “He needs to learn some manners.”
I prod Bull with my foot and he doesn’t make a sound. He does appear to be breathing. Not that I check very thoroughly. “Should we leave him here?”
He takes in the area. “Yeah. He’s safe from getting run over. Bear eats him, that ain’t my fault.” He wraps his hand around my arm, pulling me back out front. “I’ll deal with any shit that comes up.”
Serena walks over to meet us, worriedly glancing at me, then Murphy. It’s pretty obvious what she’s thinking. “He was helping me put some stuff away in the kitchen,” I say.
“Oh, sure.” She hesitates and I feel bad for her. I think she’s looking for more than she’s going to get from Murphy. But then he surprises me by slinging his arm around her shoulder and kissing her forehead. “I feel bad, I didn’t get to congratulate Hope, and she was so nice to—”
“You’ll see her in the morning,” Murphy assures her and she beams.
Well, I guess that means she’s staying over. I hope to hell Heidi and Axel don’t come back tonight.
Shaking my head, I pick up some of the empties people left scattered in the yard and toss them in the trash. I turn and almost smack into Tawny. All day I’d managed to avoid her.
One hand on her bony hip, she gets right in my face. “Think you’re hot shit now because he gave you a patch?” she challenges.
“Not at all, Tawny,” I answer calmly, taking a step back.
Her mouth twists. I’m sure it irritates her that I won’t cower anymore. “You’re still—”
“A whore. Yup. Got it. Thanks.”
She takes a few steps closer and I flex my fingers. I’ve never wanted to be some trashy, fighting type of biker girl—I grew up around plenty of those types of women—but I won’t lose any sleep over popping this bitch in the mouth either.
“How he could ever forgive your whoring ass—”
“Good thing it’s none of your fucking business,” I snarl. She steps back, unaccustomed to club girls defending themselves. But a surge of power runs through me. I’ve let this woman intimidate me for years. Over nothing.
“Not that I owe you any sort of explanation whatso
ever, but I never fucked your man, Tawny. He tried. Many times. You can think whatever you want about me, but I never. Not once.”
Her jaw hangs like a dead fish as she tries to come up with a response.
“He’ll never be faithful,” she spits at me.
“Wrath? Tawny, what you know about my man wouldn’t fill a shot glass. We’ve already been there and lived that life. Just because your man’s a pig doesn’t mean every brother’s like that.”
She opens her mouth, but I cut off whatever shit she’s about to say. “If you think the entire organization doesn’t know you fuck around behind Sway’s back, you’re a seriously deluded old woman. So how you think you have any business judging me is a mystery.”
“Everything okay?” Wrath’s rumbly voice instantly soothes me. His arms wrap protectively around my body, holding me close. He probably got here just in time.
Tawny narrows her eyes, and I can see her contemplating the wisdom of mouthing off to him.
“Your man’s lookin’ for you, Tawny,” he says. I have no idea if that’s true or not. His tone certainly makes it clear that she needs to depart.
Once she’s gone, Wrath turns me in his arms, staring down at me. “You okay?”
“Yeah, I’ve been dying to tell her off for years.”
He doesn’t laugh like I expected. “Heard you defending me. You do trust me.”
“There’s no one in the world I trust more than you. We’ve already hurt each other so much. There’s no point doing this,” I tap my vest. “If we’re going to go back to that.”
He stares at me for so long, I start to squirm. “Thank you,” he finally says.
“For what?”
“For putting into words exactly how I feel.”
A lump forms in my throat. “When I think about all the mistakes I’ve made—”
“Don’t.” He cuts me off. “We couldn’t do it back then. And we probably wouldn’t have lasted if we tried.”
My throat constricts even more as I recognize the truth in his words and he’s not even finished. “I have my own regrets, Trinity. But I think I know what it takes to make this work now. How much I need you.” He runs his finger over my cheek, possibly brushing a stray tear away. “How much you need me too?”
“I really do.”
His breath releases in a puff. “Good. Love hearing you admit it.”
I smirk and he laughs.
“No more looking behind us. Only forward from now on. We’ve forgiven each other. Made peace with things.” He raises an eyebrow, looking for me to agree or disagree.
“Yes,” I whisper.
“Good.” He drops down on both knees in front of me. “Say yes to me one more time, Angel Face.”
Out of his pocket, he pulls out a blue velvet box. It’s oddly familiar and I gasp when he opens it.
“When did you? How did you? Did you go back?”
“Nope. Ordered it that day when you and Hope went next door and had it shipped it to me when it was ready.” He plucks the ring out of its velvet nook and takes my hand. “You gonna marry me, Trinity?”
“Is that a question or a statement?”
He raises his eyes to mine. “It’s not a question.” But underneath his cocky demeanor, I see he’s waiting for an answer.
“Yes, I’m going to marry you.” I watch, completely fascinated as he slips the ring on my finger. “It’s so beautiful,” I whisper.
He stands, brushing gravel and dirt off his pants.
“You didn’t have to get on your knees.”
“Yeah, I did. You’re the only woman who can bring me to my knees.”
“Well, that’s fitting, because you’re the only man who’s ever gotten me on mine willingly.”
A flash of pain crosses his face, and I wish I’d chosen my words more carefully. “Come on, your work here’s done,” he says.
A lot of words bubble around in my head, but I can’t get any of them out. Instead, I glance at the ring. The ring he picked out for me months ago.
“You’ve really been planning this since we went to Boston?”
“Trinity, I think I’ve been planning this since the night I met you.” He grabs me and brushes his lips over my forehead, on my cheeks and finally against my lips before finally pulling me into the clubhouse and down to our room.
There’s no hesitation as he strips me out of my shoes. Slips my vest off my shoulders, lifts my dress over my head and stares at me for a few seconds, before unhooking my bra. He tosses it on my desk, and slides my vest back on.
“That’s perfect,” he says with a grin.
I wiggle my fingers at him and model my engagement ring. Oh my God, I love this man. Oh my God, we’re engaged.
I help him out of his clothes and push him back on the bed. The way his arms encircle me, holding me tight leaves me breathlessly happy. His hands slide down, gripping my ass and squeezing.
“Wyatt, I need you to do something for me if I’m really going to be your ol’ lady and your wife.” Wow, that word feels weird.
He leans up and kisses my forehead. “What’s that, baby?”
This is hard for me, but it’s also important. With him, I feel almost whole. I almost forget all the horrible shit I’ve been through.
Almost.
I roll off him and to the side and he turns to face me, concern creasing his forehead. “What, baby?”
My tongue slicks across my upper lip as I consider how to say this.
His hand cups my face, his thumb rubbing over my bottom lip. My eyes close and I lean into his touch. It’s easier if I can’t see him.
“I need you to claim every part of me.”
He’s silent.
I said that out loud, right?
My eyes pop open to find him staring at me. Not in the excited lustful let’s-get-to-it way I expected. He’s thoughtful, almost pained.
“Why?”
What? “I need you to erase every bad memory. I can’t explain it, I just want to know you’re the only…you’re the last—”
“Okay,” he says slowly.
“Own me.”
“Okay.”
“Everywhere.”
“Okay.” He gathers me in his arms, kissing the top of my head. “You’re mine. Don’t ever doubt it. Anyone who hurts you dies,” he says very matter of fact.
Maybe I’m nuts, but it only makes me love him more.
Tawny came awfully close to being the first woman I’ve ever hit tonight. Hearing the shit she spewed at Trinity, pissed me the fuck off.
Hearing Trinity so calmly defend us, filled me with so much pride, I knew it was time to propose. Her ring had been burning a hole in my pocket for days.
After her sweet, sincere, but awkward claim every part of me request, my dick’s jumping for joy.
My head is not.
Trinity’s request, while beyond fucking hot, also disturbs me. I put a lid on that, because in no way do I want to make her feel bad about herself.
“Couple things, Angel Face.”
She raises an eyebrow.
I reach out and run my finger across her bottom lip. Her tongue darts out and licks. “Don’t distract me.”
She smiles and runs her hand over my chest. I gently place my hand over hers to stop her.
“We do things my way.”
“Of course.”
My dick really likes the way she’s so quick to say that. But I want her to understand how serious I am. She rolls over, arching her back, so her perfect little ass is in the air. Perfect for me to lay a crisp smack on. “Settle down,” I warn her.
She looks over her shoulder and pouts.
“We’re doing this, I want to do it right, so I don’t hurt you,” I explain.
Her eyes close. “It’ll hurt no matter what. Just do it.”
Fuck, fuck, fuck me, fucking hell.
I roll her over, capturing her under me. “I don’t get off on hurting you. If we do it right, it’ll feel good.”
She snorts. “I doubt
that.”
“Mmm, I love when you lay down a challenge for me, baby.”
Soft laughs tumble out of her as I kiss and lick her neck. My hands slide down to her hips, and I lift off her enough to pull her up and sink my cock into her pussy. “I think you’re more turned on by the idea than you’re letting on.”
“Only because it’s you,” she says with a gasp, as I thrust into her harder.
I keep a firm grasp on her hips. “When I decide you’re ready, I’m gonna fuck that ass so perfectly, you’ll be begging me to do it all the time.”
“Sure. Whatever you say.”
“Keep challenging me, baby. I fucking love proving you wrong.”
Her moans and sighs are all I need to hear.
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
It feels different but familiar when we enter the clubhouse the next morning. Sleeping bodies scattered all over the clubhouse as we make our way to the dining room and drunk, passed out people on the floor—familiar. That I don’t care, because I don’t live here anymore, is new.
Wrath, Trinity, Z, Lilly, Murphy, and Teller are waiting for us in the dining room and cheer when we enter.
“Hey newlyweds!”
“How was the wedding night?”
“Was it worth saving yourself for?” Z teases us.
Rock rolls his eyes at me. “I told you we should have eaten breakfast at home.”
“There’s no food there.”
Wrath and Trinity are wearing matching mega-watt smiles. “What’s up with you two?” I ask.
Trin all but explodes out of her chair, shoving her hand in my face. “We’re engaged!”
“Holy fuck!” I jump out of my chair and hug the crap out of her. The guys go nuts. I guess Wrath and Trin had been waiting until we got here to share their news. Lilly runs over to hug Trinity and check out the ring.
“Ohmygod! I’m so excited!” I turn and hug Wrath, so hard, he gags. “You’re choking me, Cinderella.”
“Sorry.” I turn back to Trinity. “When? How? Unless it’s a naked proposal, I don’t need that image in my head.”
The guys laugh and Trinity settles her hand on Wrath’s shoulder. “After you guys left last night, he very sweetly asked me right out front.”
Wrath smiles up at her and kisses her hand while I throw my arms around her again. “Yay!” I yell, a little louder than I meant to.