He combed his fingers through her hair, moving it out of her face, so he could see her clearly. “Why, baby?”
Her hands twisted tightly in his T-shirt at the small of his back. “Because I don’t want you to walk out that door. I can’t let you go.”
His voice caught as he asked again, “Why, baby?”
Her light blue eyes hit his and held. “Because somehow I fell in love with you. No...” She shook her head.
Trip’s heart pounded in his chest. But as hard as it was, he waited.
“No. I’ve always been in love with you. Even when I didn’t understand it. Even after you pushed me away. Back then, I knew you were mine. That you’d always be mine. You couldn’t see it. And after that day... that day... I thought I was wrong. I’d made a mistake. I was just a stupid young girl with a foolish dream.”
“No, baby, it was my mistake. And now I see what you saw back then. That you belonged to me. That you’d always be mine. You’re right, I didn’t see it then. Took me twenty fuckin’ years to find you again, to prove you were right and I was wrong. And here we are. If you’re not gonna tell me to fuck off, what are you tellin’ me? ‘Cause it’s all or nothin’, Stella. I want it all. Hopin’ you want it all, too.”
“I don’t know if I can give you it all. But I can try.”
Fuck, that sounded good. “Perseverance, baby. That’s all I can ask for.”
“Perseverance. I’ll promise to give you that.”
He closed his eyes and pulled her against him even tighter. “We can build from there.”
Suddenly he felt whole. Not only had he made his father’s cut his by making Buck’s club his, but his woman was tucked against him, that very cut wrapped around her just like his arms. Those colors would represent and protect them. Those colors would be their future. Their kids’ future.
Even so, this wasn’t over. They couldn’t live easy yet. They had a lot of hard work in front of them. All of them did.
But in the end, that hard work would pay off.
In the end, they’d have something so solid no one could rip it apart. Not from the inside, not from the outside.
Those thoughts weren’t just about the club, they were also about him and Stella.
“We’ll take it day by day, baby. But every night need you to lay your head next to mine, every mornin’ need you to wake up by my side. You walk beside me and support me and I swear to fuck I’ll do the same for you. But need one more thing...”
She tipped her face up to him. “What’s that? To wear your cut? To let you claim me?”
“More important than any of that.”
When her brow furrowed, he realized she thought he was going to bring up his desire to have sons again. That wasn’t what this was about. He smoothed a thumb over it, then he ripped himself open. “Need you to love me as much as I love you. Might not tell you on a regular basis, but you’ll know it if you let yourself feel it. Know I’m askin’ a lot from you—”
One of her hands slipped from under his cut to wrap around the back of his head as she tugged his face closer to hers. “You aren’t asking for anything more than what I’d ask from you. I do love you, Trip, that’s why I worried—”
“No worries,” he said before sliding his lips over hers, stopping her words. “Takin’ it day by day.”
“Okay,” she whispered against his lips. “Day by day. Some days will be worse than others.”
“Yeah. And I’ll be there for those, too. Just don’t shut me out.”
“Okay.”
“Okay,” he echoed, relieved, and smiled against her lips. “Love you, baby.”
“Love you, too, Trip.”
Best words he’d ever heard in his fucking life.
Best feeling he ever had, right after feeling the sun on his face the second he stepped out of prison.
Today, the sun was shining on his face and he would do his best to keep it there.
Epilogue
Sun on his face
Stella headed his way, carrying two beers, her narrow hips swinging and a relaxed expression on her face.
They were sort of celebrating.
Not that his brothers needed a reason to party.
They’d just had their second club run this afternoon, someone had gotten a pig from one of the local Amish farms, and now there wasn’t much left of it in the smoker that sat right outside the newly built pavilion.
The pig had literally been torn to shreds. One of the picnic tables that sat under the metal roof of that pavilion was overflowing with a whole bunch of food, plasticware, and the rest of the shit needed to eat, drink and fucking be merry.