“Let’s do this,” Pope says as he starts up the van.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Wolf
My head hurts like a bitch, but at least I’m alive and awake. Beside me on the ground lies Justice, but he’s barely awake and I know he’s lost too much blood. Concern for his health courses through my veins. We’re back at their dirty-ass clubhouse. Behind us stands a beat-up tan van with its lights on full blast, pointing in the direction we’re facing. Our shadows are elongated on the ground before us. The crunch of tires on gravel is clear and coming closer toward us. If Pope is dumb enough to bring my woman to this meet, I’ll kill him with my own bare hands.
The black van we often use for transport pulls to a stop about fifty feet from us. Pope exits from the driver’s side with a nod in my direction. Mad Dog exits from the passenger side but doesn’t look at me. That seals it for me, they brought the women. My heart pounds so hard in my chest that I’m sure Viper can hear it from his spot beside me.
The only light in the area is supplied by the two vans now pointed toward one another. My heart sinks and my stomach rolls as Hadley and Kaiya step from the van. They slowly make their way around the van toward Pope before Hadley lifts her eyes to mine.
There’s a look of determination in her eyes that I wasn’t expecting. There’s no fear or hesitation, only determination. Wishing I knew what was going through her mind at this moment, I say a small prayer to a god I long since stopped believing in to keep her safe.
Pope made the mistake of showing up without any backup. He trusted that the Mongrels would actually honor the agreement, but I know they haven’t. In between the trees surrounding us are at least twenty men armed to the teeth. Having no idea on how to alert Pope and Mad Dog to the situation, I remain silent, biding my time.
“Send those bitches over,” Viper yells to Pope.
“Not a chance, you fucker. We do it at the same time.” Pope stares down Viper and Mutt.
“Fine.” Viper nudges at my shoulder, propelling me forward.
Helping Justice to his feet, I support his weight as we move down the gravel driveway. Hadley hugs Pope before moving toward me. There’s no jealousy as I witness their hug because my ass is too confused by the look on the face of my president. Kaiya moves over to Mad Dog and he cups her face before kissing her. A moment later, they break apart and he leans his forehead to hers, talking to her in a hushed tone. Behind me, I hear Viper growl.
“Get your hands off my sister, you fucker!”
Mad Dog simply smirks at him as he smacks Kaiya on her ass and sends her on her way. Kaiya and Hadley link hands and make their way toward Justice and me. Hadley turns to Kaiya, hugging her before Kaiya moves past me toward Viper. Justice pushes my hand from his waist.
“Talk to her,” he says before hobbling his way forward.
Before I can speak or react, Hadley throws her arms around my neck and kisses me. My hand circles her waist to hold her to me. She has a gun in the waistband of her jeans. Feasting on her, I remove it slowly so as not to alert Viper or his men.
Hadley smiles at me as she pulls away. “I love you and you can show me the house tomorrow.” She pulls away and moves past me, twining her hand with Kaiya’s again as they continue to make their way toward Viper. As I watch them slowly walk away, something in the dark catches my eye. Just out of sight, beneath the dark cover of trees, Sparrow slits the throat of the man who was stationed there.
With eyes that I know are round with surprise, I look back toward Pope and he nods at me. He has a goofy grin spread on his face for a moment as tense as this. Taking the nod to mean that the men have all been taken care of, I flip the safety off the gun I took from Hadley and turn around. Pointing directly at Viper, I’m lucky enough to see the moment Sparrow creeps up and slits Mutt’s throat before stepping back with a smile. Viper raises his hands in the air as he realizes he’s alone. Hadley and Kaiya are about ten steps away from me and still holding hands. Slowly, I move toward them.
“Do something, Kaiya!” Viper tries to move toward her but likely thinks better when he sees Mad Dog move in beside her.
Kaiya shakes her head as she moves toward him. She has steel in her spine and we all watch her closely. Stopping in front of Viper, her brother, her only living relative, she squares her shoulders.
“No,” she practically spits in his face before hitting him with a right hook any man would be proud of.
“This is for me. And every other woman you have ever abused. This is for Hadley and everything that you put her through. This is for letting your club beat me and rape me and take things from me that I will never get back.”
Mad Dog wraps an arm around her shoulder as he leads her back toward us. Viper curses up a storm behind them but Kaiya is smiling even as tears track down her face. Reaching Hadley, they hug each other for a long moment before parting.
Kaiya tilts her head back to look me in the eye. “I don’t give a fuck what you do with him, but I want this over.”
Hadley smiles at me and nods. Kaiya waits for my response and I don’t have words, so instead, I simply nod. Viper starts begging and trying to strike a bargain as soon as my long legs stride in his direction.
And there beneath the stars on a cloudless spring night, I use the gun my woman brought when she came to save my dumb ass to put a bullet between Viper’s eyes. No one flinches. There are no regrets. There’s just us.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Hadley
Sitting on Brandon’s lap in his ugly green chair in the clubhouse, I have rarely been this happy. Everyone is here and safe and although some of the Immortal Saints preferred to return home, Sway has opted to stay a while and reconnect with me. Everyone’s in a good mood, enjoying a couple of drinks and just shooting the shit. Cherry has come out from Dusk and is dancing for the guys and even that isn’t enough to ruin my good mood. The one thing no one can miss is the way Kaiya and Mad Dog keep glancing at each other. I hope it won’t take too long for them to get their shit together.
Turning in Brandon’s lap, I straddle him.
“So … how does it feel to be saved by a girl?”
A swift slap lands on my ass before he answers me. “Very grateful, but if anything had gone wrong, I would have been pissed.”
“Nothing could have gone wrong. I had the best guys in the world supporting me.”
My plan worked perfectly. All the guys made their way by foot about a half-mile from the farm. We had Kaiya, after all, and she knew the property and all of her brother’s dirty tricks. We sat in the van and waited patiently for ten minutes before we made our way up the gravel drive, giving the other guys the opportunity to get into place. We were never in any real danger and the plan worked perfectly. And finally, we are rid of those assholes.
“Did Pope tell you yet?” Brandon frowns as he asks the question.
With my index finger, I lightly rub at the frown line between his eyes. “Tell me what?”
“The cuts on the guys who were helping Viper belong to the Iron Disciples.”
He watches me closely for a reaction. This cannot be good. Not for me or for the Gypsy Bastards.
“That means that shit is going to get bad around here eventually. So I want you to move in with me.”
“So.” The silence between us stretches before he looks at me. “Do you want me to live with you because you want me there or because you’re trying to keep me safe?”
“Jesus, woman! Both reasons.”
Clearly, I’ve exasperated him.
“I fucking love you and that means I want to keep you safe. So yeah, both reasons.”
Spearing my hands into his hair, I crush my lips against his in a bruising kiss. After a catcall goes up behind us somewhere, I pull away. “Perfect answer.”
“Thank God.” Relief fills his features as he grips my ass and stands. Wrapping my legs around his waist, I wait for him to tell me where he’s taking me. There must be a questioning look on my face because he leans in to whisp
er in my ear.
“I just told you I love you and you agreed to move in with me. I’m going to fuck you against every surface in my room.”
Smiling, I think to myself, that’s just fine by me.
Epilogue
Hadley
Three months later
Pulling my dad’s car into the driveway, I look up at our home. Life is good. During the day, I run my tattoo parlor, which has been open for the last month. Business is booming and my appointments are filled up two weeks in advance. It helps that all the Gypsy Bastards have gotten something inked there recently. I even had to hire some help at the shop since it’s started getting so busy.
For three months, I’ve been living with Brandon at his house. Knowing when I walk down the hall, or use the kitchen, or sit on the back porch that he bought this house for Amber and Rose. He finally told me about them. But I don’t feel like second best. I feel like a queen.
Amber was his first love and will always be that. I don’t want to take her place. Rose will always be his daughter and I would never try to replace her. But me? I’m different. I’m his first chance at happiness after losing his entire world and I feel honored. Wanting to make him happy, I try to do that through cherishing both of their memories. Standing out on the deck, having a cup of tea and watching the sunset, I feel lucky to have this opportunity. To start this life with him. Feeling his hands on my hips, I turn and smile at him. “Hey, babe. How was your day?”
“Great, actually. Finished the paint job on Mad Dog’s bike. Just missed you.”
The love shining from his eyes fills me with hope. Hope that we’ll be able to have a long and happy life together. Hope that no matter what happens, we’ll face it together.
“You?”
“Well, actually, you might want to sit down so we can talk.”
Moving out of his grasp, I take a seat at the table we put on the deck just last week. My hands are knotted in my lap and sweatier than I ever remember them being. Brandon frowns at me but leans back against the railing.
“I think I’ll stand. Don’t know what this is about, but I have a feeling I might need to leave.” His eyes have gone dark and that damn frown line is back between his eyes. With the sun setting behind him, he frowns down at me and that only makes me more nervous.
“I was hoping we could talk this through like adults. But you haven’t even heard what I have to say and you’re already on the defensive?” Instantly, my anger spikes.
Lowering my head, I feel tears well up in my eyes. I knew this was going to be hard, but I was really hoping for some sort of miracle.
“Well, I know how this conversation goes. It’s not you, it’s me … yada, yada, yada. But let me make one thing perfectly clear. If I don’t make you as happy as you make me, that’s fine. But if you think for one second that I’ll let you move on with one of my brothers, think again. I’ll kill him.” His tone is deathly low.
My head snaps back as tears course down my cheeks. “What?”
It doesn’t come out as a question but a squeak.
“Are you insane?” I ask.
He stares at me blankly. There’s no movement, no reply.
“Maybe I should fucking move out!” My temper spikes instantly, again. Standing from the table, hands on my hips, fuming at him, I watch as confusion spreads over his face.
“You’re an asshole, Wolf! I’m trying to do this the nice way because I’m afraid you’re going to freak out and run and your first instinct is that I’m fucking around?”
“Wait…”
“Don’t fucking wait me, you goddamned prick. I’m trying tell you that I’m fucking pregnant and you think I’m cheating?” My voice has gone high-pitched and my ears are ringing. A hiccup escapes through the tears and the screaming. Finally, enough is enough and the toll this day has taken on me becomes too much. My legs give out.
Before I land on the floor, he has me in his arms and is lifting me against his chest. Pushing against his chest, I try to get him to put me down.
“Jesus. Babe, I didn’t know.”
Regret is rife in his tone, but I am way too pissed to care about that at this moment. “Of course, you didn’t know, you dickhead. You didn’t let me tell you.”
Brandon carries me through the house and up the stairs to lay me down on the bed in our room. The moment I roll over and try to get away, he turns me onto my back and pins my hands above my head. Usually, this move would inspire many things in me but at this moment, all I feel is rage. Trying to buck him off me, I yell. “Get the fuck off me. Now!”
“Not until you listen to me.”
“Like you listened to me?”
Both of us stare at each other, breathing heavily. For a moment, neither of us speak, but the fight leaves me as fast as it started.
“Babe, I’m not going to run. Christ. This might be the best thing I’ve heard since the day you told me you love me.” His right hand moves down my body to rest on my still-flat stomach. My insides flutter at the gesture.
“I don’t think you’re cheating. But it’s my greatest fear. Knowing I’m not good enough for you, and that you could do better. I know I should probably let you go, but I’m a selfish bastard and I won’t be doing that.”
Looking him straight in the eyes, I wait. I want to make sure his full attention is on me. “I love you. You’re the best man I know. You’re the best man for me. You’re the only man for me.”
“I love you too, babe. I’m going to do my best to prove that to you every single day. I’m so sorry I fucked up your announcement, but I will love this baby with all my heart. I can’t imagine my life without you.”
“You won’t ever have to.”
The End
Gypsy Bastards MC—The Wolf Playlist
Three Days Grace - “I Hate Everything About You”
Pop Evil - “Monster You Made Me”
Seether - “Fuck me like you hate me”
Charlie Daniels Band - “The Devil Went Down to Georgia”
Evanessence - “Bring Me Back to Life”
Scorpions - “Rock You Like A Hurricane”
Shania Twain - “Black Eyes, Blue Tears”
Judas Priest - “Private Property”
Marilyn Manson - “Sweet Dreams”
7 Kings - “Born For This”
Bishop Briggs - “Dark Side”
Thutmase + Nombe - “Run Wild”
Pink - “Happy”
In Flames - “Not Alone”
Meatloaf - “Rock and Roll Dreams Come Through”
Bad Wolves - “Zombie”
3 Doors Down - “Duck and Run”
Death Cab For Cutie - “I Will Follow You Into the Dark”
Five Finger Death Punch - “I Refuse”
Red Jumpsuit Apparatus - “Your Guardian Angel”
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to thank the following:
First, My mother for instilling a love of reading from a young age. The same love that I am currently trying to instill in my daughter. Thank you for allowing me to read whatever I wanted no matter what. Thank you for giving me books and music instead of making me play outside. You are the best.
My husband, who often gets ignored when I am reading or writing and whom I drive insane with references he knows nothing about. Thank you for letting me do my own thing and never letting me quit. Love you tons. J4Z143TDDUP
My girls, my beta readers, of whom there aren’t many as I didn’t tell a lot of people I was doing this. Caroline Gerber, Christel Paxton, Jessica Kuhn, Marsha Botes, Celia Botes, and Surita van der Merwe. Thank you for having infinite patience with me, reading this book more times than is probably necessary, fixing my spelling, and generally just being there. Thank you for listening and allowing me to bounce ideas off you all. But mostly thank you for making me believe I could do this when I didn’t and suffering through my special brand of insanity.
A special thank you to my daughter for making sure the dogs got fed and I remembered to f
eed her and her dad. Also for the copious amount of coffee and cold drink that she kept me supplied with. You are more awesome than I will ever be able to put into words. I love you to the end of time.
For all the strong men in my life. You have shown me what a hero should be based on. Just because you’re a badass doesn’t mean you have to be an asshole. Jacques Visagie, for always championing me and everyone else, always pushing me to dream and to never set my bar too low. You are missed always.
Thank you to everyone at Evernight Publishing for taking a chance on me. Thank you to Audrey for editing this book with me and showing me better ways to get my point across. A special thank you to Stacey for answering all my questions and putting my fears at ease.
To each and every person who has liked a Facebook or Instagram post, has listened to me rant, or just smiled at my crazy, thank you for the bottom of my heart. I haven’t mentioned you all by name but each and every bit of support is felt and appreciated.
Other Books by Jade Marshall:
www.evernightpublishing.com/jade-marshall
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Stolen Melody by Winter Sloane
To Awaken a Monster by Sam Crescent
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EVERNIGHT PUBLISHING ®
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The Wolf Page 13