Page 31

R elief.

That’s all I feel right now.

Sienna and Selena won’t have to see that woman for a long time. If ever again. It depends on her. She will have to go through a lot of legal hoops to be in the same room as them again.

That’s if I don’t go rogue and murder her.

When I saw the bruises on them, I could have killed her, jail be damned. I would gladly wear orange for both of those girls.

Thankfully, the attorney general for the state of Nevada had more sense. I don’t know how they got him there, but he made the difference.

I can’t ask right now, though. Not with the girls in the car with us. As we pull into the house, Midnight gets out of the car. He helps the girls out, holding them each a bit longer than normal as he hugs them.

I follow them into the house, knowing he wants to talk to them by the way he leads them to the dining room table. I take the seat next to him as he faces the girls.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” he asks them, emotion in his tone.

Neither say anything for a moment. Then Selena speaks up.

“Mom said if we ever told you, she would make sure we never saw you again. She said that you did bad things, and she could prove it. She threatened to put you in prison for life, and then we would be stuck with her forever.” Tears pool in her eyes.

“Shh. It’s okay,” I whisper, reaching out to grab her hand.

“She’s your mother. I have to ask. Do you want to see her?” he asks through gritted teeth.

“No,” they say in unison.

“She might have given birth to us, but she never loved us,” Sienna admits softly.

I can tell Midnight is fighting with his demons at the moment, so I speak up instead.

“I don’t know her well enough, but I know you two. Your mother is obviously ill. That’s the only reason that I can think of that she wouldn’t adore you two. I fell in love with you the day I met you,” I tell them.

“We want you to be our mom,” Selena blurts out, then slaps her hand over her mouth.

“Selena,” Sienna hisses at her sister.

Midnight looks at me, but I’m too stunned to speak. I’m shocked. I didn’t expect that from them. I don’t want to take anyone’s place, but I love them like they are my own.

“Lainey might not be your mother, but she loves you very much. She will always be here for you.”

“So we can’t call her Mom?” Sienna whispers, looking dejected.

Fuck.

“You can call me whatever you want to call me, honey. I don’t want to take your mother’s place if you want her there, but if you don’t, that’s okay too. I’m here to be whatever you need from me.”

“In the months we have known you, you’ve been more of a mom to us than she ever has. We don’t want to give her that title anymore. We want you to have it.” Selena sniffles.

I look to Midnight. I have no idea how to handle this.

He nods at me. “Then Lainey will be your mom. I’m going to marry her one day. This is our family. I will do everything in my power to never let that woman around you again.”

The girls get out of their chairs, coming to hug us both.

“Thank you, Dad,” Selena says.

Sienna looks at me. “Thank you, Mom.”

My heart bursts at the simple title. The one they gave me because they feel it’s the one I deserve.

“I won’t ever let you down. I promise,” I tell them both, crying for what feels like the millionth time today.

They smile, their eyes watery.

“Can we go play now?” Selena asks.

“Go on,” Midnight tells them.

As they run away, he pulls me into his arms. “Are you sure you are okay with this?”

I nod and choose my words carefully in case the girls are listening. “It’s where I’m meant to be. You’re going to unalive Miranda, aren’t you?”

“I can’t ever let her hurt them again.”

I lean over and kiss him. “Good.”

I don’t need him to be clean. I only need him to do the dirty shit for a good reason. Protecting our daughters is one hell of a good reason.

I’ll sleep easy knowing she no longer shares the air our girls breathe.

“Really? You’re not going to try to stop me?” Midnight asks.

I shake my head. “No. If you don’t do it, I will. I know they share blood, but they made their feelings clear. They might change their mind one day, but Miranda made her choice. She put her hands on them, and that’s a death sentence in my mind.”

He smirks at me, “You’re savage. I love the way you go to bat for them. You truly are their mother.”

“They deserve better than what she’s given them. She kept them from you. Threatened you to keep them in line. That’s disgusting. I didn’t want to say this in front of them, but I don’t think that woman knows how to love.”

He nods. “She wasn’t always this way, but having them changed her. Looking back, I think she might have only had them because she thought it would trap me. When I didn’t give her what she wanted, she became bitter. You’re right, though. She signed her own death warrant. I don’t want you to worry about it. I’ll handle it.”

“I know you will. You love with all your heart and would do anything to protect those you care about. I have faith that we are safe and will stay that way.”

He pulls me closer to him as I lay my head on his shoulder.

“Damn straight. I have blood on my hands already. I’ll add more as I need to if it means you girls are safe.”

“I love you, Michael,” I tell him.

He cups my cheek, pulling my face to look at him. “I love you, Flower. So much.”

This time when he kisses me, I deepen it. Before we can get too crazy, we hear footsteps.

I smile against his lips as we hear them yell out.

“Mom. Dad.”

Pulling back, I look at him. “I can get used to this,” I tell him.

He nods. “You should.”

It’s been the craziest day.

When it started, I thought I was going to lose everything. Not having the girls with me was crushing my soul. The only bright spot was having Lainey at my side.

Our lawyer did his job, though. He was able to clear my name and get the girls back in my home.

I meant what I said to Lainey. I will be ending Miranda’s life. I don’t normally harm women, but she has become a threat. Threats to my family must be eliminated. If the girls wanted a relationship with her, I would suck it up and deal with it, but they made it clear.

They might always love Miranda somewhere inside because she is their mother, but they have no interest in keeping a relationship with her. I know I probably should let this go in case they ever change their mind, but I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night knowing that she might try to take them again someday.

Not on my watch.

I already have Trigger watching her. Sometime soon, I will lure her from that penthouse getaway she has been staying in. When William tosses her aside as she is no longer useful, I’ll be there. I’ll tangle her in my web and snuff the life out of her.

“What are you thinking about so intently over there?” Lainey asks as she braids her hair at the bathroom sink.

I’ve been standing here drying off from my shower for far too long. I didn’t realize I had gotten caught up in my fantasy. The one where Miranda never harms us again.

“Nothing.”

She laughs. “Sure.”

Moving in behind her, I drop the towel. Then I spin her, lifting her to the counter. She lets me move between her legs as she finishes tying her hair.

“I don’t think you realize how much I love you,” I tell her.

She smiles. “Why don’t you tell me then?”

“Did you know, as a brother, you are supposed to give your old lady a nickname?” I ask.

She nods. “I think one of the girls mentioned it once.”

I smile at her. “Flower, you’ve had a road name since the night we met. It’s as if something inside of me recognized that I needed something in you. I never believed in the universe or soulmates, but you make me believe.”

She gasps, her hand on her mouth.

“I know I haven’t asked officially, but the club already knows that I consider you my old lady. You deserve better than that, though.” I cup her face. “Will you be my old lady?”

“Yes. Of course,” she whispers.

“Good. Now I have another question. Will you let me tattoo you?”

“I never found something I’d want enough,” she tells me.

I smile. “So in this club, the old ladies usually get a property of tattoo. You don’t have to. I would never force you, but I’d like you to have one.”

“What would it look like?” she asks.

“It would have the Lotus badge, but around the edges it would say ‘Property of Midnight.’ It tells everyone that you are mine.”

“What if I want you to have something showing you are mine?” She quirks her eyebrow.

I point to the empty spot on my chest. Above it is the girls’ birthday along with their names.

“This spot is reserved for you. Whatever you want me to put there,” I tell her.

She widens her eyes. “What? No I was kidding.”

I shrug. “I was thinking a flower with your name woven into the petals.”

“You are crazy,” she hisses.

I lean in, nipping her lip. “I am. For you.”

She shakes her head. “You’re being serious?”

I nod. “I’ve wanted to do it for a while, but with everything going on, I haven’t been able to get Jerico or Elle to do it.”

“You let them tattoo you?”

“Of course. Who else do you think did the pieces on my back?” I snort.

“I didn’t know. You’ll tattoo me? For the mark, I mean.”

“Only I will ever tattoo you. As many of them as you want,” I promise her. “You’ll be my canvas.”

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. We will start with the one and see where it goes. Where would you put it?” she asks.

I brush the side of her neck, running my fingers down to her hand. “Where would you want it?” I ask.

She shrugs. “I don’t know.”

“We have time to figure it out.” I lean in and kiss her. “I love you so fucking much, Lainey.”

“I love you.”

“What did I do to get so lucky to have you in my life?” I ask her sincerely.

“You are a good man, Michael. You give everything to your children. You do the right thing when you can. You care about others even if they don’t deserve it. That’s proven by the way you let Miranda live all these years even though she used your children as pawns in a game against you that you never wanted to play. Honestly, it’s not you that did something to deserve me. I’m the one who should be counting my blessings.” She rests her forehead on mine.

“Don’t be silly. You are strong and resilient. You went through literal hell. I read your files, Lainey. I had to before I let you near my girls. Your mother was a terrible person. Yet even growing up in a crack den, you clawed your way out and found a way to survive. If that isn’t the most admirable thing I have ever heard, I don’t know what is,” I admit.

“I hate that you know that about me, but I get it. Those days were dark, but if I had to go back and do it all over again, I would. If it meant that I would be here with you…with the girls…I would crawl through hell over and over to have this life.”

“Good thing you won’t have to. The past is in the past. Now it’s time to create a better future.”

She leans up and kisses me once more. “Our future is looking bright.”

She’s right.

I have my girls with me like they always should have been. My club is as close to me as ever now that I no longer have to keep part of me away from them. I have a loving woman.

My life is looking pretty damn great.

Even with a war on the horizon, I can’t help but feel good about my life.

It’s awfully wonderful.