Page 43 of Operation Annulment (Silent Phoenix MC)

thirty-seven

Nate

I sit back in the chair with a plastic cup of punch in my hand. I’m on call, and New Year’s Eve is always a mess. For once, though, all is right with the world. I don’t know how Dakota knew where to find me, but I’m glad she did.

I’d convinced myself that maybe I was the only one in misery. I thought maybe Kate was better off without me—I had no idea how much she was struggling.

Little Ricky staggers over and falls into the chair next to mine, his eye mask only covering one eye. I had to hand it to them. The Quinn sisters were geniuses.

With everyone wearing masks, no one noticed the blond-haired biker walking Dakota down the aisle. If they did, well, no one would say anything about it.

The entire affair is so unapologetically Dakota—instead of the typical bride and groom’s side, there’s just a large picture in the lobby of Zane and Dakota in a face-off.

The caption reads, ‘Everyone must choose a side.’ The only thing missing is that she isn’t dressed as Captain America, and he isn’t dressed as Ironman.

Each table is labeled with a different superhero and random facts about each one. I look down at the marker on my table.

Captain Marvel

Captain Marvel is the alias of Carol Danvers.

Fun Fact: Dakota drove a little red car that she fondly referred to as Carol Danvers. That car was nothing more than scrap metal and nothing like a superhero, regardless of what Dakota would tell you.

I smile and take another drink.

“I gotta be real honest with you.” Little Ricky leans awkwardly across the table toward me.

“Okay.”

He continues, “You asked me where Hail Mary came from. I think maybe I came up with it because she has a body that makes you want to sin. So, you better ask for forgiveness first, yeah?”

I narrow my eyes. “I’m going to pretend you didn’t just say that. Because I just got my wife back and don’t feel like fighting tonight.”

He looks back at her on the dance floor with Dakota and then at me again. “But you see it, right?”

I sigh and watch Kate move to the beat of the music. “Yeah, I do see it. I’d prefer I’m the only one who sees it if you know what I mean.”

Little Ricky nods thoughtfully, his eyes never leaving Kate. “ Sí , I know. You’re a lucky man. Don’t take it for granted. She’s stubborn as an ass, but women like her? Once in a lifetime, man.”

I’m surprised to find that the kid runs deep.

“I won’t take it for granted.”

He smiles and pats the table between us. “That’s good. If you fuck it up, I’ll slit your throat.” Then he stands up and comes over to hug me. “I love you, Dr. Nate. You’re my boy!”

I slap him awkwardly on the back before excusing myself to grab my wife on the dance floor. Zane must have the same idea because he grabs Dakota almost simultaneously. He threads her arms around his neck as they dance, her feet barely touching the floor.

Kate giggles as I spin her toward me. “You drinking tonight, darlin’?”

She shakes her head immediately. “No way. God knows where we’d end up if I did.”

I glance over to where Little Ricky is chatting up one of the bridesmaids. “So, Rick’s drunk and completely fucked in the head.”

She tilts her face up and grins. “You’re just now finding this out? Are you going to run out on me?”

I shrug. “Well, I can’t. He said he’d slit my throat if I screwed this up.”

Kate pats me on the cheek and shakes her head. “Little Ricky doesn’t have that kind of authority.” My shoulders relax slightly before she adds, “I do, though.”

I grin. “There are some things I didn’t get a chance to say in the locker room—what, with the interruption and all.”

She chuckles. “You mean the recommendation that we not show our faces there for a while?”

“Right, there was that. What I’m trying to say is that I’m just so damn glad that you came back. I know we’ll have to work harder because we don’t have much in common. You’re always reading those case studies at night; maybe I could start doing that, too.”

Kate bites her lip and looks down at the floor, shoulders shaking. When her head pops back up, she’s got tears running down her cheeks. “I’m sorry, it’s not funny. It’s just that I was never reading case studies. I just used a psych textbook to hide my phone.”

I narrow my gaze as we take another turn around the dance floor. “What were you really doing on your phone?”

She giggles again. “Um, I like to read romance novels. So, I download books on my phone and read them at night and between patients during the day.”

“Like Pride and Prejudice ?” I ask .

Kate shakes her head. “Think Fifty Shades meets Pride and Prejudice. ”

She looks up with a self-conscious smile, and my mouth goes dry. “Um, I could be into that. What kind of husband would I be if I didn’t try it?”

The song ends, but we don’t let go of each other.

I move my hand up to cup her chin. “So, I’m your Bucky?”

She runs her tongue against her top teeth, giving me a sly smile. “Yeah, and apparently, I’m your Natasha.”

“I’m not much of a comic guy, but I know the movies. Shouldn’t you be in a skintight black suit?”

Kate clicks her tongue against her teeth, our bodies swaying in time to the song. “Keep it up, and you’ll need a metal arm, buddy.”

She playfully swats me on the ass before her eyes widen. “Oh! I almost forgot to tell you! I did something a little risky while we were apart. I went to the Christmas Festival of Lights, and guess what? I rode the Ferris wheel! I’m trying to be an adrenaline junkie, just like you.”

I almost crack up, but the smile on her face is so earnest, and it’s pretty damn obvious she’s proud of herself. “You know what, babe? It’s a start.”

Then, without another thought, I lean down and press my lips lightly against hers. Our relationship began under less-than-ideal circumstances, but I don’t regret a second of it.

We’re two people with a lot of baggage, but marrying her in Vegas was the best decision of my life. The odds were stacked against us initially, but we’re still here—still fighting.

I know we’re both still afraid of being hurt and that there will be times when either one or both of us wants to call it quits. But I’ll cling to the memory of tonight, holding her in my arms and feeling as if all is right in the world.

And if that doesn’t work?

Well, I guess I’ll just have to break out the tequila shots.