Page 92 of Perdition
Panting now, she yanked her hands from his and shot to her feet, her legs restless, her body needing to move.
“If you had just talked to me about how you were feeling, none of this would have happened—our marriage would still be strong, our home would still feel like a sanctuary, our tree—” she choked on that word— “our tree would still be there, growing, thriving…just like our marriage had been. But you clammed up; you chose pride over vulnerability, and your own feelings over a simple conversation.”
His eyes filled with tears, and they slid down his face.
Slowly, Mads stood, sliding his hands up her arms to her neck, his fingers tangling in the strands of her hair.
“Can you ever forgive me?” he pleaded, his hands shaking.
Sucking in a breath at the panic on his face, Em couldn’t speak.
She gazed at him, silent, taking in every feature, every wrinkle, every curve and line of the face of the man she promised to love forever. She’d made vows—to love and cherish, through sickness, health, good, bad, rich, poor….
“Yes,” she finally said, and he dragged in a breath, his chest shuddering with the force of it. “But…it is going to take time to get back to the way we were before….before you lost your way.”
He nodded eagerly as tears continued to stream down his face. His eyes, blue as ice, were filled with such relief, such hope and joy, it struck her like a bolt of lightning.
He loved her.
Desperately.
And she loved him.
She couldn’t live her life without Madsen William Flowers…and he couldn’t live without Emily Daisy Flowers.
They were two halves of a whole, soulmates, fated and destined and written in the stars by the hand of God Himself.
“I promise, baby, I’ll be a better man,” Mads declared, his voice clear and strong. “I will never hurt you again—I promise. Down to my fucking soul, I promise you.”
TWENTY-SEVEN
“She lettingyour sorry ass back in the house?” Patriot asked as he uncapped a beer and came to a stop next to him.
Swallowing his own beer, Frost cast a quick glance at Patriot. “Yup, just barely. She changed the key code again today, but she said she’d give it to me later if I’m good.” He was frowning, but his voice was light, humor filling his tone.
Patriot chuckled. “I guess you better not act up, then. Besides, Cluster is doing enough dumbass shit for all of us.” He tipped his beer bottle, indicating the brother who was, right then, trying to mount a motorcycle blindfolded…after downing five beers and toking a blunt.
The man was out of his fucking mind, but he was harmless.
It was the patch party for the Tonys, and the clubhouse was booming with music, booze, laughter, and carefree fun.
Tony—the first one—earned the road name Fetch, because he’d been so good at fetching whatever the brothers needed, they’d depended on him more and more over the last two years.
Tony Dos earned the road name Goose, because every time he fell asleep on the couch after a club party, he’d honk like a fucking goose in his sleep.
And they weren’t the only two new members getting their official Unchained MC patches.
Tiburon, Malo, and Throttle had all earned their new patches as official members of the Unchained.
Finally, with the patch over complete, his business with the Bone Dogz was over.
Mad Dog’s mess with the Cartel landed him in the prison infirmary when he lost a kidney to a dirty shanking in the showers. Sarah, after Val did her thing on the computer and added lots of not so fun charges, ended up in the state prison, serving five years.
She was no longer his problem, and it felt amazing to wash his hands of her and the trouble she brought with her.
But it wasn’t as easy to wash his hands of the trouble he’d brought to Emily and his kids.
Sorsha and Warwick had come home for the weekend and were there with him.