Page 95 of The Deals We Make

Clutch leans forward. “It’s not about whether you’re good enough to be a biker. You’ve lived up to the ideals. You’ve lived the life well. But Cue Ball, my fucking dad, was wrong to do what he did, given the deal you struck with Camelot. I think we all know what a shit he turned into. I might be facing conversations like this with people he hurt for years to come. But I’m sorry, Vex. Real fucking sorry that he and this club let you down.”

I nod, words stuck somewhere in my throat.

“We don’t do shit to women,” Spark says. “It’s not who we are. I’d make a vote for you on the basis of that fact alone.”

Saint looks at King with a grin on his face. “Except that one time when King took my sister and?—”

“Fuck off,” King says, but he can barely get the words out from his grin. “I’m marrying her on Valentine’s Day, aren’t I? Can’t get more fucking romantic than that.”

“True story,” I say, finding my voice. “I was there when he convinced her. Real romantic shit. Needs her more than air or some shit.”

“For real?” Clutch asks.

King brushes the comment off. “It wasn’tthatpathetic.”

Switch turns to face me. “It’s a bold choice to give up the life you should have had to save someone’s life. But, honestly, that’sutterly typical of the man I’ve come to know. You’ve put all of us first. Above yourself, above sleep, above everything. But it’s time you went and got that life if it’s not this. You’ve been everything an Outlaw should be…you just need to decide if being an Outlaw is everything youwantto be. I’ll miss the fuck out of you if you go, but if happiness means going out west with Calista to start a new life there, then you should do it with all our blessings.”

I’ve not cried in a fucking long time, but I feel the sting of tears like I might.

I lower my head for a moment and run my tongue over my teeth. I swallow deeply.

“Should the terms not be clear,” King says. “It means you can leave, free and clear. An absolute severing of your ties to the club beyond the friendships you’ve made. You find yourself back in town, you’ll always be welcome at the clubhouse. Or it means that you can decide to stay, and we’ll patch you in again. This time, you’ll become an Outlaw because you choose it. You’ll keep your status, your standing, your share. It’s a symbolic joining because you want to be a brother. That you want to be an Iron Outlaw. But if you join, this time, you’ll be subject to the rules of leaving that everyone else is.”

Clutch passes the sheets of paper he had across the table to me. “These are the terms of both offers. They’re both valid for seventy-two hours.”

“There’s one last clause, if you stay,” King says. “Also already voted on. We want you to take on four prospects to help with tech and security. Hire people already seasoned, hire people to train. Invest in the systems you need to make it happen because a security team isn’t fitting in your pantry. Create a security rota so we can all sleep in our beds safely each night, including you.”

My head spins with the possibilities. But the biggest feeling is one of relief.

“Stay,” Niro says.

I look up at him.

“What happened to agreeing to let Vex decide on his own?” King asks.

“You’re being all poetic and shit and dancing around it,” Niro say. “He needs to know we want him.”

“You think that wasn’t clear from what just got said?” Saint asks.

Niro stands. “I’m just gonna say it. Vex, you’re a fucking good human being. So, you should stay with us because I’d really struggle with missing you.”

Spark joins Niro. “Fight night and ride outs wouldn’t be the same without you. You should stay.”

Bates gets to his feet. “I’d fucking miss you.”

Halo stands too. “I think you should stay so I can give you shit for falling for Calista so goddamn hard, it hurts my teeth just watching you.”

Saint grins as he follows the others. “I think you should stay, because I know a thing or two about joining a motorcycle club when you didn’t intend to and finding a home here.”

Clutch stands. “I think you should stay because this is where you belong.”

Switch gets out of his chair. “Can’t imagine you not being here for all the most important and life-changing moments and the small ones that build memories. I want you to stay.”

King is the last to his feet. “I want you to stay because, at its very core, you’re a brother, one of us, an Outlaw.”

I look at each and every one of them, and then I embarrass the shit out of myself by placing my hands over my eyes and crying.

Not sure I’ve ever seen such a powerfully significant moment like this in the clubhouse before. These men have become my life. But they just gave me the golden ticket. The answer tomy prayers. I can follow Calista. I can make a home with her. Without obligation to the club.