Page 93 of The Vows We Keep

“Because Niro wants to claim you as his property. And this is your chance to confirm you want to be.”

I look up at Niro. “You think you could have discussed this with me before you discussed it with them?” I ask.

Niro grins too. “There was a risk you wouldn’t agree.”

“There’sstillas risk I might say no.” But the mischief I see in his eyes makes me imagine, for a heartbeat, what it will be like to have our child look up at me with the same glee in theirs.

“We both know you’re going to say yes. And this is the dance you do before saying yes, so you can be independent and shit.” He squeezes my hand.

Before I met Niro, I thought that the world already decided what I deserved. That I was supposed to feel grateful to insecure men like Felipe, that I was lucky to get any of his attention. That I was somehow the lucky one for getting a piece of him.

Yet, here Niro is. Putting himself out there for me, in front of his club.

“You’re not exactly talking her into this,” Clutch suggests from the other side of the table.

“In-laws, remember?” Niro says, and I have no idea what that means.

“You need help with the words to ask her?” King says, but I can hear the laughter in his tone.

“Not from you. I don’t need some loved-up Shakespeare shit,” Niro replies. He turns to face me and slides his hand around the back of my neck, massaging it gently. “Is she here?”

“Who?”

He places his lips to my ear. “The girl trying break out of your chest. I want her to say yes to me.”

When he looks at me, I realize she is. “Yes,” I say quietly, and then repeat it loudly. I turn to King. “He’s my everything. My equal in all things.”

Niro moves to kiss me but can’t because Bates suddenly jumps on his back. “Fucking yes.”

A loud whistle ricochets around the room. “Sit your asses down,” King says. “We have more business. First, congratulations on becoming an Iron Outlaw old lady, Cat.”

“Thank you,” I say as Niro sits and pulls me onto his lap. I quickly stand. “I am so not sitting on your lap at the church table.”

Clutch tries to hide his laugh. “I like her.”

Wrinkle stands. “Here, you can have my seat because I can’t watch this.” With that he leaves the room, the door rattling in the frame when he slams it behind him.

“Was that because of me?” I ask Niro.

“Of a fashion,” King answers for him. “Sit in his chair anyway. You’re effectively a traitor to Los Reyes now.”

“That word sits heavy on my heart. And I’m not quite sure it represents what happened.Theywere traitors who killed my father. This isn’t being a traitor. This is revenge. At some point, I’m going to need to go and find out what happened to him by taking out Perrito, Felipe, or Mateo.” Even as I say it, I remember Rae’s words of caution. Processing anger and grief is not the same as revenge.

“My vote is Felipe,” Niro says. “I’ll happily cut his dick off.”

Bates slings his arm over Niro’s shoulder. “We don’t need to cut the dick off every guy Cat has banged.”

“Jesus Christ,” Switch says. “Don’t talk about Cat like that.”

Clutch shrugs. “If we do what we’re about to do, Cat doesn’t get out of the shit we give each other.”

Niro shrugs. “I don’t care if she knows I want to kill every fucker who touched her before I did.”

“Shut up. All of you. Look, what the hell is going on?” I say. “Oh, and no, you’re not cutting anyone’s dick off, just like I’m not sticking my knife through the throat of every club girl here. We both have pasts. Get over it.”

Niro winks at me. “Whatever you say, cariño.”

I shake my head. “Why am I here?”