Page 19 of Viking (Dixie Reapers MC #24)

Karoline

I held my breath, waiting for Viking’s answer.

The dim hallway light cast shadows across his face, hiding his expression from me.

My fingers found the wooden doorframe behind me, tracing its edges as if it could somehow anchor me in this moment.

Everything felt suspended -- my heart, my thoughts, the very air between us.

What did he want? The question hung between us, heavier than any club ultimatum, more dangerous than the men hunting us.

“I want you to stay,” he finally said, his voice dropping to a rough whisper. “Both of you. Not because of Kris. Not because of the danger. Because when I imagine my house without you in it, it feels wrong.”

My heart stuttered in my chest, a mixture of relief and apprehension washing through me. I opened my mouth to respond, but Viking wasn’t finished.

“But I need you to understand what this means. Being claimed as my old lady isn’t just for show. In the club’s eyes, you’d be mine. Athena would be under my protection. The patches on my back extend to you both. And there’d be no separation later if you felt things weren’t working out.”

“Like a marriage?” I asked, trying to wrap my head around what he was asking.

“In some ways, deeper.” He looked past me, toward Athena’s partially closed door. “The club is family. More binding than blood sometimes. More dangerous too.”

I slid down the wall until I was sitting on the hardwood floor, needing to feel something solid beneath me. Viking lowered himself beside me, his large frame making the hallway feel even smaller.

“If those men find us…” I started.

“When,” Viking corrected grimly. “Not if. When.”

I nodded, the reality settling cold in my stomach. “When they find us, what happens then?”

“The club protects what’s ours.” His voice hardened, a glimpse of the man I’d seen that first day at the gate -- dangerous, capable of violence I couldn’t fully comprehend. “All of us. To the death if necessary. And before you ask, yes, it’s come to that in the past.”

I thought about the men I’d met during my time here -- Tank with his booming laugh, Wire’s analytical mind, Thunder’s kindness. They’d all die for me, for Athena, if Viking claimed us as his? The weight of that responsibility pressed down on me.

“That’s a hell of a choice to make in one night,” I whispered.

“I know.” Viking’s shoulder brushed mine, warm through the thin fabric of my shirt. “I tried to buy more time, but Savior was clear. By morning, you’re either family or you’re gone.”

I stared at my hands in my lap, thinking of Kris’s letter.

Find Viking. He’ll protect you . Had my brother known it would come to this?

Had he guessed at the feelings that had been rekindling between us since I arrived?

Or had he simply known that Viking’s loyalty would extend to his family, no matter what?

“I’ve been attracted to you since I was a teen,” I admitted, the words slipping out before I could stop them. “Following you and Kris around, making a complete fool of myself.”

A small smile touched Viking’s lips. “You weren’t subtle.”

“God.” I pressed my palms to my heated cheeks.

His smile widened briefly before fading back into seriousness. “But you’re not a kid anymore, Karoline. And I’m not the same guy who used to come to your family dinners.”

I studied his profile in the dim light -- the strong line of his jaw mostly hidden by his beard, the tiny scar above his eyebrow from a high school football injury, the new lines around his eyes that spoke of harder years than I could imagine.

“No,” I agreed. “We’re different people now.”

Different, but the attraction remained. If anything, it had grown stronger.

The boy I’d crushed on had become a man of fierce loyalty and a gentleness one wouldn’t expect from someone who looked so intimidating.

I’d seen how he knelt to speak to Athena at her level, how his gaze tracked me across rooms when he thought I wasn’t looking.

Viking pushed himself to his feet and began pacing the narrow hallway, his steps silent despite his size. The movement reminded me of a caged predator, powerful energy contained by sheer force of will.

“If we leave, they’ll find us,” I said, stating the obvious.

“Yes.” No sugar-coating, no false reassurances.

“And if we stay, we become yours.” I watched his reaction carefully. “Your responsibility.”

He stopped pacing, turning to face me fully. “Is that what you think this is about? Responsibility?”

The intensity in his eyes made me look away.

“I don’t know what to think. A week ago, I was teaching preschool and planning summer vacation.

Now I’m hiding in a biker compound, being told I need to become someone’s ‘old lady’ to stay alive.

” I swallowed hard. “How do I know this isn’t just you keeping your promise to Kris?

Duty instead of… instead of something real? ”

He crouched down in front of me, bringing us eye to eye. His hand reached out, hesitated, then gently tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. The casual intimacy of the gesture made my breath catch.

“Ask me again what I want,” he said, his voice low and rough. “If there was no danger, no Savior, no ultimatum.”

I searched his face, looking for any sign of hesitation. “What do you want, Viking?”

“You,” he answered simply. “You and Athena. In my house. In my life. In my bed, when you’re ready. Not because of Kris. Not because you need protection. Because in a life full of wrong turns and bad choices, you feel like the one right thing that’s happened to me in years.”

My heart hammered against my ribs, and I forgot how to breathe. The raw honesty in his voice stripped away my defenses, leaving me exposed and vulnerable in a way that had nothing to do with physical danger.

“So if I agree to this,” I said carefully, “if I become your… old lady, it’s more than just for show.”

Viking’s eyes never left mine. “It would be as real as you want it to be. As real as we make it.”

I thought of Athena sleeping just feet away, of the government operatives in town hunting us, of the club waiting for Viking’s decision. I thought of my brother’s final wish that I find this man, and the feelings I’d been fighting since the moment I saw him standing at the compound gate.

The question now wasn’t just what Viking wanted, but what I wanted too.

I stared up at Viking, his words echoing in my mind.

As real as we make it. Could it be that simple?

That complicated? The world had shifted beneath my feet so many times in such a short amount of time -- Kris’s death, discovering Athena, learning about government conspiracies, and now this.

Viking offering himself, his protection, his life.

Offering a future I hadn’t dared imagine but suddenly couldn’t stop thinking about.

“I’m scared,” I admitted, my voice barely above a whisper. “Not just of the men hunting us. Of this. Of what happens if I say yes.”

Viking remained crouched before me, his presence solid and unwavering. “Tell me what scares you.”

I hugged my knees to my chest, making myself smaller in the narrow hallway. “Becoming dependent. Owing my safety -- Athena’s safety -- to you and the club. What if it doesn’t work out? What if you realize this isn’t what you wanted after all? I don’t want you to resent me later.”

“I don’t make promises I can’t keep,” he said, the intensity in his eyes almost too much to bear. “And I’m promising you now, whatever happens between us, I’ll never leave you or Athena unprotected.”

“You can’t guarantee that,” I argued softly. “People change. Feelings change.”

“Some do.” He shifted, settling on the floor beside me again, his broad shoulder pressing against mine. “But not this. Not me.”

The certainty in his voice made my breath catch. I’d known this man since I was a child, idolized him from afar, but the adult Viking was still largely a mystery. Yet something in me trusted him completely, a bone-deep certainty that had nothing to do with logic.

“I’ve spent my whole life being Kris’s little sister,” I said. “I need to be my own person, not just someone you’re protecting or feel responsible for. I know you promised him you’d watch over me, and as much as I want to stay, I’m worried things could go badly.”

Viking was quiet for a long moment, his breathing steady beside me. When he spoke, his voice was lower, rougher. “This isn’t just about keeping a promise to your brother. Hasn’t been since the moment you walked through my door.”

He shifted to face me, the movement bringing him even closer. The hallway suddenly felt impossibly small, the air between us charged with something I couldn’t name.

“Every morning when I wake up and hear you in the kitchen, making coffee or talking to Athena, it feels right,” he continued. “Every night when I check the locks and know you’re sleeping down the hall, it feels like I’ve been given something I don’t deserve but will fight to the death to keep.”

My heart hammered against my ribs. I’d never heard Viking speak this way, with such raw emotion, such vulnerability. The tough biker exterior had cracked, revealing the man beneath.

“Athena likes you,” I said, my thoughts turning to my niece. “She doesn’t warm up to anyone, but she watches you. Yesterday, I found her arranging her stuffed animals in a line, telling them they needed to ‘stand guard’ like you do.”

A small smile softened his features. “Smart kid. Observant.”

“Like her father,” I agreed, the mention of Kris creating a momentary ache in my chest. “She needs stability. Safety. After everything she’s been through…”

“We could give her that,” Viking said, the “we” hanging between us, full of possibility. “Together.”