Page 68 of Zen's Crash

When we head downstairs, I notice there are still club brothers in place guarding Terrance and my uncle, so we haven’t missed them leaving. Terrance and his father are both horrible men. I hope they rot in jail for all the innocent lives they’ve destroyed. I can still remember seeing my fatherslumped on the floor, not moving, and I will never forgive them for that. I’ll never forgive Terrance for killing him and never forgive his father for filling his head full of the shit that made him a killer. There’s no excuse for any of that.

We grab a cup of coffee and breakfast. I decide that for closure, I do need to see them taken away. Zen takes me to the perfect table for watching the whole thing go down. We’re finishing up our breakfast and have gotten refills on coffee when the police pull in. There are four patrol cars, which cause me to raise an eyebrow. They head into the front door and are shown back to Siege’s office. We aren’t privy to what’s talked about back there, but they eventually emerge with Terrance and his father wearing handcuffs. As I watch them being walked out, I take another sip of my coffee. This is a moment that will shine bright in my memories for a very long time.

Zen’s hand comes across the table to cover mine. When he jerks his chin towards the back where the offices are, I see one of his club brothers—the one called Dutch—carrying a cut. I get excited when I realize it’s my property cut.

I get to my feet as Zen steps out to meet his club brother.

“Here it is, Zen. Just like you ordered.”

“How about the other thing? Did the prospects get it done?”

Dutch nods, handing him my cut with one hand and slips something into his other hand—something small that I can’t see. “Wade took care of it,” Dutch says with a chuckle.

“He’s a good prospect. We should think about patching him in sometime soon.”

“I heard how he saved your old lady’s life—said he saw that killer shoot her with a stun gun and haul her over the fence. He alerted the others, and they went after him.”

“I appreciate what he did, but it’s more than just that. He’s been a stand-up brother for a while now. I know he’s not been prospecting for long, but the dude is solid Legion material.”

“I agree. You can put him forth at the next meeting if you like. We have a few other prospects who are ready too.”

I grin at him. “Might as well save the old ladies from throwing extra patching parties and recommend they get patched all at the same time.”

Dutch chuckles. “Outstanding idea. If, and when you recommend them, I’ll second the motion.”

“Thanks, Dutch. I owe you one, brother.”

“No problem.”

I just stand there watching the two of them talk, and it finally occurs to me that this is what drew Zen to club life. It’s having a brotherhood—other men who will jump into action when you and your loved ones are threatened, who understand and respect your opinions. It’s all so clear to me now. I can even see that the club wives have some of this going on. They’ve created a sisterhood, where they care about and support each other. I’ve never had that before, and I find that I badly want to be part of the wonderful dynamic the Savage Legion has created in our community.

I hear Zen call my name. “Lexi, are you okay?”

My head comes up to look at him. “Sorry, I zoned out there for a minute.”

“Is everything okay? If you’re freaked out about wearing my cut, we can put that off for now.”

I step closer, reach out, and wrap my hand around the cut. “You said I could have it. So, no takebacks.”

A happy grin jumps onto his face. He tugs the cut from Dutch’s hand and shows me the back. It hasProperty of Zenalong the bottom half.

My hands fly to my mouth, and I don’t even know why. I whisper, “I love it.”

Zen brushes one hand through his hair, and the anxious look tinging his expression falls away. “I hoped you would. Turn around, and I’ll help you put it on.”

I do as he says, moving my arms as he glides it onto me from behind. Suddenly, I’m surrounded by the scent of leather. I inhale deeply, enjoying the moment as he slips his arms around me. He kisses the side of my face and whispers, “Want to take your first ride as my old lady?”

“Are you okay to ride?” I ask. This morning he doesn’t look like he’s in pain, but Zen’s the type of guy who’d keep quiet about stuff like that.

He grins at me and rolls his shoulders, “Sure, it’ll take more than a knifing to keep me off my Harley.” Catching my expression, he adds, “Patch cleared me. So you up for it?”

I nod enthusiastically because I’m a hundred percent on board with how important this moment is in our lives. He’sgiving me the most important thing he has to offer—a place in his world.

***

When we get to his bike, I see a large object wrapped in pink and white polka dot paper hanging off the handlebars. He hands it to me. “Your second of three gifts.”

Smoothing my hand down the new leather vest, I’m practically vibrating with excitement. “I’m getting three gifts? The first one is going to be impossible to top,” I tell him teasingly.

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