Page 79 of Hammer

“You realize you’re older than me, right?”Wrath asked, the question deliberately provocative.

I tensed, but Hammer didn’t rise to the bait.“Not by more than a few years,” he acknowledged calmly.“Doesn’t change anything.”

“Doesn’t it?”Wrath’s voice hardened.

“Dad,” I interrupted, the word feeling strange on my tongue.I hadn’t planned to call him that yet, but it slipped out naturally in my urgency to diffuse the tension.“These are my sons.Your grandsons.”

The diversion worked.Wrath’s attention shifted to the boys, who stood slightly behind Hammer, watching the exchange with wary eyes.

“Chase and Levi,” I continued, gesturing them forward.“Boys, this is… your grandfather.”

Levi, surprisingly, moved first, stepping around his brother with cautious curiosity.“You look like mom around the eyes,” he observed quietly.

Something in Wrath’s expression softened at Levi’s directness.“That so?”He extended a hand to my younger son.“Good to meet you, Levi.”

Levi shook the offered hand, his small fingers disappearing in Wrath’s massive grasp.“Your clubhouse is cool,” he added, a tentative olive branch.

Chase moved forward then, his jaw set in that stubborn expression I recognized all too well.He extended his hand with determined formality.“Sir,” he said simply.

Wrath’s eyebrows rose slightly at the formal address, but he accepted Chase’s handshake with equal seriousness.“No need for ‘sir,’ boy.Grandpa works.Or Wrath, if you prefer.”

Chase nodded but didn’t commit to either option, retreating to stand beside his brother.I could see the wheels turning behind his eyes, evaluating this new addition to our complicated family tree.

“And this is Aura,” I added, drawing the focus to where she stood quietly observing the interactions.“Hammer’s daughter.”

Wrath nodded to her.“Knuckles mentioned you.Said you’re looking to prospect.Didn’t think the Dixie Reapers allowed women in their club, except as old ladies.”

Aura’s eyebrows shot up in surprise.“Word travels fast between clubs.”

“When it’s interesting news,” Wrath agreed, a hint of approval in his tone.

His gaze hardened again as it returned to Hammer.“We need to talk, you and me.About intentions.”

“No, we don’t,” I interjected, my voice firmer than before.Both men looked at me in surprise, clearly not expecting the interruption.“Hammer’s intentions are clear from his actions.He took us in when we had nowhere else to go.Protected us when Piston came after us.Gave the boys his name.”I stepped closer to Hammer, my hand finding his.“He loves us.And we love him.”

Wrath studied my face, perhaps hearing the steel beneath my words.I’d spent too many years being silent when I should have spoken.I wouldn’t make that mistake again -- not even with the father I’d just found.

“That true?”he asked Hammer, though his gaze stayed on me.

“Every word,” Hammer confirmed.

Something shifted in Wrath’s expression -- not quite acceptance, but a grudging respect.“Well,” he said after a moment, “guess that’s what matters, then.”

The tension in the room eased by fractions.Not gone completely but reduced to a more manageable level.Wrath gestured toward the door.“Let’s join the others.Food’s ready in the main room.We can talk more out there.”

As we followed him from the private room back into the clubhouse proper, Hammer leaned close to my ear.“Nice defense, wife,” he murmured.

I squeezed his hand in response.“Nobody gets to question us.Not even my newly discovered father.”

Hammer’s eyes crinkled at the corners -- his version of a smile.“That’s my girl.”

The simple praise warmed me more than it should have.As we entered the main room where Knights and their old ladies waited with curious eyes, I held my head higher.I might be meeting my father for the first time, might be navigating waters I’d never expected to chart, but I knew exactly who I was and who I loved.

That certainty would carry me through whatever came next.

* * *

The clubhouse common area had been transformed into something resembling a family gathering, with tables of food lining one wall and Knights mingling with their old ladies.Children darted between the adults’ legs, a surprising sight in what I’d expected to be an adults-only space.Everything felt both strange and familiar -- the rituals of MC life were similar enough to what I’d experienced with the Dixie Reapers to create a sense ofdéjà vu, yet distinctly different in ways I couldn’t quite name.I stuck close to Hammer’s side as Wrath introduced us to key members of his club, hyperaware of the curious glances thrown our way and the protective stance Hammer maintained beside me.

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