Page 55 of Flame's Fight

“I’m glad you came back.” Ashlyn says, brushing a finger down his cheek. He takes her hand and kisses her palm, giving her a smile.

“Me, too.”

“What’s your uncle like?” Tanya asks. “Is he anything like Dante?”

We laugh. “No. Puma and Dante are each unique. They both have a powerful presence, though. Dante has a forceful personality, one that takes over a room whenever he enters it. Puma draws attention more because of his physical presence.” I say. “Puma is built like a tank. He’s fucking huge. He used to play basketball. Pro. When he retired, he bulked up.”

“You’ll meet him next weekend at the wedding.” Ghost tells her. “He’s officiating Dante and Tally’s wedding. He started officiating at weddings when they built the casino 1% in Vegas. Turns out having a scary ass biker officiate at your wedding is a huge draw.”

Tanya’s eyes go round and we laugh again. Fuck, it feels good to laugh and just enjoy being who we are. I feel a sense of trepidation, like something bad will take away the good. But I shake it off. Right now is all that matters.

“So, are you building a house out here?” Tanya asks us.

“Let’s show you the spots.” I say, jumping up and helping Brooke to her feet.

We walk down the street and turn onto what is still a dirt path. Someone, probably Ranch, has placed flags outlining the various lots. Each group of homes will form a cul-de-sac with the main road circling around to the other side in case we need more lots. We have enough lots for the current members, but since the club is growing, it makes sense to be prepared.

Reaper heads to the lot he selected for him and Ashlyn. It’s at one end of the cul-de-sac. I chose the one next to it while Ghost’s is on the other side of Reaper’s and across the street from mine.

“This is ours.” Reaper tells Tanya. “Flame is next to mine. We’re planning on building a home between the two where Flame and Ashlyn’s mom can live. She and their sister still live at what will soon be Crossroads, but we want to give them a place away from there.”

Tanya nods and looks at Ghost. “Do you have a spot?”

He nods and points to his lot. “I’ve got that one. But I don’t know what I’m building yet.” He watches Tanya’s face as she stares out over the property. I can see the hope there. The hope that she’ll be the one to help him pick a design and live there with him.

“The views are amazing. I know you’re building a wall around the place. Even so, this is a gorgeous spot.” Tanya says, smiling at Ghost.

I glance at Brooke. “We’ll need to pick out a plan soon.” I remind her.

“Not until I get my proposal.” Brooke says, pretending annoyance.

I tickle her until she snorts, which causes all of us to laugh. And right then I see it. Our future. Me and Brooke, with our kids, living next door to our best friends and their families. Fuck, I can’t wait.

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO: BROOKE

We take a tour of Evie and Chaos’s home. Theirs is in the Spanish style with gorgeous tile flooring throughout and soft warm colors. The kitchen is massive with gorgeous granite countertops. I feel a twinge of envy at how beautiful their home is, but I have to admit, it fits the two of them perfectly. The counters are higher than average, because they’re both so tall. The master bath is close to completion and I want to crawl into their tub and do laps.

We shift over to Tally and Dante’s house, which is next door. It’s Mediterranean style is a compliment to the other house. It too boasts tile floors and warm colors. You can tell they didn’t scrimp when designing their home. They’ve already decorated the room nearest the master suite with tiny motorcycles and beautiful ocean and desert landscapes.

I sigh when we walk back to the bikes to head home.

“What’s wrong?” Flame asks me.

“Nothing. Not really. A little jealous, I guess, about what they’ve built. Those homes are spectacular.”

“They are exactly what Tally and Evie wanted. When you’re ready, we can talk about what you want in a home.” He says.

I look at him, and I see it. The promise of our future in his warm brown eyes. I kiss him before climbing onto the back of his bike. “How are you feeling?” I ask him, realizing that I didn’t think about his injury on the way over here.

He shrugs. “Great. I feel as good as I did before the shooting.”

“We still need to move my stuff.” Tanya reminds Ghost, who nods.

“And I need to clean up my apartment.” I complain. “I really hate that guy.”

Flame laughs. “Me too. Axel and Izzy cleaned your place up. You may need to rearrange a few things, but they did what they could.”

I feel so much gratitude to them. I need to find a gift for them to show my appreciation.

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