Page 63 of The Bastard's Lily
She turns just enough to look at me, eyes soft but clear. “Me too.”
For a moment, we just breathe together, the quiet louder than anything else. Then she lets out a small laugh, warm and a little shaky. I feel it against my ribs.
“No more rehashing,” she says. “No more past.”
“Only forward,” I answer.
“Together,” she adds, voice sure.
I tighten my hold, the weight of it settling right where it belongs. “A family,” I say, and this time it feels like a promise we both believe.
Calla rests the back of her head against my chest, and for a few steady heartbeats, everything inside me finally goes quiet. No burner phone. No threats. Just the three of us waiting for whatever comes next.
From the bar down the hall, Beau’s laugh carries—bright and certain, like he doesn’t know the world just shifted around him. Grimm answers with a low chuckle, and the sound settles something deep in my bones.
Calla tilts her face up. “Whatever’s out there, we handle it together.”
“Damn right,” I say, brushing a thumb along her jaw.
Outside, a bike engine fires, the distant roar of brothers gearing up for the sweep. The club is moving, the hunt already underway.
I press a final kiss to her temple. “We’ve got this.”
For the first time all day, the weight on my chest eases. The fight isn’t finished—not by a long shot—but we’re not running anymore. We’re standing. Together.
Let them come.
Theclubhousewakeslikea machine coming online—boots on wood, engines rumbling in the yard, voices low and sharp. Rook shadows me the entire morning, eyes flicking to every doorway as if danger might step through it. I pull on my scrubs anyway.
“You’re not going,” he says from the doorway, arms folded, jaw tight.
“I have to.” I slide my badge into my pocket and meet his stare. “My shift starts in an hour. And Beau has school.”
Rook’s frown deepens, the muscle in his jaw working. “After what showed up at the gate yesterday? No.”
“I’m not hiding,” I say, voice steady. “The prison needs me. And Beau deserves a normal day, not another morning locked in aclubhouse.”
He steps closer, hands on my shoulders, heat radiating through my shirt. “Calli…”
“I was born in a storm,” I cut in, softer but firm. “I can handle the fire. You know that.”
For a long moment, he just breathes, the fight in his eyes battling the trust we’ve built. Then he exhales, rough and low. “I don’t like it. But I get it.”
“We stick to the plan,” I say. “You follow us to school, then to work. Extra eyes on both.”
His grip tightens once before he lets go. “Deal. But you call me foranything. Even a shadow that feels wrong.”
I nod, heart hammering, but resolve unshaken. “I promise.”
Behind him, Beau bounces in the hallway, backpack slung over one shoulder, blissfully unaware of the quiet war swirling around us. And for a moment, that’s exactly how I want it. We step into the hallway, Beau bouncing ahead with his new fox keychain jingling against the zipper of his backpack.
Grimm is leaning against the far wall like he’s been waiting the whole time, broad grin already in place. “Morning, buddy,” he says to Beau. Then to me, “Figured I’d volunteer as kindergarten helper today.”
I stop short, half-laughing. “What?”
Grimm pushes off the wall, shrugging like it’s nothing. “Turns out I know Ms. Harmon pretty well. Might owe me a favor or two.” The grin widens, pure trouble. “Thought I’d cash one in—keep an extra set of eyes on your boy.”
Beau beams. “You’re coming to school with me?”
