Page 52 of Otto: The Hawthornes

Uncle Casper must’ve interpreted the look on my face, because his lips twitched with understanding. “You’re protective of her? That’s good.”

“Decent marriages have started from less,” Mack said quietly, the first comment he’d made in a while.

I gaped at them. All of them had seemed to come to some kind of consensus without saying a word to me. I couldn’t figure it out.

Gramps huffed and shook his head. “She’s loyal, Otto,” he said, speaking slowly like I wouldn’t be able to understand him. “She was raised in a highly religious family—”

Leo scoffed.

“—with the father as the head,” Gramps continued. “He’s the be-all and end-all, yeah? But who d’you think her loyalty will lie with once she’s married?”

“Her husband,” I rasped, finally realizing what they’d all been thinking.

“That’s right,” Gramps replied. “Her husband.”

“Fuck,” I breathed.

“He was gonna kill her,” Mack said, his eyes on me. “For the sake of a few crates of rifles.” He paused. “And nothin’ we say is gonna convince her of that truth.”

“And once we’re married, I can protect her,” I murmured, taking a deep breath.

“Not only that,” Uncle Casper replied. “You’ll be protectin’ the club, too. She goes back to them, they know exactly what happened today.”

“No question,” Dragon confirmed.

“Won’t they already—” I stopped speaking the moment Uncle Casper started grinning.

“You blew up the fuckin’ cabin.” My eyes widened in realization.

“It’s not checkers, son,” Gramps said. “It’s chess.”

“They’ll think she’s dead.”

“Long enough for you to get a ring on her finger at least,” Uncle Casper confirmed.

“And long enough for us to figure out where the rest of that fuckin’ shipment is,” Leo added. “And what the fuck they plan on doin’ with ’em before they even realize we know they have ’em.”

“She’s not gonna marry me,” I said flatly, looking around the table. “She doesn’t even know me.”

Leo laughed humorlessly. “She grew up in Calgary Church,” he muttered. “She’ll marry the father of her child.”

“So we’re just bankin’ on the fact that she’s been brainwashed so she’ll marry me without argument?” I asked, glaring. “Because I don’t know about you but that kind of makes me want to hit somethin’.”

“You gonna beat her?” Uncle Casper asked. “Control her? Treat her like shit?”

“Of course not.”

“Then I’m bettin’ you’re better than any alternative her parents woulda given her.”

“That’s not the point,” I ground out.

“Point is,” Dragon said, clearly done with the entire conversation. “You thought you could keep your connection a secret and you got found out.”

“That wasn’t—”

“Shut it.” He glowered at me. “Now you’re gonna do right by that girl. You help out the club, so much the better.”

“Do right by her,” I muttered under my breath. “Jesus.”

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