“Hey,” Sayer cut in, voice edged now. “Don’t go after Diamond. She had no idea we were being tracked.”
“Sayer,” Teller replied, calm but commanding, “we’d like to hear it from her.”
There was no heat in his tone. No rage. Just quiet authority. That somehow made it worse.
Sayer looked like he wanted to say more, but when he turned to her, his jaw eased. Because he saw it. What they all should’ve seen. A woman who wasn’t backing down. Not now. Not ever.
Diamond lifted her chin.
And she told them everything. Every detail. Every choice she made. Every step that led them to this room. She didn’t sugarcoat it. Didn’t defend herself. Just facts—bare and raw. By the time she finished, the room had gone still.
Teller studied her like a man seeing a puzzle piece finally click into place. Then, without a word, he gave a single, silent nod.
Relief hit her like a wave. Her shoulders sagged, just slightly. From the start, she hadn’t wanted anything to do with the Royal Bastards. She didn’t trust them. Didn’t want them in her orbit. But now… now she felt it deep in her gut—they had the Harlots’ backs.
And maybe, just maybe, they had hers too.
“If you boys will excuse me,” she said, voice steadier than she felt, “I need to make a call.” She looked at Sayer, let a smile ghost across her lips, and winked before slipping out.
The hallway felt like stepping into a different world. Quiet. Dim. No heavy gazes, no judgment. Just her and the aftermath.
She needed a second to breathe. To not be Diamond, president of the Harlots. To just beher.
She found a room marked FAMILY ROOM and ducked inside, locking the door behind her before sinking into a chair. The phone felt heavy in her hand as she dialed. Nova answered on the first ring.
“Diamond, where are you?”
“The hospital,” she said, letting out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.
“What the hell happened?”
Diamond hesitated, eyes drifting to the floor, then out the narrow window where city lights blinked like distant stars. “Where do I even start?” she murmured, before launching into it—everything. The ambush. The chase. Sayer bleeding. The Royal Bastards crashing through hospital protocol like a wrecking ball. She told Nova everything in more detail than what she’d shared earlier.
“The Bastards are here,” she finished, “and I’m talking to you.”
“We’re in the middle of reworking everything on our end. We heard from Maddyn—Carla and her girls are on a plane to a new life.”
Relief crept in, unexpected and warm. She closed her eyes. “That’s… that’s great news.”
“You sound like you’re holding it together by a thread.”
Diamond let out a dry laugh. “That’s because I am.”
“When are you heading this way?”
“As soon as Sayer’s released, we’re heading home.”
A pause. Then the quiet tap of Nova drumming her fingers on the desk. “Diamond… do you think this is a good idea? You and Sayer?”
She stared at the wall, her chest tightening. It had started as a one-night stand. Scratch the itch, move on. But it hadn’t ended there. It’d grown roots. Deep ones. He saw her. Not just the patch, not just the authority.Her.
She’d spent years walling off pieces of herself, convinced they didn’t matter. That love was a weakness she couldn’t afford.
“I don’t know,” she admitted quietly. “I haven’t had time to think. It’s messy. And it scares the hell out of me.”
“Then why not walk away?” Nova’s voice was gentle, not pushing. Just asking.
“Because maybe for once, I don’t want to,” Diamond said. “Maybe I want something just for me.”
