As I got closer to our house, I kept my eyes peeled for Willow ahead of me and exhaled when I saw her turning into the driveway. Following in behind her, I parked the truck with the camper still attached.
We didn’t have a lot of extra driveway space, so I was going to take the camper out to the ranch this week and store it with the others. Roughstock had two that needed work, Phantom bought one for Laura to use during the Rally, and Comet had one on order. They would be safe and protected on the ranch.
After making sure the truck’s emergency brake was set and turning off the engine, I got out of the truck and walked over to Willow as she got off her bike. She’d left her hair unclippedas she rode, and the blonde locks were laying in every direction across her head. I smoothed it down the best I could before kissing her forehead.
“You feel like talking about it?” I asked her as I guided us up the front walkway and stairs.
“I don’t know why I’m so upset,” she said as I unlocked the door and turned off the security system. She walked inside and sat down on the couch as she continued. “It’s not like we didn’t fight all the time.”
Taking a seat next to her, I lifted her hand off her lap and kissed her wedding ring before I tried to make sense of it for her. “My guess is you’d grown used to the dynamics of your relationship, then things shifted this week, giving you a glimpse of what life could’ve been like for the two of you.”
She looked at me and shrugged. “Maybe.”
I wasn’t going to analyze her relationship with her brother. It wasn’t my place, and I wouldn’t speak for Ghost. What I would do was support my wife, be a strong shoulder to lean on, ensure she had a soft place to land when she was feeling overwhelmed, and never let her think she was anything other than the center of my universe.
“Are you hungry?” I asked as she leaned her head against my shoulder.
“Not really. I guess we need to start planning what needs to be done next week,” she suggested.
I lifted my arm, encouraging her to lie against me as I remarked, “We can work out the details later. Why don’t we just sit back and enjoy the peace and quiet?”
“That sounds nice,” she said and snuggled closer to me.
I wasn’t trying to placate her or shift her focus away from her feelings, but pushing herself and allowing the stress to worry her wouldn’t do anyone any good. Willow was going to have to getused to her new life, and the best way to do that was time and space.
I would give her the space she needed to work things out in her mind, and I would give her time to decide what was best for her. She was my ol’ lady and my wife, but she was free to make her own decisions, and that would never change.
Feeling her head grow heavy against my chest, I looked down to see she had fallen asleep. This was what I was looking forward to. The small things like her napping against me or us enjoying a cup of coffee on the back deck as the sun rose. Life was always unbalanced in some way or another, and Pappy had always preached about taking time to enjoy the small things in life.
He never specified, but I think this was what he was referring to. Time spent together, doing nothing except existing. It was as close to heaven that a Sinner would ever see. Feeling my eyes grow heavy, I allowed sleep to pull me under as Willow slept peacefully in my arms.
THAT EVENING, WE WENTto the clubhouse for an after-Rally cookout. It was a way for the Sinners to get the clubhouse and grounds cleaned up after a week of partying and gave us the chance to come together as a family. It was one of the few things that stayed the same after we patched over from the Bastards. Nitro kept the clubhouse clean and maintained, and we honored his memory by continuing his legacy.
Willow and I were sitting at one of the tables with Paige and Animal as the ladies laughed about something we didn’t understand. A loud noise from the back of the clubhouse drew my attention, and I gave Animal a look before standing. He followed my lead, and Willow looked up from her seat, curious where we were going.
“We’ll be right back, darlin’. You and Paige order another round for the table,” I suggested, and she glanced toward the continuing loud noise before nodding her understanding.
As Animal and I walked toward the back door, we were joined by Jagger and Comet. The noise was hollow and metallic, and as we got to the door, the sound of someone yelling echoed through the space.
Jagger patted his side, indicating he was carrying a weapon, and as I opened the door, I prayed that we didn’t have to use it. I’d expected to have an issue with the Bastards during the Rally, but they stayed far away from us. It became a running joke that we showed up and they disappeared. I guess it was true what I’d always heard from other clubs—the Bastards, while formidable, weren’t a real threat to anyone who stood up to them.
As we stepped into the warm afternoon sun, I was surprised by what we saw and who was causing the noise. Raven, the club’s resident mechanic, fixer, and overall easy-going guy, was holding a metal pipe in his hands, slamming it against an old metal lockbox. He’d brought it over before the Rally in case there were repairs that had to be done here, and from the dent in the top, he was taking whatever had pissed him off out on the box.
We made sure to stay clear of his unusual angry outburst and walked around him. When he noticed us, he turned his gaze to me, and I saw something I’d never seen in his eyes before. Uncertainty.
About what, I didn’t know. He tossed the pipe to the side and ran his hands through his hair as he turned away. I looked at Animal, Jagger, and Phantom and leaned my head back against the clubhouse, silently telling them to let me speak with him. Raven and I were always close, and I hoped whatever was bothering him, he would trust me enough to speak to me.
If he didn’t, that was fine too. I wasn’t going to hold his hand and pat his back while he cried. That’s not what Sinners did foreach other. We stood by and offered help, but singing the blues was for babies, not bikers.
Finally, he turned back to me as I stood with my feet apart and my arms crossed, waiting for him to calm down. Lifting his face to the sun, I heard him exhale as he lowered his gaze to me and walked over.
“Sorry, man. I didn’t mean to cause a ruckus,” he said, and I waited, giving him the time to see what else he wanted to say. “She’s just she’s so infuriating.”
I gave him a confused look. “She?”
Raven wasn’t a choir boy, but he didn’t bed hopper either. The last woman he dated—and I use that word loosely—was over two years ago. His parents were still married and very much in love, so he was always looking for what they had.
“It’s too much to get into right now,” he said then added, “I’ve got to get back to the shop. I have eight custom bikes to get finished and shipped out before the end of October.”
