Hours later, I’m out in the back with the Lords, their old ladies, and a handful of kids who are running around like hellions. Somehow it feels like I’ve known these people practically my whole life. It might be due to the benefit of a couple of shots and a beer, but I can’t remember the last time I felt so comfortable in a group of people.

The warm fuzzy sensation that I’m finally safe and among friends reminds me of something I’ve neglected to do for far too long. Stepping away from the group, I fish my half-broken phone out of my pocket and turn it on. Amazingly, it somehow still works after Thorn threw it against the wall. Smiling in relief, I peer through the broken glass of the screen and hit a number.

“Isabel?” Deb’s voice is high-pitched and tearful when she answers. “Are you there?”

“Deb! Yes, it’s me! I’m so sorry! I’m completely fine! I promise! I’m safe!”

“Oh, my God!” Deb instantly starts full-on crying. “Oh my God, Izzy, I was so worried! Where are you? I tried calling you so many times!”

“I’m in Tanner Springs,” I tell her, choking up a little with love for my friend. “I’m totally okay. I just wanted to let you know. I promise I would have called you if I could have. I feel terrible — I know you were probably worried sick!”

“What happened?” she wails. “Where were you? When I came back to the bar with Ralph, you were just… gone!”

“It’s a long story. But I promise to tell you about it just as soon as I get back to town.” Then I remember something. “Oh, and I’m sorry about this, but I broke your heels.”

Deb starts to laugh, half-hysterically. “Isabel, those were genuine Manolo knockoffs!”

I snort, filled with sudden warmth and relief that things are back to normal between us. “I promise to replace them with another pair next time we go shopping.”

“When are you coming back?” she asks, sniffling a little.

I glance over at the group, my eyes sliding over people one by one until I spot Thorn.

“I’m not exactly sure,” I admit. “I sort of… met someone. But it’s a long story.”

After I hang up with Deb, I go back to hang out with the old ladies. Thorn spends most of the afternoon catching up with the men, but from time to time our eyes meet. Each time, the look he gives me sends a jolt of heat straight through to my core. More than once, one of the women notices, and yet another round of good-natured teasing begins.

“I don’t know what you did to Thorn, girl,” Alix says, coming up next to me. “But it looks like you’re gonna be a permanent fixture around here.”

In spite of myself, a sudden rush of doubt hits me. “Do you really think so, Alix?” I ask her. I turn to her and decide to lay my cards on the table. “Because I’m pretty sure I’m in love with him.”

She smiles at me kindly and shakes her head. “I would bet a mortgage payment on it,” she grins. “He is gone on you. Are you seriously telling me you guys haven’t even talked about this yet?”

“Not really,” I murmur. “I mean, the last few days, there wasn’t really time. And then after that…” I shrug. “I mean, I guess I was sort of afraid to bring anything up. I just…” I swallow painfully. “I just don’t want this to end, you know?”

“Oh, girl, trust me.” Alix laughs and puts an arm around me. “When a man like Thorn gets a look like that in his eye? He’s made up his mind. He just hasn’t gotten around to telling you about it. But he will.”

“I hope you’re right,” I say ruefully.

“I am.” She nods. “And I’m glad. Thorn’s a good man. He deserves someone like you. And it’ll be good to have another old lady around here. These men can be a handful. We need each other to lean on.”

I look over at Thorn, who’s talking to Gunner, Beast, and Angel. “You’ve got that right,” I grin.

A little later, Thorn disappears inside for a while. When he comes back, his eyes lock on mine and he heads straight for me.

“Well, it looks like Isabel’s about to leave us for a little while, girls,” Sydney announces, raising her beer.

“Sorry, ladies, I need to steal her from you for a bit,” Thorn grins, and catches me around the waist.

“Bye, Isabel!” a couple of them hoot and call after me. “Enjoy the ride!”

“Oh, my gosh,” I snort as Thorn leads me away. “Those ladies are not shy, are they?”

“They have strong personalities, that’s for certain,” he agrees, amused. “‘Course, they’d have to have, to put up with this lot.”

Thorn brings me inside the clubhouse, and takes me up some stairs to the second floor. I glance up at him, and notice his face is more relaxed than I’ve ever seen it. “You’re glad to be back, aren’t you?”

“Yeah.” He nods once, chuckling. “Glad it’s all over. And you’re safe.”

“It’s nice to not have all that danger hanging over us, that’s for sure.”

We stop in front of a closed door. Thorn turns to me, hesitating. “I talked to Angel about the cleanup. After we left.”

I haven’t let myself think about that, but now that Thorn brings it up I can’t help but ask.

“What about the bodies?” I say, shivering a little.

“Sorted,” he nods. “And I thought you’d be happy to know, the brothers put some cash in an envelope and slipped it inside the mail slot in the door of the office.” He gives me a grim smile. “As an incentive for the owners not to look much further into the damage.”

I let out a breath. “That’s good. I felt bad, leaving the cabin like that.”

“The damage was pretty minimal. Apart from a few bullet holes, that is.”

“I bet that’s more excitement than the owners have ever had.” I laugh ruefully, shaking my head.

“Likely,” Thorn agrees. “Also, I went to talk to Rock, our prez, just now. He’s the big, stocky, gruff-looking one. I wanted to let him know how everything ended up. And where we stand with the Death Devils.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. This bodyguard gig for Oz was a favor our club was doin’ for him. A way to solidify the friendship between the two clubs.”

“I see,” I murmur, my heart sinking a little. “That’s why you were doing it.”

“Yeah. There was quite a bit riding on it.” Thorn opens the door and nods for me to go in. It’s a small apartment, with a kitchenette, a living area, and a large, comfortable bed. “Which is why I needed to tell Rock about my conversation with Oz afterwards.”

“Did everything go well?” I ask distractedly. Thorn is pulling off his cut, which he tosses onto an arm of the couch.

“It did. Though there was some tension between me and Oz. It was touch and go for a bit.”

“Why?” I frown. “I thought you weren’t going to tell him I was there when you got Fowler?”

“I didn’t.” Thorn steps forward, pulling me into his arms. “But there’s one thing I didn’t tell you about my conversation with Oz.”

“What’s that?”

He reaches up and softly grazes my jaw with his thumb.

“I told him I’m in love with his daughter.”

My eyes fill with tears. A lump forms in my throat I can hardly manage to speak around. “You did?” I whisper.

“Yeah.” He chuckles. “I thought for a second he might send someone to murder me. But so far, so good.”

“He’ll have a hard time doing that,” I say softly. “With me as your bodyguard.”

“That he will,” Thorn murmurs. “That he will.”

“I was afraid this was the end,” I whisper. A couple of tears fall, and Thorn brushes them from my cheeks. “I was almost wishing we could go back to the cabin.”

“You aren’t getting rid of me that easily, Sibéal.” Thorn lifts me up, bracing me against the wall, and wraps my legs around his waist. “I haven’t had a home since I left Ireland. Turns out, my home is you. At the cabin, or the safe house, or my place, or here. It doesn’t matter.”

From downstairs, a male voice shouts up at us. “Thorn!”

“Looks like you’re being summoned,” I say.

“Too bad.” Thorn reaches over and cracks open the door. “Fuck off!” he calls. Closing the door again, her turns the lock. “We’re not leaving this room until I get what I came for.”

I giggle. “What’s that?”

“I’m claiming my old lady,” he growls, bending his face to mine. “Loudly, repeatedly, and until we’re both too sore to move, the bed breaks, or the clubhouse burns down.”