I wasn’t even cold. With Ayda sitting between my legs in the driving seat of the van, I was warm, content… settled. The two of us were watching the dark sky fade away as the sun began to rise on the horizon. Before Ayda came into my life, the only time I’d have seen the start of a new day was because I’d drunk too much whiskey and hadn’t slept the night before. The sunrises I had seen were barely noticed or registered. There was always some other dark cloud blocking the beauty of it. Now, there I was, watching a new day come to life with a weird excitement in my chest. It meant something more now she was with me. Everything meant more. It was as though the frosted glasses I’d been staring at life through had been removed, and all of a sudden everything was crystal clear in high definition.

With my arms curled around her waist, I continued to trail soft kisses up and down the curve of her neck. Ayda was sitting perfectly still, her head tilted to one side, allowing me access to the exposed skin I was currently worshipping tenderly as she stared out of the window in awe. Every breath she released passed through a smile. I could feel it. Her happiness radiated off her in waves. I loved that about her—the way she felt freely, without any worries or cares for what anyone else would think. I loved the way she’d opened herself up to me. For me. I just fucking loved her.

I continued to kiss her, my lips pressing down and lingering before they’d move on to the next spot they wanted to taste. We’d made love last night, as corny as that sounded. When the temperatures had dropped too low, and she began trembling for reasons that weren’t simply orgasm induced, I carried her to the van and we stayed awake through the night, talking about everything and nothing in quiet whispers and hushed voices.

“Beautiful,” I muttered, closing my eyes as I pressed another kiss to her skin and breathed her in.

“It is. It’s the only thing I used to love about getting up early.” Her voice was quiet and lazy as she leaned into my kiss.

“I was...” I kissed her again. “Talking about…” I kissed her again. “You.”

“Have I told you that I love you today, Tucker?” I could hear her smile as her fingers ran up and down my arm.

“Several times.” I smirked against her skin. “I think you got my name confused, though. Oh God, I love you.” I panted heavily. “Oh God, I fucking love you,” I mimicked, my smile growing as I became more breathless and high pitched. “Jesus Christ, I love you, I love you, I…” I gasped, going silent and holding my breath in my chest before I chuckled, pulled her closer and kissed the sensitive spot beneath her ear.

“Asshole.” I could hear her smile as she spoke and lazily shoved her angular elbow in my gut. “It’s nice to express myself knowing that I won’t come out of our room to a standing ovation from the guys. I swear it’s like I gain a dozen or so big brothers overnight.”

“Didn’t you hear Pete cheering us on? Those trees started to rustle pretty hard, Ayda. I’m sure he’ll have been giving you, and himself, a hand.” I sank my teeth into her lightly before pressing my lips there to sweeten the pain.

Ayda mumbled, the words giving way to a hum as she absorbed the bite and shuddered against the kiss. Her fingers continued their exploration on my skin as she looked out at the dawn.

“I love my life with you, Drew. With all of you. There are days when I can’t believe how much everything has changed, but that’s never a bad thought.” She rolled to her side and grinned up at me. “How you all didn’t starve to death or get staph infections from those toilets before I came along is a wonder to me, though. How did you all survive? I can’t see any of the girls taking control and pitching in.”

I huffed out a half-hearted laugh and rested my chin on her shoulder, staring out at the sunrise. “There hasn’t been a significant woman in The Hut since my mother. I guess no one else got the respect you or she got, so whether the other girls had pitched in or not, we’d have ignored the shit out of them. The whores start nagging and the men start pushing them out the door. We took our chances with the infections or death by alcohol poisoning. When you don’t know any different, dirty seems normal.” I smirked.

“Did your mom leave with your dad?”

“No.” I sighed and closed my eyes as I realized there was yet another thing I hadn’t told Ayda. “Unlike Eric, she is dead.”

Her forehead landed on my collarbone almost brutally. “Shit. I’m sorry.”

“Again with the apologies, Ayda,” I whispered, opening my eyes and pressing a soft kiss to her cheek. “You can’t be sorry for things you don’t know about. Sometimes I forget how long you’ve been in my life. It feels like forever… in a good way. But it’s not. It’s new. I don’t talk about this shit with anyone. Not even Harry. Mom died when I was young. Dad left. I was told to step up and keep quiet, so I did. There were no attachments for me to cling to. I let it all go because I had to.”

“Seems pretty harsh, but I’m guessing Pete—” she nodded at the tree visible from the windshield “—and the rest of the guys helped you figure it all out. They all love you, you know. Even if they can be too masculine to say it out loud.”

“They’ve stuck around after years of me being a complete fucker. I know they love me. I love them, too. They’re my family. I’d die for every one of them tomorrow.”

Ayda traced the tattoo over my chest, a small smile playing on her lips as she did. “That’s what I love about the Hounds. Family is family. It doesn’t matter if they’re blood or not, this patch makes you blood brothers, or more I guess. Kinda makes me want to get one.”

I pulled my chin back, unable to hide my smirk of amusement as I stared at her. “Getting to fuck Drew Tucker isn’t enough for you? Now you think you’re good enough to have his club’s tattoo on your skin? Jesus. Someone’s getting comfortable.”

I was joking, of course. The thought of her getting my brothers’ patch on her skin did things to me I’d never have expected it to. There were a million new thoughts running through my mind in that very second, but I was focused on her eyes, which were shining bright with what the future held for her as part of our MC family.

“I need to keep you on your toes more,” I added quietly, digging my fingers into her hips and pushing against her.

“If I were on my toes any more than I am now, I’d be a ballerina.” She smirked at me, her teeth capturing the tip of her tongue.

I leaned down and made a play for that tongue. Her yip of surprise had me squeezing her even tighter as I dragged her lip away with my teeth before offering her a soothing kiss. “Ballerinas can get their legs behind their heads while standing up, right? That could be kinda fun.”

“They can. They’re all bendy and supple.” In one twist of her body, Ayda was straddling me as best she could in the small cramped space. “Before we go any further, is there anything else I should know before I go all contortionist and stick my foot in my mouth yet again?”

I grabbed her ass cheeks and pulled her closer, looking up at her and squinting. “I’ve covered the parents. I guess I should probably tell you about my twin brother, too…”

“What?” She blinked at me.

I kept a straight face for all of three seconds before I let my grin burst free. “Kidding. There’s only one of me, darlin’.”

Ayda covered her face with both hands and started to laugh. Dropping them to rest on my chest, she shook her head, a look of pure relief on her face. “The world couldn’t handle two of you.”

“Bet you’d like to give that a try, though.”

“Only if it was a clone. A twin would be someone different completely. You’re an original, Mr. Tucker. One of a kind and you’re mine.”

I dragged in a slow breath, blowing it all out as I said the only word either one of us needed to hear.

“Yours.”

Eventually, after much yawning from Ayda, I began to drive the two of us back to The Hut. The night had been pretty perfect. I didn’t want it to end as much as she didn’t. Her quiet protests and pouting were adorable as I started up the engine and gave her a sideways glance. She had no need to worry. I planned on making more memories like this with her for a very long time if she’d let me.

A very long time.

I held her hand the whole way home, never letting go as I navigated us through the empty streets of Babylon. Even though I should have been concentrating on the roads, my eyes kept seeking hers, and the subtle smiles and the things we said in the silence made me feel even closer to her than I had before.

That was when the idea struck me.

When we pulled into the yard, I jumped out of the van and ran around to open the door for her. The old me—the one who fucked and ran—wouldn’t recognize this chivalrous fucker who wanted to sweep his leading lady off her feet. I guess the old me wouldn’t understand how the feeling of pure panic could change a man. The moment I thought I was going to lose her in that warehouse, I became someone else—someone who vowed to always treat her right should the two of us survive.

We did survive.

Now it was up to me to make sure we lived. Living meant not waiting. Not waiting meant making things happen for her the moment she said she wanted them.

The bar was empty when we walked through the door of The Hut, apart from a few sleeping bodies draped over the sofas, and Harry who was slowly dragging his feet across to the bar to pour himself a breakfast whiskey.

He looked up when he saw the two of us smiling way too brightly for a couple of fools who had just spent the night cooped up in a cramped van.

“Look what the new day dragged in,” he announced roughly, his early morning voice making him sound twenty years older than he was.

“Good fucking morning, Harry,” I called back to him.

“Clearly is for you.” He smirked before turning his attention to Ayda. “Darlin’.” He toasted to her, raising his shot glass before throwing it down his neck in one swift move.

“You want some coffee to go with that whiskey, Harry?” Ayda asked, her eyes moving with longing to the kitchen where the coffee machine resided.

“If you’re making, I’ll drink it.” He slammed the shot glass down and sighed as he planted his hands on his hips. “The whiskey just helps with the sore throat and chest. The coffee’s what I need to help everything else wake up.”

I narrowed my eyes at him and shook my head. “You know what else would help with the chest?”

Right on cue, Harry pulled a packet of smokes out of his cut inside pocket before he placed one on the edge of his lips and smiled flatly. “What’s that?”

“You’re a fucking idiot,” I said, exasperated.

“My life. My rules.”

“Don’t say I didn’t try.”

“Never would, son. Never would.”

I turned to Ayda, shaking off my irritation at Harry before I placed a kiss to the side of her head. “Make a round of coffees, darlin’, and then we’ll go and shower. I have something planned for today.”

Turning on the tips of her toes, almost like the ballerina she’d mentioned earlier, Ayda grinned at me and walked backward for a while, before throwing me a wink and grabbing the carafe for the coffee machine that was sitting empty at the end of the bar. Her hand patted Harry on the back as she passed him to fill the pot with water in the kitchen.

I tilted my head and zoned in on her ass for a while, enjoying the view before I forced myself to tear my eyes away. Walking over to the bar, I propped myself up on the stool closest to Harry and leaned over the counter, resting my chest on my balled up fists.

“If you die on me, I’ll make sure I get my revenge.”

“Oh, yeah?” He smirked. “How?”

“I’ll get your high school crush so smashed she ends up sucking Deeks’ dick while you’re watching from Heaven.” I grinned.

“Heaven?” He huffed out a rough laugh, resting his hands on the bar and leaning closer. “I’ll be in Hell, Tucker. Ain’t no window views to your old life from Hell. Good luck with that.”

“Asshole.”

“You’re starting to sound like an old man.”

“I feel like one ‘cause of you fuckers.” I shook my head and watched as he rocked back on his feet and took a long drag of his smoke. There was nothing left to do but roll my eyes. The guy could give all the fatherly advice in the world, but he’d be damned if he was going to listen to it from others. “Fine. If you won’t help me keep you healthy, at least help me organize a surprise for Ayda today.”

“What kinda surprise?” he asked, his eyes squinting as smoke drifted over them.

“She wants a tattoo.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” I nodded, holding his gaze and trying to silently pass on a message I wasn’t too sure he was receiving.

Pulling the cigarette away from his lips, he blew more smoke out of his nose before he coughed a little and narrowed his eyes farther. “When you say she wants a tattoo…”

“I mean the skull and hounds, brother.”

“Holy fuck.” He coughed louder, turning to Ayda who glanced over her shoulder and flashed him a sweet smile, even though she had no idea what we were discussing. Leaning closer, Harry eventually looked back at me and whispered, “May as well stick a ring on her finger, Tucker.”

“In good time.”

His eyes searched mine. “Jesus, Mary, Joseph, and all the baby orphans. You ain’t even blinking.”

I shrugged and smirked with confidence. “She’s here for a long time, Harry. Probably longer than us.”

Stepping back, he blew out a long breath and widened his eyes, his smile growing by the second. “Your old man would be proud of you, kid. Your momma, too.”

I pressed my lips together and gave him a nod. “Make the call?”

“I’ll get Stinger right over here.”

I slapped the top of the bar before I turned just in time to see Ayda walking over to us, balancing three mugs in her hands.

We made small talk, filling Harry in on where we’d spent the night. Our other brothers slowly began to wake and filter into the bar, all with sleepy eyes and showing far too much flesh beneath their cuts. Ayda had seen it all before, though. Nothing about Hut life seemed to bother her anymore. She’d seen everything…

Apart from Stinger.

When he walked through the front door, all dreadlocked hair, tattoos covering every inch of his skin, and eyes that were aflame with excitement, she turned on her stool and scowled in confusion.

“The Hounds of Babylon,” Stinger cried out, holding his arms—bag included—in the air. “Fuck, I’ve missed you guys. It’s been too long.”

Ayda had been around the club too long to openly stare at the guy, but she took him in, did the mental math and looked to me as she slid her mug onto the bar top. “Is that…?”

I didn’t answer, instead offering her a small smile of smug satisfaction before I patted her leg and slipped from my stool to go and greet our new guest.

Walking over to him, I held out my hand, and he took it in a heartbeat. “Good to see you, brother.”

“You, too, Tucker. My favorite customer. I can’t wait to get started on you. I’ve always said you’re too clean.”

“Fuck off.” I laughed. “I’ve got what I need where I need it.”

“Still refusing to let me put the snake on your dick?”

“You go anywhere near that and I’ll be displaying your dick in a trophy cabinet on the walls of this club.”

“Always so violent.” When he smiled, he flashed two silver plated teeth that seemed to sparkle under the dim lighting of the room.

“I’d actually like to introduce you to your next victim.” Placing a hand on his back, I turned and waved an arm out in front of us both, gesturing to Ayda. “Stinger, this is Ayda. She’s my…” I paused, narrowing my eyes and smiling. “Woman.”

Stinger feigned surprise, slapping a hand over his mouth and screeching out loud. “There is a God. Miracles do happen.” When he dropped his hand, he walked over to Ayda and held out his hand. “So the inks on you today, honey darlin’?”

It was hard to decide which was the more dominant emotion that flashed through Ayda’s blue eyes as they met mine. There was shock, a little bit of fear, and resignation, but it was all pushed away as her polite smile graced her lips. “I guess I am. Are you the artist who gave Drew all of his tattoos?”

Stinger nodded proudly. “Every man in this building has been touched by my skilled hands. In a purely professional manner, of course.”

Ayda relaxed and held out a hand to him. “Then I’m absolutely honored to have you tattoo me.

I moved closer to her, needing to make sure she was happy. “You say the word and Stinger will get off you and jump on someone else. You don’t have to do this. I just thought…”

With a genuine smile aimed at Stinger, she released his hand and stepped closer to me, bouncing on the balls of her feet as she stopped. “Shut up and kiss me. I was the one who mentioned it to you. I always forget you don’t waste time with later when you can do it now.” She pushed onto her toes, one hand reaching out and gripping the nape of my neck as she pulled me in for a long, heated kiss. “Thank you.”

The brothers around us started howling, laughing, and heckling, but I didn’t care. I grabbed hold of her waist, dipped her in the kiss and mumbled against her lips, “Whatever keeps you with me, baby. Whatever keeps you with me.”