We sit in the clubhouse off to the side, but still part of the larger group. Green has been great about everything. He doesn’t force me, but gives me little pushes to get out there in the world. I’ve been doing well though, and I feel it each time I’m able to conquer something. It’s bigger things now like going to the movies or a concert. It’s all the people around me that still bother me. I’m proud of each hurdle I face. And the strength I get from it, I suck in like a sponge.

“Thanks for talkin’ with Austyn,” Green says, squeezing my knee then leaning over to kiss my lips. “Means a lot, baby.”

“Of course. I hate what happened to her, and I’m glad to help.”

Truthfully, I’m not sure I did help. Austyn was raped and suffered greatly at the hands of a madman. She had a party at her place, and Green took me. It was nice to get out even though the tight space made me jittery. The conversation with her though, wasn’t easy because it brought all the buried stuff to the surface.

“Austyn,” Bristyl introduces, like I haven’t seen her in the clubhouse before, turning to me. “This is Leah, Green’s woman.”

I give a soft smile, and she greets me with a “Hi.” True, we’ve never been close, but we met a few times.

“Thought we could go in your room and chat,” Bristyl announces before leading us to Austyn’s room. Green lifts his chin at me, giving me the all okay.

I fiddle with my hands, worry creeping in. Strength. I have that now. Talking about it will be helping Austyn. If it helps, then I have to do it because no woman should go through the level of pain that comes with being assaulted. I breathe in and out deep, gathering my thoughts and trying to come up with a way to say what I think, but to say it in a way that doesn’t make her pain increase.

Bristyl puts her arm around me. I kick myself in the ass because that shouldn’t have made me jump, but I felt it. The unexpected still gets to me. No matter how I try to curve it, if I don’t know you’re coming, it gets me every time. It’s almost involuntary.

“You don’t have to talk about anything,” Austyn reassures me, but I’ve got this. Talking about it is okay, as my new therapist says. It’s a part of my life. It doesn’t define me, but it is in my past. It will help Austyn. Yes, I’ve got this.

“It does get better,” I start. “It’s hard. There’s pain, and the fear will sometimes override you, but you need to ride it out. It’s not easy. It actually sucks, but it’s necessary. It’s been a really long time since…” I shake my head. “And I still have a hard time talking about it. But each day is better. Keep your chin up, and never let the past define who you are. Never let what happened to you take away your happiness in life, because you only get one. One life to make work for you and do the best you can. Don’t let the actions of someone else dictate how that life will be lived.”

I exhale and sit on the bed, feeling a tight ball in my stomach start to unwind. As if talking about it with someone who’s been there helped me just as much as I hope it helps her. It’s strange.

“Thank you, Leah.” Austyn sits next to me. “It is hard, and I appreciate you saying those words. Seems you need to follow your own advice.” Austyn gives me a soft smile.

“I’m working on it. Every day is a challenge, but it’s coming.”

And it is, but it’s better and that’s what matters.

“Love you.” Green grabs me and sets me on his lap. I wrap my arms around his neck, holding him tight to me. One thing about the clubhouse I love is I’ve never felt out of place here or that I didn’t belong. I’ve been accepted from the first day that Green brought me here. The guys don’t look at me with pity, and the women are strong. I like that, and it feels good to be around it and soak it in.

“Love you too. Just wait until we get home.”

Green smiles wide. It’s taken me a while to find my inner sexual being. It too, is a work in progress, but with Green, I feel safe to be and do whatever I want. I don’t cower hardly at all around him, but I still don’t flash my body out in public. But with Green, getting naked is just like coming home. I love it when he kisses my scars. I love it when he touches me lovingly. Hell, I love it when he’s a little rough at times. It just makes me happy being with the man I love.

“Oh, I don’t need to wait.” He kisses me, his hand resting on my leg. No, he doesn’t. He has his room here at the clubhouse.

“Oh shit,” Green says, his attention going over to Austyn and Emery at the bar. A man walks up to them with a woman who looks a lot like Emery with the blonde hair and blue eyes. It could be a clone if I didn’t know better.

“Who’s that?” I ask, the man in question walking right up to them like he knows them.

“That’s Micah, Tug’s boy. He doesn’t come around much because he doesn’t like the club. He shoulda stayed the fuck away,” Green grumbles as I watch the scene unfold and feel the tension form in Green. Whoever that guy is, he needs to leave if Green’s going to have this reaction to him.

Micah’s woman goes up to them and they do some idle chitchat, but Emery doesn’t seem to be into it at all. She stares forward for the longest time until Micah says something directly to her. Then she takes a shot, throwing it back.

That’s when, surprisingly, Jacks comes over to Emery, wraps his arm around her, and leads her away as if he’s done it every day in his life. It’s natural, not forced at all. Emery’s shoulders relax too, and she leans into him.

“What was that?” I ask Green.

“Jacks goin’ after what he wants. And now, I’m gonna get what I want.” Green picks me up, and my laughter can be heard over the music as heads turn to us. It’s a freeing feeling seeing their smiles directed our way. Knowing what we’ve been through and how we’ve come through the other end. Happy. Loving and together.

Green makes good on his demand, showing me just how loved I am.

The End

The story continues in Bound by Destiny the fifth book in the Ravage MC Bound Series.