“Why do you look so nervous?”

I licked my dry lips and took a sip of the strong ass margarita Dakota had made me. “Honestly? I guess I’m waiting for your wife to jump out at me. I’ve been petrified to ask where she is since we got here.”

Texas snorted and got to his feet, dipping his head before he left. “I’ll leave you to field this.”

The past two days I’d spent inside the clubhouse, meeting members, playing cards, eating far too much food, and enjoying the way this place made me feel.

Huntsman had come and gone like the wind, chattering on about still having to work while I was here, but Tex and Diddit had been around to give us a tour, take us into the city and have a look around like a couple of tourists.

One time, Ripley had even come with us, but he barely spoke two words—the tension between him and Dakota like a fucking storm swirling.

He was kind of an asshole. But I found myself already getting used to it.

Huntsman shook his head and took a sip of his beer. “My wife died when the boys were six and eight.”

My heart skipped, and my mouth dropped open. “I’m… I didn’t know. I’m really sorry.”

He snorted and leaned back in his chair, the most relaxed I’d seen him yet. “There’s a lot you don’t know, girl. Just not really sure how much you want to hear.” A warm wave rolled over me, and a smile tugged at the corner of my mouth. Huntsman was confused by my instant change and raised his eyebrow. “What you grinning about now?”

I used my straw to stir my drink. “Nothing. It’s just, everyone at home calls me that, too.”

“Calls you what?”

“Girl. My uncle has done it since I was little. It was always… hey, girl… how’s it going, girl. It kind of became a thing. Reminds me of home,” I babbled on, trying to talk to him about my home life without having to discuss the fact that there were also around twenty other uncles who called me the same thing and a few old ladies too. I was scared he would shut down, just when I was beginning to get some kind of emotions and shit from him that weren’t angry, annoyed, or just… eh. That kind of thing needed to be done at the right time when he trusted me more.

“Mmm. Well, if we’re sharing…” he started with a sigh, letting me know whatever he had to tell wasn’t something he enjoyed speaking about. “I guess you deserve to hear since it was one of the reasons why Carly kept you away.”

I leaned in, eager to hear anything I could about my mom. What she was like. Why they were drawn to each other, and ultimately, why he wasn’t faithful. I wasn’t stupid, I knew there were plenty of men out there who lied and cheated, and I think within the biker community, a lot of the time it’s kind of expected of them given they were looked at as rebels, people who don’t conform, and sometimes just assholes.

The Brothers by Blood I always see as the exception, not the rule. These men found their life partners, and they fought hard for them, were loyal to them, and never even looked at another woman. They sure as hell never cheated.

“My father was the president of the club years ago. His dad was the vice president before him. For The Exiled, bloodline mattered. They wanted to have strong ties, weave each member’s family through the club, so it was strong like a rope. My father married the president’s daughter, that’s how he came to run the club. So when it was my turn, I didn’t have a fucking choice, my life partner was chosen for me… a daughter of a club member.”

I cringed. It was like a fucking arranged marriage, and I could tell by the way his face was pinched into a frown that it wasn’t something he would have chosen for himself.

“So everyone had to marry inside the club?” I asked, screwing up my nose like the words left a bad taste.

He shook his head. “Not everyone. Only the men pegged to be president or vice. They were expected to marry and have children with another member’s child. I guess in their eyes it showed loyalty and strength. To me, it was just fucking stupid.”

I giggled softly, hiding my mouth behind my drink as I slowly watched this man give a little rather than hold back.

“So I married Josie when we were young. We had two boys. That was fucking enough for me,” he went on. “Our marriage was hell. We only made it work because of the boys and the club.”

“What made it hell?”

“He’s trying to say nicely that Mom was a bitch.” Ripley took a seat at the table with us, relaxing back into the chair. I’d still yet to see a smile from him. Maybe that was something he just didn’t do? I really wasn’t sure.

“Don’t talk about her like that,” Huntsman defended, reaching over to slap his son around the head.

The thwack was loud, and Ripley instantly turned to glare at his father while he rubbed the sting away. “Why? It’s fucking true. You tell me one fucking maternal thing she ever did for us?” I saw the challenge between them. I wasn’t sure if this was something they talked about often, or whether my presence had brought up a sore point.

“Did you die? No. She managed to keep your dumbass alive, didn’t she,” Huntsman threw back before taking a sip of his beer, only to realize it was empty. “Tex! Bring me a fucking beer.”

“She also stuck me in a box and put me out on the sidewalk when I was three and threatened to post me to China,” Ripley scoffed, stealing the bottle of beer from Texas’ hand before Huntsman could get it, forcing Texas to go back to the bar for another.

It was strange, but I felt at home here. The way they argued, the way they talked, the casual nature where you knew that even if one of them raised his voice, that in five minutes they’d be over it, just like at the Brothers by Blood.

When Huntsman finally got his beer, he looked over at me and sighed. “She never wanted to be a mom but felt like her parents forced her into it. Forced her into marrying me. Forced her into being a parent when all she wanted to do was travel the world. I tried to do what I could, bought her plane tickets for holidays away, told her to take the time she needed. But she’d come back the next day, her dad having ripped them to shreds, telling her old ladies didn’t leave their men. So she turned sour. She turned into this person who hated the world, who hated life, and who didn’t care who she hurt or dragged down because if she couldn’t be happy, no one could.”

I placed my hand over my heart and rubbed at it. It sounded sad. My heart kind of hurt for this woman who was forced into a life she never wanted, and how it made her this ugly human.

“So when Mom showed up that day to tell you she was going away, why didn’t Josie just pass on the message and see this as her out and her way to move on?” I asked curiously, to which Ripley snorted.

“Because she wanted to make everyone’s life hell, and she wasn’t about to let him get away with meeting someone he might actually end up caring about, and being happy when she was already in this deep pit of hell and couldn’t see any way out.”

I didn’t like the woman—hell, I didn’t even know the damn woman—but for a moment, my heart actually felt for her, and I didn’t feel so angry. She’d been dealt a real shitty hand. One she couldn’t escape no matter how much she or Huntsman tried.

Following dreams was so important. So was being the person you wanted to be and making your own choices about life. Because if people really cared about you, they would support you no matter what you wanted to do, and they would love you anyway.

Which is why I was so lucky to have Ham. Yeah, things were going to be hard, but he’d made it clear he wasn’t going to stop me from following my heart, and that we would make it work. And I knew that for sure. Nothing could stop us now.

“It was all a fucking mess,” Huntsman carried on. “I hated it. She hated it. But we both thought that was just how it was fucking done.”

Ripley sat looking at the table, drawing in the condensation on the side of his bottle. Even with his harsh words about his mom, it was hard to feel anger and hate toward someone who was a part of you. And whether she was a bitch or not, she still fed him, bathed him, nurtured him, and whether it was the right way or not, that didn’t change.

“I’m really sorry things were like that,” I murmured. “I wish she’d been given a chance to make something more out of her life. It should never be like that. We should always be allowed to make our own choices.”

Huntsman nodded as I spoke.

“And that’s why Drake lives his life the way he does, and why Dad has never forced him to choose.”

I raised my eyebrow at Ripley. “Okay, and who is Drake?”

Huntsman chuckled. It was a sound I wasn’t sure I was ever going to get used to, given it was so rare, but every time I heard it, it felt strangely comforting. “Drake is your other brother. Ripley is the younger of the two.”

Oh, right! Another brother.

I’d spent the past two days trying to keep up with the number of club members coming and going.

“So where is Drake?” I asked curiously.

“He’s in China trying to secure a contract for a new building. The club owns a construction company. A big one. Drake prospected for the club, but essentially chose to run the company for the most part,” Ripley explained, surprising me.

“Wow,” I beamed. “So he’s a patched member, but he’s not?”

“We’ve learned over the years that you catch more bees with honey than with vinegar. Drake’s part of the club, but he decided to split his time with that taking precedent. And for us, it works well not to have to take business meetings or even have the companies we work with know that over half the employees of the company are club members.”

It was a smart move really. When you have a reputation like the Exiled Eight do, people tend to steer clear of anything to do with them businesswise because they’re seen as criminals. But with Drake taking the head man space, they had the benefit of a front man who looked the part and sounded like he knew his shit.

“I guess I won’t be meeting him on this visit then,” I noted, surprisingly disappointed. I couldn’t wait to meet him. To see if he was much different to these guys, or if he was really just a biker dressed in a suit.

I looked over, seeing the corner of Huntsman’s mouth curl upward. “Yeah, he’s away for a few weeks, but next time?”

The question almost sounded hopeful, and I couldn’t help but smile back at my father and nod. “Yeah, next time.”

“Meyah!” Dakota rushed over and swung her arms around my neck from behind. “The boys are going down to the strip. Let’s go out.”

I started to laugh, even more so when Huntsman started to shake his head like he was going to argue.

“I’ll go with them. Make sure they’re okay,” Ripley offered, and both Dakota and I froze for a second and looked over at him. He rolled his eyes as he got to his feet. “Look, I’ve never had a sister, and I kinda think you’re okay, all right? It’ll be nice to have someone else to keep this asshole on his toes.”

He poked his thumb at Huntsman who glared up at his youngest son. “Fine, but you fucking watch them like hawks, the lot of you.”

“You see her shoot that gun, pops?” Ripley grinned. “I think she can handle herself.”

“Uh… yeah, she can,” Dakota reiterated, pulling me from my chair.

“No boys,” Huntsman growled as he followed suit.

“Meyah has a boyfriend, so that’s oka—” I put my hand over her mouth and pulled her with me toward our rooms. Huntsman had us a room made up with two beds right next door to his. It was kind of sweet in his kind of way.

The instant Huntsman and Ripley heard boyfriends, their eyes lit up and they followed.

“Boyfriend?” Ripley challenged.

I stopped and huffed out an annoyed breath, Dakota smiling up at me, but in a way that screamed ‘oops, my bad.’ “Look. I don’t need either of your permission to have someone who is important to me. We aren’t talking about it. Yes, I have a man. Yes, I love him. Yes, we’ve been together for a while. And yes, he’s worthy. Done.”

“Not done,” Huntsman argued, but I held up my hand.

“Yes, done. I appreciate the worry, or just the protectiveness, but trust me when I say he will pass every damn test you try to set him, and you will not break him.”

I could see the fierce way they both wanted to challenge me, but also the curiosity that was in their eyes.

The fact was, Ham had proven himself and his loyalty. It just wasn’t to this club, which I knew was going to be a problem later, but which didn’t impact on me getting to know this part of me. Not yet.

This was my time to catch up on years that had been stolen from me.

And I was going to make them count.

“And how exactly did you think you were going to get into any fucking place in Vegas without being twenty-one or at least having a fucking fake ID?” Ripley asked as he pulled open the door to the burger joint we’d found downtown.

I stepped past him, rolling my eyes. “Beauty and charm?” I suggested.

“And where might you have those things stashed? They hiding in your handbag?”

I held up my middle finger as I continued to walk toward a booth in the corner, Dakota giggling softly behind me.

We hadn’t really thought about going out, to be honest. I figured if we were going to drink, we’d probably just do it at the clubhouse, but when Dakota suggested going out, I couldn’t say no after the few trips we’d done down the strip during the day—the atmosphere was too electric to turn down.

“They look about our age,” Dakota said, pointing to a group of girls across the other side of the diner as I slipped into the booth. A few of the girls appeared as if they had already had one drink too many. “I’m gonna go over there and ask if they know of any places we might be able to get in.”

Ripley slipped in the other side, while the boys that were with us followed Dakota to the table of drunk girls.

A waitress popped up and took our order before zipping away again, looking a little disheveled.

“Where’d you learn to shoot?” I looked up, finding Ripley staring at me intently. We still weren’t on great terms, but I guess I was starting to learn why he was the way he was.

With a mom who didn’t show a lot of interest and died early on, and a dad who obviously cared but didn’t really like to show it—it wasn’t really surprising he was harsh and moody.

“My uncle’s ol—” I paused, reminding myself they didn’t know I came from a club background, so I cleared my throat instead. “My uncle’s wife, well… before she was my aunt. She worked with law enforcement for a while. I came home one day upset about a boy at school, she thought it might help me feel a little more empowered, and I really liked it.”

“You’re really good,” he praised, and I couldn’t help but smile.

“Thanks.”

His fingers tapped on the table. I could tell he wanted to say something, but I wasn’t sure why he was holding back. The impression I’d gotten from Ripley so far was that he didn’t hold his punches when it came to sharing what was on his mind.

“Is this weird for you?” I asked, breaking the awkward silence, trying to prompt him to talk to me. I wanted to get to know him. I’d never had a big brother before. It was new to me but also kind of exciting.

I had all these uncles back home who would do anything for me, but it had only been in the last year or so that I’d finally had them in my life. I couldn’t help but wonder what things would have been like if they’d been different.

What if I’d had Ripley around growing up? Would he have beaten up the boys at school who looked at me funny? Or driven me crazy by hooking up with my friends? I wanted to know what kind of brother he was.

This was new to both of us, and I wondered if he was thinking the same.

“Weird? Maybe… a little. I dunno,” he grumbled, leaning his head back on the tacky red leather seat. Taking a breath, he leveled his gaze on me again. This time I saw a vulnerability, something more open. “I’m confused, I guess. I don’t like to think about my dad cheating on my mom, which even in my head sounds fucking stupid because I don’t remember her ever doing anything that showed me she loved me.”

“She was still your mom,” I commented quietly, understanding how he could be torn. “Do you think he could have done more to fight for her?”

Ripley instantly shook his head, a frown pulling together his brow. “No. I don’t remember a lot. I was pretty young at the time. But I remember Dad and her arguing about how he just wanted Mom to be happy. And her telling him she never would be as long as she was there. He tried. And I guess I can’t blame him for finding someone who made him happy and just living in that moment.”

That’s all it was, though, a moment.

I didn’t see love sparkling in Huntsman’s eyes when he spoke about my mom. There was a fondness, happy memories, I guess, but they weren’t in love. Maybe she was his moment of escape, a chance to just be with someone who didn’t feel like they were forced into loving him and having his children.

“You get along with your mom?” he asked, looking at me curiously.

I wasn’t really sure what to tell him. My mom never let me do anything fun. My mom tried to keep me locked up out of fear of losing me. My mom was controlling and overbearing, and a little fucking judgmental—but I loved her anyway.

“Things have been tense for a little while,” I admitted cautiously, watching my words. “She lost her parents young. She lost her sister a few years ago. She doesn’t really let a lot of people get close, and she likes to be a bit overbearing and protective.”

“You miss her?”

“I like having a bit of freedom and independence.”

He smirked. “You miss your boyfriend?”

“Annnddd I think we’re done here,” I laughed, making a show of looking over my shoulder and searching for our food.

“When do I get to meet him?”

I turned to face my new brother, my eyebrow raised in question. “You already playing that card? We’ve known each other for a hot minute, what makes you think you have a say?”

His amused face dropped quickly, the serious straight lips returning as he looked me in the eye. “One thing you’ll learn about The Exiled, is that blood ties and loyalty are important. You’re my sister. And to be honest, you’re kind of growing on me.”

I couldn’t help but feel a little warmer as I looked across the table at him. “You mean you’re kinda learning how awesome I am and not sure how you lived your life without me?”

He chuckled, the sound reminding me a little of my… our dad. He shrugged. “Hey, you’re a better shot that half the boys in the club. I’ll take whatever bragging rights I can get.”

Picking up the ketchup bottle from the center of the table, I threw it across at him with a grin on my face. He caught it just as Dakota slipped inside the booth beside me.

Ripley’s playful attitude dropped instantly, and he moved out. “I’m gonna go round up these assholes so we can eat and get going.”

He was gone in a blink, the moment between us over.

But hopefully not the last.

I had to admit, he was growing on me too. Especially now that I’d seen a slightly softer side.

“So the girls said there’s a place downtown that’s really casual about checking ID’s, and will serve almost anyone if they like the looks of you,” Dakota said with a wide grin on her face. “You in?”

I could really go for a drink and some fun.

How could I come to Vegas and not either get drunk, get married, or gamble my life savings away?

“Sounds like a plan,” I replied with a smirk, tugging down the front of my black dress to reveal a little more cleavage.

“That’s my girl.”