Epilogue
Harley
One Month later
I woke up to the sound of my alarm ringing and I rubbed my eyes lazily and reached for it, trying to shut it up. I still had an hour to go before it was time for me to leave the house, but I liked to wake up early and make sure Amanda had everything she needed for the day.
It was still early and the house was quiet. The sun was filtering in through the bright yellow curtains on the windows and there was a warm glow in the room. In our room. The bedroom I shared with Dash, the man I was sharing my life with.
I slowly sat up in bed and looked over at him. He was sleeping peacefully, with his face turned towards me. Sometimes we joked that he’d sleep through a hurricane if it hit us.
He was naked underneath the bedsheets and I intertwined my legs with his. His strong wide back was facing up and I watched him breathe as he lay there.
Dash had changed my life. Since we met, nothing had been the same and I would forever be grateful to him for that.
Now, instead of cooking and cleaning for an MC and being kicked around by Caesar, I was back in school. Working hard to get my nursing degree.
Just a month ago, the thought wouldn’t even have crossed my mind. That I could have a different life. That I could actually be free of Caesar and the hold he had over Amanda and me. That I could actually go to school and get a degree. And now it seemed like I was capable of anything, and it was all because of Dash.
He was the one who made me feel good about myself, who made me believe that anything was possible. He reminded me every day of just how important true love was. And that was what I felt for him. Utter and pure love.
Amanda was happiest now than I had seen her ever before. We lived in a house, she had a room all to herself and gone were the days of spending every night with Celine because I couldn’t return to her in time.
Now, we ate dinners together and on the weekends, Dash and I took her somewhere fun where we could spend time together as a family. Dash wasn’t expecting to be a father at this point in his life, he’d probably never even considered it—but he fell into the role so naturally. I had no clue how we used to manage without him. He was a perfect fit.
I should have gotten out of bed and started to get ready, but I just couldn’t help but stare at him and smile. Every morning I woke up and I was grateful for waking up beside him.
Good things come to those who wait, and I had waited eight years for him.
***
I showered and changed and then went into the kitchen to prepare Amanda’s lunchbox. Now that I had classes to attend, it was Dash dropping Amanda off to school. He offered to make her lunch boxes himself, but I told him I needed to do something for her since he was the one looking after her most of the time these days.
I made myself some coffee and sat down with the newspaper at the kitchen table. I wasn’t due to leave for another twenty minutes and I liked the peace and quiet of the house right now.
Dash crept up behind me while I was still reading and I didn’t realize he was there till he wrapped an arm around my neck and started kissing me. I squealed from being startled and leapt into his arms.
“You gave me a fright!”
“What do you have to be afraid of?” he asked, trying to lift me up while I struggled to wriggle away from him.
“My dress! You’ll crease my dress you brute!” I scolded him but he caught my wrists sharply and then kissed me. That was it. I was a goner. I sank into him, kissing him wildly as he gently pushed me against the kitchen table.
His hand travelled down my leg, lifting it up as he positioned himself in front of me. We couldn’t get enough of each other.
“Mommy?”
It was Amanda at the kitchen door.
“Oh, sorry honey, did we wake you?” Dash asked, releasing his grip on me.
My cheeks were flushed and I tried to quickly gather myself as Amanda came into the kitchen with a big smile on her face. I nearly laughed out loud when I saw Dash walk over behind the kitchen counter to hide the erection in his pants.
“Are you leaving?” she asked, sitting down at the table.
“Yes, honey, soon, but we could have breakfast together?” I said.
Dash was already pulling out the pans from the cupboard.
“Dash, can I please have pancakes today?” Amanda pleaded with him.
“Anything you want, baby girl,” Dash said and he winked at me.
I poured Amanda her milk in a glass and gave her a banana to eat while we waited for the pancakes. He made a few each for us and we ate together, laughing at all the stories Amanda had about school.
When it was time for me to leave, I kissed her cheek and she hugged me tightly. I promised to watch a movie with her that evening before dinner.
Dash walked me to the door, keeping his arm firmly around my waist.
“To be continued…” he said, in a low gruff voice and he nuzzled my hair. I kissed him and opened the door.
“I really should go. I don’t want to be late,” I said, pouting.
“I love you, Harley,” he added, kissing my hand one last time before I stepped out.
“I love you Dash,” I replied and then I left. Already, I couldn’t wait to be back home again.
***
Two months later
Finally, after months of preparation, the wedding day had arrived. Abe and Alexis were getting married and we were all excited. Amanda was going to be one of the flower girls and she took her responsibility very seriously.
While Alexis got ready in her bridal suite, the rest of us surrounded her, helping her with her veil and her beautiful lace white dress.
She made an astonishingly beautiful bride and we were happy for her. I was fixing some pins her hair when Alexis looked at me in the mirror and smiled. The rest of the women were making sure her dress had no creases and gathered no dust or dirt.
“I just wanted to say, if I don’t say this often enough, how lucky I feel to be a part of this family,” she said and patted my hand on her shoulder.
“Oh, hun. We are all very lucky to have you!” Lila said and came over to kiss Alexis’ cheek. She was emotional today, as we all were. This was a happy day for all of us. A day for us to celebrate together and the past behind us.
“Group hug!” Jordan said and all of us gathered around Alexis to give her a hug. Kaya who was going to be her maid of honor, even had a tear in her eye. She was nearly four months pregnant with Oz’ baby now and beginning to show.
“Sorry, my hormones are driving me nuts!” she complained, dabbling at her damp cheeks. I threw an arm around her and squeezed.
We fell back into our usual happy chatter, anticipating how the boys were going to look in their handsome tuxedos. Alexis was right, it was the most comforting feeling in the world—to know that not only did I have the love and support of a good, strong man. But that I also had the love and support of these wonderful women and the rest of the club.
In the past three months of knowing them, they had never let me down. They had helped me out with Amanda every time I needed help and were always there for me with advice and wisdom.
Finally, it was time for Alexis to walk down the aisle and her brother, Oz, was waiting at the door to walk her down.
We surrounded her and helped her out with her dress till Oz caught her hand. Everyone at the church stood up and nobody had a dry eyes as the music started playing.
I caught Dash’s eye in the crowd. He was standing in the front, waiting for me and he smiled. He looked handsome in his tuxedo, his dark hair slicked back and neat. While Alexis walked down the aisle with Kaya, Jordan and Lila, and Amanda behind her of course, I found my way to the front to stand with Dash.
He grabbed my hand as soon as I got there and pulled me close.
“Hello, beautiful,” he said, in the way he always greeted me.
***
They were exchanging their vows and there was complete silence in the church. Dash and I were holding hands the whole time. It was beautiful watching Abe and Alexis up there, speaking to each other from the bottom of their hearts. Neither of them had prepared the vows beforehand.
“…and I wake up every morning and look at you and think I am the luckiest man in the world. I don’t know what I did to deserve you, to deserve your love. A beautiful woman with a heart of gold. And even though you will never shut up, I love you more every day.”
There was some laughter amongst us at that. Alexis laughed too, but not before she’d rolled her eyes at that first.
When the priest asked them to kiss, we all jumped off our chairs and clapped. I could see the other girls crying at the exquisite beauty of this moment and I felt like a sentimental fool for wanting to cry too.
Dash pulled me into his arms in the middle of the applause and kissed me. He threw his arms around me and I sank into him, kissing him like there was no tomorrow. But there was tomorrow. There was the rest of our lives to live and I couldn’t wait to see what else there was in store for us.
“I can’t wait to do this with you,” Dash whispered in my ear when he pulled away from me. My hand was on his chest and the big diamond engagement ring glittered on my finger. It filled my heart with joy to think that we would be exchanging vows like these in a few months.
Alexis and Abe were married and were now running down the aisle amidst applause and petals being thrown at them.
Dash still had an arm tightly wound around me as we watched them and clapped.
“Are you happy?” he asked all of a sudden, leaning close to me to say. I looked at him with my brows crossed.
“Dash, I’ve never been happier,” I said and smiled at him. Didn’t he see how happy he made me? How content I was in this life with him?
“I want you to tell me, if there is ever anything I can do to make you even happier. Because I want to see you like this every day. Smiling like this,” he said. We were facing each other now, looking into each other’s faces.
“I don’t think I can be any happier. My heart will explode if I even try!” I protested with a laugh and before I knew what he was going to do, he’d lifted me up in his arms and was kissing me again.
He swung me in his arms as he kissed me and I couldn’t contain my laughter. I had never imagined happiness like this. I didn’t know I deserved to be happy, and now Dash had proven to me that there was so much hope. All I needed was for us to be together forever.
THE END
Thank you so much for taking the time to read the Marked Skulls Series! If you haven’t done so already, please make sure to leave a review!
Want a sneak peak at the next series coming out? Turn the page to read the first chapter of Knox (The Dead Souls MC)!
Prison is no joke.
The food sucks,
My roommate snores,
And the only thing I have to look forward to is Monroe.
My lawyer can look at my briefs anytime.
She’s smart, beautiful, and the only way I’m getting out of this hellhole.
I didn’t kill Blaze, but when you’re a Dead Soul MC member, no one cares about the truth.
And maybe that’s for the best,
Because no one can know about Canyon.
Monroe is not just getting me out of jail,
She’s also getting into my heart.