It was amazing how these people were with each other. I’d never been this comfortable around people, not even when I was growing up, not the bikers, not even Bane. I was completely at ease, and even though Lacey still seemed a little skeptical of me, everyone made me feel like I was part of the family.
We had just finished the toast when Harry asked us to share our story. I was nervous about them finding out. What was I going to say?
“It all started when Dax’s dog, Joker, ran into the road and I nearly ran him over with my car.” Jayna smiled at me. It was hard to imagine it had only been a couple of weeks ago. It felt like a lifetime had passed since we’d met, we’d been through so much. Jayne explained about Joker and the dog fights, and running into Akira. She left out the sex, obviously. She was also kind enough to gloss over the parts where I was an absolute asshole.
Her parents raised their eyebrows as the story progressed. We told it together, adding details where the other forgot.
When we were done, there was silence for a moment.
“Well, that’s definitely an adventure.” Lacey poured herself more wine. Jayna put her hand on my leg and squeezed.
“We got out safe. Without Dax, that wouldn’t have been possible.”
We ate in silence for a while. The food was really good - it was amazing. If this was what Jayna had grown up with, I could understand why everything about her was so delicious.
“So, now that you’ve told us everything about you, is there anything you want to know about us here?” Harry looked at me with an open face, waiting for me to say something.
I nodded and put my fork down.
“Yeah. Can I talk to you outside?”
He looked surprised. Everyone did. I looked at Jayna when I got up and she had questions in her eyes. I squeezed her hand, pecked her on the cheek, and got up. I followed Harry out on the porch where he lit up a pipe.
“Feel free to smoke, son.”
I lit up a cigarette. I was nervous as hell, and it would calm my nerves a little bit. The sun was starting to set, and it looked nothing like it did in LA. There were no tall buildings to obscure the view. The sky changed from blue to orange and pink and purple in a splash of color that was so beautiful I wished I could reach out and touch it. As we stood in silence, it colored to a dim purple. The shadows became longer and longer on the ground, reaching across the small town like fingers. The breeze smelled like grass and freedom.
“What do you want to talk about?” Harry’s voice pulled me out of my concentration on my surroundings.
I took a deep breath, dragging on my cigarette, fixing the words in the right order in my mind, and started talking. I explained how I felt about Jayna, how I wanted for her to have a life where she was safe. The ordeal with Akira and everything that had happened with Joker had made me realize the value of life and having others in it, and I wanted to explain to Harry that I understood now what love and life was about. Even if he hadn’t known me before, when it was a concept I only thought I was grasping.
He stayed quiet, letting me say everything I wanted to say, before he started talking.
We weren’t outside for very long. It was a quick conversation after I had gotten everything off my chest. When the talking was done, we finished our smokes in companionable silence, then we headed back inside. Jayna and her mother fell quiet as if they’d been talking about us. I looked at her and nodded, so that she wouldn’t look so damned worried. Everything that we had talked about outside was good, and I had realized that Harry was the kind of man I could be one day, the kind of father I would like to be if I had daughters. The idea of children with Jayna made me giddy.
Harry sat down on his chair and picked up his knife and fork, taking another bite of his unfinished food. I sat down too. I started eating again, as well, but the food tasted like cardboard now, and my nerves bothered me. The food had gone cold, the chicken congealed, and it stuck in my throat with all the words I felt I still needed to get out.
“What do you do?” Lacey asked me and I swallowed a lump of food down that was too big. I choked, drank some wine.
“I do a little bit of freelancing here and there.” It was a lie, but what could I say? Her parents seemed to be warming up to me, and I didn’t want to take all of it away now by saying something that would make them see me in the worst possible light.
“That’s nice,” Lacey said and smiled in a way that made me think it wasn’t nice at all. I glanced at Harry. I still didn’t know how she would feel about everything. I knew what Harry thought of me now, but Lacey seemed harder to read and ever harder still to win over. Harry was chewing and he looked relaxed as could be. I was the only one that was freaking out a little bit. Maybe it was because I was the only one with a motive here. I was the only one that didn’t know how the night was going to end for me.
“Who’s looking after your dog while you’re here?” Lacey asked.
“A friend of mine is house sitting for me. He’s good with animals. I trust him with my house, and my dog, and my life.”
Jayna nodded, swallowed, and spoke. “He’s a great friend. I met him. People should have friends like that more often.”
“Like Krista,” I said and Jayna smiled. Krista was a good friend too, but a lot of that was because she encouraged Jayna to be with me. It was why I liked her so much. She was outspoken, and a bit of the best kind of bitch, and I didn’t always get along with her, but the fact that she wanted us to be together was a redeeming factor. That made me feel great.
When dinner was over, Lacey got up, and we helped her clear the plates. She brought out ice cream and chocolate sauce and I waited while she dished for everyone. The nerves were starting to calm down - I could only run on adrenaline for that long. I didn’t know how or when I was going to take the next step, but it was going to happen soon. Tonight.
When the dessert was halfway through, I couldn’t hold it anymore. I took Jayna’s hand.
“I know we haven’t known each other for a very long time, but we’ve been through a lot together and I’ve realized that I don’t want to live without you in my life.”
Jayna blushed, looked at her parents before she looked back at me and smiled.
“I feel the same,” she said.
“I have fallen in love with you, Jayna. I want to be with you for as long as I possibly can. I came here not expecting to made to feel so welcome. I hope I can be part of your family.”
Jayna frowned slightly. I slid off my chair, pushed it away to make enough space and kneeled before her, holding her hand. Jayna clapped her other hand to her mouth and looked up at Harry before she looked at me again.
“I want to be with you forever, and your father gives us his blessing. Will you marry me?”
Jayna nodded. Her eyes welled up with tears and then she came down onto the floor with me and hugged me.
“Wait,” I said and fished in my pocket. I pulled out a ring. I hadn’t brought the box - it was too bulky and I didn’t know how else to hide the ring in my tight leathers. It was a gold ring with a huge diamond, something I’d picked up just before picking Jayna up to come here.
“Oh, my God, Dax.” She held her hand out for me and I slipped it on her finger. It fit perfectly.
“How did you know my size?”
I shrugged. “I asked Krista to help.”
She looked surprised. “She kept it a secret from me.”
I nodded. I’d been scared she would spill, but she’d been a great friend and kept the whole thing quiet. She’d snuck into the room when Jayna had been in the bathroom one evening and stolen one of her rings so that I could get the size. She’d been a star.
“So, I take it that’s a yes?” Jayna hadn’t actually said it in so many words. She giggled and nodded.
“Yes!”
I got up and she did too. She wrapped her arms around my neck and kissed me. Lacey cleared her throat.
“Thank you, Daddy,” Jayna said when she let go of me. “I knew you would know when you saw him. Oh, my God, this is the best day of my life.”
We all sat down again but the spirits were high now.
“How do you intend on caring for my daughter?” Harry asked, a question he hadn’t asked when we’d been talking outside. I sobered up, the happiness leveling out.
“I will do whatever it takes.” And it was true. I would give up all my wrong ways and I would give her a life worth living. I would give her a home that was safe and secure, the kind of place where we could raise a family. I thought back to Barry, coming out of his house where his daughter was playing, going to a dog fight that was both wrong and illegal.
I would never do that to my family.
“You’ll make the most beautiful bride, honey,” Lacey said and when I looked at her she beamed. She might not have liked me all that much when we arrived, but she seemed more than happy with the idea that I was going to marry her daughter. “We have so much to do! You’re going to get married here, right?”
Jayna laughed and nodded. She looked at me for confirmation, and when I nodded too she looked back at her mom. “Of course! I’m going to bring my friend out here to be Maid of Honor. It will be perfect!”
I looked at Jayna, and everything was how it should be. It was going to be perfect. If I thought back to what my life had been like before her I couldn’t believe I’d thought I was happy. I couldn’t believe there had been a time when I’d thought I was happy with Akira and that she was everything I’d wanted.
I was so much better off now. Akira was behind bars, the dog fighting ring in LA was shut down, the bikers respected me again - whatever that was worth - and I had the most beautiful woman in the world to be my bride.
I excused myself from the table and walked outside. The night air was crisp and there were a million stars out. I’d never seen a sky like this before. I dialed Bane’s number and waited until it rolled over to voicemail. I had a good idea of what he was doing. It was okay. I could tell him the good news later.
When I walked back inside it was like I was coming home. It was warm and welcoming and they all looked at me like I belonged, especially Jayna. I realized that, for the first time, I understood what it meant to be a part of something bigger than just the life I carved out for myself. This was what it was all for.
“I have a great idea!” Jayna’s eyes sparkled. I had never seen her this radiant and beautiful. “We can make Joker the ring bearer.”
I pulled her closer to me and kissed her.
“That sounds perfect,” I said. Everything was perfect.
THE END
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