Piper

My fingers dig into the fabric of Cade’s shirt the moment my father bursts into the room.

It’s been a few years since I saw my father. Not much has changed about him. His hair has more salt than pepper and there are a few more wrinkles around his eyes, but his scarred face is still the same. Those marks on his face have been there since I was little. He came home with his face all carved up one day and I cried because I was scared of him.

Guess much hasn’t changed since then. I still fear him more now than ever—maybe because I know what he’s capable of. He’s a monster. He won’t think twice about me if I die. If I had to guess, he’s only here because he doesn’t like the idea of the Mavericks making him look weak by kidnapping his own daughter.

He’s here to save face, not to save me.

“Have you lost your goddamn mind, Owen? You must have balls of steel to come barging into my place,” Frank growls at my father.

“I could say the same thing to you. Family’s off limits unless you want war,” my father fires back.

“I think you’ve got some crossed wires, my friend. Your daughter…she is my family.”

For the first time, my father’s gaze turns to me. His eyes trail down Cade’s torso to where the fabric of his T-shirt is balled up in my left hand, giving him a perfect view of my wedding ring. His face twists with anger.

“You son-of-a-bitch,” Father growls as he swings his gun at Cade.

Cade shoves me out of the way as the gun discharges.

I scream Cade’s name as Frank throws himself in front of my husband and they both fall to the floor. The gun that was in Cade’s hand skids across the floor and stops at my feet and I reach down for it. Cade and Frank lay on the floor, but as they begin to move around, my father starts toward Cade with his gun drawn, clearly ready to finish the job.

I can’t let him hurt my man.

I take aim at my father and squeeze the trigger, but my hands are shaking so bad I don’t even come close to hitting my target.

My father’s cold stare locks on me and his face twists as he points his gun in my direction. My hands tremble as I raise the gun to shoot him first, but the sharp blast of a gun going off before I have the chance to pull the trigger makes me clench my eyelids shut.

My father grunts and I open my eyes as he falls to his knees in front of me. A small bloodstain blossoms out to cover most of the material of his white T-shirt. He coughs; blood spurting out of his mouth and then oozing down his face.

“You fucking bitch,” Father says to me. “You’re a whore just like your mother.”

My nostrils flare and there’s not one ounce of sympathy in my body for this dying man in front of me. “Go to hell.”

His eyes narrow, and before he can say anything else, he falls forward, landing flat on his face against the hardwood floor.

Once it’s clear my father is dead, the rest of the Disciples, including Lemy, flee from the building to their bikes. Doesn’t seem like they’re too keen on sticking around for the aftermath of this shootout.

Cade crawls over to me and cups my face in his hands so he can inspect me. “You okay?”

“Yes,” I answer as I grab his vest and open it wide, instantly relieved to discover Cade isn’t shot. “Thank God.”

Cade presses his lips to mine. “I love you, Piper.”

Tears stream down my face as I cling to my husband. “I love you, too.”

He presses his forehead to mine before he kisses me again. Hearing him say he loves me, makes all the screwed up shit we’ve just been through worth it.

“Let me help you up, Prez,” a man says to Frank as he bends down to extend a hand to him.

“Thanks, Del. Thought I was a fucking goner there for a minute.” Frank glances down to his shoulder where there’s a deep gash in his arm. “Fucking bullet just grazed me.”

Del pats Frank’s back. “You’re one lucky son-of-a-bitch. Crazy as hell, but lucky.”

Frank gaze flicks over to Cade. “Some people are worth taking bullets for.”

A small grin tugs at Cade’s lips when he locks eyes with Frank and then puts his arm around me. “Yes, they are.”

Frank nods, and some sort of unspoken moment passes between the two men. “You two need to get out of here. We have to call the cops—explain how Owen burst in here and I shot him in self-defense. Less people around when they come, the better. Don’t want too many stories floating around. Me and Del will handle this shit.”

Cade pulls himself up to his feet and then helps me up before he walks over to Frank.

“Thank you.” Cade extends his hand and Frank takes it before he pulls Cade in for a hug.

“It’s the least I can do for you,” Frank says. “Believe it or not, I do have a fucking heart.”

“That’s hard to believe considering how well I know you.” Cade chuckles and then pauses for a beat. “What about Lemy?”

Frank waves Cade off. “Don’t worry about him. We’ll handle that chicken shit.” Frank flips his gaze to me then back to Cade. “Take her and get out of here. It’s your honeymoon for fuck’s sake, son.”

“All right. Call me when things cool down,” he tells them before he turns and leads me toward the door. He covers my eyes with his hand as we pass by my father. “Don’t look.”

I swallow hard and then hold my breath until we’re past the bloody scene. A weird sense of calm washes over me the moment we’re outside. The man I’ve feared my entire life is gone. I’m finally free of him. It’s all thanks to my husband. He’s literally the best thing that’s ever happened to me.

We come to Cade’s bike and he takes my hand. “You sure you’re all right? That was some heavy shit and you’re being quiet. You in shock?”

I shake my head. “I’m glad all of this is over.”

“Me too,” he says. “Now it’s time we figure out how we’re going to live our life together.”

“Together,” I repeat his words as I wrap my arms around his waist. “I like the sound of that.”

He leans down and presses his lips to mine. “Come on. Let’s get out of here.”

I hop on the back of his bike, unsure of where we are heading, but knowing we’re about to start our forever together.