Rolling over, the coldness from the pillow forces my eyes open. Expecting to have Kodah next to me, I almost feel like crying when I realize he’s not.

Sitting up in bed, I look around the room and stop at the chair sitting against the wall.

Resting with his head against the wall and his eyes closed is my dad. Even in his sleep, I see the remorse etched into his features.

So much was taken from us, eleven years worth of questions and heartaches lay open and shattered no matter which way we turn.

We deserve some peace. We deserve the time to put those pieces back together.

We deserve to be happy.

Crawling out of bed I wrap the robe tightly around me and step toward him.

“Dad?”

Lifting his head off the chair, his sad and tired gaze meets mine. The need to be near him pulls me forward and I sit in the other chair right next to his and face him. Not saying anything, he just stares at me searching for his little girl.

So many things run in his mind, I can see them, I can practically hear them. But we just sit there in silence.

Reaching his hand out, he runs his fingers through my hair. Wrapping the ends around his fingers, he opens his mouth to say something but nothing comes out, instead everything cracks open.

One after another the tears fall from his eyes and I can’t take it.

“No, daddy,” I beg and gripping the hand that holds my hair I place it on my cheek. “Please don’t cry.”

“I failed you, sunshine,” he coughs out. “I couldn’t do the one thing a parent is supposed to do, I couldn’t protect you.”

“It wasn’t your fault.”

“I never should have left that night.”

Shaking my head, I nuzzle into his hand.

“You’re not my little girl anymore,” he says as more tears fall.

“I will always be your little girl,” I answer back, looking into his eyes. So much pain…so much sorrow.

“Did they…did…are you okay, sunshine?” he asks and I know what he is referring to.

Briefly closing my eyes, I give a small nod and just answer the best way I can. “I’m okay.”

Letting out another cough he asks, “Can I... Can I hug you?”

On a choked sob, I nod my head and get up and run straight into his arms.

Placing his head on top of mine he holds me, not like he’s afraid that I will disappear again, but like I have finally come home.

He holds me like the pieces to life have finally fallen into place… and they have. I finally have the full picture. It’s not perfect and it’s held together with tape and glue but it’s whole; it’s my life… and it’s beautiful.

“I’m home, daddy,” I cry into his chest.

“Yea, sunshine, you’re finally fucking home.”

After the tears dried up, we sat there until the sun came up and talked. About an hour after our hug, Bo came in with a bottle of scotch and the crying started all over again.

I learned that Bo was now VP, taking the spot of Rooster, and that Dad now has six sister chapters all up the north west. I cried when I learned of some of my aunts and uncles who died and laughed when I was told stories of the new members. We talked about the town and how they built it up. I asked how he did it all and I got the same answer I get from Buck and Drifter… it’s not my business. I couldn’t help but laugh. I told them about Bailey and all the art I have done. I told them my side of who Buck and Drifter were and I saw respect shine in their eyes.

We laughed, we cried, and we bickered like the eleven years never existed.

I was home.

I felt alive.

“So, what’s the deal with you and Romeo?” Bo asks from the floor, slurring as he takes another drink from the bottle.

Pops just sits lazily back in the chair watching the two of us on the floor like everything is right in the world.

“What about him, Bobo?” I ask, smiling at the nickname I used to have for him. He got so upset when everyone started calling him that… now he has it as his road name.

Smiling from ear to ear I can tell he is remembering it, too.

“You two together? Like official? You gunna be his old lady, sis?” Seriousness replaces the smile as he continues without waiting for an answer. “He’s probably the only brother I’d trust with you.” A glazed look crosses his face and he shakes his head. “This whole fucking time we have been giving him shit and callin’ him Romeo because he was always seein’ you… you were always right fucking there and we never knew.”

Looking down at my hands I say, “I don’t know what the future holds.” I meet his eyes and then my father’s and I continue, “But I love him and he is a part of this club just like I am. I don’t want to be anywhere else but here.”

Content happiness blankets the room at what I said and both men smile.

After that things settle down and it’s not too long before Kodah joins us. They get to know him in a different light; as more than the stray who showed up on their doorstep or a brother that earned his patch. They get to know him as the man who walked through hell and made it out on top, they see a man who protected and took care of their little girl. They see the true love we have for each other.

They see the light in the dark.

* * *

Three weeks go by and I have never been happier. A week after everything happened and people from all the chapters had heard, everyone came to celebrate as the club held a huge party. I didn’t stay for the whole thing, the moment I saw my Uncle Spike getting head at the bar I decided enough was enough. I saw many familiar faces and so many new ones.

I fell in love with the club all over again. I learned Mayhem and Trigger had been stationed together and Mayhem earned his name overseas… I could only guess why. Tank reminded me a lot of Drifter, he wore his heart on his sleeve but was ready to kill at the drop of a dime. I had met his little girl, Daisey, but I didn’t meet her mom. Jinx and Karma were quiet and calculating but once they warmed up to me they were a riot and had me laughing harder than I ever had before. I didn’t talk to JB all too much but from what I heard, Kodah was the only person he really talked to, but he watched me. I felt just as protected with him around as I did with Kodah. His loyalty to Kodah was something I admired and saw the moment he walked into my room that first night.

I was kissed and felt up so many times from the old ladies and the club whores I felt covered in lipstick and body glitter. Buck and Drifter hung around more than I thought they would, Drifter practically becoming part of the club while Buck I think found more men relatable to him. To my father’s dismay, I still slept over at Drifter’s more than I did at home. I enjoyed having my own space and the separation from all the chaos and testosterone the men put off, plus I needed my best friend. Over the last few weeks Bailey has turned into the woman I always thought and hoped she would be. She had signed up for online school and right now is taking the basics. I couldn’t be any prouder of her. She hasn’t come back to the club since everything happened but I don’t blame her, that day was awful… also I think Mayhem scared the shit out of her when he showed up at Drifter’s looking for Kodah. I have hopes that she will come around, though. We upgraded my old room at my dad’s and even though more tears were shed and another bottle was emptied, I think putting all that stuff in boxes lifted a lot off of him. All the boys keep saying how they have never seen the old man so happy.

I have never been so happy.

The threat quiets down but it doesn’t disappear. From what I know there hasn’t been a word or a sighting from Marx. Bo thinks if he’s been watching me then he knows who he is now dealing with and has backed off, but Buck and Drifter haven’t let up and neither has my father.

Kodah and I finally started living the life we had always talked about. We went on dates and we laid out in the grass. We watched the sun rise and fall. He kept good to his promises and every day has made it his mission to try and erase what that place did to me…did to us.

We laughed, we loved, we finally lived.

But our story wasn’t over… Demons never sleep.

They lurk and stalk. They wait until your guard is down. Once they know you are at your most vulnerable, when you have everything to lose, they strike.

Being happy is a gamble in life. You leave yourself open, you leave yourself vulnerable, you leave yourself at the mercy of your demons.