We’re stronger now. Our enemy vanquished.
Doc is there next, his grin easy and proud. “Congratulations, bro” he says, and the word’s a full-body thing from him.
“You knew what Cole was planning?” I ask, but I already know the answer.
“We could have done it old school with nominations and votes, but it was unanimous. You always lead from behind, even back in the military. You try and step back, but it’s there in you, brother. You earned it.”
I’m not sure what to say to that, I’m honestly touched and surprised.
Then Cole comes through the crowd to me, looking lighter than I’ve seen him in a long time, like he took off a coat I didn’t realize was dragging him down. He pats me on the shoulder and gives the new patch a flick with his finger. “You’ve had the bones of this in you forever,” he says, voice pitched for just us. “It just needed the right moment to snap in place.”
“I won’t let you down,” I answer, and that’s the honest truth.
“You won’t,” he says, because he already knows.
Around us, the party continues. Tank’s got Amanda in a spin near the jukebox. It took him a while learning to walk with his prosthesis, but now he barely has a limp, Big Joe’s holding court with a plate of sliders, and the prospects are doing laps of the space like pups who can’t believe they’ve got a whole fenced yard now.
Then I see Lena moving toward me, and everything else turns down a notch like a dimmer switch. She’s in a simple black dress that clings and flows at once, her hair loose, her cheeks flushed from all the congratulations she’s been soaking up. Seven months along and every inch of her is more herself. I can’t not touch her, my hands are already reaching as she steps in.
“Hey, Prez,” she says, eyes laughing, her voice teasing. Her hands find my chest, and I rest mine over them.
“Hey, darlin’,” I murmur back. “You did it. You did everything, the clubhouse looks amazing.”
She tips her chin. “We did it.” Then softer, for only me, “I’m proud of you, Rex.”
There’s a tightness behind my ribs I didn’t expect. It gives when she leans in close, when I feel the warm press of her breath against my cheek. The noise is still there, but it’s like it’s only us. One of the twins kicks against her dress, an impatient little drum. I flatten my palm and feel the thump. “They’re celebrating too,” I say.
“They’re very proud of their daddies,” she answers, and there’s that look in her eyes, mischief braided with tenderness. We decided that there would be no paternity tests this time, the twins would belong to all of us. Four fathers. I kiss her brow and then the corner of her mouth, keeping it gentle for now, because there are a hundred eyes, and there’s plenty of time to celebrate later.
“Speech,” Tank hollers before I get any more lost. “Come on, Prez. Give us some words to toast and misquote later.”
I slide an arm around Lena’s waist and guide her toward the far end of the bar, under the eagle. The room turns, and all eyes are on me. I clear my throat once and raise a bottle.
“This,” I say, and I have to pause because the word’s too small for the feeling. “This isn’t just a clubhouse. It’s our proof. We took hits that should have sunk us. We lost people we loved. We carried fear in our pockets and slept with one eye open. But we didn’t break. We bent, we bled, we rebuilt. We went legit, and we mean it. We kept our family—the one we chose—together.”
I glance at Lena. The light catches in her eyes and they’re glistening with emotion.
“I’m not standing up here because I’m better,” I go on. “I’m here because I’m yours. I know your names and your history. I know what you’d give in a pinch and what you’d take if forced. I’m here to keep us pointed at the horizon, to make sure we don’t forget where we came from or where we’re headed. TheEagles fly clean. We protect ours. We remember our dead. We raise our kids to be kinder than we had to be.”
Murmurs, low and rough. A chorus of “hear, hear.”
I lift the bottle higher. “To the Soaring Eagles,” I say. “To family.”
“To family!” the room answers, big and unanimous, and the clink and swallow that follows feels like some holy rite.
Cole throws an arm around my shoulders as the noise swells again. “Nice work, Prez,” he grins. “Didn’t even swear.”
“Gotta be on my best behavior,” I say and glance toward Mia who’s sitting beside Big Joe with a huge grin on her face. Right now the club is family friendly, but later the real partying will start.
“How are you holding up?” Doc asks Lena.
“It feels like I’m smuggling bowling balls,” she says dryly, but she’s smiling. “I’m okay.”
“We’ll get you off your feet soon,” he says with a wink. “Ten more minutes of limelight.”
“Make it eight,” Cole adds, his eyes fond.
I can’t help it, I pull her in again, front to front, like I can keep the whole world from dulling her shine. “I got you,” I tell her. It’s not a promise so much as a recognition of something already true.
