But still, at least Diablo could rest easy in the knowledge that he wasn’t about to get sued by a team of lawyers with unlimited resources and a taste for vengeance, thank God.
The band had decided to take a hiatus before we recorded the second album.
I wanted to be there to help Jacob with his recovery, and I also wanted us to start our lives together.
Almost losing him had taught me what was important, and as much as I loved my band and my music, it didn’t mean anything without my big, bad biker by my side. I loved playing, and I loved performing, but I hated the dark side of show business. The paparazzi, the toxic online culture, and constantly having to defend myself against people I didn’t even know was exhausting, and I wanted a break from it.
Even if I never released another song, I could still live comfortably off the money I’d already earned and my royalties for the next ten lifetimes. My future kids were set for life, so money wasn’t a worry at all. However, I wouldn’t stay away for long.
I couldn’t.
Music was my first love, the thing that brought me my first taste of freedom when I was a young, repressed girl with dreams of breaking free from her stilted life, so I could never give it up completely.
Bones had removed Jacob’s breathing tube that morning. He still had the drain coming from his chest and was hooked up to a heart monitor, but I was relieved to see some color back in his cheeks and even more relieved that he was breathing unaided.
He wasn’t out of the woods completely, and Bones had warned us that he may develop complications or an infection, but he was off the critical list for now.
The road ahead wouldn’t be easy but I didn’t give the first fuck.
As long as I had Jacob with me, I’d find a way to cope. We had the best care and the best people to help him with his recovery. Hendrix had told me about allthe rehabilitation facilities the club had access to, so I knew Jacob was in good hands.
I sat on the bed beside Jacob, legs crossed with my back to his feet, staring at his face with our fingers entwined. When he woke up, I was determined to be there for him in case he was confused.
“It could take hours,” Kathy murmured from the chair next to the bed.
“It won’t,” I assured her, my heart beating steadily and my tummy tugging toward my man. “I can feel him.”
“Did you feel Jake move?” Doug asked from his place at his wife’s side.
“No.” I smiled. “I can feel his heart.”
And it was strange because I could, and not just then either. I’d felt flashes of him since the night before, when Bones had reduced his medication. Jacob was fighting to come back to me. I could sense his internal struggle, and it was beautiful because it showed me he was still in there and everything would be okay.
My breath whooshed out of me when his finger suddenly twitched.
I smiled and breathed, “Baby. I’m here.”
Jacob’s eyelids didn’t open, but they began to move, like he was suddenly in REM sleep and his mind was coming back to life.
Likehewas coming back to life.
Keeping my gaze on my man, I murmured, “Doug. Could you get Bones? Tell him it won’t be long.”
I heard Kathy let out a quiet sob, and then the door clicked as Doug left the room.
Something burned in my chest, but it wasn’t unpleasant, more like the hot summer sun burning life into the earth. It felt good and natural and right. Maybe it was my soul waking up because it had its mate back at last.
Jacob’s finger twitched again, and I laughed when I saw his eyelids flutter.
“Come on, baby,” I whispered. “Open your eyes. Let me see those icy blues. I’ve missed them so much.”
A tiny grunt escaped his throat, and his eyelids fluttered again, but that time they fluttered open, and stayed open, and he stared at the ceiling.
“Welcome home, baby,” I murmured.
Jacob’s dazed gaze lowered, and our eyes locked.
My heart soared.
