Someone gasps. That’s Storm, I see.
Another Savage swears. Beast. He gives me a wink and a two-finger salute as welcome.
A chair scrapes across polished wood. Haze. Savages. Hacker. He grabs a sandwich off a nearby table and his laptop in the other. Before he leaves, he dips his head and then vanishes around the corner. He never was one for group events.
And then Charli appears like a force of nature, pushing through bodies with a grin so big it looks like it might split her face.
“Everly?” she breathes, like she’s not sure I’m real.
I barely get my arms up before she’s on me, hugging me hard enough to bruise, and I deserve it. I deserve to be shaken. I deserve to be screamed at.
But she just holds me tighter.
“You’re freezing,” she scolds, hands sliding up my arms like she’s checking me for injuries. “You look like you got dragged behind a damn truck.”
I gulp air. It’s better than letting all my tears have free rein. “Feels like it,” I manage, my voice thick with all the emotions flooding my system.
Charli pulls back, eyes shining. “We thought you were gone for good.”
I swallow, my throat burning. “I was. I never thought I would be back here.”
Before she can say anything else, the club candy rushes in like I’m some kind of miracle.
Angel Baby is the first one to throw her arms around me, smelling like vanilla lotion and a hint of whiskey. Jinx follows, all sharp eyes and sharper smile, her hug quick but very real. And welcoming.
“You look like hell,” Jinx announces.
“Thank you,” I mutter.
“Welcome back,” she adds, quieter, and something in my chest cracks.
Then Reaper steps in.
The club president doesn’t have to raise his voice. He doesn’t have to do anything dramatic. His presence is the kind that fills a space without permission. Tall. Built for protection and violence. It’s what he and Phantom have in common. Reaper has eyes that have seen too much and decided mercy is a privilege. It’s how Phantom says he runs his crew.
He looks at Phantom first, then at Kaylee tucked against Phantom’s chest, then at me.
And his mouth tilts into something that looks suspiciously like approval.
“Good to see you in one piece after tonight,” he offers in a hushed tone.
My breath catches. I didn’t realize until this very second how nice it is to feel seen and cared about. It’s been a long while since anyone cared whether I was dead or alive.
Reaper closes the distance and pulls me into a hug that is careful but firm, like he’s letting me know I’m in the circle even if I don’t think I deserve it. The man is way too perceptive for his own good.
“I don’t know how you found your way back,” he murmurs near my ear, “but I’m glad you did.”
My eyes burn and I blink fast. “I didn’t, in all honesty, Reaper,” I whisper. “He dragged me here or I would have run off again.”
Reaper’s chest shakes with a quiet laugh. “Yeah. That sounds like Phantom.” A firm, yet gentle hand comes down on my shoulder. “Either way, you’re here”
Phantom shifts, and I watch him lower Kaylee onto the couch with a tenderness that makes my throat close. He tucks her in like she belongs here. Like he belongs with her.
Like I do too.
But I can’t. Right?
I won’t.
