"You're scaring me, Tyler."
"Good. You should be scared. This whole situation is terrifying." He gripped my shoulder, squeezed hard. "But I need to know you've got my back. Even when—especiallywhen—it looks like I don't deserve it."
I thought about the years he'd protected me. The fighting lessons, the survival skills, the countless times he'd put himself between me and danger. Whatever he was planning, whatever he couldn't tell me, he'd earned my faith.
"No matter what," I said. "I trust you."
Something eased in his expression. "Thank you."
He walked away before I could ask more questions. I watched him approach the war table, where Hawk and Axel were debating entry points. Tank looked up as Tyler joined them—a quick glance, assessing, before he returned his attention to Jake.
The day passed in a blur of preparation.
I inventoried medical supplies, creating trauma kits for each team. Bandages, tourniquets, QuikClot, chest seals. The tools of battlefield medicine that I'd hoped never to use outside an ER. Maria helped without asking questions, her steady presence a comfort in the chaos. "You're good at this," she said, watching me organize a kit. "Keeping calm when everything's falling apart."
"Practice." I secured the final strap. "ER teaches you to compartmentalize. Panic doesn't help anyone."
"Hawk's the same way. Ice water in his veins when things go sideways." She handed me another roll of gauze. "It's why I fell in love with him, honestly. That steadiness."
"How long have you been together?"
"Twelve years. Married for ten." A soft smile crossed her face. "The girls were born during the last big conflict—rival MC from up north. I went into labor the same night Hawk was defending the clubhouse. He made it to the hospital with twenty minutes to spare, still had blood on his shirt."
"That's terrifying."
"That's life with an MC." She met my eyes, something knowing in her expression. "But it's also loyalty like you've neverknown. Family that would die for you without hesitation. Love that's tested by fire and comes out stronger."
I thought about Axel. About the way he looked at me, touched me, said my name like it was something precious.
"Yeah," I said. "I'm starting to understand that."
Irish's partner arrived around noon.
His name was Declan—shorter than Irish, broader, with a wicked smile and an accent that placed him somewhere in Cork. He swept into the clubhouse like he owned it, pulled Irish into a kiss that left nothing to the imagination, and immediately started critiquing the defensive positions.
"You've left the east approach wide open," he announced, pointing at the map. "Any idiot with a rifle could set up in that tree line."
"We've got cameras—" Tank started.
"Cameras don't stop bullets, love." Declan patted his cheek condescendingly. "Trust me. I've done this before."
"Dec was IRA," Irish explained, grinning at our expressions. "Reformed. Mostly."
"Entirely reformed," Declan corrected. "Now I'm just a concerned citizen who happens to know a great deal about tactical assault."
He and Irish moved through the clubhouse like a unit, finishing each other's sentences, touching casually and constantly. At one point, I caught them both looking at a young prospect who was hauling ammunition—a synchronized glance, a shared smile, before they returned to their work.
"They're something else," Jake said, appearing at my side. He'd finished training, sweat dampening his hair, bruises blooming on his forearms.
"They seem happy."
"Yeah." Jake was quiet for a moment, watching Irish lean into Declan's space, watching Declan's hand rest naturally on Irish's hip. "I didn't know you could just... be like that. Here. With these guys."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean—" He struggled for words. "I grew up thinking MC guys were all, you know. Hyper-masculine. No homo. Beat your ass if you looked at them wrong." He shrugged, something vulnerable flickering in his eyes. "But Axel's with you, and nobody cares. Irish and Declan are basically married, and nobody cares. Blade talks about his exes—guys and girls—and nobody cares."
"Does that change things for you?"
