"Do you bind yourself to Axel Morrison, accepting him as your partner in all things?"
"I bind myself." The words came out steady, certain. "Willingly. Completely. For as long as I breathe."
Hawk smiled—a rare, genuine expression that transformed his weathered face.
"Then by the authority vested in me as President of the Steel Phoenixes, I recognize this bond." He produced something from behind him—a leather cut, smaller than the members wore, with a single patch on the back.
PROPERTY OF REAPER.
"Wear this with pride," Hawk said, holding it out. "You've earned it."
Axel took the cut from Hawk's hands. Turned to me. His fingers trembled slightly as he held it open.
"May I?"
I turned around, let him slip it over my shoulders. The leather settled against my back, warm and surprisingly light. When I turned back, Axel's expression nearly undid me.
"Perfect," he breathed. "You're perfect."
"Seal it," someone called—Irish, probably. "Kiss him already!"
Axel laughed, cupped my face in his hands, and kissed me. Not gentle. Not restrained. He kissed me like we were alone, like the room wasn't full of cheering bikers and whooping friends. His tongue swept into my mouth, claiming me there too, and I grabbed his cut and pulled him closer.
The room erupted. Cheers, whistles, stomping feet. Someone started a chant of "Reaper, Reaper, Reaper" that devolved into cheerful chaos. When we finally broke apart, both gasping, Irish was openly crying and pretending he wasn't.
"Brothers and sisters," Hawk announced over the noise, "I present to you Kai Nakamura, Reaper’s Violet, claimed partner of our VP, and newest member of our family."
Reaper’s Violet. I hadn't expected that. Hadn't expected the way it would feel, hearing both names together—Axel's and mine, combined into something new.
"Reaper’s Violet?" I asked Axel.
"If you want it." His thumb traced my cheekbone. "You don't have to?—"
"I want it." The certainty surprised me. "I want all of it."
His smile could have lit the whole room.
The celebration that followed was chaos in the best way.
Whiskey flowed. Music blared. At some point, a cake appeared—three tiers, black and purple frosting, a tiny motorcycle on top that Axel swore he hadn't commissioned. Maria's daughters dragged me onto the dance floor for something that might have been a waltz if waltzes involved jumping and spinning until you were dizzy.
I floated through it in a haze of joy.
Hawk found me first, near the edge of the dance floor, watching the chaos with something like contentment.
"Kai." He clapped a hand on my shoulder—firm, fatherly. "Got a minute?"
"Of course."
He guided me toward a quieter corner, away from the music and laughter. For a moment, he just studied my face, those dark eyes seeing more than I was comfortable with.
"I've known Axel for fifteen years," he said finally. "Watched him rise through the ranks. Watched him close himself off, piece by piece, until there was nothing left but the soldier he once was." He paused. "I thought that was who he'd always be. Thought the man underneath was gone for good."
"He was never gone. Just... buried."
"I know that now." Hawk's expression softened. "Because of you. You brought him back, Kai. The man he was supposed to be before his father got hold of him—you found that man and gave him permission to exist."
My throat tightened. "I just saw him. That's all."
