“Officially.” I nod and smile at him in return.
“Officially,” he agrees.
Finn turns and leaves. The rest of the brothers each stop to hug me and offer their congratulations as well before they join him outside. Lyric stays with me to be my traditional matron of honor in this very untraditional ceremony. A throat clears to my left, and I notice that Prez is still inside.
“I know with the circumstances, your parents couldn’t be invited. I can’t replace your dad today, but if you’d like, I would be honored to walk you down the aisle, Winnie.”
Tears spring to my eyes, and I give the scary-looking man a watery smile. “Thanks, Prez.”
I loop my arm through his, and he pats my hand gently, just like I imagine my dad would have if he could have been here. For safety reasons, I haven’t reached out to them other than to tell them I was okay when I first got here.
“You’re good for him.” Prez turns to me right as the music starts. “He had a lot of growing up to do. And I’m sorry he hurt you, and that the brothers and I allowed it to happen. I hope you know we think of you as family, Winnie. And even if you didn’t want to get married today, we’d still protect you anyway.”
“I want to marry him.” My lips tip up in a smile.
He chuckles and gives me a little smirk back. “I know, darlin’. Which is why I said you’re good for him. You’re meant to be together.”
Prez leads me out the back doors, and my stomach swoops. Love, happiness, and awe rush through my veins when I see what the club has done for us. There are black and white accents everywhere, and a skull bride and groom on a banner with our names on it. Pink rose petals spell outTil Deathat the end of the aisle. It's perfect and exactly what I would have wanted for this day. Prez hands me over to Finn when we reach the end of the aisle. I’m surprised one more time when Squirrel steps up to officiate.
“Don’t worry. I’m not a professional, but the state of Tennessee did give me a very fancy slip of paper.” He winks, and the whole crowd rumbles with laughter.
The entire ceremony is quick, easy, and one of the best moments of my life. Finn and I decided to say our own vows. Even on such short notice, he managed to blow me away with his heartfelt promises, his words of love, and the reverent way he vows to cherish me forever, to continue building his home with me. Somehow, I manage to get through my vows to him without crying, and my heart fills with even more love when he sheds a tear before gruffly wiping it away with his hand. The audience quiets when Squirrel holds up his hand.
“Now, I’m going to skip the part about anyone objecting because let’s face it, you wouldn’t leave this clubhouse alive…” Everyone laughs with him. “But on a serious note, these twohave promised forever to each other. Till death. They promised to never finish falling in love with each other. Day in and day out, to fight for their marriage together, always. It is with my great pleasure, and my honor, to pronounce them husband and wife.”
Squirrel smirks and winks at Finn. “Kiss your wife, Dodger.”
Finn whoops, and his hands move to cradle my face, his lips landing on mine, softly at first, but then he deepens it, his hands moving to my waist and smashing my body to his. When he pulls back, the crowd is going crazy, but all I can see is him.
“I love you, Win. Forever.”
I smile softly, my thumb running over his lips and wiping off some of my lipstick. “I love you, too.”
“Thank you.” He places one last kiss on my forehead before bending to lift me into his arms. Once again, we’re met with cheers that follow us all the way back to the clubhouse.
Everyone files in after us. The bar gets running, and the music starts up next. Finn sweeps me into his side, where I stay all night while we drink and talk with old friends, new friends, and the family that he’s built for himself. I finally get him to the dance floor, for our song, the one that reminds me most of being seventeen, under star-filled skies, and falling in love. It's the perfect way to end a perfect day. Until I see the expression on Prez’s face.
“Finn,” I whisper, but it comes out more of a whimper. He looks at me, alarmed, following my gaze to where Prez is standing, huddled with Jester, his VP, and Karma. Taking my hand, Finn leads me through the crowd and over to the small group of men.
“Prez?” Finn says, all the men look at both of us with varying degrees of concern.
“I’ll start doing recon. We’ll need a perimeter set up,” Karma says, before dispersing.
Jester slaps his hand on Finn’s shoulder. “I’m going to call our other Italian allies.”
Prez hands Finn the phone he was holding. “One of our guys on the inside reported that Bianchi senior is dead. Marco killed him. There’s also a rumor that his wife has gone missing. He’s likely cleaning house. We think he’s coming to get you back.”
My chest squeezes while the room seems to dim, the sound fading out. I can’t breathe. My hands reach out for Finn, who’s already grabbing me, holding me up.
“It's okay, Win. I promise. He can’t have you. If he comes after you now, he’s not only breaking our alliance, but it would put me within my rights to kill him for going after my old lady.”
“I’m scared, Finn,” I whisper and clutch him tighter. As his arms wrap around me, Prez leaves to give us some space.
“Nothing to be scared of, Daisy. He’ll never get his hands on you again.”
Chapter 29
Finn
