“That… Theo and Dane never…” I trail off, heat creeping up my neck. “With the club girls?”
Her eyes widen—just for a second.
“I guess it just might be,” she says slowly, studying me now. “Who told you that?”
“DeeDee and Misty,” I answer, a little wary.
Mama chuckles under her breath, shaking her head. “Guess they really listened then.”
“What?”
“Sweetheart,” she says, her smile turning a little softer, a little knowing. “There are things they picked up from Savage, sure. But Paul wasn’t exactly sitting quietly in a corner either.”
I frown. “What do you mean?”
She leans back slightly, like she’s pulling up an old memory.
“I remember when they turned fifteen,” she says, amusement lacing her voice. “There wasn’t much scolding I could do about their… appetites.”
I grimace, and she laughs.
“Paul sat them down one day,” she continues, a hint of pride slipping in. “Told them,‘Don’t fuck the club girls, if you can help it. One day you’ll find your one. And then you’ll be forcing them to live with your past.’”
I go completely still.
The words settle into me slowly. And then everything starts to click.
My chest tightens—but this time, it’s not painful. It’s something soft. Something that comes from the warming realization that gives me hope.
All those years. All those moments I thought I understood…
Mama watches me closely, her expression gentle as she reaches over and smooths a stray strand of hair behind my ear.
“Told you,” she murmurs, smiling. “Not all of them turned out hopeless.”
A small smile tugs at my lips.
Dane and Theo weren’t just Savage’s legacy.
They learned from Torch too. And what a great man to learn from.
EPILOGUE TWO
Charlotte
“Is that why you asked for my sewing kit?”
I glance sideways as Lana sidles up beside me, her gaze already locked onto Theo across the room.
“—to do that?” she adds.
“Do what?” Stephanie mumbles around a mouthful of kebab, not even bothering to look up.
She’s been inhaling food for the past half hour like someone’s going to snatch it off her plate. I can’t blame her. It’s her first club party anyway.
She has started hanging out at the club more often now. Ever since the fact that Healer has a sister became common knowledge—and not just what the officers knew.
I’ve built a decent friendship with her since. Given that we were both very reluctant about assimilating into the club. And now we’re more or less part of it. Healer isn’t entirely happy. But he’s realizing he has no say over his little sister. The man treats her like she is sixteen and not thirty-one.
