Page 130 of Shadow's Surrender
“Thank you. I have another son, Neo. He’s fourteen months. Hawk’s got him.”
Shadow nudged her. “Did you want to eat or talk ’cause you’re holding up the line.”
Scarlett and Cara both laughed, then Cara said, “You have to love these guys, right? I’ll call you so we can firm up next Wednesday.” She then scurried away.
After a delicious meal, Scarlett insisted on helping to clean up over Shadow’s protests, and thirty minutes later he came into the kitchen, gave her a dish towel, and told her to wipe off her hands because it was time for their walk.
The other old ladies assured her they could finish up, and she folded an apron Belle had given her and ambled out with her man.
The clean, pungent smell of the woods swirled around them as they followed the edge of the river toward a small cabin.
“Are we still on Insurgents’ property?” she asked.
“Yeah. We got acres of land. We also got several cabins scattered around the area. They’re places to go if a brother wants some time alone.”
“It’s so beautiful and serene. It feels like we’re a million miles from any civilization.”
“I come out here a lot to clear my head, especially in the winter months when the roads are iced up and it isn’t safe to ride.”
The cabin was one large room that housed a small kitchen and one bathroom. A stone fireplace was the focal point of the room. The furnishings were simple: two couches, one recliner, a coffee table, two end tables with lamps, and a rug with geometric designs on it.
Shadow walked to the refrigerator in the kitchen and pulled out a can of beer. “That’s all we got in here except for water and some Coke.”
“Water’s good,” she said as she sank down on the couch cushions.
“Here you go,” he said, handing the bottle of water to her then joining her on the couch. “How did you like spending some time with the brothers and their families?”
“It was great. I don’t know what I expected, but it wasn’tthat. The women are all so different and nice. And the guys acted like I was a person today, even Hawk.”
Shadow bumped against her. “See, I told you.”
“You were right.” She took a drink of water, then put it down on the end table beside her.
“Do you think you could be a part of my world?”
“Aren’t I already?”
“Sorta, but I mean, belong to it like Cara, Belle, and the other old ladies.”
“Yeah, I think so. I mean, I love you, and if you can rent a tuxedo and wear it to the gala next week, then I certainly can don leather and hang out with your friends.”
“And understand that I can’t tell you shit about club business and that the club will come first a lot of times?”
“The club business absolutely, the coming first rubs me the wrong way. I want to be first in your life.”
“You are and always will be in my heart, but I’ll want to hang with my brothers and go to rallies and poker runs and to some of the parties … or just go for a ride and a beer.”
“If you’re loyal to me, I have no problem with any of that.”
“I’ll always be loyal to you. I don’t go in for cheating, no matter what. I’m not your dad,” he said.
Scarlett winced at the reference to her dad, but chose to ignore it. “Then we won’t have a problem. If you want to be with your friends sometimes, you have to understand that I, too, will want to hang out with my friends, which might mean going to happy hour once in a while.”
A low growl rumbled from his chest. “I’m not liking that.”
“Fair is fair. If you want me to trust you, then you have to trust me too.”
“I do—it’s the other guys I don’t trust.”
