Page 139 of Ruled By Wizard

Wizard feigned confusion.

“Which didn’t he mean? About eating rabbits or going to marry Daisy?” Seeing Knox’s fists clench, Wizard couldn’t hold his laughter back any longer.

“We both know Greer will cook a rabbit for him and Bishop will eat it, just like he did the frog legs. And about him marrying Daisy? He’ll have to catch her first.” Wizard nodded to where Hudson was lying on the ground, panting for breath, while Daisy kept running across the field chasing her bunnies.

“She’s as wild as those bunnies. Whenever Natalia or I hold her, she wants down. She’s always running toward her next adventure. When Dena and I were growing up, I used to believe she only joined the activities I enjoyed because she wanted to be like me. I was wrong… so wrong.” His voice broke. “She couldn’t control herself. She needed the physical outlets, craved them… I thought I was trying to protect her. Now I see I put her on a leash. When she couldn’t take it anymore, she broke free.”

Pensively, Wizard listened as his daughter’s joy-filled laughter filled the air. It was a bittersweet feeling that rested in his heart, to know that he had to suffer the rest of his life without Sunshine. There would always be a bitter taste in his mouth that she would never be there for the most important moments in his life, that she wouldn’t be there to see his children grow, nor would she be there to grow old with him to share a lifetime of memories.

The cast of the sun that suddenly shined upon Daisy, who had picked a handful of flowers, had Wizard holding back a tear. Daisy was a tiny replica of Sunshine, both in looks and spirit. Combined with Natalia’s temperament, she would be a handful for any man to tame.

Any man would have to tread carefully, as he had to with Natalia. To this day, she still didn’t know he had been behind Dr. Do Right standing her up, nor that he had sent the brothers to spy on her every movement when she had met other men. He had used cunning to catch her, but in the end, he had stepped in his own trap. He had been the one to change, giving up the idea of his being the boss, of her joining the Last Rider lifestyle. Deep down he had known she was the one when he had gone to Treepoint for his mother’s ring before he had gone a date with her.

The two men stood watching over the two children deep in their own thoughts.

“I came so close to never having this,” he said, breaking the silence between them. “When I came to Treepoint, I was going to re-enlist. When I found out Dena was dead and you offered me a place to stay with the Last Riders, I changed my mind. I would have never met Natalia if I hadn’t.”

Knox looked at the dying rays of sunshine.

“For a long time, I hated that I had to live life without her, then Diamond came into my life, my sons.” Knox’s voice choked off before he started speaking again. “Then you had Daisy, and a part of her came back. I realized the short time I was given with Sunshine was meant to last me a lifetime. She was meant to shine her light on me until I could survive without her warmth. The man I used to be could never love Diamond the way she deserved. I’ve been blessed to love two women in my lifetime. Sunshine kept me rooted. When she died, I fell into a river of darkness, leading me to the place I was meant to land.”

Knox’s words echoed his own thoughts. The brother was known to keep his thoughts private. That he was sharing the same sentiments going through his head showed how close they had grown. He might have lost his sister, but Knox had become a true brother to him.

Unable to take the seriousness any longer, he shot Knox a sidelong glance.

“You do know if I had met you before Dena died, I would have hated you.”

“Same,” Knox shot back with a comeback, with a pause. “Hell, most days, I hate you.”

“Good thing we won’t be in-laws. I think the bunny thing did him in,” Wizard shot back.

“I wouldn’t count Bishop out yet.” Knox gave him a knowing look, which had Wizard reconsidering how sure he was Daisy would run Bishop into the ground.

The fucker reached out to pat him on the back, which nearly sent him flying.

“He keeps asking how old he has to be to become a Last Rider. If he does, Bishop will get his girl. A Last Rider will always be the last one standing.”