Page 23 of Wild & Wanted

I don't even try to hide the massive, completely uncharacteristic smile taking over my face. I pull Hadley tightly against my side, pressing a hard kiss to her temple as the club celebrates around us.

An hour later, after the toasts have died down and the whiskey has flowed, I steal her away.

We climb onto my bike, leaving the noise of the clubhouse behind for the open, winding coastal highway. The cool, salty night air whips around us, washing away the tension, the adrenaline, and the lingering shadows of the day. We're both finally unwinding, relaxing into the rhythmic, powerful vibration of the engine beneath us.

I’m reminded of our first ride together, the unfiltered excitement when Hadley squealed in delight, the way her long red hair whipped around both of us as we flew through the night. When we dismounted, her bright brown eyes latched onto mine, and I knew she was hooked.

The bike speeds down a hill and up another one, rattling another memory loose. Our midnight ride together, when Hadley was working herself up to a panic attack. The road soothed her the same way it does me, each mile releasing more and more tension.

Hadley presses her chest flush against my back, her arms wrapping tightly and securely around my waist. She rests her helmeted head against my shoulder blade, holding onto me like she never plans to let go.

She is my ride or die. My partner. My equal in every way.

As I crank the throttle and lean into the curve of the road, I cover her small hands with one of my own. Beneath the roar of the wind, I renew my silent, unbreakable vow to protect, love, and cherish this incredible woman for the rest of my damn life.

CHAPTER TWELVE

HADLEY

The rhythmic, heavy thwack of an axe splitting wood echoes through the glass of the living room window, a steady, comforting heartbeat to my quiet afternoon.

I’m curled up on the plush sofa in Wolf’s cabin, my laptop balanced on my knees as I work remotely, clearing out the last of the backlog from the warehouse. A week has passed since the chaos with the syndicate, and the dust is finally starting to settle. At least for now. Out in the backyard, Wolf is chopping firewood to build us a fire for the evening, looking entirely too distracting with the crisp coastal breeze ruffling his long hair.

My phone suddenly vibrates against the coffee table, pulling my eyes away from the window. The screen flashes with my sister’s name.

"Hey, Corinne!" I answer, smiling instantly.

"Hey, Hads!" Corinne replies. Her voice is bright, pitched a little too high and a little too cheerful. At twenty years old, my sister has nearly mastered the art of pretending everything is perfectly fine, but I know her better than that. I can recognize her "brave face" voice anywhere.

"Okay, drop the act," I say gently, setting my laptop aside. "What’s wrong?"

A heavy, shaky sigh crackles through the speaker, and the facade immediately crumbles. "I got the letters today," she whispers, her voice thick with unshed tears. "I didn't get into any of the photography scholarship programs. None of them."

My heart drops into my stomach. "Oh, Cor. I'm so sorry."

"They said the applicant pool was just too competitive this year," she continues, sniffing quietly. "But I know what it really is. Taking two years off between high school and college derailed my momentum."

My chest aches for her. It was necessary to have her working at the time; we needed the extra income she could bring in from the diner just to keep the lights on. But it feels painfully unfair that her life might be permanently altered by a sacrifice she made for our family. Without a scholarship, there is simply no money for college. It’s the exact reason I had to get my degree by taking night classes at an extreme discount while working as a janitor scrubbing floors in the university's science department.

"We'll figure it out," I console her softly. "You are incredibly talented, Cor. A piece of paper doesn't change your eye behind a camera."

She sniffles again. "I know. It just... it feels like I'm stuck here forever, you know?” A beat of silence passes between us. I do know. I’ve felt that pain for years. “Anyway,” Corinne continues. “Enough about my miserable life. Tell me what's going on with you. You've been so secretive lately."

I bite my lip, a warm, irrepressible flush creeping up my neck. I haven't told her everything about the MC or the danger we faced, but I haven't been able to hide the shift in my tone either. "I... well. There's a guy."

"I knew it!" Corinne gasps, the sadness in her voice instantly replaced by eager sisterly gossip. "Tell me everything. Who is he?"

"His name is Wolf," I say, and just saying his name out loud makes my heart flutter. I spill the beans, telling her about how fiercely protective he is, how safe he makes me feel, and how, beneath his gruff exterior, he is the most caring, perfect man I've ever met. "I love him. I've never felt like this before."

"Oh, Hads," Corinne whispers, and I can hear the genuine, happy tears welling up in her voice. "I am so incredibly happy for you. Out of everyone in the entire world, you deserve to be taken care of. You deserve your happily ever after."

We share a quiet, beautiful moment of sisterly love across the phone line. But beneath the warmth, a sharp, bitter pang of survivor's guilt pierces my chest. I know exactly what Corinne is feeling right now. The suffocating, helpless sensation of being trapped in your hometown, living the exact same day over and over, working yourself to death just to barely pay the bills.

Suddenly, a wild, brilliant idea bursts into my head.

"You should move here," I blurt out before I can even think it through.

"What?" Corinne stammers. "Move to the Pacific Northwest? Hadley, I can't just leave Mom and the boys⁠—"