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Huntsman ground his teeth together and rolled his neck. I heard it crack, the sound instantly making me stand a little taller as if preparing for a fight. “You won’t be an Old Lady in another club, Meyah.”
“That’s not up to you. That’s my choice. One Iwillmake on my own and one Iwillstand by,” I argued, refusing to let him think he could tell me who I was allowed to love.
“There’s no way. In. Fucking. Hell. You are my daughter—”
“I’ve only been your daughter for a few weeks. The fact that you introduced me to your family, told the club about me, and made a spare room for me to sleep in next door to yours does not give you the right to have a say in my life.”
This was a make it or break it moment. I was letting it out. I was about to lay my shit down, and this was the point where he was going to either accept me, and the fact I wouldn’t be controlled by him, or he was going to walk away. Go back to the life he had before he knew I existed, and forget there was another human being out there who shared his DNA.
Either were totally possible.
And while one would hurt a little more than the other, I would be okay, because nothing would ever come between Ham and me.
“This guy right here,” I pointed at Ham who continued to stand stoically at my back. He wasn’t trying to force his way in, to protect me or pretend like I wasn’t strong enough to do this on my own. No. He knew I could. He was just there to catch me if things went wrong. “This guy has fought for me. He’s protected me. He loved me when I was at a point in my life where I felt worthless and when I was weak and scared. He loved me when I was broken down, teased, tormented, and didn’t have a voice of my own. He saw beauty in a person I would have struggled to even call just okay.” The emotion was making my voice crack, and I damn-well hated that. I hated that it made my message sound less strong. I hated that it made me feel weak again.
“He is it,” I finally managed to croak. “I respect you. I respect the club. And I respect the laws that are in place to keep people safe. Trust me. I know them pretty fucking well. But there is a point where I need you to ask yourself what’s more important. Having a relationship with me and being a part of my life, or your club rules… rules that youcanchange.”
There was still no response.
I wasn’t sure if it was because he was so damn angry that formulating words was just not something he could do right now, or if it was because he was actually considering what I was telling him.
After a few moments of silence, he nodded to the door. “Ripley, let’s go.”
I sucked in a deep breath through my nose, trying to not let myself be overwhelmed as I watched my father and brother move toward the door.
“What about your wife,” I called, the both of them freezing on the spot. “You can’t force people into a box they don’t fit in. And you can’t blame me for following my heart, for having a say in my own life, because you know what? I won’t let myself be broken down. And I won’t let someone else make choices for me. Or I’ll turn out just like her.”
Ripley gave me one last look, the anger gone, replaced by something different that I just couldn’t figure out before he made for the door and slipped out.
“You really gonna end this shit because you have a daughter who just proved how fucking deep her loyalties ran?” Romeo challenged as Huntsman turned toward the door. “You gonna walk out of here because the girl has bigger balls than all of your fucking men combined, and you’re gonna sulk about it ‘cause you weren’t the one responsible for making her that strong?”
“I would stay the fuck out of this if I were you, Romeo,” Huntsman warned over his shoulder before he stepped out the door, his heavy boots echoing down the hallway.
The three of us all stood there for a few seconds, allowing the adrenaline to calm and the reality to set in.
Romeo lifted the whiskey bottle, throwing back whatever was left inside that hadn’t ended up all over the carpet. He finished its contents and then wiped his mouth with the back of his hand before looking over to Ham and me. “So I guess we have some shit to talk about huh?”
Damn it.
“You should have told me…”
I ran my fingers through my hair, pulling it back from my face. Ham had booked us another room so we could have some privacy, much to Romeo’s annoyance as he was pretty eager to know what the hell was going on.
Ham sat on the edge of the bed, looking up at me as I paced back and forth in front of him.
“I know, I just…” I stopped and took a deep breath, turning to look at him. There was no judgment. He was just upset, and I could understand why. “It doesn’t matter anyway. He’s not going to trust me now.”
He stood and came forward. “Do you have any idea who he is?”
I swallowed the lump in my throat. “Yes.”
“Meyah, Huntsman’s the most dangerous man in the fucking state… bar my fucking little brother and the asshole whose club you stumbled into tonight.” His hand threaded through my hair at the side of my face. “Are you going for three’s a charm or something fucking stupid?”
I blinked back the tears which were burning my eyes. “I just wanted to know him. Who he was. What he was like.”
I couldn’t say it didn’t hurt to see him walk out of the room without a fucking goodbye. I barely knew the man, but I wanted to know him. And Ripley. And Drake. And now, that chance felt like it had gone up in smoke. They wouldn’t want to know me.
They felt like I’d betrayed them.
