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“You’ve taken out a restraining order on me?” he asked.
“Yes, for Iris, my mama, and myself,” Harlow said. “You can’t come within five hundred feet of either of us.”
“What about him?” Craig asked, nodding to Ryker. He had refused to take out a restraining order on Craig.
“Nope,” Ryker said. “I’m hoping that when you get out, you come looking for me. I don’t need a piece of paper from the courthouse to keep your ass far away from my family. You had your chance with them, it’s my turn now. But fair warning, if you show up for me, make sure that you’re ready for what I’ll do to you. There won’t be a shovel large enough to scoop your bloody, beaten ass off of my kitchen floor.”
“Your mother has received the same restraining order for my family,” Harlow said. “Both of your reigns of terror are over. You will never be able to touch me or Iris again, Craig. It doesn’t matter how long you’re in here.”
“We’ll see about that,” Craig taunted. “I’ll be out of here before you even know it, Harlow. You won’t even see me coming but know that I will come for you. I won’t let you keep my daughter from me.”
“I already have, and there’s nothing that you can do about it, Craig,” Harlow assured. She stood and turned to Ryker and smiled. “Ready?” she asked, reaching for his hand. He stood and pulled her against his body.
“Ready,” he promised. He looked back over his shoulder and flashed his smile at Craig. “See you around, buddy,” he said. Harlow knew that taunting Craig wasn’t the best idea, but he couldn’t touch them right now.
“Count on it,” Craig promised.
* * *
“That went well,” she said. Ryker chuckled and pulled her up against his body.
“I have a surprise for you,” he said.
“Oh, I love surprised,” she said.
“I know.” Ryker helped her up into his truck and started to shut the door.
“Wait, aren’t you going to tell me the surprise?” she asked.
“Nope, you’ll just have to see when we get there,” he teased.
“Can you at least tell me where we’re going?” she asked.
“The bar,” he said. “Remember those changes to the dining room that you came up with?” he asked.
“Yep,” she said. “I really think that some extra seating and some rustic touches would really bring the place to life. People love that rustic stuff right now, and I think more people might come in to eat—especially with Taz’s upgrades to the menu. Your bar can become one of the top places to eat in town.”
“Right,” he agreed. “Well, I’ve made a few changes and I’d like for you to see them. I also took into consideration your name change,” he added.
“You mean, you considered calling it the Smokey Bandits Bar and Grill?” It was the name that they had come up with while they started dreaming up what the new place could become. She said that he should switch it from bar to pub, and Ryker came up with bar and grill.
“Yeah,” he said. “I like the idea of calling it a pub, but bar and grill lets people know that we now have food.”
“I agree,” she said. “It’s a good change.”
“I just want you to know how much I appreciate you helping me with the bar,” he said. “You’ve really turned that place around and I couldn’t have done it without you, honey,” he said.
“I loved helping you, Ryker. It made me feel like I was a part of your club and your life.” He took her hand into his own, pulling it over to lay on his lap while they headed to the bar.
“The thing is, I don’t want to wait for you to be a part of my life permanently,” he said, pulling into the parking lot in front of the new “bar and grill” sigh.
“I love the new sign,” she said. “It’s perfect.”
“You’re perfect,” he said. “Marry me,” he whispered.
“I’ve already told you that I will,” she said.
“I mean now,” he said. “Marry me now, Harlow. We have a marriage license already.”
