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Dani blinked and she ducked her head but not before I caught the shine of tears in her eyes.
“That’s why,” I continued, “I’m leaving the club. I’ll sell my bike, too. If that’s what you want.”
She whipped her head up.
“What? Why would you do that?”
“Because it’s all I have to give you. I’ll start from scratch with a steady job and a house and I’ll try to be a good…” My voice gave out before I could sayhusband, as if the desire of it was so monumental that it lodged in my throat. I’d never wanted anything so much in my entire life.
“A good what?” Dani prompted, tilting her head to the side.
My mouth felt dry. I rubbed my thumb over her knuckles.
“Husband,” I rasped. “I want to be a good husband for you. And in order to do that, I need to leave my old life behind. I need - ”
Dani cut me off, shaking her head. When she cupped my face in her hands, I nearly sagged forward into her. I couldn’t remember the last time someone had held me so tenderly, like I was precious to them.
“I would never ask you to change, Crow,” she said. “I fell in love with you just as you are.”
“But I can’t give you a life that you’re used to.”
“Then we’ll build something all our own. I’m grateful for the choices my father made to raise me, to keep his family safe while I was growing up. But I would want my husband to be doing what makes him happy, defending the people who have been his family for so many years.”
I considered her words for a moment. I thought leaving the club would mean I could bury my past. On the other hand, leaving my club and my brothers behind felt like ripping my heart out of my chest. If Dani wanted me to do it, I would. She was giving me a different option now, though.
“I’ve seen it all, Crow,” Dani added quietly. “I’ve seen how violent you can be and you haven’t scared me off.”
She rose from her lounge chair and came to stand between my knees. Hitching her leg over mine, she straddled me, holding my gaze as she sank down into my lap.
“You have done nothing but protect me,” she said. “You put your life on the line to defend me. When I was scared, you were there to comfort me. How could you ever doubt that you are worthy of being my husband?”
I reached up, brushing a strand of hair back behind her ear. I cupped my palm to her cheek and Dani closed her eyes, leaning into my touch.
“Ask me, Crow,” Dani whispered. “Ask me to be your wife.”
“I don’t have a ring.”
She shook her head. “I don’t care.”
I leaned forward, wrapping my arms around her waist. I tucked my face into her neck, peppering slow, lazy kisses over her jawline. When I reached the corner of her mouth, Dani draped an arm around my shoulders and dragged her eyes open, tipping her chin down to meet my gaze.
“Will you marry this old man and make him the happiest idiot in the world?” I asked.
Dani laughed softly, a smile blooming across her face.
“You bet I will.”
I swept a tear away from her cheek with my thumb and kissed her, a silent promise that I would never leave her side.
