“I can’t believe you’re married,” Tiny said, holding her tight.
“What are you going to do about Eva? Ned isn’t the type of guy who’ll take kindly to a man hurting his daughter.”
She watched her father look in the other woman’s direction. “She’s better off without me.”
“Eva loves you, Dad. Don’t give up because of fear. Mom loved you, and I know she made you happy. Give love a chance. I gave a chance to Murphy, and look at me now.”
“You’re a beautiful bride, baby. I’d give you the whole world and hurt anyone who got in my way, you know that, right?” Tiny asked.
“I know that. It’s time for you to focus on Eva. Not me. I’m going to be a wife, and I’m hoping to be a mother someday,” she said, adding in the last part quietly. She really wanted to get started on getting pregnant
Tiny jerked back looking at her. She warned him to be quiet. “I’m not pregnant now, Dad.”
“I’m too young to be a granddaddy, Tate. Wait for me to be ready.”
She chuckled. “You’re too old to be a father to a new baby, but you’ll be giving Eva children when you get your head out of your ass.”
“Your mother would be so proud,” Tiny said, stopping their conversation.
“We’ve lost a lot of people to get here.” She let her head rest on his chest.
“Yes, we have.”
“Let’s not lose anymore.” Tate gave him a pointed look before finishing their dance. “Is everything ready?” she asked.
“Yeah, you and Murphy can leave when you’re ready.”
Smiling, Tate kissed her father and searched for Murphy. She found him talking with Lash and Nash. The two men were like brothers to her.
“There’s the bride herself. How are you feeling?” Lash asked.
“I’m good. Are you ready to go?” she asked her husband. It would take her some time to get used to that.
“You want to leave?” he asked.
“I’ve got something I want to show you.”
They said their goodbyes, and the club waved them off. Murphy drove a car instead of a bike with the “Just Married” sign on the back.
“Take me to your cabin,” she said.
“Tate, we don’t have to go to the cabin,” he said.
“Just do as I ask.”
She leaned against his shoulder as he drove all the way to his cabin. He parked the car, and Tate climbed out, picking up her wedding dress as they moved toward the front door.
“I hate this place,” Murphy said, slamming the door to the car closed.
“No, you don’t. You’ll see the good once I’m done.” Taking his hand, she led him up the stairs toward the front door. Extracting the key from under the plant pot, Tate opened the front door.
“I didn’t leave a key there,” he said.
“No, I did. Stop getting paranoid.” Leading the way into his house she made him stop at the front room. She’d started redecorating two weeks ago. Her father made sure Murphy didn’t come near the cabin. “What do you think?”
“You’re decorating.”
Shaking her head, she tugged him into the room. “You own this cabin. I remember you talking about it with fondness. Yes, there are bad memories because of your times with The Lions, but I don’t want you to give it up.”
Pulling the pin from her hair, Tate started to get unclothed.
“Tate, what are you doing?” he asked.
“It’s time to make new memories. This is where we’re going to live. You’re going to build a good fence around the lake so our kids cannot drown, and together you and I are going to bring this cabin back to its former glory.” Tate pushed him into the nearest chair and straddled his legs.
Reaching behind her, she tugged at the zipper. Murphy finished pulling the zipper down, and she pushed the dress from her body exposing her br**sts.
She heard him hiss seconds before thumbing the ni**les.
“Is this part of your strategy to get me liking the cabin?” he asked.
“Yes, is it working?”
“A little. You’re going to have to work really hard.”
Kissing his lips, Tate worked his mouth, going down his neck to nibble on the flesh of his earlobe.
“Murphy?”
“Yeah.”
“I really want to get pregnant. I want to have your baby.”
He froze beneath her.
“You want to get pregnant?”
Leaning back she smiled down at him, cupping his face. “Yes, I want to get pregnant, and I think we’re going to be good parents to our children.”
His hands sank into her hair and pulled her down against him. “Fuck, woman, how can I hate this place now? I want us to be parents.”
Kissing his lips, Tate worked the buckle of his belt open. Murphy helped her, easing his pants down and pulling her panties aside. He found her wetness and sank deep inside her. Tate moaned, loving the feel of his hard c**k in her pu**y.
“I love you, Tate,” he said.
“I love you, too, Dillon.”
There wasn’t any need for more words. They had each other, and their future was looking better than ever before. Tate hoped they wouldn’t have to deal with another man aiming a gun at her. If another man tried that shit, she was seriously going to kick some ass before her man finished them off.
Epilogue
“That’s the last box,” Nash said, placing it on top of the others inside Sophia’s new apartment. He’d offered to help her out of the old place as he’d lost count of the number of times he’d found her sobbing. Kate had shared their old apartment, paying half the rent. He’d worked his ass off to find this place. It was more than Sophia could afford on her waitressing salary. He was the one paying for the apartment.
She had college and other things to deal with. The least he could do was pay for her place.
“Thank you, Edward.” She lifted the box and dropped it on the floor. The last couple of weeks had been hard on her. He saw signs of her losing weight, and he hated it. What did someone do to help another with their grieving?
When his and Lash’s parents were killed he had Lash to help him deal. Sophia didn’t have anyone.
“Kate wouldn’t want you to be like this,” he said, following her inside the new apartment. The place was mostly bare. He’d ordered a sofa to be delivered along with anything she’d need to get by. There was no way he was leaving her alone.