Page 98 of Colt
Lilac followed my gaze. “He’s still pining after her, isn’t he?”
“Has been for years. Keeps asking her out, keeps getting turned down.” I shook my head. “She says it’s about professional boundaries. He says she’s just scared.”
“Maybe they’re both right.” Lilac leaned into me. “She’s been good for the boys, though. I don’t know what she does in those sessions, but it’s working.”
I watched Holden finally look away from Bea, his jaw tight. “Maybe one day she’ll give him a chance.”
“Maybe.” Lilac waved at Bea, who waved back with a warm smile. “She’s becoming a real friend. Not just the boys’ therapist.”
“That’s the club, baby. Everyone gets tangled up eventually.”
“Happy?” I murmured against her hair as we swayed to a slow song, the party winding down around us. My hands rested on the small of her back, and I could feel the warmth of her skin through the thin fabric of her dress. She fit against me perfectly, her head tucked under my chin, her hands linked behind my neck.
“Happier than I ever remember being.” She looked up at me. “Is that crazy?”
“No.” I kissed her forehead, then her temple, breathing in the scent of her. “It’s not crazy.”
Her fingers toyed with the hair at the nape of my neck. I pulled her closer and rested my chin on top of her head. We didn’t say anything. There wasn’t anything left to say.
And as the music played and our sons laughed and our brothers raised one final toast, I finally let myself believe it. I had Lilac back.
Chapter 39
?
— Lilac —
It was well past midnight when the party finally wound down. Betty had claimed the boys hours ago, steering them toward one of the back rooms with promises of ice cream and cartoons. “You two deserve a night alone,” she’d said, fixing me with a look that made me blush. “I’ll keep them till morning.”
Now Colt was leading me out of the main room, through the side door, into the cool dark of the club grounds.
“Where are we going?”
Before I finished the question he bent and threw me over his shoulder.
“Colt—” I yelped, grabbing the back of his cut. My dress was not designed for this. “Put me down—”
“Nope.” He had one arm hooked across the backs of my thighs, holding me steady, completely unbothered. Somewhere behind us someone whooped. I didn’t look back.
“I canwalk—”
“I know you can.”
He carried me across the grounds like that, the night air cool against my flushed face, the party noise fading behind us. I stopped arguing. It was a short walk and he wasn’t slowing down, and after a moment I just let myself be carried.
He pushed open the front door with one hand. He carried me inside, let it fall shut behind us, and set me down with my backagainst the door—not roughly, just deliberate. His hands braced on either side of my head.
“Wanted to bring you here all night,” he said. “Been watching you in that white dress, knowing what’s underneath, knowing you were finally, officiallymine.”
“I was always yours.” I grabbed his cut, hauling him closer. “Now I’m just yours in front of witnesses.”
“Say it again.”
“Yours.” I kissed him, hot and hungry. “Property of Colt.”
He growled against my mouth, his hands finding the zipper at the back of my dress. “I’ve been thinking about this part all day. Watching you make those vows, wear that bracelet, become my old lady in front of everyone—” The zipper slid down. “I wanted to throw you over my shoulder and carry you out of there.”
“Why didn’t you?”
