Page 128 of Jax & Knox

Brooke and Bri appear next, both of them cooing over the kids. Revolver and Blade are close behind, already teasing Jax about something.

It's loud and chaotic and overwhelming in the best way.

This is family.

Not just by blood, but by choice.

I find the Old Ladies in the back room, all of them gathered around Erica.

She looks stunning in a simple white dress, her hair pulled back in loose waves.

"Ainsley!" Tessa shouts, pulling me into a hug. "Finally! We've been waiting for you."

"Sorry," I say, laughing. "Four kids take a while to wrangle."

"I bet," Hadley says, smiling. She's got her hands full too, she and the twins just had their third baby a few months ago.

Lucy is holding her son, who's almost two now. Scarlett is adjusting Erica's dress. Tessa is pouring mimosas.

"Sit," Erica says, patting the seat beside her. "I need you here."

I sit, and she takes my hand.

"Thank you," she says softly. "For everything."

"For what?" I ask, confused.

"For being here. For being part of this family. For showing me that it's possible to heal and build something beautiful."

My throat tightens. "Erica⁠."

"I mean it," she says. "When I first met you, you were so scared. So broken. And now look at you. You're a badass businesswoman, a mother of four, and one of the strongest women I know."

"I learned from the best," I say, looking around at all of them.

Tessa raises her glass. "To the Old Lady Mafia. The baddest bitches in Jackson."

We all laugh and clink our glasses together.

The ceremony is beautiful.

Steele and Erica stand in front of the entire club, renewing the vows they made five years ago.

Mason officiates, his voice strong and steady.

When Steele kisses Erica, the entire club erupts in cheers.

I'm standing between Jax and Knox, their hands resting on my hips, and I feel it.

This is where I belong.

When we get home, the kids are exhausted.

We put them to bed one by one, tucking them in and kissing their foreheads.

Owen is the last one. He's already half-asleep when I sit on the edge of his bed.

"Mom?" he says sleepily.