CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

Rhyan

The Next Morning

My eyes blink slowly as I let out a long yawn. Rolling over in Noah's bed, I reach out for him, but my eyes widen when I feel he's not beside me. Jerking up, I look at the empty space, letting out an exhale. I don't know how long I have been out, but Noah has other things he needs to tend to, which explains his absence.

In the meantime, I have something I want to do too. I certainly don't want to spend my entire day in bed. Sliding out of the sheets, I reach down for my panties and pull them up, noting how sticky I am between my legs. I need a shower. I go to Noah's closet, ruffle through it for his longest, baggiest shirt, and then drop it over my head. It feels perfect against my sensitive skin as I drop onto his desk chair, spinning to face his laptop.

Seeing that it's already turned on, I open Google and figure I will search for something to buy Noah. A small token for taking such great care of me. I scroll through different ideas and searches, but nothing stands out. Sinking back into the chair, I glance at his desk to see if it will give me suggestions, when I note a piece of paper with my written name on it out of the corner of my eye.

Furrowing my brows, I reach for it and unfold a handwritten letter. I begin reading, my heart hammering as I take in the words. It's as if something was supposed to happen to Noah, but maybe it didn't, or even worse, it hasn't yet.

My pulse skyrockets as I continue to read, my hands trembling, my eyes widening when I read those three little words I have been desperate to hear— I love you.

My breath stops as Noah mentions Old Lady , and I feel lightheaded when he notes diamond ring .

Shaking my head, I turn the letter over to see if there is any more information. I have no clue what Noah is talking about. Standing, I start to run out of the room to make sure nothing has happened to him when the bathroom door opens, and Noah steps out into the bedroom. He spots me with a smirk and chuckles. "I wouldn't go in there for a whil—"

I take off, racing for him, slamming into him with everything I have, tears sliding down my face while I try to find my words.

He grabs me, pulling back to look down at me. "Hey, hey, hey… what's all this about?"

I slam the letter against his chest, still trying to catch my breath. Tears cascade down my face as he glances at the piece of paper. "Oh… Rhy, I wrote that before you were taken. Some shit was going down, but I promise, it's been taken care of now—"

"You were going to tell my dad what happened in New York?" I blurt out.

Noah exhales. "Ah…. yeah."

I can't stop my sobs from escaping as I hold onto him tighter. "He would have killed you, Noah! Why? Why would you do that?"

"Because I respect him. It's the right thing to do."

I shove him so hard he has no choice but to sit on the bed to catch his fall. "And what about what that would do to me, huh? Do you care more about your damn respect for my dad more than you care about your love for me? After all, you said you love me, right? For the first time in a fucking goodbye letter!"

Noah exhales, reaching out for me. "I do love you, dragonfly. I love you so much it makes me weak. It makes me do stupid shit. I love you so much that I was willing to die for our love."

"But I don't want you to die for me, Noah. I need you to live. I need you beside me, supporting and lifting me up . I just need you!"

Bang. Bang .

A sudden knock at Noah's door startles us both before the door opens. We glance at the entry to see my dad stepping through. His eyes widen when he notices me wearing Noah's shirt and Noah only wearing his boxer briefs.

Dad folds his arms over his chest aggressively. "Okay, I tried my hardest to let this go. I sat on my feelings all fucking night, but this sham of a relationship has gone on long enough. Rhy, go to your room. Noah, you've done enough damage to my baby girl. I don't need you pretending to be the right kind of guy for her."

Noah clenches his eyes tight. His refusal to say anything to my father is all the clarification I need right now. Huffing, I reach down for my clothes to pick them up, but Noah stands, turning to face my dad. "With all due respect, Dutch, I love Rhyan. I love her with every… fucking… part of my being. You know I owe you. You know I respect the hell out of you. You also know I have tried my hardest to abide by your wishes. But Dutch, Rhy's my girl now. Not yours. And I need you to respect that."

My eyes widen as I let out a gasp. I spin to look at my dad, his arms uncross as he steps in front of Noah, his eyes narrowing and then slowly bobs his head. "It's about time you manned the fuck up, Prospect," he says, then points his finger at Noah aggressively. "But if you think for a single second that you have earned the right to be with Rhyan, you have another thing coming. You are the fucking reason she was taken in the first place. She wouldn't be injured right now if it weren't for you."

Noah slumps his shoulders, nodding his head. "I know…" He clears his throat. "And that thought has been tearing me up for the last week. Honestly, Dutch, I know I don't deserve Rhy. Fuck, there's not a man on God's green earth good enough for her, but hell if I don't want to try every damn day to be worthy of her. Dutch, I want to take care of her and help her grow into the amazing woman I know she's going to be. I wanna support her. Stand beside her. Fuck I'll walk ten steps behind her if it means she will flourish."

My shoulders slump as I weakly smile at Noah, hearing his plea to my father.

"I know my past has been sketchy. I haven't been a model citizen . But I would do anything for Rhyan, Dutch. Anything . I swear it. She's the love of my life." Noah throws his hands to the side like he's desperate. "Remember how you felt about Ellie when you were a prospect and she was the princess of the club? Don't you want your daughter to have the same kind of love you've got with your wife?"

Dad inhales sharply, his eyes turning to look at me, clear conflict in them. "How do you feel about what Noah's just said?"

A genuine smile lights my face, and I step closer to my dad, giving a small shrug. "Remember when you told me the story of when you knew Mom was your girl? How you both got the infinity symbol tattooed on you without anyone in the club knowing? Noah's my guy, Dad. He's my infinity."

Dad lets out a small huff, shaking his head in defeat. He turns back to Noah and places his hand out for Noah to shake. "Well, then… welcome to the family, Noah."

Noah lets out a shocked laugh, stepping forward and shaking Dad's hand. "Who knows, maybe in some fucked-up way, I might be good for her," Noah replies, a cocky grin on his face.

Dad smirks, dipping his head like there is more in that comment than I know about, but Dad says nothing more, simply turning and walking out the door, closing it behind him.

Smiling wide, I bounce on my toes, rushing for Noah and slamming into him.

He laughs, lifts me, and spins me around. "We have his blessing!" His voice is so full of excitement.

"You know what that means?"

He raises his brow. "What?"

"I'm gonna hold you to that Old Lady promise."

Noah chuckles. "As soon as I have my patch, dragonfly. Not even your dad can stop me."

Leaning in to kiss him, I can't help but feel like we're on the same page. Pulling back, I look into his eyes, feeling nothing but elation. "For the record, Noah… I love you too."

Noah's eyes lock onto mine while the air around us pops and sizzles with so much energy that I feel like this entire clubhouse is about to burst into flames.

His hand snakes up, fingers threading through my hair, as his lips crash against mine, kissing me with everything he has.

Noah

Two Weeks Later

Over the last couple of weeks, I've been working on something with Ellie to surprise Rhyan. It all came about organically after Dutch gave us his blessing.

I honestly never saw that coming, and to be truthful, Dutch and I haven't had a man-to-man conversation about it since. But I am glad things at the club have settled down since then.

I know Atlas is still being held here at the club. I've been too wrapped up in ensuring Rhyan is recovering okay to be concerned about him and what Alpha has planned. But I know there's more to come, and I must be patient.

For now, though, as I sit with Ellie and Ink out the back of the clubhouse away from prying eyes, Ellie and I glance over Ink's shoulder while he finishes up.

He places his pencil down, nodding his head. "Okay… I think we're done." He turns back, looking at me, raising his brow. "Is this more like what you had in mind?"

Letting out a long breath, I can't stop smiling as my hand slams down on his shoulder, squeezing it tight. "Brother, you've outdone yourself."

Ellie quickly swipes a falling tear from her cheek. "Ink, it's stunning. She's going to love it. Thank you. Thank you so much."

Ink reaches out, gripping Ellie's hand. "It's my pleasure. I know what it's like to go through tough shit and to feel like your head is constantly spinning. If I can help Rhy, even a little bit, by removing one reminder from her body, I am one hundred percent down with that."

I glance at the tattoo design, seeing the image of a watercolor dragonfly. Surrounding it are the same hydrangea flowers that were in Matteo's restaurant, where we had dinner on her birthday. In the background is the skyline of New York, and in the bottom right-hand corner is an infinity symbol in an ode to her parents.

Ink has outdone himself.

It's fucking perfect.

"Okay, shall we show her the final design?" I ask.

Ellie lets out a nervous breath. "What if she doesn't like the idea?"

I shrug. "Then she doesn't have to have it. At least she knows we came together to try to devise a solution for her."

Ellie turns, pulling me to her in a tight and unexpected embrace. "Thank you, Noah. For taking such good care of my baby girl… you really do put her first, and that's all a mother could want."

"I love her, Ell… I can't imagine my life without her. I'm so grateful Dutch has accepted me."

Ellie grins, tilting her head. "I think Dutch is still on the fence, but your speech to him a couple of weeks ago was convincing, and your actions ever since have been outstanding. Don't worry, he'll ease up. It's hard for him. Rhy is Dutch's only child. It's difficult for him to let go and to allow another man to be her protector. Especially a man who he was mentoring."

"I get it. I do. I just hope he knows I'm genuine and not going anywhere. Rhyan's it for me."

Ink snorts out a laugh, slapping my shoulder. "You're a sad sack of shit. I can't listen to this crap any longer. It's making me nauseous. Let me know what Rhy thinks of the design. Tell her I'm free whenever her wound heals enough to make this happen."

Chuckling, I nod as Ink marches off. Turning back to Ellie, I reach for the design on the table. "You ready to do this?"

Ellie rolls her shoulders. "As I'll ever be."

I hook my arm with hers, and we stroll inside the clubhouse. I spot Rhyan sitting with Sadie, Haven, Loki, and his best friend, Theo, who pops by the clubhouse every now and then. We head over, and the four of them glance up as we approach.

Rhyan is chuckling as we step up beside the table. "You two look mighty cozy together. Trading me in for an older model, Noah?" Rhyan quips.

Everyone chuckles as Ellie cuddles into me further, waggling her brows. "It's been a while since I've had a young, strapping man on my arm. Don't get me wrong, your father still knows how to get me going, but maybe I could take a young one for a stroll around the block—"

"Jesus, Mom!" Rhyan gasps while Haven, Loki, and Theo burst out laughing.

Haven reaches up for a high five, and Ellie slams her hand into Haven's. "That's what I am talking about. Knew you were a dark horse, Ell," Haven chimes.

I chuckle while Rhyan shifts her head to her hands in embarrassment. "Kill me now," she groans out under her breath.

"But if we kill you, baby, then we couldn't give you this," I reply.

Rhyan snaps her head up, her eyes widening in delight. "You got me something?"

Ellie detaches herself from me, sliding her arm around her daughter. "Noah came up with this idea and approached me two weeks ago. We have been working on it since then, with some help, but it is completely okay if you think we have overstepped and don't want to do it. We just wanted to give you the option."

Rhyan's face turns completely serious as she glances at her mom, then me, and exhales. "Okay… what is it?"

My pulse quickens when I take the piece of paper and slide it across the table in front of her. Haven and Loki smile as I stand back, watching Rhyan's face, and it registers what it is. Her breathing stops, her eyes begin to water, and she slowly turns back to look at me with her eyes glistening and her bottom lip trembling. "Is it a tattoo?" she questions.

Simply nodding, I squat so I'm at eye level with her. "Yes. Ink designed it specifically to cover everything that it needs to cover."

She inhales sharply as her hand moves to her mouth to cover the noises escaping her. A tear slides down her cheek while she continues to stare at me. "No more brand?"

Shaking my head, I reach up, caressing her cheek. "No. Just our memories will be there instead."

She bursts into tears, lunging forward into my arms. "Thank you," she cries.

I hold onto her, my fingers smoothing her hair, my eyes glancing up at Ellie, who is smiling at me.

Rhyan pulls away from me, turning to look at her mom. "You helped with this?" she asks, and Ellie nods.

"It was mostly Noah, but I helped with colors and placement of objects."

Rhyan turns back to the design, spots the infinity symbol, her fingers tracing it, and snaps her head back to Ellie. "Was this you?" she asks, her tone incredibly happy.

Ellie shakes her head. "That was Noah. He wanted to have something to remind you of us. You can take it off if you want it to just be about you and Noah."

"No, it has everything I love on there. It's absolutely perfect. I wouldn't change a single thing." Rhyan reaches out, taking her mom's hand in hers. "Thank you, Mom. And you, too, Noah. You don't know what this means to me."

Ellie gently caresses Rhyan's hair. "Oh, baby girl, we do. It's why we did it."

"Can I get it done today?" Rhyan beams in excitement.

I sigh. "I asked Livvy this question as I did Ink. Both of them agree you need to wait at least another couple of months for the wound to fully heal. But we wanted you to know that we had this design ready, so you have something to look forward to."

Rhyan purses out her bottom lip playfully, but then she nods. "Okay. That makes sense. Anyway, we have that meeting with your mom. We're still booked in for visitation today, right?"

I scratch my head. "We booked the visitation when we were in New York, Rhy. You sure you're up to it?"

Rhyan snorts out a laugh, widening her eyes at me like it's the stupidest thing I have ever said. "Absolutely! Otherwise, all of this was for nothing."

Sighing, I glance at my watch and shrug. "Well then, we better get a move on. The prison is an hour away, and if we're gonna make it in time, we'll need to leave now."

Rhyan jumps up dramatically with a bright smile. "I just have to go grab my backpack. I have stuff in there. Wait here. I'll be right back." She presses a kiss on Ellie's cheek. "Thank you for the tattoo, Mom. You're the best," she gushes, then runs off to our room.

I can't help but smile as Ellie gently pats my shoulder before she gathers the design. "We did good."

"We sure did. Thanks for your help."

Ellie winks at me, then takes off in Dutch's direction.

I turn back to Haven, who's smirking, and I furrow my brows. "What?" I ask.

She chuckles. "It must kill you that you're still a prospect and can't make shit with Rhyan official, right?"

My eyes shift to Loki, my VP. He's playing on his cell, pretending not to be listening, but I know Loki. The man's hanging on every damn word. I glance back at Haven and nod. "To be honest, yeah. I'd make her my Old Lady in a fucking heartbeat. I truly think that would help with Dutch. Show him I'm serious about Rhy. But rules are rules. I get that, and I know I haven't exactly been playing by them lately. I well and truly fucked up, and I need to earn my way back into the club. If having to be a prospect for an extended period is my penance, then I will happily pay. As long as I get to remain a part of the club and am with Rhyan, that's all that matters. I will earn my patch."

Haven winks. "That's a good attitude to have, Noah. Looks like your rebellious days might be behind you."

Theo chuckles with a shrug. "Maybe you need to sign up for our wellness app. We have some great meditation advice and ways to help you maintain a calmer demeanor."

I stare blankly at Theo as Loki huffs, turning to his best friend. "What have I told you about trying to sell this thing to bikers? It's not gonna work, buddy."

"Just in case you're interested." Theo holds his cell up to me, showing me the app.

My eyes shift to Haven, and she smirks. "I dunno, Prospect. You could benefit from some crystals and Buddhist chanting to get you through the day. Align your chakras and whatnot," she clearly jests, making Theo roll his eyes.

Loki reaches out, grabs Theo's cell, and pulls it back toward him. "Bro, enough. With your little sister going rogue trying to get this thing into fucking prisons and you trying to poach my fucking biker brothers, we're going to be attracting the wrong clientele to this thing. We want hippies and health freaks to be on this app, Theo. Not criminals," Loki blurts out as Rhyan runs back into the clubroom.

I ignore Loki and Theo while they continue to argue. Despite everything she's been through, Rhyan's bright smile sends my heart into a frantic rhythm. She's the reason I am fighting for a different outcome. She's the reason I'm trying to be better. If I can make a life for us at this club, then I am damn well going to do that.

She bounds up beside me, happiness exuding from her in waves. "You ready to go?" she asks.

My eyes lock with hers, and my hand slides up, cupping her face before I lean in, pressing my lips to hers. She giggles but slides her hands around me, kissing me back, our tongues gliding together while I kiss her, letting her know how much she means to me. She lets out a small whimper into my mouth, my cock jerking beneath my jeans, letting me know I need to calm this down, so I slowly pull back, her eyelashes fluttering as she lazily looks up at me. "What was that for?"

"Because I can," I reply.

Rhyan chuckles, licking her lips, and bounces on her toes. "Well, I'm never going to complain about that. But if we don't get a move on, we'll miss visitation."

Smirking, I lean in once more, quickly pecking her lips, then gently pat her butt, urging her forward. She hurries off ahead of me as Haven calls out, "Bye, lovers!"

Rhyan waves, and I glance over my shoulder at Haven. She gives me two thumbs-up and a bright smile. I chuckle before turning back and watching Rhyan walk out of the clubhouse.

One Hour later

After stepping into the visitor center, I turn to Rhyan. "You okay? I know this is a lot to take in."

She glances around at the other visitors sitting at the seats with their family members who are inmates, and she reaches out, taking my hand in hers. "How long have you been coming here?"

We sit at a table, and I shake my head at the memories. "Since I was fourteen. So for the last seven years."

Rhyan's face is sorrowful as she glances around the room. "I wonder how many other women in here have been locked up under uncontrollable circumstances?"

Tightening my hand in hers, I grimace. "I learned a long time ago that it's best not to think about that shit. It eats you up."

Rhyan slumps her shoulders as the alarm sounds and the door opens on the other side of the room. My eyes shift up, and the guard ushers my mother through. Smiling wide, I gesture at her. "That's her. That's my mom."

Rhyan beams in excitement. "I recognize her. She hasn't changed much from the picture we took to New York with us."

As she approaches with a grin, she glances at Rhyan, and I lean into Rhyan's ear. "She'll appreciate you saying that."

Mom steps up to the table, while I stand to greet her. Rhyan's knee bounces nervously as Mom looks right at her but then turns back to me, her eyes stern. "You okay?" she asks.

Can't blame her. Our last phone call was tense.

Smiling so she knows everything is fine, I glance at Rhyan. "I'm good, Mom."

She follows my line of sight. "Well then, who do we have here?" Mom asks, now with a pep in her tone.

"Mom, this is Rhyan... my girlfriend."

Mom's eyes widen, but a bright smile crosses her face. "Girlfriend? For real?" she asks, and Rhyan smiles, nodding.

"Nice to meet you, finally. I've heard so many lovely things," Rhyan states.

Mom laughs loudly like she is shocked, and throws her hands to the side. "Hale-fucking-luja! You've actually got yourself a girlfriend. And one who seems normal, not some hussy. Oh my God, I never thought this day would come—"

"All right, all right, sit down. Stop making a fuss," I blurt out as I move to sit next to Rhyan, who's looking a little unsure of herself.

Mom chuckles, finally sitting opposite us as she slides her hands to the center of the table. I move mine across, and our fingers just touch like we always do. Rhyan's fighting her smile as she watches us. "You know, Rhyan, he's never brought a girl to meet me before. You must be special," Mom states.

Turning to Rhyan, she relaxes, finally seeing Mom's joking. "I don't know if I'm special, but I know Noah and I have something. And I am so glad I can come here to meet you. Honestly, I think I'm more excited than he is."

Mom chuckles. "Well, honey, I don't know what he's told you about me, but only half of it is true. The other half has been embellished to make me look better than I am."

Rhyan shakes her head. "I don't think that's true. I think you sell yourself short. You're an amazing person who's been dealt a shitty hand. I'm honored to meet you, Valerie. What you did for Noah was so fucking brave."

I turn to Mom, seeing her eyes flooding with tears. Widening my eyes, I inhale sharply. "Mom, you okay?"

She sniffles and nods. "It's nice to hear from a complete stranger that I'm not a waste of space."

Rhyan shifts to her pocket and pulls out some printed photographs. "I think you should know, Valerie, that Noah and I did something a couple of weeks ago."

I tense, wondering how she will take this news, but I decide to sit back and let Rhyan do the talking, seeing as this was all her idea.

Mom narrows her eyes like she is concerned. "Jesus, you didn't get married, did you?"

I snort out a laugh as Rhyan shakes her head. "Ah, no. But Noah told me the reason his middle name is Brooklyn. That you guys always wanted to go to New York together."

Mom's face drops and she subtly nods. "Yeah… I'm so sorry I never got to take you there, sweetheart."

I furrow my brows and edge my fingers a little closer to hers. Though I can't find the words to respond, Rhyan continues, "It was my twenty-first birthday, so we decided to go on a weekend trip to celebrate. Noah, a couple of our friends, and I hopped on a plane and went to New York."

Mom's eyes snap to me, a slow smile beginning to form while Rhyan edges the pictures across the table toward Mom. "We went to Coney Island and had a Nathan's Famous Hot Dog, as you can see in this picture."

Mom hesitates, her bottom lip trembling, but she finally glances down and laughs loudly. "Oh my God. It's like I'm right there with you!" Her hand reaches for the picture, rushing to pick it up. She studies it, small laughs escaping her as subtle tears slide down her cheeks.

My heart pounds before Rhyan reaches out, taking my hand in hers. I can't stop the slow smile crossing my face.

Rhyan was right.

Mom needs this.

"You did this?" Mom shifts her gaze up to meet Rhyan.

"Yes, but Noah was onboard right away. We didn't want to do this trip, your trip, without having you there with us."

Mom shakes her head. "I… I don't even know what to say. You don't know me. I don't know you. Why would you do this?"

Rhyan smiles brightly. "Because you raised Noah to be this amazing man. And he adores you so much. When the opportunity presented itself, I knew if I could make this happen for the both of you, we had to make it happen."

Mom glances back down at the photograph, her fingers trailing over the image. "This is the best present you could have ever gotten me, Noah," Mom states.

I let out a relieved exhale. "I am glad you like it because we have plenty more pictures where they came from. All with you in them."

Mom chuckles, swiping at her face again. "You're kidding?" She laughs.

Rhyan slides all the images across the table. "They're all yours. Alpha asked the warden to grant you special permission to keep the pictures."

Mom glances down at the images, ruffling through them, taking them in one by one. "No one has ever treated me special. They only see me as a criminal."

Rhyan instantly reaches out across the table, just touching Mom's fingers. "You're not a criminal. You are simply a mother protecting her child. There's no crime in that. You're a hero, Valerie. It's horrible that you're being punished for it."

Mom glances around. "It's not so bad, I guess. It's the new girls who are causing all the issues. I heard their men on the outside got taken out in some asylum battle, so now they're all in a fucking flurry about it."

Tensing, I exhale, rolling my shoulders. "Just keep your head down, Mom."

"You know me, sweetheart."

"Exactly what I'm worried about."

Mom waves her hand through the air. "Enough about that. Tell me why you have a scar on your handsome face."

Rhyan weakly smiles, and I swallow hard. "That's a long story. It might have something to do with those men in that asylum battle you heard about."

Mom raises her brow, letting out a snort. "Figures… we can talk more on that later. Now, though, I want to get to know Rhyan. Tell me everything there is to know about you."

I smile as Rhyan bounces on her seat in happiness. I'll admit, I'm glad Mom has taken to Rhyan so well. And it's great seeing her reaction to New York.

Now, I will sit back and enjoy the two loves in my life, finally getting to know each other.