Last Ride (Wind Dragons MC #5.5)(4)

“I don’t think so. Slice, Talon’s right-hand man, is staying with the Wild Men to take the lead, and he understands why Talon wants to go. He said he’d help us find the mole, ’cause he doesn’t want a rat in his ranks either. We’ll handle it,” Dex says with confidence. “Besides, all they really have is old men who don’t even know what time of the day it is. I’m not too concerned about the Wild Men anymore.”

“You need to find him,” I scoff, my hand closing and opening, itching to have a weapon in it. You think a man is scary? Try messing with the mother of two small children. Ever since I witnessed firsthand how dangerous this world was, I’ve pushed myself to train with various weapons, honing myself into what I like to think of as a modern warrior woman. I’m much more than what meets the eye, and I’ve worked so hard to get to where I am today. The women in the clubhouse look to me for guidance, and if something bad were to happen, it’s me they’d expect to handle things. Years ago, on the night that one of our women, Mary, died, I wasn’t ready for what happened. Was I brave? Yes. Did I handle the situation the best way that I could at the time? Yes. But if I could do it all over again, if I was better prepared that night, I like to think that Mary would still be alive.

Dex steps behind me and massages my shoulders gently. “Relax, babe. We’ll be one step ahead of them all the way. They aren’t going to do anything to us. Our babies are safe.”

I exhale and close my eyes. “It will be good to have Talon and Ranger on our side. Talon’s pretty much already family to some of us.”

Besides being Shayla’s cousin, he’s also Anna’s quasi-brother. And now he and Tia, Bailey’s best friend, are attached at the hip. I think Bailey is quite fond of him too. Hell, maybe I should get on board this Talon thing. He must have some redeeming qualities if he’s slowly recruiting a fan group. As for Ranger, I don’t really know him, only what I’ve heard from Shayla. I do know that he’s a pretty good-looking guy though, and extremely intelligent, so he’ll definitely fit in here fine.

Talon trusts Ranger, and Dex must see something in him too—the men wouldn’t make this offer to just anyone. It’s like inviting someone into your family, into your household, and trusting them in every way. And given our history with the Wild Men, especially with Arrow and Rake, I truly can say that I never saw this coming.

Years ago, Talon’s stepfather—Anna and Rake’s biological father—was the president of the Wild Men. We were at war with them, and one night they broke into our clubhouse, guns blazing. The men were all gone, except for Vinnie, and the Wild Men knew it. We all survived the night, except for Mary, who at the time was Arrow’s woman. Arrow and I took the loss the hardest.

Although I hadn’t known Mary for long, she was such a sweet woman and tried her best to make me feel welcome at a time when I was completely lost. It’s unfair that her gentle soul had to leave us. Talon didn’t have anything to do with the attack, and didn’t even retaliate when Arrow took his revenge for Mary and killed his stepfather. Arrow didn’t know at the time that he’d killed Anna’s biological father. Maybe that’s why Anna is so close to Talon. He’s her last connection to her father. I hope Talon is a good man.

Some people only think of themselves, of what they can get out of everything, and they go with the highest bidder. People like that don’t belong in the Wind Dragons, and they don’t belong in my life. When I look back at what I was like when I first walked through these clubhouse doors, I can see how different I am; yet I’m also the same. I don’t think I’m harder, but I’m stronger, wiser. More diligent. I’m the best version of me, physically and mentally, and yet I’m still the goofy woman who arrived here, using humor as her weapon and coping mechanism, obsessively cleaning, and pushing boundaries with the men, turning them into family.

I’m now a mother, a wife, and a woman that people look up to.

Dex tells me that I’m everything. It’s the only word he can think of to explain it. I don’t know about that, but I do know that I’m this club and this club is me.



I sit down next to Rake and lay my head on his shoulder, staring up at the sky. Talon came and went, and Dex told me he accepted their invitation. “How are you feeling about the Talon thing?”

He wraps his arm around me in a brotherly way and makes a sound in the back of his throat. “The vote was unanimous.”

My eyebrows rise, surprise hitting me. “I thought you weren’t a fan.”

“Got to look at the club’s best interests, not just mine, yeah?” he says, removing his arm. “Besides, saves me from having to worry every time Anna goes to see him, or about whether she’s taking Bailey with her. And Ranger? He’s a smart guy. He’ll be an asset too.”

I gasp dramatically. “Rake, are you . . . growing up?”

“About time, I guess,” he grumbles, crossing his arms over his chest. “We all have to become an adult at some point.”

“Yeah,” I agree, smirking. “Never thought you would though.”

“Faye?” he murmurs.

“Yeah?”

“Shut up.”

I can hear the smile in his tone.

“You shut up.”

“Make me,” he replies with narrowed eyes, contradicting his previous theory about being an adult.