Total pages in book: 47
Estimated words: 41918 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 210(@200wpm)___ 168(@250wpm)___ 140(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 41918 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 210(@200wpm)___ 168(@250wpm)___ 140(@300wpm)
"I love you," he says before pressing his lips to mine in a tender, possessive kiss.
"I love you," I reply. Then I'm being scooped up into the crowd and congratulations are being thrown my way by dozens of Guardians, all dressed in their leather and patches and smiles. Luke's family and now mine, too.
EPILOGUE
LUKE
One Year Later
"Here, let me take him, Emma. You've been standing for too long."
My wife—God, I'll never get tired of calling her that—my wife looks up at me, surrounded by a small group of other Iron Guardian wives who are cooing over our baby son, Deke, and smiles. Even now, it's like the sun coming out from behind the clouds for me.
Marriage has made me sappy as hell. I'd never tell anyone, but it's true.
She gives the wrapped-up bundle of newborn a kiss on his fat round cheek and hands him over to me. The other women ooh and aww over the sight of me holding the baby, and Emma joins in unapologetically. It's a sign of her trust in the other ladies that she doesn't even bat an eyelash at doing it. It was hard won too. It took me months of looking out for her, being by her side and protecting her and my boy growing in her belly before she could really accept the rest of the ladies of the Guardians into her heart.
Now it's just natural. She has friends, people she trusts and cares for, and who have her back. As soon as our little one is in my arms, she comes straight over to my side, and I kiss her forehead.
"You're supposed to be sitting," I remind her, and she rolls her beautiful eyes. Giving birth wasn’t easy for Emma, but she's a warrior in her own way.
"Go make your speech and then I'll sit," she promises, nudging me towards the front of the gathering. "They're all waiting for you."
She's right. This is a big day—the day we open the new Iron Guardians satellite headquarters a few cities away from Stonebridge. We're finally branching out like I always wanted, making room for the other riders out there who I know will make perfect Guardians. As the leader of the motorcycle club, it's up to me to declare the new clubhouse open and hand the keys over to the leader of this new chapter—my second-in-command, Gunnar.
I avoid Emma trying to take the baby back but finally hand him over as she laughs. I approach the front of the crowd when Gunnar appears next to me, and I give him a small nod. My second whistles loudly, and the crowd goes silent, turning to face us. It's time for my speech.
I don't say much to start. I don't need to. "Iron Guardians, brothers, ladies, guests. Welcome to the new Iron Guardians clubhouse," I say, raising a hand to cheers and applause. I hold off as long as I can, waiting for it to die down as the crowd eagerly waits for me to speak more.
"You know, it's not the building that makes the Guardians. It's us. It's our values, our spirit, our sense of community," I say, speaking from the heart as the words pour out. "When I was just a young man, I found brothers. Not blood brothers, but family all the same, a family of men who would bleed and die for one another if we had to. A family that stood by our convictions. A family that built this club and grew it into the group it is now, standing here in this building for the first time."
More cheering, but I don't wait.
"When we started the club, I told our brothers who followed me that we would expand. That we'd spread our ideals and our brotherhood to other worthy men. Today is the day we start to do just that. In the clubhouse we've built here, another Iron Guardian chapter is born!"
More applause as the riders in the crowd raise their voices and shout with enthusiasm, as if they can't wait to see where we go. "As leader, I'd like to extend my congratulations to our new leader, Gunnar!" I hand Gunnar the keys.
He takes them and holds them up high, getting more applause before turning to face the crowd. "We're all about community in this chapter! About being a force for good!" Gunnar yells out, his deep voice booming and resonant.
"And lastly, I want to say thank you to my beautiful wife, who not only made me into a better man but gave us the first baby Guardian. My son, Deke, who now has the scariest entourage of any one-month-old ever."
Everyone laughs, and Emma beams with pride. Deke, meanwhile, is passed out still despite the noise, tiny hands curled into fists.
Emma joins my side, slipping her arm around me, and I kiss the top of her head as Gunnar speaks a few words of thanks for the support the chapter has shown, but my eyes are only for Emma. I think back to our wedding day, just months after my proposal, our son already growing in her belly. Then, just last month, her college graduation, her gown rounded in the front, Macy and Sarah both in the crowd cheering her on alongside me.