“Are you all right?” I asked. She gave me a tight smile.

“Excuse me, I need to go check on Silvie,” she said. I must’ve looked blank, because she explained. “The flower girl. She’s my daughter.”

“Oh, she’s beautiful,” I said, but Cookie was already up and moving.

I’d noticed a few things since I started getting to know the Reapers.

They were fiercely loyal to each other. They seemed to talk in code sometimes, and they had their own rules and ways of doing things. They didn’t like cops and they knew how to get rid of bodies. The Reapers didn’t really shine, though, until you’d seen them party.

Give them a marriage to celebrate and a pyramid of kegs?

The place blew up.

Marie’s mom definitely knew how to throw a reception, too. They’d gone with casual, and I entered the courtyard to find it transformed into something that wasn’t quite elegant, but was definitely fun. There were lights everywhere, music blasting, and enough food for two armies.

Best of all? There was child care.

Yup, she’d hired the entire staff of a local day care center to come in and set up a children’s area, complete with games, prizes, face painting, and a genuine fucking pony to ride on. The kids even had their own little buffet where they could put together hot dogs and hamburgers.

Noah lost interest in me immediately.

“Wow, this is amazing,” I said to Maggs as he took off running. “I didn’t realize Marie came from money.”

“Marie comes from a trailer,” Maggs replied, laughing. “But her stepdaddy’s trying to make up for lost time, and he’s loaded. What Lacey wants, Lacey gets. Today she wants a pony.”

“No shit,” I said.

Then Ruger’s arms came around me and he leaned down into me, scenting my hair.

“Hey,” he whispered in my ear. I melted. Maggs rolled her eyes as I turned in his arms.

“Hey,” I whispered back. Then I put my hands on his shoulders and lifted up on my toes to kiss him. We’d been doing this a lot the past week. Soft, sweet, quick kisses that let me show my feelings without things getting too intense.

This time it wasn’t soft and sweet.

I guess watching Horse and Marie had inspired Ruger, because he kissed me fast and hard, just like he used to. Then he pulled away and looked down at me, his face serious.

“We okay?” he asked.

“Yeah, we’re okay,” I said, smiling up at him. “I missed you.”

“I missed you, too. One part of you in particular. Let’s get reacquainted.”

I blushed as he took my arm and half walked me, half dragged me across the courtyard. I stumbled, catching his drift but not on board with his timing.

“Where are we going?” I demanded. “We’re going to miss everything!”

“Horse already said the party can wait until he’s fucked his bride, and he’s a smart man,” Ruger muttered, pausing next to a table to grab a backpack. Then I realized where we were headed.

“No,” I said, jerking and tugging against his hand. “Not the shed. I’m not going back into that shed.”

“No prob,” Ruger replied, changing direction without a pause. Now we headed toward the back of the Armory. I saw Dancer as we passed, and she was laughing and pointing at me.

Some friend.

Then we were in the stairwell, climbing back up to the third floor. Ruger spotted an open door to one of the rooms, and we walked in to find a woman on her knees, giving some man I’d never seen before a blow job.

“Need a blanket,” Ruger said to him, pulling one off the bed. The guy nodded, and then we were back out again before I could burst into embarrassed flames. Ruger took me up one more flight through a door that opened onto the roof. It was wide and open, with big parapets ringing the edges. There was a bit of a slope, but not much. We were essentially out in the open.

“This isn’t much better than the shed,” I said, and Ruger turned to me, raising his brows.

“Are you fucking serious?” he asked. “I find the one place within a mile that we can have privacy and you’re gonna bitch about it? Besides, it’s tradition. Guys take girls up here all the time. Hell, Horse proposed to Marie on a roof.”

I frowned.

“I guess it’s okay,” I said.

“Well that’s a relief,” he muttered, flinging the blanket down flat. Then his hands were tangling in my hair and his mouth covered mine.

I don’t quite remember how I wound up on the bottom. I certainly don’t remember what happened to my panties, although I sort of suspected Ruger stole them. He seemed to have a bit of a panty thing going on.

What I do remember is trying not to scream and failing when his mouth sucked my clit in deep. I also remember when he plunged into me, stretching me open wide and reminding me that I wasn’t just crazy about him because he took good care of Noah.

Holy shit, the man had skills.

We took a break after that first round of reunion sex, relocating into the shade behind the little shed housing the stairwell. Ruger lay back and made a little nest for me in his arm, and I snuggled in close. He’d lost his clothes along the way, and I figured if being totally naked out in the open didn’t bother him, I might as well enjoy the view.

I leaned up on one arm and started kissing his chest.

“That’s nice,” he said, his voice hoarse. “Jesus, I’ve missed touching you.”

“I’ve missed you, too,” I said. The tribal tat on his pec called to me, so I started tracing it with my tongue. I loved how he tasted, just a little salty and all male. I loved how hard his muscles were, too, and deep down inside I had to admit I loved the fact that he’d do anything for me.

Anything.

I dropped lower to find the ring in his nipple, flicking it with my tongue.

“Think it’s time to talk yet?” he asked.

I let the ring go reluctantly.

“Yeah, probably,” I said, looking up at him. “We should probably get us—whatever we’re going to be—figured out.”

“Let’s make it official,” he said. “I want you to be my old lady, pretty sure you know that. You up for that?”

“I think so,” I said slowly. “Were you serious about being faithful? I mean, after you came to get me, when Em and I were with the Devil’s Jacks? Were you serious about not sleeping around? Because that’s still a deal breaker for me.”

“Totally serious,” Ruger replied. He looked me right in the eye. “I haven’t slept with anyone else, babe. Not since I fucked you in the shed. I’ll admit, I thought about it, but they weren’t you. Just wasn’t feelin’ it.”

I caught my breath.

“Then why did you keep telling me you couldn’t make any promises?” I asked, startled. “I thought you were screwing girls left and right the whole time.”

“Always told you I wouldn’t lie,” he said. “Didn’t want to make a promise I couldn’t keep. But shit, Soph, when I thought I might lose you? It all got real clear, real fast. I don’t give a flying fuck about anyone else, babe. I love you. Think I’ve loved you from the first, when I found you and Zach on my couch. Spent a lot of time trying to talk myself out of it, but it’s not goin’ away.”

I blinked rapidly. He loved me. Ruger loved me. I guess I’d known that for a while now—you don’t take care of someone the way he’d taken care of me and Noah if you don’t love them.

Hearing the words was still nice.

“I love you, too,” I replied, feeling suddenly shy. “I think I have for a long time. You were always there for me.”

“That’s what you do when you’re crazy about someone,” he said, giving me a little grin. “Trust me, I wasn’t helping you move, putting alarms on your windows, all that shit, outta the goodness of my heart, babe. Not running a fuckin’ charity here.”

I gave a little laugh. His gaze was so intense, I couldn’t meet it any longer. I looked at his shoulder instead, and for the first time I really studied the tattoos there. There was a series of round dots, each trailing off a bit, almost like a line of comets.

“What are those?” I asked.

“What?”

“The tattoos on your shoulders. I’ve been trying to figure them out for a while now. They don’t look like anything.”

He lifted, leaning back on his elbows, and gave me a serious look.

“Sit on my hips,” he said. I raised a brow.

“You ready for seconds already?” I asked. “Or trying to dodge the question? Let me guess, you got drunk and now you can’t remember what they are?”

He shook his head slowly.

“Oh, I remember,” he said. “Go ahead, sit on me. Want to show you something.”

I looked at him suspiciously, but threw my leg over his hips. His cock rested right against my opening and I felt a flush of desire run through me. He wasn’t the only one ready for more.

“Now put your hands on my shoulders,” he said.

“What?”

“Put your hands on my shoulders.”

I did. Then it hit me.

“Holy shit, you’re such a pig!” I said, stunned. “What kind of asshole has fingerprints on his shoulders? God, are the women you screw so stupid they need a guide so they don’t fall off?”

His eyes widened, and then he started laughing. I ripped my hands away, glaring at him. I tried to get off, but he sat up and held my waist tight. Then he stopped laughing and smiled at me.

“First, some of them probably were that stupid,” he admitted. “But those are your fingerprints, babe.”

I looked at him blankly.

“You probably wouldn’t remember, but that night you had Noah?” he said. “You hunkered down on the side of the road and held my shoulders while you pushed him out.”

I realized what Ruger was saying, and I reached up, laying my fingers on the tattoos again. They fit perfectly.

“I don’t even know how to explain that night to you,” he said. “It was so intense, Soph. I had no idea what we were doing. I’ve never watched anything like it, never felt anything even close. You worked so hard to bring him to life. All I could do was hold you, hoping I didn’t fuck something up. You squeezed my shoulders so hard they hurt for days. You dug in your nails, you left bruises, the works. Christ, you were strong.”

I thought back to that night, remembering how I’d crouched on the side of the road. The pain. The fear.

The joy of holding Noah for the first time.

“I’m sorry,” I said softly. “I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

He snorted at me and grinned.

“You didn’t hurt me, babe,” he said. “You marked me. Big difference. That night was the most important thing that’s ever happened in my life. Holding you, catching Noah—it changed me forever. I didn’t want to forget. So when the bruises started to fade, I went and got them inked, so I couldn’t.”

“Damn,” I said, touching the spots lightly with my fingertips. “I think that’s the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard.”

I felt him harden under me, and he smirked.

“Sweet enough to get me laid again?” he asked. “Because I’ve told the story to women before, and it works every fuckin’ time. Can’t get their pants off fast enough after that. Hate to think you’re the one girl who can hold out, considering it’s about you.”

I started laughing, and then he rolled me over, pinning my hands over my head. My laughter faded as his cock found my opening.

“Love you, babe,” he said, sliding slowly into me. “Promise. I’ll always be here for you.”

“I know,” I whispered back to him. “You always have been. I love you, too, Ruger. And I swear, you tell that story to any more girls, I’ll cut that ink right off you.”

“Noted,” he said with a grin.

I reached up and kissed him as he hit bottom, slowly working in and out of me, grazing my clit with every stroke. I lifted my legs to wrap them around his waist, closing my eyes against the sun and letting the sensation of his thick cock spreading me soak through my entire being.

I loved this man.

I loved how he held me, loved how he cared for my son, and loved how he always fixed whatever fucked up, horrible things went wrong in my life.

As he rocked into me gently, I could hear the guests partying down in the courtyard, music drifting upward as people shouted and cheered and made the most of what had to be one of the last warm days of the year. Maggs was down there, and Em and Picnic and Dancer and Bam Bam … It wasn’t just Ruger, I realized. All of them had helped me, even when I’d judged them for being Reapers.

But the Reapers were part of Ruger, and Ruger was part of me.

He hit particularly deep, and I started laughing.

“What the fuck?” he grunted without pausing.