Shade leaned back against the bench, placing his arm around her shoulders. She laid her head against him.
“I shouldn’t have let you talk me into coming outside,” Shade said, seeing the pain she was trying to hide.
“It’s beautiful out today. I wanted to watch the grandkids play before they went home. I wish we could have gone to the picnic in town.”
“Everybody’s here,” Shade told her. It was the first Fourth of July picnic they hadn’t attended.
Lily shivered next to him.
“Are you cold?” he asked in concern.
“I’m fine, Shade.”
Her hand reached for his as they sat watching their children and grandchildren enjoy the sunny afternoon.
Piper brought them both a bottled water.
“She looks just like you,” Lily said when their granddaughter ran off to play with one of Chance’s children.
Lily watched the huge crowd. “Did you ever dream our family would become this large?”
“Angel, my life with you exceeded any dreams I had,” Shade told her, brushing her lips with his.
Lily brushed the tears from her cheek then stared down at her wedding ring.
“Did I ever tell you about the day you said you saw me at the ice cream store?”
“No.”
“Beth had picked me up from school that day, I usually walked home, but her client had called and asked Beth to pick up a prescription for her. While they were filling the prescription, she decided to pick me up. As we drove to get the prescription we passed the ice cream store. I suddenly wanted an ice cream cone.” Lily laughed self-consciously. “I don’t even like ice cream. How many times do you ever remember me eating it?”
“None, actually,” Shade said, going back through their years together. Lily nodded at his answer.
“I just had to have it right then.” Lily relaxed against him. “I think it was meant for you to see me that day.”
“Angel, Treepoint is small, and I saw you again at the lake. All I needed was one look.” Shade tenderly picked up her hand bearing his ring. “Besides, I was only slightly interested in you that day,” he teased. “I actually didn’t fall in love with you until I saw you in that pink bikini at the lake.”
They watched as the men gathered to set off the fireworks, sending the children to stand on his porch so they would have the best view.
“They bought a lot.” Lily laughed, commenting on the fact that John, Noah, and Chance had purchased a lot of illegal fireworks. It had taken them over an hour to set them up, and they would be shooting them off when it was dark enough.
“Ridge is just like his dad. He always had to be a show-off,” Shade said wryly as they watched him performing wheelies in the parking lot.
His eyes were caught by a movement at one of the picnic tables. His face went ice cold, and he started to get up from the bench. However, Lily’s hand caught his, preventing him from going to the couple sitting at the picnic table.
“Shade, leave them alone.”
“Hell, no, that shit’s not going to happen!”
Lily shook her head at him. “She loves him. Don’t spoil it for them.”
Shade watched his granddaughter sitting with the president of The Last Riders. He wasn’t embarrassed to admit that Violet held a special place in his heart. She was almost an exact replica of Lily. If he had ever wondered what Lily would have been like nurtured in a healthy and loving environment, Violet had answered those questions. John and his wife had done an excellent job raising their daughter. No one could resist her loving and sweet personality. Evidently, not even the man who had taken over as president.
Looking at the succeeding president, Shade reminisced to that night, so many, many years ago, when Viper, Gavin, Razer, Rider, Knox, Cash, Levi, and himself had sat in that motorcycle bar, planning their own motorcycle club. It had been the birth of The Last Riders and the start of so many memories, both good and bad…
Shade wrapped his arm around the stripper’s shoulder, leading her off the dance floor to the table the others were sitting at.
Taking a chair next to Viper, he sat down and pulled the stripper onto his lap.
The men spread around the table stared at him balefully.
“You trying to get our asses maimed so we can’t go back on duty?” Levi shook his head at Shade.
“What?” Shade asked, lifting the beer the stripper handed him to his mouth.
“You know what,” Viper said sarcastically. “She belongs to those bikers over by the bar. We’re already on their shit list for being in here, anyway.”
Shade shrugged. “It’s a biker bar, and we’re bikers, aren’t we?”
“Occasionally, when we’re not getting munitions thrown at us.” Gavin grinned.
Viper shot his brother a glance. “In a few months, we’ll be riding all the time. I never want to ride in another DPV again. Every time I get out, I feel like my balls are going to fall off.”