The air had changed in the club.
What I had heard down in that cold dark room scared the crap out of me. Things weren’t about to get better, but possibly even worse.
But we were leaving today.Wewere leaving.
Lift had Kit’s truck parked out front, filled with my things and was with the rest of the Brothers in Church. What was going on in that meeting, I had no idea. What the future held in front of us, I had no idea. All I knew was that I needed to be with Kit. I needed to be strong for my man.
He’d burst through my defenses, broken down every wall I had erected and inserted himself into my heart. Before him, I had only ever shared my heart with music. Now with him there also, the two blended together perfectly and my world seemed complete.
The doors to Church opened and the men filed out, faces portraying a range of emotions but none very positive.
Kit’s eyes found me instantly, it was like he had a beacon that told him where I was at all times. It was strangely comforting. He walked straight to me and I couldn’t help but smile as he lifted me off the ground and tucked his face into my neck.
“You ready to go, baby?” he whispered.
I swallowed. “I’m ready.”
He pulled me toward the doors.
“Hey! Don’t think you’re escaping that easily,” I heard Wrench call from behind me and I laughed as Kit continued pulling me to the door. I dug my heels into the ground, pulling back against him.
He groaned and turned to me. “If these guys get a hold of you, we are never going to make it out of here.”
I tiptoed up and kissed his cheek before turning back. My breath caught in my throat as I took in the sight before me. The men were all lined up across the room, powerful arms crossed against their chests and legs spread to shoulder width.
It was enough to make any girl swoon. All these men were different. It was strange to think that not so long ago the dynamic of my relationship with these men was so different, but now, now they were just family.
Tears pricked at my eyes as I watched all their stony faces break out in smiles.
Optimus stepped forward from the group and I couldn’t help myself. I ran to him, jumping up and wrapping my arms around his neck. Optimus hugged me tightly before we finally both stepped back.
“I know we’ll see you back here again, this ain’t forever. But we’re all gonna miss you like hell.” He smiled. “Keep that asshole in check. He messes up, you call me. There are ten other Brothers here that are now kicking themselves because they missed out on the most amazing Old Lady.”
Kit burst out laughing behind me and I almost expected him to poke tongues at the rest of the club like a kid on the playground who got the candy they all wanted.
I was sad. I had spent the last three years here, getting to know these guys, this place. But really, they were only a few hours’ drive away, so coming back for visits wasn’t going to be a problem.
This was just a see ya later.
“We’ll see you soon.”
“I’ll see you soon,” I whispered back.
“Harmony!” Chelsea came shooting through the front doors. We had said our goodbyes this morning with a lot of tears and a king sized block of chocolate. She’d had to go to a class and I thought I wasn’t going to see her.
She lunged at me, wrapping her arms around me and squeezing so tightly I had to tap out on her back before I suffocated. I waved goodbye to the boys and finally followed Kit outside, my arm linked through my best friend’s.
“So I hope Kit has a room up there that I can come and stay in,” she said.
“Of course, you can come anytime you want, Chel,” I told her, squeezing her hand.
She looked over her shoulder and I knew who she was looking for. “I might take you up on that sooner than you think.”
I stopped her and placed both my hands on her cheeks. “Chelsea, he cares about you. Don’t give up on him just yet. Things…Things are about to get crazy. He needs you. Don’t let him push you away.”
She frowned at me in confusion, even through the tears that streaked down her face.
“I’m not strong like you, Harmz.” She sniffed.