Lucky lowered his head, looking down at the floor. “Lily, when I stepped away from the church, I did things no pastor should do…”
“Romans 12:2 ‘Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.’ You needed time to find out what God’s will was for you.”
Lucky’s hand went to the bridge of his nose, pressing hard to regain his composure. Lily, with one quote, had healed the last open, raw wound in his soul.
When he was sure he wouldn’t break in front of Shade, he walked forward to Lily’s chair, crouching down and taking her hand in his.
“You have the soul of an angel; do you know that?”
Lily stared down at him, her eyes brimming with tears. “Shade tells me that all the time.” Her impish smile was a thing of beauty.#p#分页标题#e#
Lucky said a silent prayer that he was fortunate enough to have this beautiful woman as a part of his life.
“Your faith gave you strength when you needed it most, Lily. I don’t know anyone who has a more beautiful, loving soul.”
Lily reached out to cup his cheek gently. “I do.”
Lucky saw Shade tense, but before he could say anything, he heard a sound at the door, and he turned, seeing Willa.
“I forgot my keys.”
Lucky rose as Willa went to the counter, avoiding his eyes.
“I’ll walk you to your van,” he said huskily, following her out the door.
They were halfway down the path before he took her arm and brought her to a stop.
“Willa, what I said to Lily—”
“Stop, don’t you dare take away from what I was just blessed to witness because you think my feelings are hurt. It was beautiful.” Willa swiped away a tear clinging to her lashes. “I don’t want to know what Lily’s had to endure in her life. I went to school with her, and there wasn’t a day that I didn’t see the pain in her eyes.” She leaned her head on his chest. “I honestly don’t know if I could have kept my faith like her. I pray to God I never find out. She’s stronger than I could ever be.”
“That’s not true,” Lucky replied.
“It is true. I’m weak, Lucky.”
“I don’t want to hear that come out of your mouth again. You’re strong, Willa.” Lucky couldn’t help letting his laughter escape. “Siren, you managed to scare The Last Riders into doing exactly what you want. We haven’t had to do the punishment bag in weeks because no one wants to piss you off.”
“That’s just because they don’t want to be written out of my will.”
“No, it’s because they don’t want you to whip their ass.”
Willa smiled, shaking her head up at him. “I can’t believe I used to be so afraid of them.”
“You’re not anymore?”
“No, I can’t imagine my life without them now.”
“Good, because Viper wanted me to ask you for a favor.”
She gazed up at him happily. “What?”
“He wanted to know if your company could give him a discount on a set of tires.”
Willa’s expression turned pained. “There’s something I needed to confess. We don’t make tires.”
Lucky plucked her up into his arms, twirling her in a circle, his heart filled with joy. He was no longer watching everyone else live their lives while he was trapped, merely watching. Instead, he had his own piece of Heaven. He was exactly where he was meant to be in this moment in time with this woman in his arms. The loneliness and sorrow were a fading memory. From the time he had looked up from his Bible and seen Willa, he hadn’t had a choice but to love her. No choice at all.
Chapter 38
“Explain to me why you wanted to make cupcakes tonight.”
Willa shot him a frazzled look. “Because I was in the mood to bake.”
“You don’t seem to be in the mood to bake. You seem more in the mood to punch someone.” Lucky leaned against the kitchen counter, drinking his coffee and watching as his wife carefully placed her creations on a cupcake tower.
“After I get this finished, I can relax.” She placed the last cupcake at the top, taking a step back to survey her accomplishment critically.
“Want me to taste-test your frosting for you?” Lucky teased.#p#分页标题#e#
“No, you’re not allowed to taste my frosting until I’m not mad at you any longer.”
“I could have sworn you didn’t seem mad last night when you were coming on my cock.”
She gave him a vindictive smile. “I told Shade you said he cried when he asked for permission to marry Lily.”