Page 83 of Switch

Ifuckedup.

I knew it the second she walked out that door, and Idefinitelyknew it when she didn’t come back.

Rev whistles low, shaking his head. “Damn, Switch. I figured you’d pull some dumb shit eventually, but this is next level.”

Blade leans against the wall, arms crossed. “She still at Brooke’s?”

“Hell, I don’t know.”

“What do you mean you don’t know? How do you not know exactly where your woman is when she’s not with you?” Piston growls.

“Because I’m not some crazy stalker asshole.”

“Whatever, man. I bet you’re kicking yourself for not putting a tracker on her car already. Y’all laughed when I told you I did it to Jenny, but what did you fuckers go and do the next day? Fucking trackers on their vehicles and their phones.”

Tank sighs. “What the hell are you waiting for Switch? Go get your girl.”

I clench my jaw, my pride warring with my gut. “She left.”

“So?” Mason says. “Shecancome back.”

I exhale through my nose, dragging a hand down my face. “I don’t know if shewantsto.”

Silence hangs in the air for a second.

Then Dagger lets out a slow, dry laugh. “Well, that’s your fucking fault, isn’t it?”

I glare at him. “Helpful.”

Mason straightens, giving me a pointed look. “Figure your shit out, Switch. Before it’s too late.”

I head back to my office and drop into my chair, staring at the paperwork spread out in front of me. The numbers blurtogether, refusing to make sense. My knee bounces, fingers drumming against the desk in a steady, irritated rhythm.

Everything feelswrong. I don’t want to go home—not even with my sweet Oreo waiting for me. The house is too damn quiet. The bed’s too fucking empty. My whole damn life feels off balance, like I’m reaching for something that’s no longer there. No. Not something.Someone.

I scrub a hand over my face, letting out a rough exhale. I’ve been a damn wreck since Bella left. Every night, I walk through the door, hoping—stupidly fucking hoping—she’ll be there. That I’ll find her curled up on the couch with Oreo, waiting for me. But she’s not. She’sgone.

And yeah, I know I fucked up. I’m not stupid. But I don’t know how to fix it. I don’t even knowwhatto fix.

It’s not like I can just stop being an officer in the Iron Reapers. That patch on my back isn’t just something I wear—it’swho I am.The club is my family, my whole damn world. And Bella knew that when she got with me. So why the hell wasn’t it enough?

The thought sits heavy in my chest, like a weight pressing down on my ribs.She knew who I was. But did she ever really feel like she was a part of it?

My stomach knots, something cold slithers through me.

Fuck.

She wasn’t asking me to choose between her and the club. She was asking formore.More of me. More of my world. More of the parts of myself I’ve kept locked up.

She gave me everything.Every inch of herself. Every piece of her world. But I only gave herpartof mine.

I lean forward, resting my forearms on my desk, breathing through the realization. No wonder she felt like she was on the outside looking in. Losing her? That’s not an option. Iwon’tlet that happen. But I don’t know how to fix this.

I don’t know what the hell it looks like—bringing Bella into my world in a way that doesn’t fuck everything up. The other old ladies don’t sit in on church meetings. They don’t know every detail about club business. But they’re stillin it.Theybelongin this world. Bella doesn’t. Not yet. But shecould.

The thought settles deep in my chest, shifting something inside me. That’s what she wanted—a place. A home.Me.Not just the part of me she got when I wasn’t busy with the club, butallof me. I don’t know exactly how to do it. But I know one thing—I’ll do whatever the fuck it takes. Because losing Bella? Not happening.

I pull up outside Bella’s townhouse, kill the engine, and sit there for a second, gripping the handlebars. My chest is tight, my stomach’s in a knot, and I fuckinghatethis feeling.

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