I pause, gathering the timeline in my head as I trace an invisible pattern over the edge of the blanket.
"Knox and Mayhem were both four years older than me, so whenever Knox came around the Grinning Skulls’ clubhouse, he was attached to Mayhem’s hip," I say. "Dad was the VP back then, and Mayhem was already fully patched and rising fast through the ranks."
Locke shifts slightly, his hand resting firm and heavy on my waist. "And where were you in all of that?"
"I was just a kid in the background," I say. "I’d come by the clubhouse after school to help Dad go through receipts and organize the books. I was this quiet, overweight eighteen-year-old girl sitting at a corner table with a highlighter, a stack of paper ledgers, and a heart full of ridiculous fantasies."
Locke turns his head sl
