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I watch them both leave. James glares at me, furious, and Loa wipes the tears from her face before she grabs her purse and follows her dad.

The feel of soft lips against my cheek startles me. “I’m proud of you,” Tessa says, “I’m really proud of you.” She squeezes my hand before she turns and leaves the room.

Rose pulls her body from Rhea. When she looks at me, I can tell her spark is gone. My stomach drops because I’m sure she’s going to struggle with what went on here today, and for an alcoholic, the only way they know how to cope is falling off the wagon.

“It’s going to be okay. You’re going to be all right,” Rhea says as she rubs our mother’s back. “Right, Hawk? She’s going to be all right?”

Rhea looks at me with hopefulness in her eyes. Maybe because, for the past twenty years of her life, she’s felt that her and our mother has been the victim of circumstance. They haven’t had anyone in their corner fighting for them. It’s been them against James and Loa, and that has never been a fair fight.

Now they have me.

I’m the game changer.

Hawk

“Hey.”

Tessa’s voice pulls me from my thoughts. I’m fucking exhausted.

“Is Sam asleep?” She nods as she makes her way to the couch where I’m sitting.

The past two days of moving my mother and getting her settled and signed up for all the different programs that are available to her was draining, and shit with Lick is going on back home. He’s being a stubborn ass and not wanting to take in his niece and nephew after he found out his sister was dead. His head is so damn thick, no one is getting through to him, not even Jenni.

The couch next to me dips, her hands travel up my arm and make their way over my shoulders. My head falls forward. The feel of her fingers working my tight muscles feel like heaven. “You should really think about a career change,” I tell her as she works her fingers. “I’d pay good money for this.”

“I wouldn’t charge you,” she whispers in my ear.

“Fuck, Tessa, you need to stop before we end up in bed.”

“And that’s a bad thing?”

I tilt my head to the side and take in the features of her face. The dark brown of her eyes, go so perfectly with the russet of her hair. How her nose turns up slightly at the end. Those pink lips that feel like heaven when she has them wrapped around my cock. Fuck. I’m getting hard just thinking about it.

“What’s wrong?” She stops rubbing my shoulders.

“What’s keeping you here?”

Her forehead creases. “This is where I live.” She pulls her hands back and falls against the couch. “We’ve been over this already, Hawk.”

“I know that, but people change where they live all the time.”

“Exactly. So why are we talking about me when I can easily turn it back on to you? You have nothing keeping you in New Mexico.”

“You know that’s not true. I have the club–”

“Yes, the club. The thing you will always pick above everything else.”

“It’s not just about the club. My job, Sin—”

“Your mother. Your sisters. Rose just got you back. She’s at a point in her life where she’s looking into the future with confidence. She’s holding her own right now, but that’s mostly because she has you back in her life.”

I stand. “You can’t put her sobriety on me. That’s not fair.”

“You’re right, it’s not fair, but it’s reality. You leave, and that’s going to give her a reason to go back down the path she’s already been down. That’s life. She’s going to blame it on you.”

“I can’t stay here, Tessa. That was never the plan. This wasn’t going to be long-term.” I run my hand down the back of my neck.

“Things change.”