Epilogue
Max - 1 Day
“You’re making me dizzy,” Zeno complained as I paced the living room.
I was going stir crazy.
Partly because I had been cooped up with Zeno and Chuck for too long—since Zeno refused to let any of us even step into the hall. But also partly because Miko still wasn’t back yet.
Zeno had gotten a text like ten hours before from a burner saying everything was good, that he would be in touch when everything was finished.
As if that told me anything.
If it wasn’t finished, how was it good?
And even if the danger was gone, was Miko okay? Had he gotten hurt? Could he have been seen?
I knew he was a damn Made man in a major criminal enterprise, that he knew what he was doing, but I couldn’t help but worry anyway.
Like, were these mafia guys still stuck in the past? Did they know as much about modern surveillance as I did? Would he remember to cover his hands and fingers and hair? Would some random camera catch him? If they did, could Zeno scrub it?
“I’m antsy,” I admitted, exhaling hard.
“I noticed,” Zeno agreed, wincing as Chuck started singing at the top of his lungs from the hall shower. “Gonna be too tired to welcome your man home at this rate.”
“Why hasn’t he been in touch in so long?”
“Because he can’t have his phone on a job. You know this,” Zeno added, giving me a surprisingly deep look.
It was easy to think someone like Zeno was all surface. But he clearly had layers. Maybe he preferred to be holed up in his messy apartment, fucking around on his computers. But he was a man raised by and living in the mafia, through and through.
“I know. I know. But why couldn’t he just get another burner?”
“Because he’s probably trying to be really fast and thorough to get back to you.”
“I’m not used to being the one sitting at home, wringing my hands.”
“I get that. But the life of a mafia girlfriend is gonna involve this sometimes. Just like Miko’s gonna have to learn to sit at home and wait on you when you’re doing jobs.”
That was fair.
“Look,” Zeno said, coming over toward me. Reaching down, he grabbed both of my wrists and gave them a squeeze. “If something had gone sideways, someone in this Family would have reached out to me already. He was with my brother, remember?”
Oh, right.
I forgot about that.
“Was?” I asked, making Zeno wince.
“Okay. Shit. Yeah, so… I can’t give you details. But… Nico was with Brio and Miko most of the night. During all the tense bits. But when things got… calm, Nico went home since there was no need for him anymore.”
If I was reading between the lines correctly, what he was trying not to say was that Devon was handled. And, I hoped, the diamonds were secured.
But that didn’t mean the work was done.
If Devon was dead, there was a body to deal with.
Maybe that was where Miko was.
That didn’t mean all the danger had passed, though.
If Miko was somehow caught with a dead body, he could be in a whole different kind of trouble.
“Look, given the timeline, I think Zeno will be back in another hour or two. You can get through it. The floor, though, might give way if you don’t give it a break.”
“I’m gonna make some coffee,” I said.
“Right. That’s what you need,” Zeno teased.
“There’s nothing else to do,” I grumbled.
“Call and check in on Lil. Curious if she’s ready to gut my brother yet or not.”
That was a good idea, actually. Especially since I planned on going to see her, but now I wasn’t allowed to leave the apartment.
I felt some of the tension falling away as she prattled on about how moody Gavino was, but also how good of a caretaker. She sounded in good spirits, considering.
And by the time I hung up and got that coffee I’d mentioned before the call, I heard a racket outside of the door.
Zeno was up off the couch in a second, grabbing the gun in one swift move just before the door slid open.
Then there was Miko.
He looked absolutely exhausted.
And filthy.
On his neck and cheeks, there were some nasty-looking scratches.
But he was there.
Alive.
Home.
The relief rushed through me like a wave, making my eyes actually flood with tears that I blinked back rapidly, embarrassed about their existence.
Then there was a strange, high-pitched shrieking sound coming from one of the bags in Miko’s hand.
“Sorry I took so long, sugar,” Miko said, giving me a tired smile. “But I brought you home a present for being so patient.”
With that, he brought the bag over to the counter beside me and unzipped it.
I leaned over.
And there it was.
The little black dumpster cat from upstate.
Hissing at me and trying to swat at us.
So that was where the scratches had come from.
“Brio said she’s still young enough to tame. But I’m dubious,” Miko said, reaching up to run a finger down his cheek.
“Maybe put kitchen mitts on to handle her,” Zeno suggested.
“Brio said we should keep her somewhere more enclosed for a while until she settles in. He said lots of patience, comfort, and food will get her on our side eventually.”
“Hey, what’s that?” Chuck asked as he approached.
“Kitten. Why don’t you go get her set up in the hall bathroom?” Miko asked, shoving the bags at Chuck before zipping the cat carrier and handing that to him as well.
“I’ll help you, kid,” Zeno said, though he clearly just wanted to give us some privacy.
“I’m angry with you,” I told him.
“I expected that,” he agreed, giving me a soft smile.
“You could have sent off another text.”
“I couldn’t,” he told me.
“I know,” I agreed as he pulled me against him, his forehead pressing into mine. “Did everything go okay? Getting mauled, aside.”
“Everything is good. No more being worried about our loved ones. And I about secured my place as a capo,” he said, reaching into his pocket, then waving a bag of diamonds.
“Did he put them in a sandwich baggie?” I asked, snorting.
“Yeah, he did. But it looks like they’re all still here.”
“It’s all over,” I said as he casually tossed the diamonds onto the counter.
“Yep. And now… a week in bed,” he said, his hands drifting down my back to grab my ass.
There was no stopping the little needy sound that escaped me.
“Let’s get started now,” I demanded, reaching out to grab his tie, then pulling him down the hall with me.
Miko - 1 week
“Come on, Hissabella,” Max called, getting a shriek in response.
Hissabella Havoc, affectionately nicknamed Hissy, was not making it easy to love her. Which only made Max more determined to do so.
Maybe I was reading too much into it, but I had a feeling that Max teaching the cat to love and trust was also managing to heal some old internal wounds of her own.
“I know it’s scary,” she crooned, crawling backward down the hallway, tossing a trail of tuna as she went. “But there’s a big world of fun stuff out here we got you.”
That ‘we’ made my heart fucking squeeze in my chest. She’d been tossing it around more and more, getting comfortable with the idea.
I liked it more than was probably wise, given how new things were between us. But save for visiting Lil and grabbing food, she hadn’t left my place since we first got back to the city. What’s more, she didn’t even bring up going back to her place.
I had a feeling that might change a bit today, since Megs and Nicole were coming in from Vermont.
“That’s a good girl. We have plenty more tuna out here,” she cooed at the kitten as she cautiously kept moving forward, scooping up the bits of fish as she went.
She was right about the tuna.
We had about twenty cans.
And a fancy-ass cat tree, a cat bed that suction-cupped to the window, a bin of toys, and a litter box hidden in a cabinet.
“Can I just…” she started, slowly reaching out to the cat. Who hissed, swatted, then turned and ran back to the hall bathroom.
“She’ll come around,” I assured Max as she sat back on her heels, her shoulders slumped. “She’s already letting you hang out with her in the bathroom. Brio says that’s good progress.”
“I think she’s just salty about being turned into a cat burrito yesterday,” Max said, getting off the floor to come sit next to me. “But she needed that nail trim.”
Reaching, I pulled her up until she moved to straddle me.
“Have I mentioned that I’m glad we haven’t gotten around to getting your clothes yet?” I asked as my fingers slid up her bare thighs. Her uniform these days consisted of my tees and the occasional pair of panties.
Now was not one of the panties times.
So when my fingers pressed between her thighs, there was nothing to stop me from feeling the way she immediately got wet for me as my fingers teased between her lips, then found her clit and started to work it.
“Dunno why you insist on wearing this, though,” I said, my other hand tugging at the tee.
“Suddenly can’t remember either,” she agreed as she reached down to pull off the material, tossing it to the side.
Grabbing my wrist, she pulled it up to cover one of her breasts, letting out a sweet little whimper as my hand squeezed.
Her hips were rocking against my hand, already desperate for more.
“Miko, please,” she begged, her hand moving between us to slip under my thin sleep pants and curl around my cock.
For the first time in my life, I wasn’t getting up and dressed in a full suit every day. Instead, I was enjoying the easy access of nothing but pajama pants. And the way Max so easily started to stroke me reminded me how much I was loving being dressed down.
“Fuck,” I groaned as she shifted up, then stroked the head of my cock between her lips, coating me in her need.
Given how often we found ourselves just like this, we’d had the talk days ago. About tests, results, history, and birth control. Everything said we were in the all clear.
So when she positioned me against her, she slid down on me without a barrier, her warm, tight pussy closing around me, inch by inch.
Then she was riding me hard and fast, her tits bouncing, her moans filling the apartment, as lost in me as I was in her until she came, screaming my name, her pussy pulsing around my cock, taking me with her.
She fell forward after, head on my shoulder, as we both tried to catch our breaths and calm our frantic hearts.
“Oh my God,” she whispered, sitting suddenly upright.
“What?” I asked, confused by the change.
“Look,” she said, jerking her chin to somewhere behind me. “Slowly,” she added.
I turned to find that Hissy had made her way back out of the bathroom and was actively swatting at the hanging ball on her playstand.
“Looks like she’s finally making herself at home,” I said, fingers drifting up and down Max’s thighs.
“Yeah,” Max agreed, smiling at the cat, then at me. “It’s a nice home,” she added.
“Better with you two here,” I told her, watching as her eyes warmed, knowing that with each little encouragement, I was doing with Max what she was doing with Hissy: giving her reassurance, making her feel safe, offering her love.
And, little by little, she was learning to accept it.
Max - 6 weeks
Okay.
I could do this.
Fast and painless, like a bandaid.
Sucking in a deep breath, I opened the door to the apartment I shared with Megs and Nicole. Though, to be fair, I hadn’t actually slept there since I’d come back from upstate with Miko.
I did come around on occasion, needing to grab things, or wanting to hang out with the girls when Miko was busy.
But, quite frankly, it no longer felt like home.
It never would again, since it turned out that Nicole was horribly allergic to cats, so I couldn’t live with her and have Hissy at the same time. And there was no way I was abandoning Hissy. She’d come so far so quickly, from kitten that hissed and scratched and startled at the smallest of sounds to a purring, snuggling, sweet adolescent.
“Oh, hey!” Megs said, beaming at me as she paused her sweeping. “Uh-oh,” she added as Nicole came out of her room in a thick robe, despite it finally warming up outside. “Max has her serious face on.”
“My face is always serious,” I said with an eye roll.
“Not so much lately,” Nicole disagreed.
“What’s up?” Megs asked, concern etched on her face. “Is everything okay with Miko?”
“Uh, that’s actually what I wanted to talk to you about,” I told them. “I… there’s no easy way to say this. But I’m… I’m moving out.”
There was a second of tense silence before Nicole burst out laughing. “Max, you’ve been moved out for, like, two months now. There’s literally nothing left in your closets or drawers.”
I didn’t think they would have noticed that. But that was probably stupid. We were constantly going into each other’s rooms to borrow stuff.
“Actually, we’ve been wanting to talk to you about the same thing,” Megs said as Nicole wrapped an arm around her waist. Like they wanted to be a united front. “We… we are planning on not renewing the lease.”
“Really? Why?” I asked, knowing they likely couldn’t afford anywhere better.
“Well, it’s just that Tyler decided to take a job with his father’s business. Which means he will be in the city full-time, and making a lot more money. So his roommate is moving out. And he wants us to move in with him.”
“That’s great!” I said, meaning it. I knew how hard it was for all of them to be separated so often. Besides, I kind of liked the idea of the girls having a guy around. And living in a door-manned building like Tyler did. “I’m so happy for you guys.”
“We’re happy for you too,” Nicole said, giving me a smile. “I love Miko.”
How could she not after that epic vacation he’d sent them on?
“He’s a pretty good guy,” Megs agreed, slightly more reserved with her affections because she claimed she wasn’t sure anyone was worthy of me. Which was absurd. But sweet. “And his apartment is amazing.”
“And he rescued that cat for you,” Nicole agreed, already starting to sniffle a bit, and I wasn’t even anywhere near her.
“Wow,” Megs said, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. “It’s a whole new era for all of us.”
It was that.
It had been over a decade that Megs and I had been surviving together. But it was time to stop just surviving. We deserved to thrive. With the people we loved.
I did, too.
Love Miko.
I had for longer than I’d even realized.
That warm, cozy sweater feeling?
Yeah, that had been the beginnings of it.
It had only gotten more intense in the weeks we’d been together.
Miko, to his credit, had been so gentle with me. Giving me space, but reassurances. Pulling me close but not smothering me. Letting me occasionally be my prickly self, but managing not to get hurt.
I wasn’t obtuse.
He was treating me the way I’d been treating my cat. In a way, I guess we were both part-feral out of necessity. But once we found someone to give us a safe space, to offer us unconditional love, we were easily and happily tamed.
Miko - 8 months
“You know, I won’t work any faster with you breathing down my neck,” Lil said as she answered the door.
That was fair. This was the fourth time in as many days that I’d ‘dropped by’ to ‘check on the progress.’
Lil had healed up pretty well thanks to a rotating number of Family members and their wives checking in on her, doting on her, and helping her recover. Still, there was a scar near her eye that would always serve as a reminder of what she’d been through.
“But it’s kind of sweet, so I’m not annoyed by it,” Lil told me, stepping back from the door to invite me in.
“I actually just finished this morning,” she told me as she moved behind her desk. “Are you ready for it?”
You’d think I would be nervous as fuck about this step. But all I felt was a sort of calm. Like every cell in my body knew this was the right step.
“Fuck yeah.”
To that, Lil beamed at me as she handed me the little navy blue velvet ring box.
Inside of it was the physical ring I’d seen the drawings of several weeks before. At the center was the one single diamond we had left from the heist. It was the one Max had left with Lil for safekeeping. Then had forgotten all about almost immediately after.
“Fuck, Lil. It’s perfect.”
She’d somehow managed to make something beautiful without making it too feminine and fussy, things we both knew Max would hate.
“I know, right? It’s almost like I’m good at what I do.”
“The best,” I agreed.
“So, when are you going to propose?”
“This weekend. Unless a better moment presents itself before then. Make sure you keep a spot in your calendar open for being a bridesmaid.”
“Wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Lil said as I reached for an envelope in my pocket to pass to her, the rest of the money I owed her for the ring. “I can’t believe Max is about to get engaged. But then again, I couldn’t believe that she’d fallen for you. Or moved in with you. Or—“
“Really building up my confidence here, Lil,” I said with a little chuckle.
“Come on. You know what I mean.”
“I do. But this is one of those pot/kettle situations, don’t you think?”
“Hey, I love love!” Lil said, shrugging. “I just can’t fathom sharing my space with someone. Fighting over covers, not having any hot water, having someone constantly annoying me with questions about my day and feelings…”
“Oh, Lil. It’s gonna be a real treat to watch you fall one day. And word to the wise… just get separate covers,” I said as I made my way to the door. “Thanks again for this,” I told her, waving the ring box before I slipped it into my pocket.
It felt heavy.
With meaning. With plans. With our hopes for the future.
“Okay. Alright,” Max said, rushing toward me as soon as I opened the door, hands up. “Remember how much you love me?” she asked.
“What’d you do?” I asked. “Take my sister to a male strip club again?”
“In my defense, I didn’t know it was a strip club,” Max said. “And it’s really not my fault that she volunteered to go on stage. But, no. Well, you know how I had a job this morning?”
“The salt Lil had a real knack for them. She loved when we all hung out together. It was really just my swollen ankles, aching back, and pea-sized bladder that kept me from socializing much these days.
“She was actually just dropping off something special,” he told me, pulling me to sit up on the bed with him and reaching to rub my throbbing feet. “Open it up.”
He nodded toward my nightstand where one of Lil’s personalized jewelry boxes sat.
She still did her old work here and there. But a few years back, she’d actually started her own jewelry line. The unique designs had gone a bit viral, leading to a thriving career that included a small line in a very big box store chain.
I didn’t wear much jewelry.
Lil knew that more than anyone.
Unless…
“Is this the gender reveal?” I asked.
For each of our kids, Lil had been the one in charge of telling us what we were having. By creating intricate, beautiful little pendants that would each eventually go onto a necklace for me to wear.
So far, that necklace of mine featured an emerald, sapphire, and a black diamond. Boy colors for boy children.
“Yep. She said she was sorry it took her so long this time. Open it.”
My stomach tightened, wondering if my instincts were right here.
This pregnancy had been very different from the others. I was carrying differently. I’d been much sicker, much more exhausted, and craving things I never had before. Like chocolate. Bars, cakes, milk; you name it, if it was chocolate, I was shoving it in my mouth.
Taking a deep breath, I flipped the lid off of the box.
And there, nestled in the black velvet backing was an intricately detailed pendant.
With a brilliant pink diamond in the center.
“We’re having a girl,” I told Miko, beaming at him.
“I bet she’s gonna be a little badass, just like her mother,” Miko said, moving up to the top of the bed to pull me close.
“But let’s hope she gets her father’s sweetness.”
“Oh, sugar,” he said, turning to press a kiss to my temple. “You’re plenty sweet.”
There was a loud crash in the other room, followed by a suspicious silence.
“You planning on doing something about that?” Miko asked.
“Nope.”
“Good, me either,” he agreed.
“Oh, wait, I lost it,” I said, heart sinking to find the little pink diamond no longer nestled in its box.
“What? You mean this?” Miko asked, pulling it out of his damn pocket.
“You lifted it?” I asked, smiling at him.
“Learned from the best,” he said, pressing a kiss to my lips.
XX