Epilogue
Two months later
“Y ou didn’t have to come with me,” I say as we climb the steps to my fourth-floor apartment.
“You think I was going to let you come up here and pack up all by yourself”—he grips my hips, pulling them back to him—“for the whole weekend?” His head buries into my neck. “For the whole weekend.” He repeats his words as he takes a deep inhale. “Without you by my side.”
“I think you would have survived.” I put the key in and turn it, opening the door and stepping into the apartment. “It’s two days.”
“Two days without you is like a lifetime.” His fingers squeeze my hips tighter while I slip the key out of the lock. For the last two months I’ve been in his bed, even if I didn’t want to be. The minute that he told Saige I was moving in, I was in. He helped me pack my bags and then watched me unpack them with a smile on his face. I wish I could say that the past two months have been uneventful but they haven’t been.
After discussing everything with Brock about the Cartwrights, we went and got a lawyer. He told the lawyer everything, who then brought all the proof to the sheriff’s office and then held a meeting with the safety officials. Just last week, the story ran in the paper and there were now countless lawsuits brought to the Cartwrights as well as criminal charges. From what we’ve heard, they will be lucky if they have a penny left.
The room is filled with a thickness from being closed all these months. “I need to get a window open in here.” I walk over to the living room window, pushing it up and letting some air in.
“You lived here?” Brock snaps at me. I look over at him as he stops in the middle of the room and looks it all over. I have to be honest, never in my wildest dreams did I think he would be standing here. If someone told me that, I would have said you were out of your mind. But now here we are.
“Yup,” I say, trying not to be hurt by his words, shrugging. “This is all mine.” I immediately correct myself, “This was all mine. Now it’s going to be someone else’s.”
“This place is the size of our bathroom.” I roll my eyes at him.
“It is not,” I counter, going to the bedroom and also opening the window. “Besides, rent is much more expensive in the city.”
“Baby,” he says, putting his hands on his hips, and I swear the minute he calls me that, my knees still get weak. It’s crazy how much I missed it without admitting it to myself I missed it. “I hate thinking of you living here.”
“Well, the good news is that I don’t live here anymore.” I look around at the tiny space where I made my home, smiling at him. “At least not for much longer. Why don’t you start packing the kitchen, and I’ll go and pack my bedroom?”
“Sure thing, baby,” he agrees, kissing my lips and grabbing my ass in both of his hands. He squeezes me as he passes and grabs a box before walking into the kitchen.
Turning, I make my way to the little bedroom I had. I open the closet and pull out the large suitcase as I slowly start filling it with clothes, making a giveaway pile at the same time I pack the clothes I’m taking with me. I hear slamming coming from the kitchen and smile, knowing the only real reason he is here is because he wants me to be fully moved into his house. He hated knowing that I had an apartment, and I think it was because it was easy for me to leave in his eyes. Little does he know, I’ve been itching to give up my apartment since he asked me to move in, but I’ve been doing it in baby steps not to seem like I’m overwhelming him and Saige.
“I’m done in the kitchen,” Brock announces, coming in the bedroom and falling on my bed. It’s a twin bed, so he’s already too big for it. He folds his arm and places his hand on his temple as he watches me move around. “What time are they coming to get all the furniture?” We also discussed putting my stuff in the spare bedroom when I finally gave up my lease. But he has everything, so it would be too cramped. He even offered to get rid of some of his things to make me more comfortable, but I decided it was best to just donate it to a women’s shelter. They are going to take everything I have, even my kitchen stuff. It was a huge relief knowing the only thing I had to bring back was my clothes and my linens and towels.
“They said they would be here between two and five,” I answer, closing the suitcase once all my clothes are in there. “They will call me thirty minutes before.” He watches me as I pull the luggage off the bed, getting up to roll it to the front door.
“I have to do the bathroom and my office, and we’re done,” I say.
“Why don’t I do the bathroom and you do your office?” he suggests. “Then we can go and get something to eat while we wait for them to call you.”
“Look at us”—I wrap my arms around his neck—“multitasking.” I get on my tippy-toes. “And then, if we have enough time, I might have to pay you back for helping me pack up my things.”
“Baby,” he says, grinning, “any time you want to drop to your knees, I’m never going to stop you.”
“Drop to my knees?” I joke. “I was thinking of you eating me out and making me come on your tongue.” He glares. “It would make me happy, and that’s all you need, right?”
“Very funny.” He shakes his head. “Or you blow me while I eat you, and we’re both happy.”
“We could do that also.” I laugh, walking over to my desk and starting to clear things away. I have organized everything when he comes out of the bathroom, holding on to something in his hand.
“I’m assuming we are taking this with us?” He holds up the pink vibrator in his hand that I keep in the shower.
I can’t help but laugh when he turns it on and the sound of vibrating now fills the room. “It’s a good one, for sure.” I wink at him. “There is a blue box under my bed,” I say. “Toss it in there.”
He gasps. “You have a treasure chest and didn’t pack that first?” He walks over to my bedroom and comes out with the box in one hand, placing it on the coffee table. “After we finish packing, we’ll go through that and see.”
“Don’t promise me a good time, Brock, and not follow through.” I point at him. “We won’t even have a bed here.”
“I booked us a room,” he informs me, and now I’m the one gasping.
“I thought you said we would just camp out like we did back in the day.”
“Baby, we are both too old to sleep on a wood floor. And we are sleeping in a king-size bed in a hotel. We’ll even order room service. It’ll be like camping.”
I throw my head back and laugh. “That isn’t like camping at all.”
He puts the pink vibrator in the box and then turns back to the bathroom. “Are there any more toys I should know about?” he asks over his shoulder.
“I’ll let you find out,” I sing at his retreating back before I go back to cleaning my desk. I put all my documents in my backpack when he comes out with a box with the word “bathroom” on it, and he puts it in the corner of the room next to the luggage.
My phone rings at one thirty, telling me they will be here within the hour. I take a deep inhale when the buzzer rings, walking over and opening the door. Two guys are waiting for me, and two more guys are hanging out on the stairs. Brock tells them he can lend a helping hand to make it go quicker. I point at things as they slowly start to empty my apartment. I thought I would feel a touch sadder, but it’s more of a happiness than anything. They carry out the last box at the same time as someone is coming up the stairs. Brock comes out of the apartment, wiping the sweat from his brow. “Hey,” Patrick says, giving me a chin up and a sly smirk. “You’re back in town.” He stops at his door across the way from me.
“Yeah,” I reply softly.
“You moving out?” he asks after he opens his door.
“I am,” I confirm. He puts his hands on his hips and then takes in Brock, who comes to stand next to me.
“That sucks.” He either has a death wish or couldn't care less that Brock is staring daggers at him. “Well, hit me up if you are ever in town.”
“Yeah,” Brock says, “you wait for that, buddy.” He puts his arm around my shoulders and pulls me inside, slamming the door behind me. “Friend of yours?”
“Um.” I hesitate, looking up at the ceiling and moving my head side to side. “He was a friend that?—”
“You fucked.”
“Sort of?” I tell him, and his eyebrows go up. “Okay, fine, we used to hook up from time to time.”
“More than once?”
“Sort of.” I put my hands on his abs. “It was more of, ‘Oh hey, you’re home, I’m home.’” I can see his neck get tight. “But obviously not now.”
“Obviously,” he growls with his teeth clenched.
“Why don’t we load up your truck and take off?” I urge him. “You have that whole hotel room waiting, and I have to thank you for today.”
“Hmm,” he mumbles, walking over to my luggage and picking it up while I go and grab a box of linens. It takes four trips up and down before the apartment is empty. I walk over to the little counter and put my key down on it before turning and walking out, the door locking behind me. Brock puts his hand in mine and ushers me down to his truck.
I get in, taking one more look at my building before he drives out of the parking lot, stopping in the corner near the dumpsters. “What are you doing?”
“Got to toss something,” he says, and I think he’s going to throw out some of the takeout containers we accumulated on our drive here. I watch him get out and round the front of the truck, opening the back door.
I look over my shoulder, seeing him snatch my treasure chest. He slams the back door closed, and the next thing I see is the chest flying through the air, opening as a couple of my vibrators fly through the air with it and land in the dumpster. I gasp at the same time he opens his door and gets back into the truck. “You did not just do that.”
“Oh, baby, I just did that. There is no fucking way that was coming home with us, knowing that you used it with someone else.”
“I cleaned them”—I scowl at him—“and I didn’t really use all of them with him. Just a few.”
He puts the truck in drive and looks over at me. “I can’t believe you right now.”
“You come into our home and find something from my ex, are we going to keep it?”
“Yes,” I snap as he drives down the street, knowing full well I would probably set it on fire. I turn and look out the window, pissed at him.
The truck comes to a stop, and when I look up, we’re in the parking lot at the sex shop. “What is this?”
“Got to replace the chest,” he declares, “with stuff that only you and I will touch.” He opens his door and steps out, looking at me. “You coming, or you going to let me decide what to put in there?” He just stares at me. “I’ve always wanted to get that paddle.”
“You are so fucking lucky that you’re hot.” I open the door and step down, walking around to his side. “And that I love you and Saige, or else.”
He grabs my hips, pulling me to him. “Yeah,” he states, “I’m the luckiest guy in the world.”
* * *
The bells ring on top of the door as soon as I place the donut trays in the display cases. Autumn comes in with Landon in his stroller, clapping as they walk in. “This is an early surprise.” I look up and see it’s not even eight in the morning.
“Ugh, I know.” She pushes the stroller as I round the counter and stop in front of Landon. I squat down and kiss his neck, listening to him giggle. “We got an early phone call from Emmett.”
“Oh no,” I say, standing in front of her, “is everything okay?”
She looks around, making sure we are both alone. “I’m not sure. He called Charlie this morning. He’s headed up north to pick up his daughter.”
“Excuse me?” I ask, shocked. “His daughter?”
“Yeah.” She nods. “One he didn’t know he had.”
* * *
Ready for Emmett’s book?
Lilah
I was left for dead when I was eighteen.
Coming to Mustang Creek Ranch gave me something to live for.
My boss is grumpy and reclusive.
But I’m secretly in love with him, even though he’s made it known he’ll never settle down.
Even though he’s made it clear, he’ll never be mine—or anyone's.
Emmett
I’ve kept my distance from Lilah for years. No matter how much I want her, she’s off-limits.
The only family I will ever have are the ones I fought beside in battle—the family I chose.
Until the phone rang and I found out I had an eight-year-old daughter.
Watching Lilah with my daughter makes me wonder what it would be like to do the thing I swore I never would: have a family and fall in love.