Epilogue
One month later
Jenna
I took a deep breath, gripped Liam’s hand, and headed toward the sensory room, my heart clanging like an alarm, louder and faster with every step I took.
The construction was finished; no trace left of the surrounding walls or workers.
They’d let me take off until it was finished, and today was my first day back.
It was also the grand opening of the sensory room and the day before Tyler’s graduation.
It was a big day, and I was…well, not quite ready, but I was here, facing it.
I froze at the entrance—the spot where Snake Eyes grabbed me—remembering the moment I realized, way too late, that I was in big trouble. Liam’s hand tightened around mine, dragging me back to the present. I shook off the memories and looked around, trying to only see what was here right now.
Without the temporary walls around it, the zigzag doorway felt open and spacious. “No one can get locked in,” I whispered, and the pressure in my chest eased a bit.
Liam wrapped his arm around me, and we continued inside.
I froze again, but this time in wonder. Soft blue lights provided just enough illumination, with the rest of the light coming from glowing bubble tubes and stars dancing across the ceiling.
Round, tinted windows—all correctly placed on the bottom half of the walls—showed glimpses of the children’s library without letting in too much light.
Two teepees offered semi-enclosed spaces, with the extra flap sewn down to keep it open, as we’d requested.
Two of the corners were filled with beanbags and separated by half walls—high enough to give the illusion of a private space, low enough to see inside.
More beanbags and foam shapes for sitting or climbing were scattered around, and a soft bench along one wall offered more traditional seating.
A sensory wall of textures and manipulatives lined another wall, and there were shelves with baskets of sensory toys.
It looked nothing like the room I’d been attacked in. It looked safe and welcoming. “I love it.” I wrapped my arms around Liam, relief flooding through me, quieting the panic. I’d been so afraid I’d never be okay in here.
“It’s beautiful.” He smoothed a hand over my hair, tilting my face up to meet his assessing eyes. “You’re good?”
“Yeah, I—” I jumped at the sound of footsteps, belying my words.
He tightened his grip on me but stayed relaxed. “Easy, it’s just Izzy.”
“Sorry!” She paused as she saw our intimate position.
“It’s okay. You just surprised me.”
“Sorry,” she said again, hesitating. “Are you okay being here?”
“Yeah, it looks so different than it did…before.” I stepped away from Liam and went to Izzy, pulling her into a hug. “Thank you for finishing it up. You did an amazing job.”
“It’s the least I could do. I’m s—”
“Don’t you dare apologize again. It’s not your fault.”
“If I didn’t leave early—”
“Then he would have found another time. Maybe when Liam wasn’t only a few minutes away. Please stop blaming yourself.”
“I’ll try,” she said, forcing a smile.
Through one of the windows, I watched a few parents and kids start to filter in, signaling the official start of the day.
I smiled at the muted voices, Oliver’s standing out above all the rest. They were muffled compared to how it would be out in the main children’s area, but still easily heard, making this a quieter room, but not so quiet that it could hide someone being attacked.
“It’s open,” Oliver yelled, running in. He stopped short and spun in a circle, eyes on the stars. “Wow.”
Maddie and a few of the other regulars came in, too, equally in awe. They made quick work of testing out every teepee, beanbag, stool, and sensory toy.
“We’re going to have a lot of cleaning up to do,” Izzy said with a laugh.
I chuckled too, amazed I could laugh in here. “Yeah, but they love it.”
“This is incredible,” a soft, familiar voice said from the entrance.
“Nicky! Juliette! You guys came!”
“Of course, we wouldn’t miss it.” They wrapped me up in a group hug. “We’re so proud of you. You pulled off something amazing for these kids, and you’re here with a smile on your face.”
“I love you guys.”
“Love you, too,” Nicky said.
“Love you,” Juliette said, wiping a tear off my cheek.
Liam and I flew to Atlanta that night, and the next morning, as we lay snuggled together in the hotel room before graduation, he asked, “Are you really okay?”
“Yeah, I really am.” I was still working on being more honest, more authentic.
It was hard sometimes, but it felt good, and with time and practice, it was getting easier.
This answer was easy, though. Nestled here in Liam’s arms, with the success of yesterday and excitement for today, I was better than okay.
The children loved the sensory room, and I’d been surprisingly unbothered by it.
Of course, I’d only been there for a couple of hours, and Liam, Juliette, and Nicky, plus a circus of kids had been there.
I knew at some point—or maybe many times—I’d be alone in there and probably freak out, but for now, it felt like I’d be able to handle it.
If—when—any issues came up, I’d discuss them with my new therapist, Bonnie.
Bonnie was awesome. She was like a wise old friend.
So easy to talk to, and she was already helping me reframe my self-blame and place the responsibility back where it belonged: on Brian and Snake Eyes.
Bonnie said that was a big step in learning to trust my gut.
Liam came to a couple of sessions, too, and thank goodness, he was also working on letting go of his misplaced guilt.
I loved living with Liam. The past few weeks had been the best of my life.
We had incredible sex in every room of the house in every position, something I’d never take for granted.
We had a very serious Connect Four tournament going on.
Between Liam’s home-cooked meals, working out with him, self-defense lessons, and increasingly adventurous sex, I felt stronger and healthier than ever—body, mind, and soul.
Liam had gone back to work two weeks ago, leaving me home alone for days at a time, which I also needed.
I felt so happy and safe with him, but I needed those days and nights where I struggled a little.
The first few times he worked, Juliette and Nicky stayed over, and Hayden had even stopped by, which was great.
They offered to keep staying with me, but I declined.
The first few nights alone were hard, and I did panic a bit, but I clung to Thor and my giant stuffed ring-tailed lemur and I got through it.
I needed to know I could still handle that.
Thor loved it there too, and he was getting better socialized with our friends coming over so often, especially the guys. Maybe we both were.
Beth had called yesterday to say that the feds were close to wrapping up their investigation into Brian.
For the sake of plausible deniability, I didn’t ask how she knew that, but I was happy to hear they were taking it seriously and he’d probably serve time, and even more importantly, he’d be registered as a sex offender.
Quint had also called a few days ago. He started by apologizing again, and I assured him again that nothing was his fault.
San Antonio was a big city with a big police force.
He couldn’t do it all, and it wasn’t his fault he wasn’t on the case.
It obviously would have been better if we’d known earlier, but in the end, he came to the rescue, going above and beyond to warn Liam just in the nick of time.
Maybe it had to happen the way it did to catch Snake Eyes and finally stop him.
Quint said they were finding evidence that there were more victims than they thought, and by the time it was done, he’d be going away for life.
And we were here for Tyler’s graduation.
I was so happy to be going and so ridiculously proud of him.
Not only for graduating and securing a fantastic job, but for how awesome he’d been with me since I told him.
We talked almost every day now. I felt bad for the wedge it put between him and my parents, but I loved how protective he was.
His thoughtfulness reminded me of Liam, and there was no one better to be like.
“Yeah,” I repeated, squeezing Liam’s arm. “I’m better than okay. I’m so happy.”
He rolled on top of me, caging me in. “I’m so proud of you, Firefly.”
I lifted my hips, grinding against him. I’d battled my demons and won the best prize.
A little while later, we showered and got ready.
I wore a new navy and turquoise boho-style skirt with a navy top, and even though it was warm, I added the scarf Liam had bought me for a finishing touch.
Liam smiled when he saw me putting it on, and I grinned back.
He looked incredible in khaki shorts and a sky-blue polo shirt, his chest and biceps bulging in the fitted shirt.
Well, it probably wasn’t intended to be fitted, but everything was on him.
We headed down to the lobby for the free continental breakfast, made ourselves plates, and settled at a table. Then Liam asked gently, “What can I get you to drink, Firefly?”
It was still a heavy question. I’d been enjoying Liam’s mom’s tea, but I obviously couldn’t make that here, and while avoiding it made me feel like a coward, coffee still felt synonymous with making reckless, naive decisions.
Although, a few days ago at The Cozy Cup, Juliette and Nicky threw my rules back in my face and convinced me to get a s’mores coffee.
They insisted that neither coffee nor I were reckless or naive, avoiding coffee wouldn’t keep me safe, and coffee makes me happy, and I deserve to be happy.
Then we all got s’mores coffees, complete with chocolate syrup and toasted marshmallows, and guess what? It made me happy.