42. Epilogue
Epilogue
Frankie
Tonight was the night. It had to be. Too much time had passed in their relationship for Frankie not to take the leap.
“Diane thinks you’re ready, so just go slow , ” she muttered, checking herself out in the mirror.
Even with the low hum of her bathroom fan, Frankie could hear the muted conversation in the living room between Evan and their mother, Leah Landry.
In the past ten months, she’d gotten comfortable enough with the older woman that leaving her and Evan alone to chat didn’t make her feel like a bad hostess.
Leah was a wonderfully eccentric woman whom Frankie adored, but besides their mutual love of Evan, they had little in common.
Frankie found her attention with the older Landry waning at the best of times, but tonight especially.
She pulled the drawer open on the vanity, retrieving her rouge lipstick.
She puckered her lips, reapplying the makeup as she held a steady gaze with her reflection.
Evan might not know it yet, but once they got Leah out the door for the night, Frankie planned to take the terrifying next step in their relationship.
For the second time that she could remember, she’d have sex without a whip or restraint in sight.
If Evan would have her, then Frankie wanted to know what it felt like to be touched, to have pleasure pulled from every longing facet of her body by her love’s careful ministrations.
And she would not panic. Surely, enough time and therapy sessions had passed for that not to be an issue. Diane thinks I’m ready, and so do I . Frankie took a deep breath, returned her lipstick to its drawer, and left the bathroom.
“That one took me ten hours to complete. I already sold several prints of it, but so far no one’s grabbed up the original.
It’s worth too much to just give away, you know?
” Evan was telling Leah as Frankie entered the decorated living room.
They were lounging on the sectional, Leah on one end, with the large coffee table sitting between them.
Evan was proudly showing off one of their favorite illustrations to date, of a woman wearing an open blouse, lacey lingerie beneath, bent over and straddling a lover.
The model’s breasts— Frankie’s breasts—were practically falling out of the snug bra.
In the last ten months, she’d found pieces of herself used as the inspiration for Evan’s art on several occasions.
Her hands, strong and calloused as they sometimes were, or her lips made to appear full and sensuous, her thighs or the curve of her ass, both naked and clothed, depending on the illustration.
Frankie didn’t mind. It was rather flattering, and if she was honest, she’d rather it be her intimate features on display as opposed to Evan bringing random women home to model for them. Just the thought raised her hackles.
She only hoped Leah had enough sense not to comment if she recognized the woman Evan was so proudly showing off.
Nestling in beside Evan on the sofa, Frankie didn’t miss their look of surprise as she slid an arm around their shoulders.
She couldn’t blame them. It wasn’t too often that she got affectionate in front of Leah.
It might be ridiculous, but if Leah was ever made aware, there would be a laundry list of things she’d no doubt despise Frankie for.
If she could help it, overt displays of PDA with Leah’s only living child wouldn’t be one of them.
“It’s a gorgeous piece, honey. They all are.
” Leah smiled, picking up another of Evan’s illustrations.
This one was drawn at the park during the fall.
It was done in black ink, but the falling leaves and the person wearing a jacket as they walked their dog painted the scenery where color hadn’t.
“I think you’ve really blossomed as an artist, even just in the few months since I last saw you. ”
“Thanks, Mom. I started practicing with calligraphy brush ink, and it’s like a whole other level.
” Frankie didn’t need to see Evan’s face to know they were blushing.
They still had a long way to go when it came to their artistic confidence, but Leah was right.
Evan had come a long way skill-wise from the sketches they’d been making when she first met her little thief.
Frankie didn’t cut into the conversation with her input, but Evan knew how she felt.
By now she must have been their biggest fan.
Their apartment was proof of that fact, as a good portion of the walls held at least one of Evan’s art pieces.
She squeezed their shoulder in silent support, glancing around at the many Christmas decorations Leah had helped them with two days before.
Frankie couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt remotely festive; three Christmases ago, maybe, before her big fight with Auntie B.
This holiday season was light-years away from the last in everything that mattered to Frankie.
She was closer to her family than ever; she was sharing her home with the love of her life, a submissive she’d only dared to dream of before, and Leah was once again in Evan’s life. They were free of Cecil’s poison.
“Well, I better get going,” Leah mentioned a while later, before helping herself to yet another of the cookies Sawyer had gifted them with.
She moaned her appreciation, bits of crumb slipping down her sweater as she got to her feet.
“The Holiday is showing at nine, and I don’t want to miss it. Right in the comfort of my hotel room.”
Frankie suppressed a smile as Leah bent down for another cookie. Sawyer and her daughter, Bree, were excellent bakers, she’d give them that. “Would you like to take the rest back with you?” she asked, standing as well. Evan was close on her heels.
“Oh no, I couldn’t. Well, maybe I’ll take one.
” The small woman swiped up another two, jerkily shoving them into a napkin before they disappeared into her purse.
In the months since she’d known her, it was rare for Frankie to find Leah not munching on something.
Evan sent her an apologetic look, but she patted their hand in reassurance.
Leah’s eccentricity didn’t bother her one bit.
If anything, she considered it endearing.
She was glad Leah was doing well again. Visiting her in the hospital, in a whole other province, had been hard on Evan.
Especially at first when they’d had to explain their broken arm.
“Thanks for helping with the shopping today. Merry Christmas, Mom,” Evan said when they were at the door. They wrapped Leah up in a hug, kissing her cheek. “See you tomorrow.”
“Are you sure I can’t drive you? Or I can call an Uber,” Frankie offered, although she’d much prefer the second option. If it took much longer to get Evan alone, she feared she’d chicken out of the whole thing.
“I’ll be fine, honey.” Leah opened her arms to Frankie, pulling her into a gentle embrace.
Her hugs weren’t warm and safe like Auntie B’s, but considering they were closer in age than she knew Leah preferred, it was a welcoming peace offering Frankie had come to expect.
When Leah released her, she brandished a knife from her purse with a smirk.
“It’s only a few blocks, and I’ve got this.
Us Landry/Deroche bunch are tough cookies, right, baby?
” She directed the question to Evan, reaching out to gently pat their cheek with the tips of her fingers.
And then she was disappearing over the apartment’s threshold and down the stairs, leaving Frankie and Evan to stare mutely after her.
Finally, Frankie closed the door and relocked it, huffing a soft laugh as she glanced at Evan.
Her heart did the usual skip, dance, and melt it usually did whenever she saw them, but she didn’t let it control her.
She probably would never be a hyper-romantic woman who gushed over their lover all the time, but Evan knew exactly how she felt.
“Your mother is quite something, little thief.” It was hard to believe she’d spent a year in a psych ward, though Frankie had her suspicions that Cecil might have had something to do with it.
“And I know you’d rather she stay with us, but I’m still not over her walking in on us the last visit. We need space.”
Evan let out the cutest giggle. Just bringing it up had them blushing. “To be fair, it was in the living room.”
“Exactly.” Frankie smiled, wrapping her arms around Evan’s waist. She rested her forehead against theirs, adding softly. “I clearly can’t control myself when it comes to you if I forgot your mother was asleep in the apartment.”
“It’s okay. I’m just glad she’s close by this Christmas.” Evan tilted their face up, catching Frankie’s lips in a soft kiss. Then, almost as an afterthought, they pulled away to frown. “You think she’ll be fine walking home?”
“Are you kidding? Did you see that knife?” Frankie rubbed Evan’s back in a soothing gesture. “If Leah is anything like you, then I have no doubt.”
Now that they were in each other’s lives again, Frankie knew Evan spent a good amount of time worrying about their mother.
Funny how that happened. It was the same for Frankie and her uncle.
She’d rarely thought of her family in the last few years.
Work had often taken precedence in her mind.
Now that she was speaking and visiting with them on a regular basis again, Eamon’s condition was often on her mind.
Evan disappeared to take a shower, muttering that they still smelled like the deep fryer from their shift at the pub earlier.
While Frankie liked to keep it open over the holidays, she shortened the hours and reduced the menu by half to better accommodate her staff.
Now that Evan was in her life, she’d made a point to schedule enough people so that she wouldn’t need to make an appearance at all tomorrow.