19. Nova
Nova
I was shaking so bad that when the elevator doors opened I could barely walk. Thankfully, Jax was there, waiting in the hallway for me. He rushed over, picked me up, spun me around, and blurted out “Marry me” at the top of his lungs.
I laughed and held on so tight that I almost blacked out.
“Well?” several voices called out from down the hallway.
I glanced over and saw my parents and Rick and Sofia all watching us from the doorway of the suite.
“Yes,” I called back to them happily.
Cheers erupted as Jax kissed me. Then my head was spinning again, only this time it was from pure happiness as everyone laughed and cheered.
An hour later, after I had showered and changed clothes, we sat around the large gathering room as everyone ate Chinese takeout.
I had gone over everything that had happened and assured Jax that Kit had only kissed my hand and wrist during those tense moments.
The earrings were back in the case with plans to sell them or give them away. There was no way I was keeping anything that man had given me.
It had taken everything in my power not to shiver with disgust or pull away as he’d pawed all over me earlier.
My uncle didn’t stick around long after I returned, but long enough to congratulate us and assure us that he’d be in attendance at our wedding. Whenever that was.
Then he’d disappeared.
Mom explained that she’d sent him a text message with the frequency of the wiretaps that Rick and Jax had placed around the dinner table.
Uncle Jonny had traced the signals to the Onyx and to the Grayson Hotel and had recorded everything.
We were all surprised to find out that he and his team had been watching Kit Sterling for almost a full year for a whole list of offenses: bribery, kickbacks, corporate fraud, money laundering, and blackmail, just to name a few.
They had more than a dozen undercover agents working at both casinos.
One agent had even moved up to be Kit’s right-hand men, but he hadn’t fully earned Kit’s trust until that very night.
The agent, Don, had finally pulled the trigger and arrested Kit shortly after I’d left, when Kit had asked the man to contact Judge Conger on his behalf.
He wanted Don to tell the judge to make sure that Jax went away for a very long time.
That, along with everything else they had, was enough proof to get the charges against Jax dropped. My mother was busy on her computer and phone, making sure everything was tied up on his case.
She assured us that we would be heading home in under two days. It couldn’t come soon enough for us.
Shortly after midnight, I curled around Jax’s naked body and purred. “How is my fiancé doing?”
He chuckled. “Your fiancé is doing wonderful. Now that his fiancée is safe and back in his arms.”
“I love you,” I said, watching the shadows cross his face.
“I love you,” he said back to me.
I shifted until I was looking down at him. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but I want to return your gift.”
His eyebrows shot up. “Oh?”
“Yes. I think I want something different, anything other than an orange Birkin 25.”
He chuckled. “What about a different color?”
I thought for a moment. “How about a bigger bag?”
He laughed. “Only if you spring for the difference with your winnings. I’ve got a wedding and honeymoon to pay for.”
“Oh, that’s right, I won a bunch of money.” I frowned. “Maybe I want to save that for my wedding dress?”
He shook his head. “Nope, your mother has already told me that’s on her. Your father said they’d be paying for most of the wedding. Something tells me they’ve been planning this for a very long time.”
“Okay, then.” I thought for a moment. “My veil?”
He laughed. “Nova, spend it on whatever you want, just as long as you’re happy.”
I leaned down and kissed him. “I love you.”
“I love you.”
The next morning, after seeing Sofia and Rick off at the airport, we headed back to the Hermès store.
To my surprise, Jax greeted the woman in the hijab behind the counter warmly.
“Yasmin, this is Nova,” Jax said with a grin. “My fiancée.”
“So she said yes?” Yasmin laughed.
“Yes, I did,” I answered happily. “My mother told me how you stood up for Jax when the police came and questioned you.”
“The man is head over heels for you. What they accused you of…” She looked to Jax and shook her head. “Besides, Robin from the jewelry store told me how much time you spent over there and how happy you were with the ring you’d picked out.”
“Ring?” I asked, glancing between them.
“Oh,” Yasmin gasped. “Did you not give it to her yet?”
“It was the next surprise stop.” Jax winced.
“You bought me a ring?” I balked.
He laughed and dryly shook his hands in the air. “Surprise.”
“Now that I’ve spoiled it, I hope you at least liked his choice of the Birkin?”
“I loved it, however, since it is the spitting image of the one the evil man who framed Jax gave me, I’d like something… different,” I explained.
Yasmine nodded. “I saw the news this morning. You are talking about Kit Sterling?” She whispered the last bit.
“Yes,” we both agreed as I set the box on the counter. “I’m hoping to spend some of the money I won at his casino to upgrade, and I’m thinking, red,” I said with a smile.
Yasmine laughed. “I have just the one.”
When we walked out of the store, I was happily carrying a large bag with my new Togo leather Hermès red Birkin 35 with silver hardware.
We walked across the hallway and stepped into the jewelry store and were greeted by a woman I assumed was Robin.
“You’re back! And this must be Nova.” The older woman beamed. “You’re a very lucky woman. Yasmine and I were talking about you two after we saw the news this morning. We ride to work together,” she whispered.
“Yasmine told us.” I laughed. “She also dropped the news that Jax picked out a ring for me.” I nudged Jax.
“She said yes. I jumped the gun before I got the ring,” Jax admitted.
“Well, it’s all ready for you,” Robin said. “I’ll just go to the back and get it. Help yourself to some coffee or water while you wait.”
For some reason those few minutes seemed to take forever. The longer it took, the more nervous I was. I don’t know why, but I was worried about the ring Jax had picked out for me. Did he really know my style?
I chuckled to myself. I had blindly trusted that he wasn’t a criminal and wouldn’t hire a sex worker, let alone traffic anyone, but I wasn’t sure he could pick out a ring?
I grew serious again. I knew how lucky I was to have a man I could trust. That kind of trust didn’t come easy, I understood. Having gone through more than a dozen boyfriends in my life, I knew firsthand that many men didn’t bat an eye at cheating on someone they confessed to love.
Still, Jax had always been different. Maybe it was because I’d been right there all along, growing up beside him? Maybe he and his brothers were just cut from better cloth. After all, my best friend was engaged to Rick.
I held in a gasp.
“What?” Jax went on guard.
“I just realized something.” I turned to him with a grin.
“What?” he asked again.
“If I marry you and Sofia marries Rick, that will officially make Sofia and me”—I paused as Jax waited—“sisters!” My grin grew.
He laughed and relaxed. “You two are going to overuse that, aren’t you?”
I pulled out my phone and quickly text Sofia this bit of news, who instantly texted me back.
“Love you, sister.”
“Love you, sister,” I replied.
Jax groaned beside me.
Then Robin stepped out holding a tiny black box.
“We figured we’d help you do this right.” She motioned, and suddenly Yasmine appeared with a bundle of red roses with two massive heart balloons attached to them. She walked over and shoved them unceremoniously into Jax’s hands as Robin slipped the small box into his leather jacket pocket.
“Go on,” they both said together. “I suspect that you know how to do the rest.” The women moved away and stood shoulder to shoulder. Yasmin pulled out her phone and recorded us as Jax laughed and got down on his knee right there in the store.
“Nova Louise Clark, I’ve been in love with you since I was eleven.
” Both women sighed. “In the past week, we’ve managed to come through, unscathed, several nefarious attempts at breaking us up.
You trusted in me when so many others, including the law, didn’t.
I love you more than any words can convey.
I want to spend the rest of my life buying you Birkins and Tommy Choos. ”
Yasmin broke in and corrected, “Jimmy Choos.”
Jax chuckled.
“Jimmy Choos, and whatever else you want. Just spend the rest of your life with me. Marry me?”
I swiped at the tears in my eyes and watched him open the small black box. Inside sat the most perfect square cut diamond I’d ever seen. The ring was as much my soulmate as Jax was.
“Jacob James Mylonas,” I started. He winced. “Jax.” He smiled. “I’ve loved you since I was eleven. I want to keep on loving you until I’m one hundred and eleven.” I watched as he slid the ring perfectly onto my finger. “Yes, I’ll marry you.”
The women cheered as he swooped me up in his arms and kissed me.