Epilogue
“I finally get to hold my baby,” Miranda said, a bundle of energy next to me. “When they bring it out, no matter what it looks like, I’m going to love it.”
“You would think you’re talking about Wrenly’s kid, the way you’re talking,” I said distractedly while looking at a Zellon necklace I wanted to buy for my upcoming fashion show debut as a designer.
“I’ll love her baby, too, but mine will be prettier. Be happy for me, Sophia. After all the scrimping, saving, and waiting, I’m finally going to hold my custom Zellon piece for the first time.”
“Scrimping? Pfft. You mean pimping.”
She scoffed.
“What you call pimping, I call babysitting, and I earned every penny Konni paid me. We need to go out again soon. It’s been a month.”
“You stopped asking me out for drinks at Lunar once you placed this order.” I tore my gaze from the necklace and narrowed my eyes at her. “Let me guess. You want to order another piece, don’t you? Count me out. Get another friend drunk.”
“But my only other friend is pregnant and not a freaky, horny drunk like you are.”
The clerk, standing nearby in case we wanted to try something on, snickered softly. I shot Miranda a “behave” look.
“Don’t act shy now,” she said with a smirk. “Pretty sure everyone in Lunar heard your spankathon plans last time we were there, and that was before you got drunk.”
“I’m still questioning why we’re friends.”
“Because I slapped the sense back into your father. Twice.”
I smirked because she wasn’t wrong. I loved her for the first slap at the welcome ceremony, but even more for the second one.
After his charges were dismissed and he divorced Charlotte, he’d tried contacting Mom. To “make amends,” he’d wanted to return her portion of TAS shares—the company they’d built together. The same company the Steeles had blacklisted the day he and Charlotte had been taken away.
Miranda had driven to his house and sent Mom and me a video of him on his knees with another handprint on his face as he promised never to contact us again.
In the months since, he hadn’t. He’d been too busy liquidating assets and sending poor Charlie to live with Frances so he could vanish from Motan.
My life was better, calmer, without Dad in it.
“That second one seemed to have worked,” I said. “Frances mentioned he’s in Ardmont, trying to reestablish himself. He signed over Charlie’s guardianship in exchange for one hundred thousand dollars.”
“Ugh. He’s a piece of shit.”
I nodded and continued to the next case to check for anything else new since our last visit. Since there wasn’t, I returned to the necklace and asked to try it on.
Miranda weighed the pros and cons of the piece with me.
“You know you can afford it,” she said finally. “Just get it.”
“It’s not about affording it. It’s about giving it a good home like it deserves. This designer’s work is meant to be seen, not stored away. And I’m not sure I’ll be able to wear it often enough to give it the love it deserves.”
Miranda pretended to dab tears from the corner of her eyes.
“You have such a good heart, Sophia. If any of your jewelry adoptions need more love and attention, send them to Aunty Miranda.”
The clerk laughed again, and I rolled my eyes at Miranda.
“You’re going to have enough to take care of,” I said.
She grinned and leaned a hip on the counter as she gave me her full attention.
“I promise to take great care of your babies too. When’s the next fitting? I’m dying to see them.”
“In a few weeks.”
“Weeks?” she said with a whine.
“I need more space, which is why you’re with me today.”
She made a dismissive sound. “I’ve seen where you live. There’s plenty of space.”
“And distraction. I need workspace.”
She smirked. “Does the new Mr. know you’re running away? Getting cold feet for the joining ceremony.”
I looked at the clerk.
“Can you go check on her order, please?”
The clerk nodded, and Miranda chuckled, already pulling out her phone.
“Text him and no dresses,” I said.
She pouted and tucked the phone away.
“He would have paid well for that tip.”
“You mean lie. I’m fully committed to forever with Konni, and he knows it. He also knows I need space, which is why we’re looking at the Southside building today, somewhere where he can’t drop in and interrupt my work hourly.”
She sighed and tapped her fingers on the glass case, likely brainstorming another way to shake Konni down for cash.
“Have you bought the baby a welcome gift yet?” I asked to distract her.
Before she could answer, the clerk returned with another woman, carrying an ornate silver tray—the small box on its surface as handcrafted as the custom jewelry inside.
Miranda let out an excited squeal, her fast cash scheme completely forgotten.
The woman set the tray on the case, wearing the white gloves Miranda had insisted on so no one but the mysterious designer had touched the piece. Zellon catered to enough snooty rich people that they hadn’t even blinked at the request when Miranda had placed the order.
“Would you like to inspect the pin?” the woman asked.
Miranda nodded and leaned in as the woman opened the small jewelry box.
A gold and diamond scarf pin rested on black velvet.
Miranda inhaled deeply and let out a contented sigh.
“It’s perfect,” she said. “Please wrap it up for me. I’ll carry it out.”
The woman nodded and accepted a bag from the clerk.
A brisk fall wind stole my breath when we left a few minutes later, but I didn’t mind. Colder temps meant longer nights and more snuggles with my dragon.
Harlow opened the door for us, and we quickly got in.
“I can’t believe I finally have it,” Miranda said, clutching the bag.
I thought she meant the jewelry until she added, “It’s subtle but there. I bet he wore gloves while working on it.”
“Huh?”
“Zellon’s enigmatic designer. It’s only a matter of time before I find him now that I have his scent. Then he’s mine.”
Harlow met my gaze in the mirror.
“Please tell me you’re not hunting him down,” he said.
She grinned at him.
“I’m not a slow-pursuit kind of person like you, Harlow. The thrill of a quick hunt is in my blood. How long are you going to make Abbye wait to make things official?”
Miranda loved asking him about his relationship with my mom every time she saw him. It never fazed him, though. Miranda said he was steady with his emotions, a rare trait.
Although he and Mom had gone out a few times, they were taking things slow, not even calling their outings dates. If Mom ever decided to marry again, I hoped it was with someone like Harlow. Steady. Reliable. Good looking too. I wouldn’t mind calling him “Dad” someday.
“I’m giving you an opportunity to show me how it’s done,” he said smoothly.
Miranda snorted.
“You could tell by the scent it’s a male?” I asked.
She made a face. “No. I’m optimistic.”
“What if it’s a woman or a gay man?”
“If it’s a straight woman, I have an opening in my friend circle. You did tell me I needed to find someone else to drink with. And if it’s a gay man, that’s easy. He can flip me over and pretend.”
Harlow made a choked sound, and I shook my head at her.
Miranda used the rest of the ride to plan her hunting strategy, breaking down Motan into searchable sectors.
“Downtown will be easy since I’m there every day,” she said. “If you get a place on the southside, that’d make searching there easier, too. You’re going to add somewhere to sleep when you work late, right?”
Harlow coughed another laugh as he eased the car to the curb. The neighborhood showed its age—boarded windows, rusted security bars, peeling paint.
“Here?” he asked, showing his doubt.
Where he saw urban decay, I saw promise. Older buildings with good bones, similar to the ones downtown. Brick facades, tall windows, and wide sidewalks. Elements I could work with.
And Steele Corp’s Southside build project was only a few neighborhoods away, which meant this area wouldn't stay rough forever.
“Yep, here.”
As he got out to open the door, I spotted Bennett parked ahead, opening the door for Wrenly.
“Damn,” I said softly to Miranda. “I think she got bigger since Wednesday. Are we sure it’s only one baby?”
She snickered and got out with me.
“No need to wait for us,” I said to Harlow. “It’ll be girl time, plus one, after this.”
He nodded and got back into the car as we headed for Wrenly, who was waiting for us to join her.
“You look like you’re smuggling a beach ball,” I said, hugging her.
“I feel like it and am ready to welcome our new baby howler any day.”
“Not until we’re closer to the hospital,” Bennett said.
Wrenly wrinkled her nose at me. “He’s making Dr. Giovanni sleep in the on-call rooms at Phoenix Health until the baby’s here.”
“And I’m paying him for it,” Bennett said.
Miranda perked up. “If you need me to be on call for anything, I’m willing.”
I rolled my eyes at Wrenly. “She’s already saving for her next custom order.”
Miranda shrugged at the same time the door of the building behind us opened.
“Hi, Sophia,” the realtor called. “It’s good to see you again. Are you ready to look around?”
Excited, I headed for the door first.
He stepped aside with a polite smile. “Take your time.”
Inside, the place smelled like dust and old paint, but that didn’t detract from what I saw. Endless possibility.
Sunlight poured through the tall front windows and stretched across scuffed wood floors. The space was bigger than the listing photos had suggested—wide enough for displays along the walls and a runway of open floor between them.
My mind immediately started rearranging everything.
Mirrors there. Mannequins along that wall. A long worktable toward where the light was better. Dividing a section of the space off to create fitting rooms, and maybe a private space like Miranda had suggested.
“Okay,” Miranda said slowly, walking farther in. “This is good.”
“This is more than good,” I said, looking up at the impressive ceiling height.