Bonus Epilogue
Dominic
The flames lick up the sides of the grand building, swallowing it whole in the center of Dallas’s Uptown district. The heat radiates across my face, but it isn’t a balm for the fucking pain. Nothing ever is.
Theo stands beside me, his jaw set into a firm line as he watches our work. Firefighters and policemen scurry around, trying to put out the flames of the Regal Gardens Event Hall. Bystanders watch in horror as the uppermost level nearly crumbles with the deteriorating structure.
“She’ll never forgive us if she finds out it was us,” I say quietly.
Theo breathes deeply, taking a cigarette out of his pack before pressing the end to the nearest flame. He takes a puff of it before grabbing my cheeks and pressing his lips to mine.
My eyes flutter closed as the warmth and taste of him wash over me. He’s always felt like coming home, but we both know there’s something missing. Something we crave more than air itself.
He exhales the smoke into my lungs, and we share it before he pulls away. “She won’t find out.”
She’s too smart for that.
Bailey—the object of our obsession and the very reason we keep pushing. What started as something small years ago has grown terminal. She’s been at the center of it all and has no idea. Every fight. Every late night. Every time we touch someone who resembles her.
It’s never enough for us. We can’t fake what only she can replicate. We can’t deceive ourselves into moving on anymore.
It’s no longer a want to be by her side. It’s a burning need.
“I’m so tired of waiting,” I admit.
“I know, Bug,” Theo says as he wraps an arm around my waist and pulls me closer.
The nickname brings me a little comfort at this time. We still have each other.
The city hums around us, distant traffic bleeding into the night, but all I hear is the pulse pounding behind my eyes.
Waiting.
That’s all we’ve ever done.
Waiting for Bailey to notice us.
Waiting for her to choose us.
Waiting for the impossible moment when the empty space inside our chests finally closes.
But we’re done waiting now. There is no more mercy or grace for Liam. We refuse to lose to someone who doesn’t see her worth—doesn’t worship the ground she walks on.
“We’ll burn it all to the fucking ground,” I say with conviction.
My husband turns to me, that sly smirk I fell in love with all those years ago rebirthing on his handsome features. “Then let it burn. Some things deserve to be reduced to ash before they’re rebuilt the right way.”