Scarlett’s Epilogue
SCARLETT’S EPILOGUE
Six months later
I can smell the dinner Nico’s cooking before I even open the door.
It took me a while to get used to it. When I first moved in, I slipped right back into the habits I’d adopted during my first marriage. I cleaned religiously, and I had dinner on the table by the time Nico would get home.
On our fifth day of living together, Nico hid all the cleaning supplies and physically removed me from the kitchen.
Nowadays, we split the household chores. When Nico cooks, I clean up after. We both do surface-level cleans, but I prefer to do the deep cleans. We’ve created a partnership, instead of living by roles defined by gender stereotypes.
Nico looks up when I walk into the apartment. He’s standing at the kitchen island, chopping vegetables with a dish towel thrown over his shoulder.
Nobody prepared me for how hot the domesticated look is.
“Hey, baby,” he greets with a smile, putting the knife down to wipe his hands. “You’re home early.”
“Professor let us out early,” I say, dropping my bag in the entryway. Before walking over to Nico, I squat down next to our couch and scratch behind the ears of our sleeping dog.
The same dog that stole my heart that day at the rescue clinic.
“Hi, Kimbo,” I coo, smiling when his tail starts to thump against the cushions. “Did you give up on begging Daddy for scraps?”
“More like he filled up on scraps he conned from me,” Nico mutters. “I swear, his puppy dog eyes rival yours.”
I straighten and make my way over to my boyfriend. When I reach him, I tuck into his arms in a way that feels more natural than breathing. “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I say with an innocent smile.
“Yeah, okay,” he mutters. But he’s smiling as he presses a kiss to my hair.
I don’t think I’ll ever get enough of this easy intimacy between us. Out of all the things I love about being with Nico, this is the thing that has made me feel the safest.
“How was your day?” he murmurs against my temple, tightening his arms around me. “Did you have the meeting with your academic advisor?”
Giddy about the topic, I pull back enough to meet his eyes. “I did. We made a plan for the classes I’ll enroll in next semester, and we pulled all my application materials together that masters programs usually need.”
His eyes light up instantly. No one gets more excited for my academic success than Nico Price. “Yeah? That’s amazing.”
I suck in a deep breath. “Now I just need to take the GRE and figure out where I want to apply.”
He softens at that and pulls me into his arms again. “I’m so proud of you, baby,” he murmurs, nuzzling into my neck.
I melt into his embrace, a happy smile forming on my lips. I’ll never get tired of his unconditional love.
“And how was your day?” I mumble into his chest.
I both hear and feel his warm chuckle. His hand brushes over my hair as he says, “It was good. Spent the morning having Lucas walk me through the gym’s legal stuff so I can finally get added as a partner, and then I held pads for one of the guys getting ready for his pro debut.
Not much different than my usual day, honestly. ”
At that, I pull back so I can look up at him again. “Do you ever miss the fighting part?”
He smiles and shakes his head as he reaches to tuck a strand of hair behind my ear. “Never. The only thing I ever miss is you during the day.”
“Such a charmer,” I try to tease. Pushing up onto my toes, I press my lips to his.
With a soft groan, he takes control of the kiss. His arm around my waist tightens and his other hand sinks into my hair so he can tilt his head and deepen the connection. The moment his tongue slides across mine, I surrender with a breathy moan.
The only reason we break apart is because the oven timer goes off. If it weren’t for that, Nico likely would’ve been two seconds away from lifting me onto the counter. Ever since we moved in together, his hunger for me seems to have grown.
Before I met Nico, I sometimes wondered about what a sex life would feel like after working as an escort. If I’d ever flash back to clients, or if I’d ever truly be able to enjoy sex without my baggage.
I wish I could’ve told myself that I’d never even think of my past. That having sex with a partner you love and trust more than anyone else is an incomparable experience.
Plus, he consistently knocks every other thought from my head.
Nico pulls away with a sigh to turn off the timer. “I’m half tempted to cancel this dinner tonight.”
“No, you’re not,” I say with a chuckle. “You love when we host your family.”
Another sigh, this one coupled with a fond smile. “Yeah, you’re right.”
I watch as he pulls a pan from the oven. “Do you want me to help?”
“No, I do not,” he says as he returns to chopping vegetables. “Your only job is to sit there and look pretty. Do you want a glass of wine?”
That warmth in my chest bubbles over.
“Yes, but I can get it,” I say, shifting around him to grab a wineglass from the cabinet. But before I pull out a bottle of wine, I press another kiss to the corner of his lips.
“I love you,” I whisper with a smile. Every day, I wish there was a better way to say that, that some words existed that might express even a shred of my love and appreciation and gratitude for this man, but I haven’t yet found them.
It doesn’t matter, though. Nico knows. I see it in the way he smiles at me, and the way he takes my lips in a kiss of his own.
He opens his mouth to say something, but before he gets the chance, there’s a knock on the door.
His head drops with an annoyed exhale. “I’m getting pretty sick of these interruptions.”
I giggle as I place my wineglass on the counter. “Don’t worry, we’ll have all the time in the world tonight,” I tell him in a sultry whisper as I pass by him.
“I’m going to hold you to that, Red,” he growls.