Extended Epilogue
Naomi
We’re leaving for Europe in two days, and I couldn’t be more excited.
We’re starting in London before moving on to Paris, Venice, Munich and then who knows?
I’ve decided to put a hold on school now that I have my bachelor’s degree; besides, where better to get raw journalistic experience than on the road?
Mom doesn’t like the idea of us running wild in Europe, but I remind her that it’s safer than her spending most every night in bed with the president of a motorcycle club.
That tends to silence her fairly quickly.
I’ve adjusted to the idea that Anthony Sr isn’t my real father; that Jerry is. It makes sense now that he left, and Mom was obviously in the wrong for having an affair.
She and I sat down and talked about everything that happened back then. How she grew up with Jerry and Matthew. How she would hang out at the club before she had any of us. How she and Jerry quickly fell in love, and how he pushed her away when things got too dangerous.
Then she met Anthony Sr, they got married, had Anthony and Nick, and then…
she and Jerry reconnected. It was like no time had passed.
She hated the sneaking around and the lying, but she would never and could never expose her kids to the club’s lifestyle.
So they ended things again, and I was a parting gift of sorts.
Anthony had felt Mom pulling away and had suspicions about my paternity, since they were rarely intimate during that time. And when it was confirmed he wasn’t my father, he just packed up and left.
I get not wanting to have anything to do with me and Mom, but the boys? They deserved better.
Jerry seems to be a pretty decent man honestly. I already had a good opinion of him, from the stories Kolter’s told me about his childhood, plus the whole saving-my-life thing. But he makes my mom so happy, happier than I’ve ever seen her in my life, and that is worth everything.
I know I’m probably being too harsh, rejecting him constantly. I should give him a chance, give us both a chance to form… I don’t know, some kind of a relationship. And I will. Someday. Maybe.
I do my best to push all of that away for now. Tonight is girls’ night, the last one we’ll get for quite some time.
Arianna’s bump is growing by the day, and she’s due in less than three months. I already told Kolter that when it gets close to her due date, we’re flying back. There’s no way I’m missing out on my best friend’s baby for anything.
Arianna and Logan eloped, which Cassi and I incessantly give her crap for, because how could she not invite us to the wedding?
They wanted it to be simple and intimate, and honestly that’s perfect for them.
We all know that Cassi’s wedding will be none of those things, so we’ll be able to celebrate enough for both couples.
Nico proposed in the most dramatic way possible—perfect for Cassi.
He filled an entire restaurant with roses and candles and hired a string quartet to play beneath a huge heart lit up with the words “Will you marry me?” He also hired a videographer to capture every moment, and when I tell you Cassi bawled like a baby, I’m not exaggerating in the slightest.
Since then, she references her fiancé, the wedding or some other wedding-related event in every other conversation, and it makes me smile every time. Each of my friends deserve the world, and it seems they’ve both landed men who’re willing to give it to them.
Kolter has asked me several times if I want to take that next step with him.
I mean, honestly, it’s a stupid question.
Of course I do, but also, I don’t feel the need to rush things.
I don’t need a ring to prove that he’s mine or I’m his.
We’ve belonged to each other since the moment we met.
A legal document from the state isn’t going to change that.
For now, we’re enjoying our quiet, peaceful life, content to celebrate our friends’ happiness, but when the time is right, we will absolutely throw the party of a lifetime, where I’ll do my absolute best to soak up every moment while staying out of the spotlight as much as possible. Wish me luck on that.
“I can’t believe you’re going on a backpacking trip through Europe with Kolter. Like, is anyone else having a hard time wrapping their head around the fact that our sweet little Nay bae is dating her brother? I’m just so proud,” Cassi teases.
I roll my eyes and toss a dinner roll at her—thankfully, we decided to order room service instead of eating out—and she laughs.
“Says the woman who’s engaged to her sister’s ex-boyfriend,” Arianna says before taking a huge bite of chocolate cake.
“Coming from the woman who’s married to her ex-stepfather and pregnant with his baby,” I point out.
Arianna swallows the cake and throws me an outraged look. “Hey! I was standing up for you, bitch.”
We all laugh, then Cassi shakes her head.
“We are kind of a fucked-up bunch, huh? Like, imagine the movies they could make about our lives.”
I shrug. “I’d watch them.”
Arianna nods. “Too bad it would never happen. Logan and I have kinky sex way too often.”
Cassi snaps her fingers in response, then we dissolve into fits of laughter.
“I’m going to miss you guys,” I sigh.
“Us too, babe,” Arianna says.
“But we’ll all get together soon for our sweet baby niece,” Cassi says, rubbing Arianna’s belly lovingly.
Ari rolls her eyes. “I told you we aren’t finding out what the baby is until it’s born.”
Cassi waves her off like the comment is irrelevant. “I’m manifesting—leave me alone, okay?”
Ari shakes her head and finishes her cake before pushing the plethora of room service plates away from us.
“Alright, notification check—what do you ladies got?” Cassi asks as she scrolls through her phone.
“I have one missed call, two text messages and a random reel,” Arianna says.
Cassi laughs. “I’ll raise your missed call with two and three text messages.”
I pull out my phone and shake my head. “Three missed calls, one missed FaceTime, two text messages and a voicemail demanding to know if I’m okay.”
The girls laugh.
“Okay, surprise, surprise—Naomi wins most overbearing spouse for the night.”
“Lucky me,” I scoff.
“I mean, to be fair, your man was literally a criminal. He’s used to no answer meaning someone’s dead,” Arianna points out.
“Criminal is harsh,” I say.
“But true,” Cassi cuts in.
They actually love Kolter—they always have, ever since we were kids. After I told them everything that happened—from the mafia trying to take us out to his own father pulling a gun on me—they’ve adopted this theory that Kolter is a hardened criminal. Which, I guess when he needs to be, sure.
Cassi perks up, a wicked smile spreading over her face as she looks around the room. “I have an idea.”
She quickly types out a text, then shows it to us before sending in. Arianna and I smile and send the same text to our guys before we get up and get dressed.
We’re going out tonight. Maybe to a club or something like it. You can meet us if you want.
In less than an hour, we’re dressed and standing inside the main entrance of the sex club where all this began. A rush of familiarity hits me, and yet everything feels different.
As if the guys were all together already, they pile into the club as one, quickly scanning the room before their eyes land on us.
Logan wraps his arm around Arianna and yanks her into a kiss before leading her upstairs, while Nico lifts Cassi up and hauls her off in the other direction. Kolter, though? He stalks towards me like he has all the time in the world. Like I’d wait a hundred lifetimes for him.
Probably because I would.
When he reaches me, he pulls me close, claiming me for all to see before pulling away.
“You think you can just walk into my club anytime you feel like it without me by your side?” he rumbles.
A smile tugs at my mouth as I loop my arms around his neck. “What’s yours is mine, right?”
I grind myself against him, and he lets out a groan as his hold on me turns punishing.
“You’ve got that fucking right, Peaches.”
Without a single warning, Kolter scoops me up into his arms and begins carrying me away. I can’t help but giggle as he climbs the stairs, pushing us into the first room available before locking the door.
It’s crazy to think how much has changed. How much we’ve been through. How different we’ve all become. How everything started here.
One moment.
One touch.
One night.