49. Tyson
FORTY-NINE
TYSON
ONE MONTH LATER
For the first time in my life, I’m free.
No fathers to take orders from, no hospitals telling me what my own body is capable of, and most importantly, no ruthless murderers attempting to steal something from me.
Now, I spend my days soaking in the sunshine, but with all the down time, I’ve found myself accepting side jobs from old acquaintances, even against Massi’s pleas to stay out of the business.
Fortunately, I’m one of the best hackers in the game, and with Emory still in complete disarray, every Family on the East Coast is wrestling for power, attempting to rule the quadrant of the Hudson with the best resources.
My tech skills are in high demand, even through the overseas channels I’ve hidden my business through, and while we came to this tiny island with enough money to live comfortably for the rest of our lives, I’ve pulled six figures just by retrieving info for any Family who asks.
Of course, while I still have one foot in the door, Massi is totally out of the Family life, but more often than not, I catch him checking our weapons stock, or aggressively working out at the local gym, trying to distract himself from the violence he’s been lacking.
It’s been quite the change, but we’re adjusting as well as you’d expect for kids who grew up in the mafia, and have never been away from the nonstop action and chaos.
“Ty, what do you think?” Massi asks, ripping me from my thoughts, but I shake my head at his offering, knowing it’s not right.
“Carter would absolutely smack you upside the head if she were here,” I say, and he sighs, moving onto the next option, but I’d stay in this spot for days, our devotion to this mission the most important thing on our plates.
We’re honoring our girl, and we’re doing it fucking right, even if it kills us.
Three hours later, Massi and I have finally come to an agreement, but thankfully, we’ve blocked off the entire day for this, and there’s only one stop left before we finally put this to rest.
“Are you ready for this?” I ask him, glancing over at him in the passenger seat, his hands unable to stay still as he inspects everything we’ve brought, even though our drive is only five minutes long.
“There’s nothing I want to do more. We’re closing this chapter, for good,” he answers robotically, but meticulously picks at his suit, ensuring his collar is unbuttoned just right, and rolling up the sleeves of his shirt to his elbows.
Rolling my eyes, I let him work through whatever emotions he’s hiding from me, confident in what I’m feeling, and how I’m going about this.
Massi is as informal as they come, always in a rush to get the big thing out of the way, but I’m approaching this hurdle head on, knowing that when it’s all over, I’ll finally be able to move forward with my life.
Within minutes, the beach comes into view, the sun just beginning to set over the horizon, and the people I hired to decorate the beach absolutely nailed the vision I had in my head.
Tonight, we’re proposing to Carter Cassini.
In true fashion, I spared no expense, bringing out the sappy romantic in me that has always been desperate to spoil Carter exactly as she deserves.
“Now you’re the one who’s getting smacked,” Massi laughs, shooting me a playful grin as he finally sees the lengths I’ve gone to, ensuring this evening is perfect.
“She’ll be here in ten minutes, the pilates class is just finishing,” I remind him, checking my watch one last time before gathering my bouquet, and stepping into place.
We landed on this island the night after our ambush with Carter’s father, going as far away as a private jet would take us, but she hasn’t been the same since that fateful day.
Murdering her father, and facing off with her abuser, took a toll on her mental health, but Massi and I vowed to help her through the manic periods that followed, and after she spent a week in bed, we took matters into our own hands.
It was a tall task, finding a therapist Carter could be open and honest with, but even with our aliases airtight, I scoured the dark web for someone who could help her, and finally, we found a former mob wife who helps women escape their husbands.
This week, she suggested Carter take on a new hobby, something to point her pent up aggression toward, and she settled on a pilates class, which has really helped with her depressive moods.
Of course, it’s not a magic cure, more like a bandaid, but Carter was put through a lot mentally, and physically, and tonight, we’re celebrating not only her small wins, but our love, too.
Massi stands beside me, matching bouquet of black roses in hand, as we wait for her to take her nightly stroll down the coast line, but without a clue that we’re here.
There are candles and rose petals lined along the sand, as well as a long white runner that leads to where we’re standing, suit-clad and ready to commit our lives to the girl who deserves the entire universe, but will have to settle for our hands in marriage.
After what feels like a lifetime, but is only a few minutes, Carter finally rounds the corner, her baby blue eyes locking onto us the second she steps off the short boardwalk and onto the white sand.
“What is all this?” She squeals, dropping her gym bag and stalking toward us, a smile bigger than the sky painted on her beautiful face.
“Just fulfilling a promise, my little island princess,” Massi answers, stepping forward and reaching for her hand, guiding her along the path until she’s right in front of us, craning her neck to meet our gazes.
Since we became beach bums, Carter has let go of the insecurities regarding her scars, choosing to embrace the skin she’s in, and tonight is no different as she dons a dark purple tank top, black workout shorts, and a pair of flip flops.
“You could’ve at least let me get dressed up,” she groans, motioning toward her outfit, but I shake my head, not allowing her to think any less of herself.
“You look absolutely beautiful, baby girl. Now, can we do this right?” I ask, knowing that Carter always likes to have a word, but hoping she’ll give us the floor, just this once.
“Please,” she smirks, taking my hand in hers, while reaching for Massi’s, interlocking us all as her eyes shift between the two of us.
“Principessina, you are the other half of me. I’ve always said that there’s no better partner in death, but tonight, I’m asking for much more than that.
I love you more than anything this ordinary world has to offer, but will you make me one of the two happiest men on Earth, and be my partner in life?
” Massi starts, bending down on one knee and delivering the speech of a lifetime, but I’ve heard it before, the two of us rehearsing this every chance we could.
Before Carter can answer him, I too, get down on one knee, copying Massi’s stance as I inhale a breath, not letting myself get choked up until I get this off my chest.
“We’ve done a lot of things, the three of us together, but nothing would be complete if we didn’t ask you to be our wife, baby girl.
You are the missing piece, the most magnificent creature this universe has ever created, and without you, there is no us.
Carter Cassini, will you marry us?” I finish, Massi and I simultaneously pulling the rings from the lapels of our jackets, exactly as we practiced.
This is one of the most important moments of our lives, and ever since we arrived on this island, I’ve meticulously planned every detail of this evening, and to my surprise, Massi has been all in at every step, his devotion to perfection not faltering, even when we rehearsed how this would go like kids at choir practice.
Diamonds sparkle under the sun’s glow as we offer Carter the world, but she barely takes a second to process our words, jumping up and down in the sand as the three letter syllable we’ve been desperate to hear leaves her lips.
“Yes, and yes!” She shrieks, and we both exhale a breath, the relief flooding my body instantly as I race to remove the ring from its box, eager to put the symbol of my love exactly where it belongs.
The black diamonds I had imported onto the island by a private jeweler were all stunning, but the ring I chose is teardrop-shaped, acting as the centerpiece to thousands of tiny silver diamonds, and just as I imagined, every single one shimmers against her tan skin as she holds her hand in the air, admiring the stone against the sun's light.
“It’s beautiful,” she breathes, pesky tears clouding her lash line, but for once, they aren’t of sadness, and instead of swiping them away, she allows them to freely stream down her cheeks.
“My turn, Principessina!” Jasper cheers like a little kid, the excitement radiating off his bones as his ring slides onto her left hand, the band littered with black diamonds as it slips into place like it was made exactly for her — and it was.
Having to be creative, we tried a million different ways to get her ring size perfect, but Carter is too fucking smart, so eventually, we just fucked her into oblivion, waited until she fell asleep, and Massi was able to make a mold of her finger from a loose tie that belonged to a bread bag.
It wasn’t our finest moment, but the rings fit perfectly on her petite fingers, and that’s all I care about.
In stark contrast, Jasper’s ring is intricately designed, creating a crest that holds up a blood-red diamond, sitting atop the black stones like a queen on its throne.
He wouldn’t rest until he found something that matched Carter’s spirit, and when the jeweler pulled this from his collection, he nearly fainted, and I couldn’t agree more with the choice, fitting Carter’s personality like it was crafted to be hers.
“I can’t believe this. You two just love to spoil me,” she says, jumping into our waiting arms as we return to standing form, catching her with ease as we receive kisses on both our cheeks, the two of us attempting to hold her steady.
“You’re in for a long night, my little fiancee,” Massi hums, stealing her away from me, her legs latching around his waist until they’re nose to nose.
Letting them have their moment, I can’t help but beam with pride at how well this first portion of the evening went.
Admittedly, I was nervous, not because I thought she’d say no, but the anxiety swelled through me as the clock ticked away, the idea of something going wrong paralyzing my thoughts, no matter how hard I tried to stuff them down.
“Welcome home, baby girl.” I unlock the door to our oceanfront condo, while Massi carries Carter across the threshold, the romance we’ve set out widening her eyes.
Already, I can feel her urge to say it’s too much, but I refuse to let her feel like she shouldn’t be spoiled, if only for tonight.
“Oh my gosh. This is beautiful,” she breathes, feet landing on the floor as I interlock her fingers with mine, leading her through a rose petal path that ends in the kitchen.
We stashed two bottles of champagne in ice buckets, bought heart balloons that dangle from the ceiling, and laid out a feast of various foods in the center of the table.
“Thank you,” Carter manages to squeak out, but when her eyes meet mine, I can read the thousands of other thoughts swirling in her head, but she wisely chooses not to push back on being spoiled, and for that, I decide in the moment to reward her.
“That’s my good girl,” I praise, winking as I pop the cork off the first champagne bottle, the bubbles dripping onto my hand, making a complete mess as the alcohol trails down my forearm.
Before I can reach for a napkin, Carter snatches my hand in hers, dragging her tongue along the trail of champagne, and when her baby blues eyes meet mine, there’s a fire raging behind those irises, one that threatens to burn me alive, too.
Playing along, I dip two fingers onto her tongue, inching them further down her throat until tears begin to well in her eyes, and just as I push further, she gags around me, coughing as I slowly brush the saliva along her pretty pink lips.
“Absolute perfection, my pretty little nightmare,” Massi breathes, his hands roaming along her curves, immediately jumping into the moment with us, his fingers dancing along her skin, while her breathing begins to intensify from his slight touches.
Working together, we surround her, Massi expertly removing her shorts from behind, watching as they fall to her ankles, while I hover above her lips, tearing at her tank top until I rip it over her head, revealing her bare chest in quick fashion.
A devilish thought takes over, something that would normally be Massi’s work of art, but I follow its call, reaching for the champagne and splashing it over her chest, the cool liquid shocking her system as she jumps, then settles, from the abrupt sensation.
“Fucking delicious,” I groan, unable to resist the urge to taste the bubbles on her skin, lapping my tongue along her nipple, tipping the bottle of champagne until a puddle begins to pool on her belly.
“I could get drunk off of you in every single lifetime, my delectable little treat,” Massi rasps, slurping until there’s enough to swallow, an evil grin painted on his face as follows my lead, bringing another kink into our repertoire, never finding something the three of us don’t enjoy.
As we lose ourselves in the pleasure we can give her, and what she offers in return, it isn’t lost on me that the three of us took another big step today, solidifying this relationship as an engagement.
It’s surreal to think about where we started, and how we ended up here, but I wouldn’t trade our story for anything, knowing that the universe always has its plans, and for Carter, I’d follow every direction given down to the letter.
After all that we’ve fought for, accomplished together, and the things we lost along the way, it’s finally time to close the chapters on who we were, and open to a brand new page where we can become exactly who we want to be, together.