Epilogue
PARKER
“ Hey, handsome,” a sultry voice greeted me before a feminine hand slid its way up my elbow to my shoulder. “What’s your name?”
Turning from Damien who’d been talking to me, I glanced at the stranger curling herself around my arm before lowering my gaze to the limb that she was trying to claim.
“Hands off, sweetheart,” I told her, shrugging her away. “This seat’s taken.”
“Well, you’re no fun.” Pouting, she fell back a step and scowled at me as if that would induce me to change my mind. But then she noticed Archer and lifted her eyebrows at him in interest.
“Sorry, I’m taken too,” he assured her, lurching back and lifting both hands before she could even attempt to coil herself around him.
“Dammit,” she muttered moodily. “Where are the available guys?”
I pointed. “Try the garage. There’s a cup pong game going on out there, and I know of at least two single boys who are playing right now.”
Eyes brightening at that idea, she turned away and disappeared into the garage.
Damien and I glanced at each other and started to chuckle just as another set of feminine arms wrapped around me from behind.
Jesus. What was up with all the horny women crawling around this party tonight? Had Hudson slipped something into the drinks or what?
Before I could shake this broad loose as well, she said into my ear, “I really wish you’d stop telling them you were taken before I show up. I’ve just added something new to my bucket list: get into a hair-pulling, eye-scratching girl fight over you.”
Chuckling, I turned into her arms so I could grin down into her blue, blue eyes. “Will you stop adding shit to that damn list?” Still smiling, I reached out to smooth my fingers along her cheek. “At this rate, we’re never going to finish it.”
I think she was up to twenty or twenty-one items now.
Smiling back, she snuggled closer. “That’s the point, isn’t it?” she countered slyly. “To keep adding more reasons to live life to the fullest?”
I leaned down to run my nose along her jaw as I answered, “With you, life is always full.” Then I pressed a sweet kiss to her mouth and added, “Of trouble.”
Eyebrows furrowing into a scowl, she nudged me in the gut, muttering, “Hey, I’m innocent.”
“As if,” I scoffed. “Now, fess up. What’d you do this time?”
“Nothing!” she insisted, only to grin a moment later. “Except maybe hide a fake snake in Keene’s bed.”
“Now there’s my girl,” I said with a proud chuckle as I kissed her brow. “Nicely done.”
“Seriously,” Thane broke in, interrupting us, as he joined our group. “Are you two permanently connected at the hip now or what?”
After slugging my arm in greeting, he sent Damien a head bob of thanks when Damien handed him a beer.
Twisting the cap off, he winked at Hope. “I honestly don’t think I’ve seen you apart since you got out of the hospital. They didn’t literally sew y’all together, did they?”
As he tipped up his bottle for a long drink, Hope took a big, obvious step away from me and lifted her hands to twirl in a circle. “Lookie,” she announced. “No strings attached. Hell, I can even do this.”
Stepping toward my best friend, she hugged him and laid a big wet kiss on his cheek.
“Hey, hey,” he greeted, waggling his eyebrows at her suggestively and throwing an arm over her shoulders to keep her at his side. “Now that’s more like it.”
When they both looked at me for some kind of response, I folded my arms over my chest and scowled, refusing to give them one. But seeing Thane’s arm around her grated too much. And two seconds later, I broke. “Okay, dammit. That’s enough.” Snagging my girlfriend back, I yanked her to my side and scowled at Thane. “Don’t you have your own woman to hang on?”
He had been starting to laugh over my jealousy, but the mention of Christine caused him to falter.
“Oh, no,” Hope groaned, reading his expression. “What happened?”
“Nothing,” he started immediately, only to wince. “It just didn’t feel as if it was going anywhere, so we broke it off.”
“Shit, man,” I uttered.
He only shrugged and glanced away. “It’s…whatever,” he muttered, only to cast Hope a look that caused me to pull my head back in surprise and wonder what that was about. “I’m actually kind of relieved,” he added, smiling at me and then Damien.
“Well, then, congrats,” Damien told him, lifting his bottle to clink with Thane’s. “To freedom.”
“To freedom,” Thane answered and turned to me, only to pause when he saw the clear, plastic bottle of water I held in one hand. “Still abstaining, huh?” he asked, bumping his beer into my water.
“Fuck, yes,” I answered, taking another sip to keep my liver nice and flushed. “The next transplant donor my baby gets is gonna be me .”
Hope shook her head as if I were a lost cause, even though she gazed up at me as if I were some kind of knight in shining fucking armor. “It’s only been four months since I got this one. I think you have some time before I need another, even though—” Whistling low, she shook her head and wiped a hand over her abdomen. “This better be the last one I need.”
“I’m going to be ready, anyway,” I assured and dutifully took another sip.
“Isn’t he so cute?” Thane murmured, setting a hand on Damien’s shoulder to address him.
“So stinkin’ cute,” Damien agreed as they both watched me with tipped heads.
I rolled my eyes. “Fuck you, fuckers. I can be nice when I want to.”
They laughed, and Hope set her head on my shoulder as she smoothed her fingers down my chest. “Way to activate his anger,” she warned them. “Don’t expect me to protect you now.”
She laughed at her own joke, only to lift her hand to her mouth so she could smother a yawn.
Growing alert, I glanced at her face and gripped the side of her arm. “You okay? Gettin’ tired?”
“A little, maybe,” she admitted. Then she sent me a sleepy smile. “I was actually going to tell you I might order a ride and go home for the night. But you should stay. Have fun with your boys.”
“Fuck that.” I wanted to be with her . “I’ll take you home,” I said as I shoved my bottle of water at Thane without looking at him. “We’re going to go,” I told him and Damien, my eyes still on my girl.
“Parker, no,” she protested. “Stay.”
“Don’t wanna,” I answered with a shake of my head. “You’re not ordering a ride. Have you not heard how common it is for a single, young woman traveling alone to get kidnapped, raped, and killed by climbing into cars with complete strangers? Besides, I’d rather be with you.”
Without looking at them, I lifted a finger threateningly toward Damien and Thane. “Don’t fucking say it.”
When they snickered at my cute behavior, I shook my head and focused on Hope. “Save me,” I begged her. “I need to get away from these morons, STAT.”
She laughed but relented. “Okay. But we gotta make our rounds and say goodbye to Alec first. And give our congratulations to Foster.”
Mr. Football had managed to lead the Stallions into the national championships for three straight years in a row, so we’d thrown another party for him at Archer House. The whole town was ablaze with celebrations tonight.
But I was personally ready to turn in with my special person and spend the rest of the night wrapped in her arms.
Already imagining all the things I wanted to do to her as soon as we got home, I tugged on her hand. “Alright. Let’s go.”
We found Alec first, spoiling Xander—per his usual—as he brought her a drink and fawned over her, talking discreetly in her ear as if he were trying to boost her mood because she looked a bit down.
When she sent him a grateful smile and squeezed his arm, I feared he might blow his load in his pants right then and there.
Besotted idiot. He’d been waiting on the girl hand and foot, pampering and coddling her ever since she’d given his sister a liver and saved her life. It didn’t seem to matter that she’d completely healed months ago, either.
Seriously, if the guys should tease anyone about acting too cute, they should definitely point at Younger. He didn’t even try to hide his adoration. He was flat-out, crazy in love with the Union girl, and she’d friend-zoned him. Hard.
But Hope was able to tear him away from his swooning long enough to give him a hug goodbye.
Then we managed to find Foster and slap him on the back for a job well done.
Next to him, Raina hugged Hope goodbye. She’d helped Hope see her dad again just a few weeks ago, and Hope had cried for a full day after that. She couldn’t stop talking about how much she owed Raina now.
Finally ready to go, Hope turned to me, and when those eyes hit me, I drew in a deep breath, suddenly not blaming Alec one bit for being so open and clear about his love.
Sometimes, you just couldn’t help it.
Taking her hand, I led her out the front door, only to remember that I’d had to park two blocks away. “Stay here for a sec. I’ll grab Lucy and pull her up so you don’t have to walk.”
But Hope was having none of my gallantry. “I’m good, Grumpy. See…” She danced off the front steps only to twirl back and offer me a bow. “I can walk perfectly fine all on my own.”
“And still back talk like a pro,” I added, shaking my head with a fond smile as I went to join her.
Taking her hand, I kissed her smart mouth and then started us down the darkened street.
With a happy sigh, she rested her head on my shoulder as we strolled along, contentedly swinging our hands between us.
“Thank you,” she said when we’d been quiet for a good minute.
Shifting my mouth to kiss her hair, I said, “For what?”
“For number four.”
With a chuckle, I shook my head. “I believe I’m the one who should be thanking you for that. You changed my life, Trouble. You changed it for the better.”
“Ditto,” she murmured, squeezing my fingers fondly, just as footsteps running up behind us caused us to break apart and whirl around in surprise.
“What the hell?” I demanded when a feminine silhouette streaked through the dark, her shoes slapping rapidly against the concrete sidewalk. “Hey!” I called to flag her down just as she passed under a streetlight.
“Waverly?” Hope gasped in concern and popped forward, gripping the other girl’s arm as soon as she reached us. “What’s wrong? Are you okay?”
Eyes wide with shock and breathing heavily from her sprint, Waverly gaped between the two of us before pinning me with a desperate stare. “You owe me,” she panted.
My mouth fell open.
Behind her, a shout down the block from where she’d just come made me glance up to see someone else charging this way, chasing her.
Waverly squeaked out her fear and immediately ducked down onto her haunches before disappearing behind a nearby tree.
“I was never here,” she swore.
Puzzled, Hope and I exchanged a questioning glance just before Waverly’s pursuer ran under the streetlamp as well.
“ Keene !?” Hope cried, just as shocked as I was.
She and I looked at each other again, silently wondering what the hell was going on, and then we turned back to my friend as he reached us.
Grabbing my arm as he bent slightly to catch his breath, Keene wheezed, “Oh, thank God. It’s you. Jesus. Fuck.” He winced and pressed a hand to his groin before straightening enough to look up at us with a pained cringe. “Did you just—did y’all see someone come through here? Just now. A girl, like…maybe this tall.”
I blinked and turned to Hope, who blinked back at me, equally stumped.
Keene knew who Waverly was. Why was he acting as if he had no idea who he was chasing?
“Uh…” I started, not sure what to say.
But Hope was on top of it.
“She went that way.” Pointing in the opposite direction of the tree that Waverly was currently hiding behind, Hope threw him completely off the scent.
“Seriously?” His eyes lit up with excitement. “Oh God. Thank you.” He started to rush that way, only to pause and swing back. “Hey. So you actually saw her face? You know what she looks like? Do you know who she is?”
“Why were you chasing her if you don’t know who she was?” I demanded, only to narrow my eyes when he gritted his teeth through a second wince and bent slightly at the waist in pain. “And what the hell is wrong with you? Are you hurt?”
“I—” Scowling at me for daring to ask questions, Keene forced himself to straighten and blow out a bolstering breath before claiming, “Bumped my knee. Did you know her or not?”
Hope shook her head. “Never saw her before in my life.”
I slugged his arm in condolence. “Sorry, man.”
But I really did owe Library Girl one.
“No, it’s okay. I got this. I’ll figure out who she is.”
“Why’re you looking for her, anyway?” I asked.
But Keene’s attention was already back on the chase. “Tell you later,” he assured before pointing in farewell and taking off in the direction that Hope had sent him.
We both watched him go before lifting our brows curiously at each other and then turning in unison as Waverly crept out from behind the tree.
Her eyes were glazed with a dazed shock, but she didn’t look as if she’d been mistreated in any way.
So I snickered and crossed my arms over my chest. “Oh, we have questions.”
The End