Epilogue
Kincaid
Another Year Later
“Now, this one is my favorite,” I say to Lumen as the realtor holds the door open to the third house we’ll be viewing today. “But I don’t want to let that influence your decision.”
“The pictures are epic,” Mal says, rubbing his hands together. “I have a feeling we’re all going to fall in love with this one.”
“It’s the most expensive by about eighty grand, but it’s also a whole lot more house,” Riser chimes in as he studies the paperwork the realtor gave us. “Don’t let that impact your opinion, it’s still well below the top of our budget.”
“That’s because you guys finally stopped being cavemen and let me chip in,” Lumen says, laughing.
I growl, pulling her into my chest. “That’s only because you threatened to buy your own house if we didn’t let you.”
“I love you.” She stretches up onto her tiptoes, kissing my cheek. “Even if you’re dreadfully old-fashioned.”
Technically, we kept our contributions to a minimum because we wanted Lumen to be able to match our investment without any financial strain. She’s saved up quite a respectable nest egg over the last two years, but we were in the industry long before she was.
It only seemed fair to the three of us that we should pay for our first real house. We also didn’t want to piss her off, so we just went with it.
The guys love to joke that she usurped me as pack leader, but they must not understand Dom/sub dynamics. The sub is always in control. The Dom just learns how to set the rules within the confines of a sub’s limits.
Lumen was very particular on some of the details. She wanted more than three thousand square feet, but less than five thousand.
How did she come up with that number?
By learning the square footage of our condo and declaring it too big for her liking.
To be fair, it’s an entire floor of the building, but we got a great deal because the entire thing had to be remodeled.
We were able to coincide the renovations with our first tour, and it was nearly done when we got back.
Lumen has made herself at home there, but we all know she’s been dreaming about moving somewhere cooler than Florida.
As it turns out, all four of us love the mountains of western Virginia.
I probably would have gone for somewhere around seven or eight thousand square feet, but she said she didn’t want to get lost while tracking us down for lunch, and that changed my mind real quick.
Her only other requests were a pool or Jacuzzi and her own office for when she’s writing.
Malcolm wants a view of the mountains and a fenced-in yard for the theoretical dog he thinks he’s going to adopt.
Hell, he might.
Then we’ll have to find a pet sitter or drag the poor thing around on tour with us four months out of the year.
Riser was much more reasonable in his request, simply asking for a breakfast nook.
Why he wants a breakfast nook?
I have no idea, but being part of a pack requires compromise.
The realtor clears her throat.
“Sorry, we got distracted again,” Riser says. “You can start the tour at any time.”
“You guys stacked the deck with two just okay houses so this one would stand out as the clear winner,” Lumen says, quirking an eyebrow as we stand on the back deck. “Didn’t you?”
Mal brings his hand to his chest, faux gasping. “Baby doll, we would never.”
“Sure, buddy.” She jabs him in the chest. “I think we’re all in agreement? Right?” She gestures at the small pool with both hands. “I mean, it has a pool and a Jacuzzi.”
“I love the brick exterior and the breakfast nook,” Riser says.
“I’m going to get a Golden Retriever.” Mal nods, surveying the yard. “Hell, with how big this backyard is, I might get two.”
“How about we compromise on one dog, and we get something small enough to travel with us when we go on tour?” I counter.
Lumen points at me. “That sounds like a solid plan. We should test whether we’re pet people before committing to multiple animals.”
She and I grew up very similarly.
I never had pets.
My grandma could barely afford to help out with raising me. She certainly wouldn’t have spent her cigarette money on an animal, but I couldn’t blame her for that. She’d already raised her kids. It was supposed to be her time to enjoy her golden years.
Lumen didn’t have animals growing up, and she’s already brought up how unfair she thinks it would be to a pet with how often we travel.
“I already talked to my mom,” Malcolm says, smirking. “She’s willing to pet sit at her house when we’re on tour.”
“One dog,” I say, holding up a finger. It just happens to be the middle one. “We start with one pet, and if you don’t clean up its shit, I’m hiring a service.”
“Fine.” Mal shrugs. “I accept your offer.”
“We haven’t fully committed to a dog yet,” Riser says, pulling Lumen into his arms. “First, we have to decide if this is the house for us.”
“I love it,” I admit.
Hell, I was sold on it just from the pictures. There’s no HOA, the house sits on more than two acres, and just outside the backyard fence is a wooded area that would be sexy as fuck to play chase the omega in.
“Do you want to view a few more?” Riser asks Lumen.
Her hair falls around her face as she shakes her head. “I think this is the one.”
“Me too,” he agrees, crashing his lips to hers.
“You already know I’m down,” Mal says, chuckling. “But I call dibs on breaking in the Jacuzzi.”
I laugh, shaking my head.
It’s going to be a lot of work to move, but we’re planning to leave most of the furniture at the condo, and I can’t lie, I love decorating.
Another Three Months Later
“Are your eyes closed?” Lumen asks, peeking around the wall to the living room. “I said close your damn eyes.”
I snort, complying with her command.
There’s a jingling that fills the air as she and Malcolm come into the room that instantly tells me what their surprise is.
“Holy fuck,” Riser says.
My eyes pop open, and I shake my head.
I knew it was a mistake to let those two out of my sight.
“This is Lucy,” Mal says, squatting down next to the white and brown puppy.
“And what is Lucy?” I ask, trying to keep from laughing.
Whatever she is, she’s not a Golden Retriever.
“She’s an Irish Springer Spaniel,” Lumen says, coming over to crawl into my lap. “I know I said I didn’t want any pets, but she loves us. I couldn’t say no to that little puppy face.”
I laugh, planting my hand on her lower back. “You don’t need to convince me, but like I told Mal, I’m not getting up if that thing whines in the middle of the night.”
“Fair enough,” she agrees, smiling brightly.
Well, fuck.
I’d eat my tongue if that’s what it took to make her smile at me like that again.
“Shh,” I tell the mutt, scooping her off the end of the bed as Mal and Riser sleep peacefully.
It took a whole three nights before I gave in and took over nights with Lucy. Mostly because I’m the lightest sleeper, and we have about two minutes after she starts whining before she jumps down and pisses on the carpet.
Lumen is missing from bed, but I already know where I’ll find her. Based on the bond, she’s in her office, working on crafting lyrics. It’s part of her process to work on the beginning of a new song in the middle of the night.
We all joke it’s because she knows that’s when we won’t be awake to bother her, but truthfully, her muse just seems to be more active at night.
Lucy flails, turning toward me, and I rest her on my chest as I take the back stairs down toward the deck.
She immediately tries to climb my shirt, like she thinks she’s a cat. I chuckle and pull her up higher. She licks my jaw, and I frown. Her breath is always rancid.
“You’re damn lucky you’re cute,” I mutter, unlocking the back door.
Life in Virginia is nothing like it was in Florida.
It’s slower and more domestic, but I’m not complaining.
I never thought anything could compare to the feeling of rocking out on stage in front of thousands of people.
Only, now?
I look forward to the downtime at least as much as I look forward to getting back on the road.
All it took was one woman to completely flip our lives upside down, and I’m so fucking thankful that she did.