Epilogue #3
She gives him a playful pat on his chest. “Oh, my word. You open boutique hotels all over the US. That’s a little different than a drifter.”
“Cassidy!” I turn to find Lala running toward me, and my eyes fill with tears. I had no idea just how much I’d missed her until this moment.
“Lala.” I pull my smart, petite friend in for a hug. “God, I’ve missed you. How’s school going?”
“Great. I’m almost done.”
My mouth drops open, my eyes immediately seeking out Gianni. “What on earth is G going to do without you?”
She shrugs. “Don’t know. Don’t care.” Something tells me she doth protest too much. “He’s had every opportunity to consider keeping me on. It’s not like I haven’t told him about my plans.”
“Cass.” Fern pulls me in for a hug just as Candice rushes toward me, their excitement bubbling over.
Even Brier is here. I catch what feels like a flicker of jealousy in her eyes.
There’s no doubt she’d love to be here as a guest and not a staff member.
But whatever I noticed is fleeting. It’s softened by a sincere tilt of her head.
Hopefully, one day soon, she’ll have the chance to achieve her dreams, as I have.
The music dips enough for the circle to close in around us. Lala’s eyes are darting between me and Max, her intuition practically vibrating. “Okay, spill it, Cass,” she demands, reaching for my hand. “You’ve been glowing since you walked in, and it’s not your hair.”
I look at Max. He gives me a subtle, encouraging nod. His bright blue eyes are alive with pride. God, I love this man.
I lift my left hand. The diamond the size of a softball catches every single LED in the room, fracturing the light into a thousand tiny rainbows. I’d bet someone could see the glare from a mile away.
A chorus of congratulations floats around me. The feeling of having such an amazing group of friends to share our excitement is beyond anything I could’ve pictured when I started work here a year ago.
“Holy shit balls, Cass!” Candice yells. “Look at the size of that thing.”
“Oh, my eyes, my eyes!” a familiar voice shouts playfully from behind me. We turn to find Frank heading our way.
Max beams in his best friend’s direction. “Hey, how did you get in here without me?” He chuckles giving him a playful slap on the back.
“Your friends invited me. Heard it was a special occasion.” Frank winks.
My gaze bounces around the club, trying to determine the theme of this party. There are no large moons or spoons dangling in the air. No disco balls. The only common denominator seems to be opulence.
I glance back at the people standing around me when I catch a recognizable figure descending the stairs in my peripheral vision.
Finding this familiar muscular firefighter here makes me tear up.
And he’s not alone. Behind my brother, Holt, are Sebastian and Isabella.
There’s no holding back the waterworks as they walk in our direction.
“Babe. Look!” I grab Max’s arm before I rush in their direction.
“Leave it to you to be late to your own party,” Holt rumbles, clapping Max on the shoulder.
I blink, looking around at the premium magnums of champagne being uncorked. “Wait... Holt? Bella, Sebastian? You guys did this?”
“With a little help from Gianni,” Sebastian admits, looking smug. “We figured after a year of you two playing it safe, you deserved a proper engagement party.”
“Did I hear that right? Let me see that damn ring, Wilde.”
Gianni grabs my hand, causing Frank to dramatically cover his eyes again. “Thank fuck!” Gianni bellows, throwing his hands up in the air. He turns to Lala, a look of mock exhaustion on his face. “That’s it. I’m never playing matchmaker again. It’s fucking exhausting.”
A giggle erupts from Lala as I lean into Max’s side.
“What? Gianni, you spent months reminding us we couldn’t have a relationship. You two were the ones quoting the rulebook,” I blurt, looking between Gianni and Lala.
Gianni looks from Max to me. “The moment I met you, I knew. But I had no idea how hard it’d be getting the two of you on the same page,” Gianni says, his expression softens. “The two of you couldn’t be more perfect for each other if Max had created you from AI.”
“Amen to that,” Devon Sly chimes in, raising a glass of amber liquid. He nudges Becket Ryan with his elbow. “Cheers, to the poor sods around here who keep dropping like flies for these women. It’s a goddamn epidemic.”
Becket grins, clinking his glass against Devon’s. “Exactly. Someone has to stay single and cynical. Wouldn’t want to hurt the new girls’ feelings.” He winks. “To Max and Cassidy. May you enjoy your ball and chain!”
Fuck’s sake.
Derek gives the two of us an unreadable expression.
Max pulls me closer, his lips brushing my temple as our VIP section erupts into a chorus of toasts and laughter.
“To happily ever afters,” Holt adds. “No one deserves it more.”
Max grins down at me. “Yes. To happily ever afters,” he utters. I’m sure thinking of his sister, wishing there was a chance for the ultimate happy ending.
Holt steps closer, his muscular hand grabbing ahold of Max’s shoulder. “Congratulations, brother.”
“Thank you.” They go in for a quick hug and I have to push down the tears that keep threatening to ruin all of my makeup. These two men mean everything to me.
“Take care of my sister. Or I’ll kick your ass.”
Max chuckles. “Don’t I know it.”
“Hey, I can take care of myself.”
My brother bumps my hip. “Yes. Yes, you can.” He winks.
That pesky drop spills from my eyelid to my chin. “Aww, babe. Don’t cry,” Max swipes it away and kisses the still damp trail along my cheek.
The champagne flows as freely as the laughter.
The girls stroll past, smiling in our direction as they carry trays of hors d’oeuvres.
The bass of the music thrums as we dance the night away.
Max hasn’t let go of my waist once, his possessiveness now transformed into a comfortable pride.
This night couldn’t have been any better.
Sharing our news with all of our friends and celebrating in grand style.
“Max.” We both turn at the sound of Anthony’s voice. “Can you come with me?” Jeez. He looks so serious.
“Sure, Anthony.” We trail along behind him. Max looks around the club before interrogating the head of security. “Is something wrong? Where is Gianni?” Anthony continues toward Gianni’s office wordlessly. “Are Luca and Matteo okay?”
Clearly, this man is pleading the fifth.
We reach Gianni’s office, and Anthony holds the door open for us. Gianni looks up with a look of concern on his face. My stomach dips. What on earth is happening?
“G?” Max’s voice sounds nervous. Guarded.
“Matteo’s connection in Rome reached out.”
“Shit. Are Matteo and Sydney okay?”
“It’s not them. He’s been assigned to watch Vincenzo’s activity. Particularly the brothels, clubs, and sex trafficking rings.”
I blink nervously, gripping Max’s hand. Where are they going with this?
“I have no way of knowing…” Gianni looks away.
“What? Spit it out,” Max barks.
“There’s a girl who matches Isla’s description.”
I gasp. “Max,” I say on a shaky exhale.
He’s standing frozen in place. Barely breathing.
“He’s trying to get someone closer to the girl. To confirm whether it’s her.” Gianni looks at Max, obviously concerned for his friend. “He said he’ll be in touch.”
“Where is he? When can we go?” Max blurts.
“Max, you know that could only cause them to move her. If it’s really her. Let us do this the right way. Marcus knows how to handle this.”
“This could be good news,” Anthony attempts to set Max’s mind at ease.
I can only imagine the thoughts running through my fiancé’s mind. If it could really be her. What they could’ve done to her. How will he manage sitting back and waiting for more intel. He’s probably champing at the bit to dive into the dark web. I might never see him come up for air.
“Max,” I plead, worried for his ultimate downfall at this news.
“No. Anthony’s right. This could be good. It’s the first hint of news we’ve uncovered in a long while. And it might not be her. I’m sure there are any number of blonde-haired, blue-eyed girls that resemble Isla.” His words sound surprisingly reassuring.
Tears well in my eyes. I’m scared.
Max senses my distress, and despite the news, he pulls me in for a hug. “This isn’t the first lead we’ve chased. I’ve learned not to get ahead of myself. And now I have you to ground me.”
“Plus your counselor,” I whisper, not wanting to air all of Max’s dirty laundry in front of his friends.
“Yes. Come on. Let’s enjoy the rest of our night.”
Wait? What? Is this a tactic to throw me off his scent before he dives back into his morally gray world?
“I’ve got this, Cass. It’s been eleven years. Eleven long years. I’ve learned to tamp down my overeager enthusiasm at these leads.”
I tilt my head, shocked at how well he’s handling this.
“Because of you.” He turns to Gianni. “Can you let me know as soon as you hear anything?”
“Of course, Max.”
Max grabs my hand in his. “C’mon, babe. This is our big night. We’ll come up with a plan on how to look into this further on the flight home. And we’ll tackle this together. You and me.”
“Yes,” I agree. My love for him spilling out of every pore. “You and me.”
The End.