Chapter 33 #2
“Not yet,” she says with a chuckle. “This isn’t even as big as Julian and Natasha’s house.”
I blink in surprise. “Wow. Mafia work pays well.”
The guys laugh at that, and I catch glimpses of an office, a library, a workout room? At least, I think it is, although it looks like there are ropes hanging from the wall.
Finally, we make it to the kitchen, where the others are already hanging out.
“Hey,” Scarlett says and kisses my cheek. “Love this dress. Blue is your color.”
It’s a sundress that’s perfect for the hot weather. When I saw Mateo dressed nice, I ran back to the bedroom to change out of anything that advertises a rock band.
“Thanks. This kitchen is amazing.”
There are two sinks, one on either side of the room. The range boasts ten burners and double ovens, and it basically looks like you could feed a restaurant full of people out of this place.
Which is perfect for Lulu, since food is her love language.
“Okay, now that everyone is here,” Lulu says, her eyes shining as she gazes at all of us, “we can take you on a tour.”
“I love your enthusiasm, pretty bartender,” Carson says, shaking his head.
I’m sure that the guys couldn’t care less about a tour of the house, but because Lulu’s excited, they’re excited for her.
I really do love this group of people.
Once we’ve made it through the downstairs, and I notice she didn’t show us the workout room I saw when we walked in, Rome kisses the top of Lulu’s head.
“I’m going to take the guys to the armory, Firefly.”
“Go show off your fancy gun room,” she says.
Mateo kisses my cheek. “See you in a bit,” he whispers in my ear.
When the guys are all gone and it’s just us four girls left, Lulu’s eyes fill with tears.
“Shit, what’s wrong?” Scarlett demands. “We love the house.”
“I know.” Lulu waves her hand in front of her face. “It’s hormones, and I love the house so much, and now I get to show you the nursery. It’s just so precious.”
“Let’s see,” Natasha says.
“Come on.” Lulu gestures to the stairs, and we all climb behind her. For being about six years pregnant and a little wobbly, she moves pretty fast. “The primary suite is at the end of the hall, and Rome instructed me not to show it off because it’s just for us.”
“Love that,” I say with an approving nod. “It should be your sanctuary, just for the two of you.”
“I know. I wasn’t allowed to show you the Shibari room downstairs either. I don’t know why, we all belong to the club and have seen way more shocking things than that, but it’s fine.”
“Wait.” I hold up a hand. “You have a Shibari room?”
“It’s one of our things,” Lulu says with a shrug. “And we built a whole room for it, and holy shit, you guys. Ten out of ten stars, highly recommend.”
The room with the ropes.
“What about when your kid is old enough to ask questions about it?” Natasha asks.
“The door locks,” Lulu replies with a wink. “Okay, the nursery is next door to the primary. We want lots of babies, and they’ll always be next door to us until a new one comes along, and then they’ll get moved to another bedroom.”
“How many bedrooms are in the house?” I ask her.
“Nine,” she replies, and I stumble over my own feet.
Lulu dissolves into giggles. “I know, it’s a lot.
It’s too many. Two of those are our bedroom and the nursery, and although I do want several babies, it’s probably not going to be seven.
But this gives us plenty of space. It’s our forever home, and someday, I hope our kids will come home with families of their own to visit. ”
Forever home.
I’ve never even pondered the idea of a forever home. I’ve been too consumed with finding Rosie, my entire life suspended in time while I searched for her. The thought of marrying and having children has never occurred to me, not even once.
And here is this woman, who can’t be twenty-five, thinking about where her grandchildren are going to sleep, and it makes me emotional.
“Whoa, you okay?” Natasha asks when she sees my face.
“I think it’s sweet.” I shrug a shoulder and smile over at her. “And I’m happy for them.”
Lulu opens the door of the nursery, and all three of us say “Aww” at the same time.
“It’s a princess room,” Scarlett says. “But not obnoxious with it.”
Lulu nods. “I know. I wanted it to be pink and full of princess things because she’s literally a princess.” She rubs her belly. “But also, it couldn’t be gaudy or ridiculous.”
She hit the mark with this room. The walls are a light blush, and the artwork is gorgeous watercolor paintings of castles and dreamy landscapes. The crib, changing table, dresser, and rocking chair are all white with light-pink cushions, and the tiniest clothes are hanging in the closet.
“She has Dior dresses,” Natasha says with a little snort. “Those are adorable.”
“I sprung for the Dior stroller too,” Lulu admits. “Because it’s just so pretty. I know, it’s over the top.”
“No,” Natasha says, shaking her head. “‘Over the top’ is a husband who buys you an entire resort for Christmas. I think a Dior stroller is pretty tame.”
I blink at Natasha. “A resort?”
“The whole thing, right on the water outside of LA,” she confirms. “In case you haven’t figured it out, these men are unhinged, and there isn’t anything they won’t give us. So be careful what you wish for.”
“I think Mateo must have threatened the construction guys who are building my studio because I swear it’ll be finished in like a week.”
“That sounds about right,” Scarlett says with a nod. “Also, I can’t wait to see it.”
“Me too,” Lulu agrees.
“Did you show them your ink?” I ask Natasha.
“Not yet, I haven’t seen you guys since we did it.” Natasha pulls her blond hair to the side so the back of her neck is visible, and Lulu and Scarlett get close to inspect it.
“Holy shit, that’s gorgeous,” Lulu whispers.
It’s a pink diamond with a crown above it, and it’s so unique and pretty.
“When she told me what she was thinking, this immediately popped in my head,” I tell them.
“She drew it, right there, as if she could see inside my brain,” Natasha says with a laugh. “Julian is a diamond importer”—she holds up her left hand, flashing us her rock—“and I’m his queen.”
“So clever,” Scarlett agrees. “And so freaking gorgeous. The pink is perfect on your skin tone, and that crown is everything.”
I smile, so relieved that they like it. I love it when clients are happy with the result.
Suddenly, all three of them turn to me.
“What?”
“Can we finally see all of yours?” Lulu asks. “Please?”
“Sure. But you’re about to get an eyeful because I’m not wearing a bra with this dress.”
“We’re all girls here, we don’t care,” Scarlett says, waving me off. “Let’s see it.”
I wore my hair down, and it covers my spine, so all that’s on display right now is my arm and shoulder. So, I pull my hair over my shoulder and shimmy the dress down around my waist as I turn around so they can see my back.
It’s quiet for so long, I have to peek over my shoulder to make sure they’re still here.
“Wow,” Natasha whispers.
“You have a whole garden,” Scarlett adds. “And it’s so freaking gorgeous.”
“What’s the pocket watch for?” Lulu asks.
I smile back at them. “It’s for Mateo. He has the same tattoo on his side.”
“Wait, there are words in the center,” Natasha says. “‘As long as there’s breath in me, you’ll never be alone.’”
“My sister.” My voice quivers, so I stop and clear my throat.
“In the letter she sent me, she said that line, and I had to put it on my body because I feel the same for her. And when I added the watch for him, he had to be woven into the flowers because he’s as much a part of my heart and soul as my family is. He is my family.”
I shimmy the dress back up and then turn back around and see the girls brushing tears away.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. We’re happy you’re here with us. You’re our family now too,” Lulu says. “And it’s so fucking awesome. Come on, let’s go look at the rest of the bedrooms, and then we can chat about the gala and all of the fun plans.”
I follow them out of the nursery, and I can’t help but silently agree with Lulu.
It’s fucking awesome to be part of a family again.
And if this gala does its job, my sister will be back with me very soon.