“I would’ve had to be standing nose to nose with him for it to do any real damage. I’m fine, I promise. No hospitals. They just ask questions I wouldn’t be able to answer. And I don’t care that he shot me. It was worth it. Now it means we can be together without our families getting in the way. I can love you without fear that you’ll be taken from me. I love you!”
He pushes me against the elevator wall and kisses me deeply. I melt into his kiss, standing on my toes I let my hands rest on his chest, not wanting to hurt his shoulder by wrapping them around his neck. I break the kiss and smile up at him. Despite that meeting filling me with terror, some good did come from it. No longer having to fear my love for him is an incredibly freeing sensation. “I love you, too, Cason. Now and forever.”
He tilts my chin up and runs the pad of his thumb over my lower lip. “Forever sounds wonderful, Josie.”
Epilogue
Carson
Four months later...
I carry two pizzas and a case of beers toward the back patio of the small house Josie and I bought in Great Neck Plaza. It’s an hour outside of New York City. Close enough I can easily get to my family if needed, but also far enough away I don’t fear raising our baby here. Josie picked it, stating she didn’t want a grand mansion like the ones we grew up in. She wants our child and any future kids we have too to be grounded and appreciate what they have.
We’ve already bought a shop for her to open a second Kotov Bakery and are waiting on it to be outfitted with the ovens and industrial mixers she’ll need. I’m still taking jobs for the family business, but I’ve become more selective. I have to worry about my life now. I want to be around to watch my baby grow up. We only found out the other day what we’re having. Josie and her best friend Ensley sit at the kitchen table in front of the sliding glass door that goes out to the patio.
I pause in my mission to stop and give my wife a kiss. We got married in a small ceremony at the courthouse. Neither of us wanted a lavish wedding despite her mother trying to beg us to have one. It’s just not either of our styles. We both wanted to be married before the baby came and she didn’t want to walk down the aisle with a large baby bump. And lavish weddings take a long time to plan.
She reaches for one of the boxes. I pull it out of her reach, which isn’t hard. “Did you eat the salad I made you earlier?”
A huff leaves her. “Yes. I ate all your nutritious vegetables even though they make me want to hurl at the moment. And I took my vitamins, and I drank that swamp water you call a green smoothie. Give me grease! Bad carbs, and fat!”
Ensley laughs. “Oh, you’re so having a boy. I can just feel it. I have a sixth sense about these kinds of things.”
Josie and I share a knowing gaze. She’s right, but she won’t find out about that until the gender reveal cake at the baby shower. I stroke a hand over Josie’s long, black hair. “You can have one piece, but don’t go crazy. I set the pizza box on the table where they’re working on filling out baby shower invites by hand. I told them they could get them printed, but they wanted to do it all by hand. I’m staying out of their way because they seem to know what they want.
She opens the box and pulls out the biggest piece before biting into it with a moan. She swallows it. “You’re the best. I was craving sausage so much. How did you know?”
She’d mentioned it no less than ten times this morning,
I shrug. “I just had a feeling. I’m going to go hang with your brother now. Don’t eat the whole box you two.”
I got a small because I knew the two of them would tear through it. She’s been putting up with eating super healthy for the baby from me, so I decided to let her splurge a little.
Closing the sliding glass door behind me I set the beers on the patio table along with a meat lover’s pizza. Dimitri sits at it as well. Staring off at nothing. He’s been acting strange for months now.
He leans forward and takes a beer, brushing his hair out of his eyes. He busts the cap off on the table and takes a deep pull from it. I frown. It’s obvious he’s in pain over something, but he won’t talk about it.
I kind of babysat him, too. He’s six year older than her though, so he didn’t need as much attention as her. When I wasn’t playing tea party with Josie, we were playing video games together or I would toss a football around with him. He used to be infectiously happy like Josie. Their smiles would just shift the mood of a whole room, but now he just looks pissed off at the world.
I open the pizza and take a slice for myself. I’ve been showing solidarity on the healthy front, so this pizza is as much a treat for myself as it is for her.
“Eat up, man. You can’t fill your stomach with only booze, you’ll get a gut, and no woman likes a beer gut.”
He snorts and rolls his eyes, but he leans forward to take a slice.
I swallow my bite. “So what’s new in your life?”
He shakes his head. “Don’t try to do the small talk with me, dude. I’m not in the mood.”
I open my mouth to retort when the back gate behind meclangsopen. We both stand, hands inching toward the holsters on our belts. There’s no wind to make the gate open and close.
“Cason!” Porter calls as he comes around the corner.
“Over here!”
A second later he comes barreling around the corner, a woman in his arms, and she doesn’t look conscious. Blood seeps from her somewhere. I squint, that’s the woman that came up on our hit list that Dad put together. I was the one to pick who got who.
I thought it was strange that she was on the list, she didn’t seem like our normal hit, but Dad doesn’t put innocent people on our lists. I gave her to Porter because I knew he would find whatever diabolical reason she was on the list and take care of her.
