We got into the limousine. This was the one and only time I'd ridden in this vehicle. There were a half dozenothers I'd purchased and never used as well. I looked at the proof of my wealth as we started away and smirked.
Money was wasted on the rich.
We'd just started to go when Tuth cried out for us to stop.
"Neal!" they said as they gently moved Lydia to the seat and hopped out of the car to run to Daisy's cousin's home.
As we waited, Daisy leaned her head against mine, and I relaxed into my seat.
I was tired, my chest ached from the gunshot, and I was mentally tapped from so many revelations tonight, but still, I reached for Daisy’s hand, entwining our fingers. We'd been through hell and back, from our own prisons in youth and adulthood. We'd committed crimes no one would dare speak, and it all led to this.
It was worth it.
"Will we be okay?" Daisy asked.
A slow, exhausted grin spread over my lips. What a loaded question, but what an easy answer. Digging into my pocket, I pulled out the ring box and opened it clumsily with one hand. I removed the ring and slid it onto her finger.
"Do you believe in the green light?"
The End
Epilogue
Emile
"I'm not good at this."I laughed, stumbling over my feet. Relenting, I let Daisy take the lead, and we danced across the intimate dance floor, our bare feet colliding constantly.
"Who cares? You're still both the most gorgeous couple I've ever seen in my life." Neal rolled their eyes and flapped their newspaper loudly from the beach chair they were lounging in.
"Have you seen this?" They lifted the newspaper. We stopped dancing, and I came over. I took it from them and sat down in the chair beside them, reading the article aloud.
"Gatsby—deceased. Mysterious billionaire, Gatsby, was declared deceased after a party at his million-dollar mansion last month. Police are not disclosing any information, but a service was held in his honor. The only people in attendance was his staff, despite rumors of having been in a romantic affair with (deceased) millionaire, Max Stanton’s fiancée, Daisy Lovelace. Neither estate has been listed for sale at this time."
I offered the newspaper back to them.
"Sounds familiar, no?" They grinned.
Tuth had made Neal readThe Great Gatsbythe first week we arrived in France. They enjoyed being in on the references now and used them whenever they could.
"I'm just glad it's all over." Daisy sauntered over and daintily say on my lap. She rested her head on my chest.
"Me too." Neal grinned. "Especially since Nona's estate manager called. Since you broke the agreement, all of her money was sent to her other grandchild."
After we’d arrived in France with Lydia in tow, Daisy had confessed everything to her dear cousin, the person she split her grandmother’s wealth with. Having no need for her inheritance now, she let Neal have it all.
"Worth it," Daisy said. "I shouldn't have agreed to Max's ruse in the first place."
Once everything had calmed, we discussed what had been revealed the night of Max and Clarke's deaths. While the abortion didn't bother me, her fear of telling me did.
I wanted to know everything about her. Not just the good stuff. And the same for me. I laid out my past all on the table for her to ask questions. I'd lived with the fear for too long that she wouldn't believe me. That she'd think I was just some sex pervert; but she listened, and then as I cried, she cried. And when we made love that night, I'd never felt closer to any one human.
"You're still here? I thought you were going to check on the shop?" Tuth came around the corner, dressed in their swimsuit, holding little Lydia's hand. Lydia had leaped at the change in parenthood. She was so starved for parental affection, she latched on to Tuth and quickly to Neal. While they didn't assign gender roles, they had made an unwritten deal to take on the role of parents for little Lydia.
Daisy and I took on aunt and uncle roles, and Daisy seemed to blossom under it. She'd explained that she'd neverfelt the maternal connection to Lydia, but something clicked when she no longer was forced into caring for her. She was happy to watch her now, as long as she was able to give her back to her parents afterward.
I stood, taking Daisy with me.
"Yeah, we're working on it. I think my sign is coming today. And your audition is tomorrow, isn't it?" I asked Daisy.
