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We arrive at the club, and Lara and I leave our suitcases in the car and walk inside holding hands. I'm nervous and my heart is pounding in my chest, but with her by my side, it makes this much easier.
Four months with her has changed my life, steering my life in a new direction that will give me more than a sense of control. It will give me a sense of purpose.
Her forgiveness for what I did to her ten years ago has enabled me to understand how to forgive myself for what happened to Chris. What I did to her was worse than anything I ever did to Chris, and I’m so thankful she survived her trauma. Chris didn’t.
I've made it my life's mission to do whatever possible to make her as happy as I can, and I am convinced the true beginning of our lives is today.
Gary is already waiting for us, and he is as giddy about what is happening as Lara is.
The attorney smiles and slides the closing documents over to me. I've already read my copy at home and I sign it with the confidence that this is the best decision I'm ever going to make, because I'm doing it for Lara, and I'm doing it with her.
As I finish signing, Lara leans over and kisses me on the cheek. "I love you," she whispers.
I'm never going to get sick of hearing that.
I pull out the keys to Eden’s, unclip them from my key ring, and hand them to Gary. His grin is contagious. "Congrats, bud. She's all yours." I stretch out my hand to Gary.
"Just wait, when you guys get back—it's going to be a whole new place," Gary chimes. "I'm going to keep the name Eden’s, because duh… But get ready for some Magic Mike shit. We're going to have some brand-new dancers in town."
The regulars will be pissed, but that's no longer my problem. I fired Shelly as soon as Lara told me she was stealing, for God knows how long. What she was doing was obvious when I got back from David and Beth’s. None of the tallies added up for the few nights I was away while Shelly was in charge. It’s hard to believe that Shelly was such a gambler. None of the girls knew it, but Maddie found out after I fired Shelly that she was in deep debt with Ricky’s bookie.
Gary decided to keep the other girls on as servers and backup dancers, and they've never been happier.
"What time’s your flight?" Gary asks as we step out into the sunlight.
"This evening," Lara says, gripping my hand and sliding on sunglasses. “Six-ish, I think.”
"Oh, I got you some things for the flight, Lara." Gary scours around his bag and pulls out a bottle of nail polish. My stomach clenches. Boys and nail polish just doesn’t seem right. I still have a long way to go. Thankfully, Lara doesn't notice my response.
"I love this color!" She hugs Gary. "I'm going to miss you."
"You're going to have a blast. Have a great trip!"
Jamie
Mark meets us at a café by the airport an hour later. He's beaming, his wide grin spilling over his cheeks.
"Jamie." He wraps me in a hug and pats my back. "You ready for this next adventure?"
Patting his back, I squeeze his shoulder. "Never been more ready for anything."
He hugs Lara. "So good to see you. How's Carson?" she asks.
"Two months into remission!"
"That's amazing," Lara grins.
Mark shakes his head. "Sometimes, I can't believe how lucky I really am." His eyes gloss over and then he hands Lara the paperwork. "For the partner of the foundation," he says.
I glance at the front of the paperwork and my heart swells.Billions Against Bullies,our not-for-profit charitable organization that will bring attention and awareness to the effects of bullying with a goal to end bullying around the globe.
We have fourteen cities and six countries to visit, our speeches and seminars prepared for each. But what Lara doesn't know is that the first city is planned just for us. Italy, here we come.
Lara
Two days later and Jamie and I are sitting outside a winery in Verona, tipsy and unable to keep our hands off each other. The countryside is more beautiful than I could have imagined.
Jamie's surprise stop is beyond a dream come true. The rolling hills and blue skies are picturesque, the wine to die for. As I finish my second glass of red, he takes my hand and sighs as he kisses it.
