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“We’re still negotiating, but so far, things seem promising.”
“I’m happy to hear that. You two have impeccable records. With me shifting into contract and entertainment law permanently, I’d love to send a few of my criminal cases your way.”
“For the right amount of billable hours, that would definitely be an incentive to sign on,” Sakura said, and I was impressed with how quickly her soft, flirtatious features turned professional.
“If I would have known all it would take to seal the deal was to bring Attorney Williams in here, I would have done so three hours ago,” Violet joked, causing the sisters to laugh.
“I’m willing to help however I need,” I told her. “But I have to go. The family is waiting on me.”
“Tell Amelia I said hello and that we miss her.”
“Is that your daughter?” Sakura checked, eyeing my frame.
“That’s my wife. We do have two children, though. A boy and a girl.”
Her eyes immediately lifted to mine as she clenched her jaw. “Oh. Well, it was nice to meet you.”
Me and Violet locked eyes as I smiled. “You as well.”
As I made my way out of Violet’s office, I considered stopping by Mecca and Parker’s offices to talk shit with them about the sisters but decided against it. I was being honest when I said my family was waiting for me. We were taking Caroline and my mom to lunch and blessing them with a pre-Christmas gift, which was a cruise, to show how grateful we were to have them. They were the best tribe Amelia and I could ask for.
Not once did my mother ever shame me for getting the wrong woman pregnant. She’d been in my son’s life, actively, since the day he was born. Even when I wanted to have him on the weekends, I had to ask her permission, because that was pretty much her time with him from the jump. With her help, I was able to have a taste of freedom, though I hadn’t really been doing much with it until Amelia and I got together.
Milli and I had been honoring our commitment to not just co-parent together and be best friends but to be lovers too. I was enjoying getting to know her in these intimate new ways, and I was excited about what the future held in store for us all.
* * *
Christmas Eve
So far, things were going good with the family. None of us really wanted to get together for Christmas Eve since Dad was gone, but AJ insisted. Mom was a little wine-tipsy, dozing on and off in her favorite recliner chair. Amir was here, and sober, with his girl… which was a welcomed surprise. Whatever she’d said and done the night we found him asleep in that abandoned parking lot seemed to have worked wonders on him. He still drunk, but only wine throughout the week. And when he did drink harder liquor on the weekend, he promised to be home as soon as the sun went down. I’m not sure if he was still drinking heavily when he got home or to Uriah’s place, but at least if he was, he was doing it somewhere safe.
With my representation, Adam pleaded guilty but was able to avoid jail time. He had to pay the fine and do community service along with grief counseling. That last part was my doing, but Adam thought it was solely on the judge. He wasn’t working as much, and his resting habits were better. It seemed like Christmas made him fall back into his old ways a little bit because he was working from home instead of taking the holiday off, but progress was progress, and I would accept that.
All in all, my family was seemingly doing okay. I wasn’t naïve. We had a long way to go, but I was grateful for us being able to get together and not allow our grief to lead us down different spiraling paths.
Epilogue
Amelia
Later that Evening
I made my way over to Amaru and sat on his lap. He wasted no time wrapping his arms around me. We were at Mecca’s house to exchange gifts with our friends, though to be honest, I didn’t think there was anything that could fit under a tree to compare to what I had with my family and friends.
My daughter was in a healthier state emotionally and mentally. My mother was well. I had the man of my dreams and a bonus son whose eyes were as bright as the sun. I finally had the strength to release my father, and Jeremy was trying his hardest to have a relationship with me and Lis. Throw in the healthy relationships Mecca and Parker had with two beautiful women, I was oozing with happiness this holiday season.
“I wonder what the kids are doing,” I mumbled as Amaru littered my neck with kisses and squeezed my ass. “You think they’ve tried to open any of their gifts?”
“I’m sure AJ has convinced Mama to let him open at least one.”
Giggling, I held his cheek as his lips moved upward. “Alisia is sneaky like I was. She doesn’t ask; she just opens the bottom of wrapped gifts and thinks we can’t tell that she retaped them.”
“What gives it away?”
“Mama had a particular style of wrapping that she taught me and I’m going to teach Lis eventually. But she can never do it exactly as it was. I always get tickled when I notice the difference, but I let her be great.”
He cupped my cheek and gave me a tender kiss. “I want a new baby with you. Maybe two.” He kissed me again. “How does that sound?”
“It sounds lovely, baby. I can’t wait to expand our family.”
