Three months later
Ariana worked in the kitchen, alongside Kendra and Sal’s wife, Martina. Perry was in the yard, playing with his new dog, who was more of a companion animal than a pet but loved to catch a Frisbee. Sal was in the dining room with Vince and her father, who had actually come out in his wheelchair, bringing his IVs and all, to join the celebration.
As she chopped up vegetables that were going out on the grill, Martina shook her head. “I hope you don’t mind, but Sal kept me informed of the situation, and I can’t believe those putos could treat your father like that. No one in the medical profession should ever want to hurt anyone else. And I think that because of their knowledge and access to the right materials, they should be prosecuted like they are armed and dangerous.”
She was a sassy woman Ariana had to admit, but in a way, she agreed with Martina. The only reason she’d held back from pressing individual charges was her memory of Kendra’s precaution to not lose sight of what was most important. Her father was relatively well. Plus, Vince was healing nicely with some physical therapy for his leg, and he’d finally gotten back on his bike for the first time two weeks ago. He was riding like a fiend now, and Ariana was relieved because Vince had been on the verge of deep depression by the time he was allowed to ride again.
Ariana, who was basting the ribs for the barbecue, fell into her own thoughts as she worked absently and watched the action around her. There were so many things to celebrate. Her father’s health—although he still suffered—might actually get him on the transplant list before it was too late. Plus, Vince’s club had put their enemies behind bars. She still didn’t know what Vince was into, and she figured it wasn’t exactly legal or he would have told her, but there hadn’t been any retaliation or incident since he’d been injured.
As for Sal and his family, his son had just scored his first A on a test, and they’d framed it for him in his room as a reminder of what he was capable of when he applied himself and fought past the dyslexia. Perry was also working through his anger at the situation with a therapist and seemed very well adjusted.
As Sal had expected, once all the evidence was presented and criminal negligence and medical abuse charges leveled against the hospital, they’d rushed to settle out of court, trying to avoid as much negative publicity as possible. They hadn’t kept their feet out of the fire, but the administrative directors had all resigned and been replaced once the eight million had been paid out.
Ariana had, at first, been overwhelmed. She had no idea what to do with that kind of money; but, over time, she’d found her way. She’d paid for school, resigned from work, and enrolled in medical school full-time. Now, she was looking at starting her internship in another six months or so, and no one looked at her without vast amounts of respect. After all, she’d been the one with her eyes wide open to the mistreatment of her father.
Several other patients and their families had come forward, too, and the class action lawsuit was about to be settled. The hospital was almost bankrupt now. Ariana had donated one million to a complete investigation and audit of the facility, uncovering a number of other problems, including employee theft of drugs for personal use and sales on the street. Another million had gone to research for her father’s condition, which was now getting national media attention. She’d replaced Vince’s bike…again. He was still upset over the loss of his last one, but this one was another upgrade, and she’d been on it with him twice now.
She’d also bought a new car and a new wardrobe—something she’d always dreamed of doing. However, that was the extent of her extravagance. She’d invested most of the rest of the money with the help of a financial advisor, and it was already growing. The rest she’d kept out in a savings account that would pay for her wedding to Vince and their honeymoon in the Bahamas. He’d asked her to marry him three weeks ago.
She also used it to pay for her own medical care, as well as that of the child on the way. Three days after Vince’s proposal, she’d realized she was late, and she’d discovered she was pregnant. It was a shock to her, and she was terrified of being a mother, especially since the example set for her was probably the poorest possible. However, she was also elated to be better than her own mother. With people like Kendra and Martina as friends, she had the support system she needed to do right by her child, and the money in the bank would assure a bright future for the kid.
She’d never been able to reconcile with her mother or sister, but she’d heard that Lorraine had finally left her husband and was seeking counseling, as well as perhaps planning to go to school for one thing or another. Ariana had hope that, one day, Lorraine would come around, and they could be real sisters. She was willing to be patient while the younger girl got herself together. However, she doubted her mother—who had fallen into a depressed funk and started drinking, according to some mutual contacts—would ever speak to any of them again.
That was alright. It made Ariana feel sorry for her mother, but it was also poetic justice since the older woman cared about no one but herself. Plus, she had family. The club was welcoming her with open arms, and Pound, Jude, and a couple of the others were starting to grow on her, like big brothers who teased and got in trouble all the time.
“Vince!” she called, breaking up some sort of hilarious conversation.
“Yes, dear?” he called back, his tone filled with joy and contentment.
It made her smile. “You should go light up the grill, and Sal can carry this out so the two of you can do your jobs before the rest of us waste away into nothing. I’m starving.”
Vince was behind her in no time, his arms circling her waist and caressing her stomach—which barely stuck out. “I know something that’ll feed your hunger,” he growled in her ear, nibbling at her lobe.
She batted him away with a smile before turning and wrapping her arms around his neck. Quietly, with a seductive smile, she said, “You aren’t pulling me away from the first party I’ve ever hosted. Save it for dessert.”
He waggled his eyebrows, kissed her soundly, and headed for the backyard. Sal came and took the platter piled high with basted meat from her, trailing after Vince. Kendra shook her head, as Sal smacked Martina’s ass on the way by. “You two make me sick!”
“Just wait. Your day will come, and then we’ll all gag over you and your lover,” Martina told her.
Ariana doubted it. Being in love was something she didn’t think she’d ever gag over. Plus, she had plans for Kendra. She and Pound were going to come face-to-face at her wedding, and it was going to be instant chemistry. As Kendra had once said, she just had a sense about these things.
THE END
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