Epilogue
Annie
2 Years Later
“Oh my God,” I muttered as I gathered up the letters from the front door. There was a redirected envelope, which was common now that Justin lived with me permanently, but this one was different. It was addressed from the prison.
Garrett…it had to be. After all this time.
I clutched it tightly to my chest, wondering how this was going to change things. Justin was hurt by Garrett’s rejection, even if he would never say it aloud, I could still see it.
He’d done his best to channel it into something positive, though, by working on his business and new manager, to get everything in place for him moving, but I could always see it there, haunting him in the back of his mind. How will he feel now that his brother wanted him back in his life?
Justin now had someone amazing running the company for him, meaning that in the past six months where he’d been living in my apartment, he’d only had to go back to Portland a handful of times because he could do most of what needed to be done virtually.
We were also working really well, too. Boffees was going from strength to strength, with Justin running the place when I had writing deadlines to meet, and my second book was on its way out. With the way that sales had gone with the first one, it seemed that the second one would be just as successful, so that was really exciting.
Of course, there was the third book to think about, but I was getting there with that one.
Rae was also doing really well at school, using her bright nature to succeed and making a lot of friends, too. If I’d ever been worried about her struggling there, I was so wrong. She thrived in that environment.
I also hadn't ever had to worry about Nancy, either, because she was now a married woman. She still came in to help me with Rae whenever I needed her, but her life was now a whirlwind of trips and excitement. She’d found true love, and I was happy for her…especially as I had it in my life now, too.
Everything was so great, going so well, and I honestly had no idea how this new development was going to change things. I leaned my back against the wall for a moment and slid my eyes shut, praying for the best. I hoped that whatever was inside this envelope would be a good thing. I just loved how wonderful everything was, and I didn’t want any of it to go back downhill.
Then I took the long walk back to the bedroom, to show Justin what I had in my hands. Well, it wasn’t exactly a long walk. Justin was always making jokey remarks about how the place was too small. I got the impression that he wanted to move us all to a bigger place, but for the time being, I was happy enough where I was. This was the home where I’d risen from the ashes and started again; I wasn’t quite ready to give that up yet.
“…yeah, and he’s so cute,” I hear Rae chatting away to Justin, sounding far too grown up for my liking. She was already involved in fights with other girls over boys – the sort of problems I hadn't been expecting for years yet. “And he likes me, too. He told Tiana that he thinks I’m the prettiest girl in class.”
I rolled my eyes and smiled to myself. This had to be Dan, the latest boy they were all obsessed with. I knew that he’d only be the flavor of the week, but Justin always got far too overprotective.
“Well, I think I might have to come into school with you on Monday, to check this boy out,” he said sharply. “I don’t know if I’m too happy about this.”
“Oh, you will be,” she replied dreamily. “He’s lovely. You’ll love him.”
I chose that moment to walk in and interrupt them before things got too heavy. Justin would always take these things to heart, and I had more important things for him to be focused on.
“Justin?” I said quietly. “I have something for you.”
He didn’t look too bothered as he grabbed the letter from me, until he saw what was written on the outside. “Is this what I think it is?”
I nodded slowly and watched as he rose and went into the other room to read it in private. I held Rae in my arms as she looked on in confusion. “What’s that?” she asked quietly.
“It’s a letter from his brother,” I told her, being as honest as I could be. “They haven’t always been very good friends, so this is a big thing for them.”
It reminded me of Billy, and the truth that I still hadn't revealed about him. Rae hadn't asked, and it didn’t seem like anyone else in her life had mentioned it either, but that wouldn’t last forever. That day was coming nearer, but it wasn’t upon me yet.
Luckily, Billy still wasn’t getting out any time soon, so that was another plus to add. If he was ever to be released, that would speed things up for sure.
“He’s asked me to visit him.” Justin returned to the room with a very pale look on his face. “It seems like he’s finally coming back around, out of the black cloud, and he wants to see me again.”
We’d been getting constant bad reports about how Garrett was acting in jail, but those had dried up recently – maybe this was the explanation for that. Maybe he really was improving.
“So, are you going to go?” I asked cautiously. “I mean, I’ll support you whatever you decide…”
“I will,” he confirmed as he folded the letter back up. “But not yet. It took him over two years to be ready to write to me; he can wait a while for me to be ready, too.”
That seemed fair to me, so I shot him a smile and patted the bed for him to get back in it. We didn’t have many opportunities for a lie in, so I wanted to take advantage of it.
“Are you still going to do it?” Rae asked, seemingly oblivious to the tension in the room. “Or has that letter changed things?” She still hadn't quite developed the filter needed to be considered polite.
“No, the letter hasn’t changed anything,” Justin promised, and I focused on that part rather than the fact that I had no idea what they were talking about.
Hopefully he was right, and the letter hadn't changed anything. Nothing would make me happier. I did want him to have his brother in his life; I just wanted things to stay the same for us, too. “I’m still going to do it.”
“Shall I go and get it then?” she started bouncing on the bed, shaking us all about. “Can I? Can I?”
“You can,” Justin sent her a knowing smile which finally piqued my interest. Something was going on here, and I needed to find out what.
As Rae raced from the room, I turned to Justin and demanded to know more. “Okay, what’s going on here? What are you two up to?”
“I can’t tell you,” he replied stubbornly, but there was a cheeky smile on his face that meant I could bend him to my will if I wanted to.
“Please,” I fluttered my eyelashes at him. “You know I hate being left out of things.”
“Okay,” he turned his whole body around to face me and grinned brightly. “Well, I think you know by now how I feel about you…” Oh God, I got the sense that this was going to be another ‘we need another place to live’ talk. I had to really resist not to roll my eyes. “And I think that things have been going really well between us. But now I want everyone else to see how much I love you. I want the world to know how you make me feel.”
Wait…this feels different; this isn’t how the chat normally went. I needed to start paying attention just in case this was actually something really important. I sat up straighter and ensured that I was looking right at him. “What are you saying?” I asked curiously, furrowing my eyebrows at him.
“Well…” he started, but Rae was back in the room like a shot, before he even got the chance to talk.
“Here,” she gasped out excitedly, handing me a small box. “Justin wants to marry you, so what do you say? Will you make him my dad?”
I opened the box slowly to find the most incredible princess-cut diamond inside. It wasn’t the most romantic proposal in the world, but it was just so us. Rae had actually been integral to us getting together, so it was no surprise that she’d been a massive part of this, too.
Justin treated her like his own daughter, he gave her everything that she needed, and he always had time for her…even more than me some of the time, so I was utterly grateful that he’d got her involved in this moment.
“Mom? What’s wrong?” she asked, staring at me like there was actually something wrong with me. “You’ve gone too quiet. Are you having a heart attack or something?”
“No, no, I’m fine,” I eventually managed to get out through the emotions. “This is all so unexpected.”
“No it isn’t,” she scoffed playfully. “Justin has been in love with you forever, and you love him, too. Marriage is the next step, so actually it isn’t surprising at all.”
“Oh God, don’t be so clever, you,” I giggled. “Of course, I’ll marry you, Justin.”
With that, he wrapped us both up into a family hug, making me grin happily against his chest. The way that our family had come to be wasn’t exactly what I’d planned when I found out that I was having a baby, but it was so much better than I anything could have had.
I had a man who liked me for who I was, who encouraged me to become more, who wanted the world for me, and that felt incredible.
“So, when are you getting married?” Rae immediately jumped in, making plans far before we were ready it. “I’m going to be bridesmaid, right? I’ve already seen a dress that I love.”
“Yeah, sorry about that,” Justin smiled apologetically. “Ever since she found out, she’s been dress shopping. I think she might end up with something more expensive than you. And if not, well then this day is going to cost me the Earth.”
“It’s okay, we’re worth it,” Rae replied with a shrug and a smile. “You know it’s true.”
“I know,” he replied, with a wistful look in his eyes. He grinned at me and held me closer to him, making me feel special and loved. “You really are. Whatever you want, you can have it.”
“Ooh, you might not want to say that to Rae…” I started, but it was too late. She was already thinking of everything she was going to get to make the day amazing.
I didn’t really need anything, only Justin. He was the only thing I wanted to make me happy: his love and my daughter. So Rae could do what she wanted. Well, within reason; I didn’t want her going too wild. Whatever happened, it would be the wedding of the century to me, just because it would change my life forever.
“I really do love you,” I told him with a grin. “And, I can’t wait to be your wife.”
“Me, neither,” he snuggled into me and held me close. “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, and I’ll love you forever.”
Forever…
That was just about long enough for me.
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THE HOT LAWYER
By Alexa Davis
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer's imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2017 Alexa Davis
Chapter One
Tucker James Hargrave
The sunlight streamed in from my new view overlooking the park, and settled on her face. Libby, once the wife of my best friend and hero, was tear-stained and rumpled, and though it was a once-in-a-lifetime look for her, it was the second time that I’d seen her like that. The only other time had been almost exactly four months before, following her ex-husband’s funeral. Suddenly shut out of her own home and shunned by former friends who had stayed with the money in the divorce, she’d found me—and together, we’d told little Olivia stories about her dad, from his time in college as the senior who had shown me the ropes of college life, to the cactus pancakes he’d made Libby the morning he proposed.
Now, Libby sniffed and wiped her nose while I seethed in anger at Andrew’s selfish short-sightedness. I wanted to wrap her in my arms and tell her that I would fix everything, get Olivia’s inheritance back from Andrew’s gold-digging widow, and return my goddaughter to the only home she’d ever known. If only it would’ve been welcome.
“You know I wouldn’t have bothered you if it wasn’t for Olivia,” she sniffed again. I gripped my pen, bending it until I felt the casing crack, and dropped it on the desk before I could break it.
“Libby, I’m happy to help, in any way I can. I’ll go over the paperwork tonight, and we can meet in the morning at Jitters for coffee, and I’ll give you a preliminary prognosis.”
“No, I can meet you here...”
“Damn it, Libby! I’m not going to attack you or throw myself at you,” I snapped. “Stop acting like you’re in danger with me. I’m taking this off the books. Therefore, I need to meet with you outside of work hours, and I figured you’d be averse to dinner. So, Jitters, tomorrow before 8:00 a.m.” She nodded stiffly.
“I don’t think you’re going to attack me,” she argued.
“Good, because what happened between us was not wrong, or unhealthy, or disloyal. We both loved Andrew. But we were both single, mourning, and needed comfort. It kills me that you are so ashamed of that night.” I tugged at my hair, almost too long, and falling past my collar, now that I didn’t have to keep up appearances to please my senior partners. Libby stood, and I escorted her to the reception desk, nodding to Henry Wilmer, the son of the firm’s cofounder and my new boss. I saw the glint in Libby’s eyes but wasn’t fast enough to get her out the door before she introduced herself to him with a wry smile that almost looked sincere, even to me.
“Mr. Wilmer, you don’t know me, but my name is Elizabeth Peele; my husband was Andrew Peele. I have found myself floundering since he died, what with all the upheaval over at…” She jerked a thumb toward my old firm, knowing avoiding a non-compete suit depended on never referencing them. “Well, anyway, I need representation and I can’t think of a better firm than Snell and Wilmer.” Henry raised an eyebrow at me and I shrugged. To him, it was just one more client defecting to me in my split from my old firm.
“Well then, I’m sure Mr. Hargrave will take good care of you. I make sure all his old clients go straight to him. It keeps him too busy to think about leaving us and putting out his own shingle,” he teased, or rather, half-teased. But no matter how much he worried I’d leave, I had no interest in going solo. I’d been brought up a team player, raised as one of the oldest of five boys on the hardest working ranch in Texas. I knew the formula for success, and I was happy to work for a prestigious firm that had tenacity enough to cling to their morals.
“Of course, I wasn’t Mr. Hargrave’s client before,” Libby was saying as I turned my attention back to her, “I certainly don’t have to be now.”
“Nonsense. He’s arguably the best we have, and my dear, it seems like you could use the best.” He turned to me. “Keep me posted, I want to know if they’re going to be replacing my name on the stationary.” I shook my head and laughed as he grabbed my hand and clapped me on the back. He shook Libby’s hand as well, and I walked her to the parking garage.
“Libby. We’ll do everything we can for you. I don’t know what happened to Andrew, or between the two of you, but Olivia is my priority, just like she’s yours. I would’ve done this pro bono. I wish you had let me.”
“I already owe you so much. And you’re right, I feel ashamed and embarrassed about the way I… threw myself at you.” I opened my mouth to protest, but she cut me off. “I just need to know I can do this on my own. I was eighteen when I married Andrew. I worked and paid for him to go to school and didn’t even get to finish college myself. Then I stopped working, because ‘none of the other wives were working outside the home.’ It took years for us to get Olivia, and then, before she was old enough for kindergarten, he suddenly implodes our marriage, our family, and marries an actual stripper. A stripper!”
“I know, Libby. You couldn’t make this stuff up. He died so soon after, I just felt like he would’ve snapped out of it. I wish I’d gotten through to him.” Libby touched my wrist, sighed, and opened the door of her Cadillac.
“I know you did everything you could. That’s why I know you’ll do everything you can now. I’ll call your secretary and set up an appointment.” She shut the door, but I called out anyway for her to give Olivia my love. She nodded through the glass, and I backed away to let her out.
As I walked back into the building, Henry was waiting for me. I stuffed my hands in my pockets and nodded him into my office. I sat behind the desk he’d given me as a “welcome home” gift and watched him take his seat across the desk.
“The view was better twenty minutes ago,” I quipped, making him chuckle.
“I bet. Is she okay? I know Peele had gone through one doozy of a mid-life crisis before he died.”
“Yeah, you could say that. Right now, it’s a simple contest of the will. I don’t think we’ll get much, but the right judge will get some mementos for their daughter, Olivia, and a trust fund, which is all Libby wants anyway.”
“Doesn’t seem right, leaving that little girl with nothing,” he looked down at his hands. “She’d about the same age as my grandkids, isn’t she?” I nodded.
“I’ll make sure she’s taken care of.”
“I know you will, Tuck, that’s why you’re here. The influx of clientele was just a happy accident for us.” He stood to go, but looked back from the doorway. “She was awfully pretty for someone who’d been crying. She must be absolutely stunning when she’s smiling.”
“One of many reasons no one can understand what Andrew did.” I finished his thought. “Yes. I know.” He shook his head and closed the door behind him, leaving me to the silence I preferred. Once he was gone, I opened the file Libby had left me. It wasn’t Andrew’s work; I’d seen that, and it had been sloppy and disjointed before he died. One of the partners had done this for him, and it was solid. My gut clenched. The last thing I wanted to do was tell Libby that her daughter’s future was hinging on a sympathetic judge. I gathered the folder and a few other cases I was working on and told Sandra, my assistant, that I’d be working from home for the rest of the day.
Kennedy, my best friend and canine housekeeper, bayed at me from her kennel as soon as I hit the foyer of my condo. I grabbed some bacon-smelling dog treats and let her out, whereupon she promptly sat like an angel and waited patiently for me to reward her, her spotted rump twitching with excitement. She caught her treat and munched happily while I changed from my suit to the sweatpants and Marvel t-shirt I favored. My briefcase went at one end of the table, and out came the folder from Libby. With a heavy sigh, I called Caroline, Andrew’s former secretary, and the one person back at Cripke, Cripke, and Stokes that wouldn’t hang up on me or threaten me with a lawsuit—though I didn’t have much hope anymore that she’d help me, either.