I walked into Jimmy’s office with my head held high. I had no idea if this was going to work. But putting on a show of confidence couldn’t hurt, right?

I’d talked the whole thing over with Jane and her brothers. Not only were they on board with the idea. They insisted I make it happen, because they were awesome like that. Apparently the Queen had caught wind of my plan, too. While we’d never officially gotten approval from her, she hadn’t disapproved, either. Which Jane said was as good as we could hope for.

I’d take it. Because even though Jimmy wasn’t exactly a stand-up guy, he was still a part of the Thorne family. If I had the chance to help build a bridge—to show him that not every member of the royal family was a prick like his father had been—I had to make it happen.

And yeah, it’d be a nice bonus if he cleared the debt I owed him as a nice little thank you.

Was it a long shot? Absolutely. But I was a former con who’d ended up with a princess. Sometimes wild hope paid off.

Jimmy was sitting at his desk. He looked up when I entered his office.

“Charlie,” he said, setting down his pen. “It’s been a minute, hasn’t it?”

I nodded. “Been busy.”

“So I hear,” he said. “I’ve missed having you around. I’m still waiting on that big idea you promised me.”

My heart thumped inside my chest.

“What if I had something better to offer?” I said.

Jimmy puckered his brow, settling his elbows on his desk. “What could possibly be better than a multi-million pound job?”

I licked my lips. They’d suddenly gone dry.

“Your family,” I said. “Her Majesty Princess Jane and her brothers would very much like to speak with you.”

Later That Week

I knocked on the door. One short, quick rap. Then I stepped back to stand beside Owen.

He shifted uncomfortably on his feet, passing the brown paper bag he held from one arm to the other.

“This is really what they wanted us to bring?” he asked, glancing up at the four story apartment. “Some sandwiches and The Princess Bride edition of Monopoly?”

I grinned, looking down at the box I had tucked underneath my arm. The board game’s title, printed in shimmering gold letters, glinted in the early afternoon sunshine. I’d had it custom made by an artist on Etsy, and I couldn’t wait to show Jane. I wanted her to see it before her brothers started hurling the mini Miracle Max and Inigo Montoya player pieces at each other.

“Yup.” I gave Owen a gentle nudge with my elbow. “Hey. They’re going to love you. Trust me when I say they are the kindest, most easy-going, foul mouthed family in England.”

His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed, still looking up at the palace. “You sure about that? Because these people caught me on camera trying to steal from them.”

“I explained everything,” I said. “They’ll be cool, I promise. If they weren’t, they wouldn’t have given us that loan for our classes.”

Though truth be told, I felt slightly less confident than I sounded. Yes, The Foundation had given Owen and I even more seed money to get our classes off the ground. And yes, Jane had talked to her brothers about Owen. How, like me, he’d conned because he had to. Because he’d just wanted to make his tuna melts in peace.

But the Thorne brothers were a volatile bunch, as I’d learned over the course of several Sunday afternoons. You never knew what you were going to get.

I also really, really wanted Owen to get along with everyone. I wanted him to enjoy Jane’s family as much as I did. Because one day they might be our family, too. It was important to me that Owen feel included. Feel welcomed. We had no one else in the world. It’d be nice to know Owen had some friends he could rely on.

And then there was the whole Jimmy situation. I wondered if he’d even show up. He’d spent his whole life hating these people. But that look in his eyes when I’d said the Thorne siblings wanted to meet with him had been almost hopeful. Soft.

I’d never seen Jimmy go soft before.

Owen drew a breath at the sound of heavy footsteps behind the door, followed by muffled voices.

“That them?”

“Of course it’s bloody them, who else would it be? Thick as a board, you are.”

“Me? Please! You’re the one with a brain the size of a fucking pea.”

“Jesus fucking Christ, lads, watch your language around the baby, would you?”

“Listen to you guys!” A woman’s voice this time. “Out of the way, all of you. You’re not fit for decent company.”

The deadbolt slid back and the door opened. Aly, Rob’s wife, smiled at us. Her eyes lit up when they fell on the paper bag.

“I am so glad you’re here,” she said, giving her growing belly a rub. “I’ve been craving a turkey bacon club like nobody’s business, and I can’t seem to find a decent one anywhere in this city.”

I stepped forward to kiss her cheeks.

“Aly, this is my brother Owen,” I said, motioning to my brother. “Owen, this is Aly.”

She held out her hand, giving him a warm smile.

“So nice to meet you. Charlie’s told us all about you.”

Owen cut me a glance. “Hopefully only good things?”

“Oh yeah,” Aly said. “Mostly how good your world famous sandwiches are. I’m excited for you guys and your classes! How cool that you’re bringing the art and science of sandwich making to the U.K. Also cool that you’re bringing that turkey bacon club to me.”

My brother laughed, his cheeks flushing with pleasure. He held out the bag. “I made a few extra with mayo on the side. They should keep in the fridge for the next few days.”

“You are so speaking my language. Thank you,” Aly said, taking the bag. “Come in, come in, please! Oh, and don’t mind the dog. We’ve gotten him fixed, but he—well, just kick him off if it gets to be too much.”

I followed Owen and Aly inside. Immediately we were inundated by people and hugs and dogs—Kit and Em had apparently brought their new puppy over to play.

Rob pulled Owen into an embrace. When he pulled away, he patted his pockets.

“Wallet’s still there,” he said. “Guess we can trust you, yeah?”

Rob burst out laughing. So did Kit and Jack. I couldn’t tell if they were really joking or…not.

Jane merely rolled her eyes, plastering her body against mine.

“Ignore them,” she said to Owen, who had suddenly gone pale, despite the smile plastered on his face. She lowered her voice. “They’ll warm up to you. Just give them a moment. And a few glasses of wine.”

I pressed a kiss to her lips. “I missed you. How was the trip?”

Jane had flown up to Northumberland yesterday to visit a female-led theatre production company that had received a grant from The Foundation. She’d gotten back late, so we hadn’t been able to catch up.

“It went really well,” she said, giving my waist a squeeze. “Next time you’ll have to come with me. I think you’d really love meeting the students.”

I grinned. “Are you asking me to be your bag man?”

“I’ve already got one of those,” she said, grinning back. “What about being my right hand man?”

The joke was a terrible one. But I couldn’t resist.

“I’m a big fan of your right hand.”

Beside me, Owen groaned. “I said it before, and I’ll say it again. Get a goddamned room.”

“Thank you!” Rob said, stepping forward. “They’re the worst, aren’t they? Always sucking each other’s faces in front of us.”

Jane’s eyes widened. “We’re the worst? I’ve walked in on you—”

“Shh!” Rob put his hands on either side of Aly’s belly. “The baby doesn’t need to know how it was made, all right?”

Aly smiled, offering us a little shrug. “I’ve been dreaming about this sandwich. Let’s eat.”

Like usual, the china and crystal were set out on the dining room table. And like usual, those were the only fancy things about the lunch we had. Owen passed out his sandwiches—each one customized to what I’d told him everyone liked—and his color slowly came back as silence descended, people too busy devouring their meal to do much besides groan in appreciation.

“My. God,” Aly said between bites. “This is—”

“Orgasmic?” Jack said around a mouthful of a ham and Havarti sandwich. “I second that opinion.”

Baby Josie, who was munching on a slice of cheese Emily had taken off her Italian sub, slapped the table in apparent solidarity.

Kit elbowed Owen. “You’re welcome to come over anytime. As long as you bring these,” he teased.

“Welp,” Rob said, wiping his hands over his empty plate. “Complete rubbish, that. Hated it.”

Owen looked so happy I thought he might burst.

The more my brother relaxed, the more I did too. It was really fucking weird, the fact that Owen and I were sitting down to lunch with the family we’d tried to rob.

But then being around the Thornes made me think that all families were weird. Period. No matter who your family was or where you were from. Was our story weirder than most? Probably. But didn’t mean we couldn’t enjoy the wonderful parts about each other, too.

I was still anxious, though, when Aly brought out The Princess Bride Monopoly box. Jane literally gasped when she saw it.

“You didn’t!” she said, grinning ear to ear.

I shrugged. “I had to.”

“So who are you going to be?” she said, opening the box to take out the player pieces. “Dread Pirate Roberts? Wesley? Buttercup?”

Jack’s gaze moved between us. “This is some kind of pervy role playing you two do, isn’t it?”

“See!” Rob’s hand shot up. “Told you they’re the perviest.”

“We are not pervy,” Jane said.

“Are too,” Emily replied.

Jane grinned. “Fine. I’ll take that title.” Then she kissed my mouth.

Predictably, my body leapt.

We started to play. Owen was a little intimidated by all the trash talk and threats of bodily harm at first. But it wasn’t long before he was getting the hang of the game. He’d even started to cheat, pilfering a handful of fifty dollar bills while Aly went to town on her second club sandwich.

When Owen shamelessly used that money to buy Park Place, Rob clapped him on the shoulder. “You make me proud, lad. You learn the ropes faster than most.”

“I mean, I was a con for a few years.” Owen shrugged. “If I don’t win, I deserve to be thrown in jail. Figurative jail. Monopoly jail, I mean.”

There was a beat of uncomfortable silence. My pulse skipped. Then the table burst into laughter.

“I want to pick your brain,” Rob was saying, leaning into him. “I mean, really. There’s got to be a better strategy to rip this lot off. My brothers, they’re not very smart, you see, but the ladies—they’re the ones to watch out for.”

Emily grinned, wagging her brows. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Owen laughed. I did, too.

I looked down when Jane put a hand on my thigh. She was wearing this expression—small smile, content, clear eyes—that made my heart beat a little faster.

“Happy?” I murmured.

Jane nodded. “Happy. You?”

I looked around the table. Josie was snoozing on Kit’s shoulder. Somewhere, a dog was barking; another was humping Aly’s leg underneath the table, but she could care less because she was still working her way through that second sandwich. Owen was showing Emily how to hide Monopoly money up her sleeve. He tried on his excellent British accent, which made her laugh and then try on her accent, too. But no matter what she did, the Georgia girl in her would always shine through.

It was pure chaos.

And it was beautiful.

Just like the woman sitting next to me, her hand creeping dangerously close to my crotch.

“Happy,” I said, leaning in. “And horny. I say we own our title and take a little bathroom break.”

Jane bit her bottom lip. Then she turned to the table. “Excuse me. I’m, um. Going to get more wine,” she said loudly.

She got up. A second later, I followed her out.

“Glad you’re finally getting a room!” Owen called out after us.

Jack laughed. “Thank fuck.”

We returned a few minutes later to find that the dining room had gone dead silent.

Jimmy was standing in the doorway. His eyes were hard. His face was red.

Aly was standing beside him. Clearly the one who’d answered the door and brought him in here.

Doubt elbowed its way into my chest, making my heart thump. I’d arranged this whole thing out of a heady sense of optimism. But now I wondered if that optimism had been misplaced. Misguided. Could Jimmy ever really forgive this family that had shunned him all these years?

And could Jane’s family really welcome him with open arms after he’d tried to steal from them?

Maybe being in love had blinded me to the sad reality of the situation. Everything seemed possible now that I was with Jane.

But I couldn’t not do something. I couldn’t erase past hurts. The fact that Jimmy had been deprived of a father. But I could try to mend fences. At the very least, I could get these people in the same room. Would they change? Who knew.

But change was possible. I was Exhibit A. So I had to try. For Jane. For Jimmy.

And yeah, for Owen and me, too.

I’d found my family. Found my better. And I wanted to pay it forward.

“Jimmy,” I said, keeping my arm curled around Jane’s waist. “I’m glad you came.”

A muscle in his jaw jumped.

“This was a mistake,” he said. “I should go—”

“Stay.” Rob leapt out of his chair. He offered Jimmy his hand. “Please. We’ve been looking forward to your visit. I’m Rob.”

I waited, heart in my throat, while Jimmy stared Rob down.

And then I let out a breath when he took Rob’s hand and shook it.

“Jimmy,” he said.

“Jimmy,” Rob repeated, looking him in the eye. “It’s a pleasure to have you. Our only regret is that this hasn’t happened sooner. Please, come sit. What can I get you to drink? A beer?”

Jimmy’s eyes flashed with surprise as he let Rob lead him to a seat at the table. He looked around. Saw the scattered remains of our sandwiches on the plates. Baby Josie clapped, smiling at him shyly from her perch on Kit’s lap.

“A beer,” Jimmy said. “Yes. Okay. Thank you.”

Rob dashed to the kitchen and came back with a beer, which he set in front of Jimmy. Then the introductions began. Kit, Emily, Jack, then Jane. Then the dog, who promptly went to town on Emily’s chair leg.

“On behalf of our family, I want to apologize for the way you’ve been treated,” Kit said, bouncing the baby on his knee. “Obviously we came into the picture long after everything went down. If I could go back and fix things, I would. But I can’t. What we can do is try to make things right going forward.”

Jimmy cleared his throat. His face was still red. He grabbed his beer and took a long, uncomfortable pull.

Kit and Jack exchanged glances.

“We understand if you want nothing to do with us,” Jack said. “No one deserves to be treated the way you were. But we’d like to make you part of the family if you’ll have us.”

Rob rubbed a hand over his hair. “Not much to recommend us, I’m afraid. Jack’s a cheat, Kit’s a prude, and I’m—”

“A jackass?” Jane offered.

A ghost of a smile played at Jimmy’s lips. His brow was furrowed, like he still couldn’t quite decide what to make of these people.

“Sounds about right,” Rob replied. “Better than being a wild card, like you.”

“Hey,” Jane said in mock offense. “I’m not a wild card. I’m good at cards. I love taking your money.”

“Speaking of.” Kit looked hopefully at Jimmy. “Would you like to stay for a round of Monopoly? As long as you know how to cheat, you’ve got a fighting chance of winning.”

Jimmy’s eyebrows leapt. “Cheat? At Monopoly?”

“It’s a Thorne family tradition,” I explained.

“Really just an excuse to get pissed on Sunday afternoons,” Rob said.

Jimmy’s gaze darted around the table. He looked more confused than ever. I bit back a smile.

They’re not at all who you think they are, I’d told him.

The Thornes were proving my point beautifully.

Jimmy took another sip of his beer.

“All right,” he said after a beat.

My heart leapt. Owen shot me a smile. And Jane wrapped me in a hug.

“He still hasn’t said much,” I murmured in her ear.

“We have to start somewhere,” she whispered back.

After we’d said our admittedly awkward goodbyes, I walked Jimmy to Primrose Palace’s back gate.

He was quiet for most of the walk. Kept his gaze focused on the brick pavers at his feet.

He’d been quiet for most of the game we’d played, too. He’d kept looking around the table. Taking it all in. I remembered doing the same thing when I’d come to Sunday lunch the first time. The commotion, the cursing, the affection—it was overwhelming. I got it.

“So,” I said, drawing to a stop a few paces from the gate. “What did you think?”

Jimmy slipped his hands into his pockets. “I honestly don’t know what to think. I never would’ve imagined…” He shook his head, averting his eyes.

“They’re good people, Jimmy,” I replied. “See how they couldn’t be more different from your father? I can’t make this decision for you, obviously. Only you know what you’ve been through. But if you’re willing to give them a chance, I don’t think you’ll regret it. Kit told me he’d love to sit down with you, one on one, to talk everything through. I’m sure you have a lot to say.”

Jimmy swallowed. “I do.”

“Then say it. You’ll never get this opportunity again.”

“You just want me to do all this so I’ll forget about all that money you owe me,” he said, eyes flicking to meet mine.

I grinned. “Well, yeah. Where are we on that, by the way?”

My pulse skipped as I waited for his reply.

Jimmy’s eyes were still on mine.

“I think we can work something out.”

I let out a breath. “Something as in my brother and I are finally free? No more debt?”

Jimmy looked around the palace grounds.

“We’ve already paid that ten grand off how many times over,” I pressed. “It’s been years, Jimmy. I’m busting my ass to make it work, but...”

He looked at me.

“All right.”

Relief crashed through me, a tidal wave many years in the making. I closed my eyes against the force of it, my shoulders falling back from my ears.

“Thank you,” I breathed.

Jimmy cleared his throat. “I should be off.”

“Right.” I opened my eyes. “Of course. See you next Sunday? Same place, same time.”

He hesitated. Then he sighed.

“Yeah,” he said. “Maybe.”

I smiled. Like Jane said, it was a start.

I headed back to Jane’s apartment, where she was waiting for me with Owen.

“So?” she said, eyes wide.

I grinned. “I think the damn thing just might work.”

She clapped her hands, then threw them in the air before crushing me in a hug.

“Never would’ve believed it,” Owen said, shaking his head. “Jimmy making amends with the royal family over beers and board games. Might be your best job yet, Charlie.”

I inclined my head in a mock bow. “Thank you. I take great pride in my work.”

“What about you, Owen?” Jane said. “What did you think of the family?”

It was his turn to grin. “It was definitely a different experience coming to the palace this time around as myself and not Bastian Winks.”

“Bastian Winks.” Jane shook her head in mock disappointment. “I should’ve known right then you guys were up to something.”

“Hey, the cap was pretty convincing,” I offered.

Jane laughed. “Not really.”

Then she slipped an arm around Owen’s waist and pulled him into a half hug. “Seriously, though. I hope you had a good time this afternoon. I’ve talked with everyone, and it’s not weird for us if it’s not weird for you, yeah?”

Owen was blushing again. I bit back a smile. A smile, and a familiar tightness in my throat. Jane wasn’t just making an effort with my brother. She was actively accepting him into her life, even after the stunt he’d pulled.

She was treating him like family. And that made me feel a kind of happiness and completeness that was new. Overwhelming. Sweet.

My heart twisted. Mom would be so proud. So happy that we were happy. That we’d found good people to spend time with, despite the not-so-good things we’d done in the past.

“Yeah,” he said after a beat. “I really appreciate that. I know I’ve said this before, Jane, but I really am sorry. About everything.”

She grinned up at him. Gave him a light pat on his back. “I know. But think about it this way. If you hadn’t helped your brother con me—well, none of us would be together right now, would we? Without you, Charlie and I would’ve never met. Without you, we would’ve never gotten to the Fox and Hen, which meant we would’ve never had the best first date in the history of first dates.”

“True,” Owen said, smiling.

Jane turned around to look at me. “Without you, Owen, Charlie and I would’ve never found each other. So thank you.”

“For what?” he said, disbelievingly. “Stealing from you?”

“For bringing us together. Even if it was in a fucked up way.”

We laughed at that.

He slid his hands into his pockets. “Thank you, Jane, for having me. And for loving my brother so well.” He kissed her cheek.

Then I pulled her to me and kissed her mouth.

This was it. The good life. The better.

I’d found it, finally. I’d found her.

And I was never, ever going to let her go.