I got a hug from them both, Rosanna as well because she came. Dad made me promise to come home at a decent time because he had a graduation present for me when I got there. He decided not to sell the house after all, since things seemed better and Aunt Celeste was even making a permanent switch to come out and live with us. We’d all be under the same roof since I decided to stay there too while going to community college in the fall.
“Any idea what my dad’s gift might be?” I asked Royal later that night. We didn’t need to stay and clean up. Obviously, Windsor House had staff for that, but the pair of us did. I think it helped us both mellow down.
Royal trashed a red Solo cup, his lips twisted in a grin. “What makes you think I’d know anything about that?”
Approaching, I snaked my arms around his waist. I shrugged. “I don’t know, because I’ve been seeing you two whispering about something.”
Like seriously, all the damn time now. I even caught them watching sports together on Monday nights. WTF.
Dropping his trash, Royal brought big arms around me. “Well, it’s supposed to be a surprise.”
“And it’s clearly not now. So…”
He touched his mouth to mine, smiling. “It’s a ski trip. To my family’s cabin, which is why he brought me in on it. I’m loaning it to him for use. He invited me to go too.”
“Well, that was really nice of you.”
“It’s the least I could do, right? I mean, he might not have any daughters if it wasn’t for me.”
He said that very seriously, and that saddened me. He was still taking responsibility for things that weren’t his fault.
“You’re going to promise me something, okay?” I stated, lacing our fingers together. “You’re not going to punish yourself for things you have no control over anymore. It’s not healthy.”
And could be the very thing that may get in between us. He’d have no more room for anyone else, least of all me if he couldn’t handle his guilt.
Sitting down on a folding chair, Royal took me with him, staring up at me with those beautiful eyes. I’d never get over seeing myself in them, all that warmth, all that love. He hugged me tight. “I love you, Em. I love you always.”
Like everything else he said, I knew he meant that too.
I brought my arms around him. “I love you always.”
We’d need that, both of us. We’d have a long way to go for healing after all this, and when he was weak, I’d be strong and vice versa. We’d be each other’s rocks.
Silently, I thanked my sister for something else, letting him kiss me and sinking into it. I never would have found him if it wasn’t for her.
I just wished she could have been here to see it.
Epilogue
Two Years Later
Royal
“Why does it look like these floors aren’t vacuumed?”
December and I gazed up from the box of her stuff we’d been unpacking. How in fuck’s sake a girl had so much shit I had no idea, but I’d moved at least three suitcases of her stuff up three fucking flights of stairs.
God only knows how my girlfriend decided to pick a college dorm without a damn elevator.
That’d been her choice, though, and I went with it as with most things when it came to her. I’d really become nothing but a pushover, but I couldn’t help it. I enjoyed making her happy, but who was not happy was Mr. Lindquist who currently stressed the fuck out about the state of her dorm room floors. He currently paced over the hardwood, his hand in his pocket.
He tugged his phone out with a frown. “I’m going to make a call. This is unacceptable. How do they expect kids to get off to a good start if their rooms are filthy?”
I, particularly, wouldn’t consider one of the top schools in the state filthy, but to each his own.
And Em thought I was anal.
I just liked my stuff a certain way, and sighing, December got up from her new bed and wiggled her little ass over to her dad by the door. Reaching back into her suitcase to pull out more stuff, I tried to keep it from being obvious I was checking out the goods in front of her dad.
But oh, would I be hitting that later.
Especially after the little surprise I planned to tell her after her dad and aunt finally left us. Good luck ever getting a moment alone with my girlfriend when I came back into town. I’d been flying private jets for a little over a year now, working mostly for the government. The hardest part had been the clearances once I got out of flight school. I’d been flying since I was sixteen and had no problems with my certifications.
So much had changed, more time away from my girlfriend than I would’ve liked. I didn’t get to see her a lot since I’d been working so much, but all that was about to change…
That was if I could get her alone.
“Dad, it’s fine,” she stressed, pleading with Mr. Lindquist with that little pout thing she did. It never ceased to work its magic on me. She frowned hard. “I brought a vacuum. I can take care of it.”
Clearly unsatisfied with that, Mr. Lindquist started dialing, and beside him was December’s aunt Celeste. Together, niece and aunt rolled their eyes, and when Celeste passed me a wink, I knew she was about to do me a solid and get Mr. Lindquist the hell out of here. We’d talked about this, and she knew my
