Mom gasped from behind me. “Oh my god.”
Elio smiled—big, wide, and genuine. A real, true smile. The same smile I fell in love with when we were kids, without even knowing it was love I’d felt. “This is for you.” He gestured to the painting proudly.
I stepped aside, letting her through first while the rest of us watched. She walked up to it slowly, wading through imaginary waters.
I’d expected her to reach out toward the canvas. I thought she was going to touch it with her fingertips, maybe trace it with tears in her eyes. She didn’t, though. She turned toward Elio, grabbing him in a big, tight hug. “My baby. Oh, my baby. Thank you. Thank you.”
Elio’s eyes widened as he hesitantly wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. I nodded at him with a smile.
The Miller family all stood in the same room, in a new life, with more love than we could’ve ever thought possible. After years of pain, loss, and uncertainty, we’d found each other again.
At the center of the room, Mom finally had her painting. The blue jay was perched on a branch, looking off to the side, its blue, white, and black feathers all perfectly in place. I’d watched Elio make every stroke with intent, putting so much love into the color that his forehead would sweat from concentration.
The canvas was tall, wide, and virtually indestructible. Nobody could take it away from us again. Nobody could stomp on it, or tear it apart, or use it to scare me into obeying them. The blue jay sitting on its branch was so much more than a painting. It was hope and resilience. Love and trust. A prophecy of a never-ending future, with feathers so pristine, they’d never fade. They’d never wilt.
And they’d never get lost again.
Epilogue
Two Years Later
It wasour final night before officially becoming husbands. Crescent came up beside me, placing a hand on my shoulder. “It looks so beautiful outside.”
Rain was falling, small droplets against the tall, clear windows. I could feel the icy air permeating through them, a chill starting just at my feet. The nights had gotten colder, forcing the trees to change colors and shed their leaves.
It was beautiful, but it was nowhere close to as beautiful as him. Turning to him, I rested my arms around his neck. “Glad we have an inside venue for the wedding. It might rain tomorrow, too.”
His grin was immediate, a gorgeous chuckle blessing it. “Isn’t that crazy? We’re gettingmarried.”
“Only crazy because it took us so long, I think.” I roseon my tiptoes, grinning against his lips. “Star is going to be such a beautiful flower girl.”
“I can’t wait to see Moon in his matching tux.”
“Your mom and dad are gonna cry, you know.”
“Fuck, don’t remind me.” He groaned.
I ran my hands down his chest, stopping at the hem of his shirt. “But, most of all, you’re going to look so handsome. So gorgeous. So sexy.” I lifted his shirt from the sides, bringing it up and over his head. I watched as his hair fell around his shoulders, the ends curling. “You’ll be my smoking hot husband, and I’m finally going to be a Miller.”
Crescent shifted, pulling me toward him as he pressed his back against the window. “You were always a Miller, baby. Same last name or not, you’ve always been a part of our family.”
I gripped the waistband of his pajama pants, sliding them down as I knelt. “We were always meant to be, weren’t we?”
“There’s no universe where we weren’t, Sunshine.” His hand cradled the back of my head, his fingers tangling in my hair.
I closed my eyes, but only for a second. Just one moment to let myself feel how his hold on me sent warmth through my entire body. It was magical how easily Crescent had this effect on me. When I opened them, the only word I could think of to describe what I saw was stunning.
His cock was straining, the tip begging for my tongue. I trailed my gaze up his body, over every bump, ridge, and hair I’d tasted a hundred times before. On either side of him, the rain kept falling, shimmering in the moonlight. A bright, off-white glow encased him, presenting him like the angel he was. The angels we both were in another lifetime, our souls forever bound by the fire in our hearts and the sound of our wings flapping in the sky.
Holding him at the base of his shaft, I wrapped my lips around him, worshipping his cock like I’d worshipped his body many times before. His moans and grunts were musical, each one a new note for the orchestra of our lives. There was a lightthunkagainst the window as he rolled his head, his eyes falling shut in ecstasy.
I took him, all of him, as deep as I could manage. I knew exactly how to drive him crazy, swallowing around him while my hands ran up his upper thighs, stopping on his hips. I gripped them, using them to pull his body closer to me.
“Fuck, El. Yes.”
Humming around him, I curled my hands behind him, grabbing his ass cheeks firmly. I could feel his muscles tense and release as he let his body take over, thrusting back and forth.There it was.He was losing his fucking mind, and I reveled in knowing I’d done it to him. It was me. Always me.
My scalp tingled as he tugged on my hair, arching his back on a long, drawn-out moan. His hips stuttered to a stop, but I didn’t pull back, keeping him deep in my throat just like he loved. The first couple of spurts had me moaning with him, drinking his pleasure until the final drop. Seeing him flushed, his cheeks warm with a light blush, had me grinning up at him.
