“I guess we kind of helped each other out, then,” she says softly.
I return her smile, my heart threatening to explode from this much love. “I guess so.”
But a moment later, I let out a loud laugh when something occurs to me. “So, we’re both unemployed now?”
Scarlett huffs a laugh in return. “I guess so.”
“Well, at least we have that fifteen grand to live on for a little while...”
SCARLETT’S EPILOGUE
Six months later
I can smell the dinner Nico’s cooking before I even open the door.
It took me a while to get used to it. When I first moved in, I slipped right back into the habits I’d adopted during my first marriage. I cleaned religiously, and I had dinner on the table by the time Nico would get home.
On our fifth day of living together, Nico hid all the cleaning supplies and physically removed me from the kitchen.
Nowadays, we split the household chores. When Nico cooks, I clean up after. We both do surface-level cleans, but I prefer to do the deep cleans. We’ve created a partnership, instead of living by roles defined by gender stereotypes.
Nico looks up when I walk into the apartment. He’s standing at the kitchen island, chopping vegetables with a dish towel thrown over his shoulder.
Nobody prepared me for how hot the domesticated look is.
“Hey, baby,” he greets with a smile, putting the knife down to wipe his hands. “You’re home early.”
“Professor let us out early,” I say, dropping my bag in the entryway. Before walking over to Nico, I squat down next to our couch and scratch behind the ears of our sleeping dog.
The same dog that stole my heart that day at the rescue clinic.
“Hi, Kimbo,” I coo, smiling when his tail starts to thump against the cushions. “Did you give up on begging Daddy for scraps?”
“More like he filled up on scraps he conned from me,” Nico mutters. “I swear, his puppy dog eyes rival yours.”
I straighten and make my way over to my boyfriend. When I reach him, I tuck into his arms in a way that feels more natural than breathing. “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I say with an innocent smile.
“Yeah, okay,” he mutters. But he’s smiling as he presses a kiss to my hair.
I don’t think I’ll ever get enough of this easy intimacy between us. Out of all the things I love about being with Nico, this is the thing that has made me feel the safest.
“How was your day?” he murmurs against my temple, tightening his arms around me. “Did you have the meeting with your academic advisor?”
Giddy about the topic, I pull back enough to meet his eyes. “I did. We made a plan for the classes I’ll enroll in next semester, and we pulled all my application materials together that masters programs usually need.”
His eyes light up instantly. No one gets more excited for my academic success than Nico Price. “Yeah? That’s amazing.”
I suck in a deep breath. “Now I just need to take the GRE and figure out where I want to apply.”
He softens at that and pulls me into his arms again. “I’m so proud of you, baby,” he murmurs, nuzzling into my neck.
I melt into his embrace, a happy smile forming on my lips. I’ll never get tired of his unconditional love.
“And how wasyourday?” I mumble into his chest.
I both hear and feel his warm chuckle. His hand brushes over my hair as he says, “It was good. Spent the morning having Lucas walk me through the gym’s legal stuff so I can finally get added as a partner, and then I held pads for one of the guys getting ready for his pro debut. Not much different than my usual day, honestly.”
At that, I pull back so I can look up at him again. “Do you ever miss the fighting part?”
