I can tell she doesn’t quite believe me, and that’s okay. In time, everything will be clear again, and Jess will be able to breathe a full sigh of relief, knowing she’ll never have to see her aunt again. No matter how messy this may get, she has me, Asher, and Mason at her side. Even if, by some chance, she doesn’t get her inheritance, we’ll take care of her.
She nods against my hands and closes her eyes, and I lean down and give her a gentle kiss on the forehead. By the time I pull back, her eyes are open and the expression she wears is worlds more relaxed than it was mere seconds ago.
The door to the conference room opens, and two alphas slip out: Asher and Mason. Both make a beeline toward us, their focus on Jess. I move to the side, and the moment Asher reaches her, he pulls her in for a hug.
“This must be so hard for you,” he whispers. “But we’re here for you.”
Mason stands beside her, and since his brother is locked in a hug with her, the only thing he can really do is place a hand on her back and rub her. “We’ll be with you every step of the way, no matter how long this takes.”
Asher finally lets her out of the unending hug, and Jess turns those amber eyes to me. “You really think Darius is that good?” she asks, daring to hope.
Out of all the things I’ve seen and heard Darius do, dealing with a bitchy aunt who loves money and cares about what the general public thinks about her is well within his capabilities. I have faith in him, which is why I say what I say next.
“I really do think he’s that good.”
Epilogue
Chapter Twenty-Nine – Jess
Turns out, Darius really is that good. He got my aunt to sign everything necessary, including the paper that gave her a time limit. She has two weeks to move out of that house—and Alabaster Security is giving her a detail to make sure she doesn’t try any funny business, like taking everything that’s not nailed down.
I don’t think she would stoop to that level, but you never know. Sometimes people surprise you in the worst ways.
When it’s all said and done, I don’t even have to be checked out by a doctor to confirm that I haven’t matched with anyone. The threat of taking my aunt to court and dragging her name through the mud—basically, what would be social suicide for someone like her—was enough to get her to stand down.
I didn’t see her when she left that conference room, but I can imagine she was ticked off beyond belief.
Good.
While everything gets going, I’m taken to an apartment downtown, where the guys and I crash while we wait for my aunt to permanently vacate my home. The guys talk about inviting their parents over, but I tell them I’m not quite ready yet to re-meet the Thompsons or Rourke’s mom.
It’ll come in time. I’m… almost there. I think I want to be at home when I meet them. I want to create new, better memories for that house.
I hope their parents will approve. I’ll be pretty devastated if they don’t, but honestly, while the Dryers name used to mean something, it doesn’t mean so much anymore. I might as well be a random omega they plucked off the streets.
The guys do invite over Pax and Raeka a week and a half later. While the guys talk to Pax in the living room, I get to talkto Raeka alone on the balcony. Like I need a friend or something. Psh. How ridiculous.
What’s even more ridiculous is that Raeka was in my class. I remember her. She had loving parents who are still very much alive, even to this day. That must be nice.
Her blond hair is pulled back into a low ponytail, and she wears loose jeans and a baggy shirt that hangs off her slender frame unevenly. Not the epitome of fashion. “So,” she starts as the breeze gently blows around us, “I think the guys want us to be friends.”
“Yeah,” I mutter, gazing out at the city around us. The balcony’s railing is made of thick glass, so sitting where we are, the view is uninterrupted. “You’re probably right.”
“Do you remember me at all from school?”
“Bits and pieces. Honestly, I think I blocked out a lot from those years.” I pick at the hem of my shirt. “They weren’t exactly great times for me.” That puts it lightly. Those were some of the worst years of my life.
She takes it with a grain of salt. “I get it.” She decides to change the subject, apparently, to the guys inside: “Your mates seem nice. Rourke and Pax go way back. Pax doesn’t really have friends. Rourke might just be the only one.”
I smile softly when I think about the men inside. “They’re not my mates yet.”
“Oh, come on. Yes, they totally are.”
“I mean, it’s not official yet or anything. We’re waiting until I move back home before we take the next steps.” Turning my eyes to the sky, I let out a long sigh. “I didn’t think I’d ever end up here.”
“You mean with mates? Or getting everything you wanted?”
I don’t know how much she knows about my situation. It sounds like Pax filled her in, so I don’t have to go over everything all over again. Honestly, I’m ready to leave all thatcrap behind me. “Both,” I say. “Looking forward to the future is not something I ever did. The present always sucked so much, I used to figure the future would suck just as much, if not more.”
