Epilogue
Four months later
Andrew and Jackflew through the back door, their cheeks red from the cold. “Mom, you gotta come and see the baddest snowmanever!” Andrew stood next to his mother, his black eyes shining, as he gulped in air. “Come on.”
Clotille laughed. “Okay. Can you give me a minute to put on my coat so I don’t freeze to death?” She went to the mud room and put on her suede and shearling jacket. Opening the back door, she stood aside as the two boys ran out. As she approached one of the biggest snowmen she’d ever seen, Rock waved to her.
“Jack and I named our snowman Frostbite. Dad helped us with it.”
“I figured as much,” she said as she took in the leather jacket, skull bandana, and sunglasses. “All he needs is a motorcycle.”
“That’s for tomorrow.” Rock smiled, his black eyes sparkling.
“That’s gonna be so rad. My dad’s coming over to help,” Jack said as he jumped up and down in place.
“We’ve got all the brothers coming! I can’t wait.” Andrew picked up some snow and ate it.
“Is this an Insurgents’ winter project?” she joked.
“A lot of the brothers are coming over to help make the Harley. I was going to tell you. They’d love a big pot of gumbo after all their hard work.” Rock walked over to her and pulled her close to him, his cold, red nose nuzzling her ear.
“I’m glad you told me now instead of tomorrow morning.” She kissed him on his cheek. “All of you are frozen. Inside for cookies and hot chocolate.” The two boys dashed to the house, laughing and kicking up snow.
Rock turned her face and kissed her deeply. “Fuck the hot chocolate, kissing you is warming me up and then some.” He winked at her, and she pressed closer against him—their breath was vapor.
They kissed until Andrew’s voice broke them apart. “We better get inside. The boys want their cookies.” Cold licked at her face as they walked to the house, the snow crunching beneath their feet.
After peeling off their coats, Clotille put the milk on the stove while Rock built a fire. It had always been her dream to have a large, cozy kitchen complete with fireplace. They’d searched for the perfect house, but never quite found the one that spoke to them. After much discussion, they’d agreed that the only way to get what they wanted was to build it themselves.
Baylee had been the architect on their home, and had understood their dream perfectly. Clotille loved her home; she loved her life with Rock and Andrew. When they’d reconciled that autumn day four months before, she wasn’t sure if she could be part of the biker lifestyle. As time passed, she got to know the old ladies and see the workings of the club, and then she understood what the lure for Rock had been. Every brother was there for each other, the old ladies, the kids, and the club women. She’d been blown away by the loyalty and love the brotherhood shared.
She’d become fast friends with Cara, Addie, and Baylee, and they often got together for lunch. A couple of times a month the women and their men would go out for dinner and dancing. For Clotille, it was a fulfilling experience to go out with other couples. With Frederick she only had a couple of friends, and they were all in the lifestyle so their talk mostly revolved around their masters and the play parties.
She watched Rock as he stoked the fire.He’s just perfect, and he’s all mine.Every day that she spent with him, she loved him more and more. He was the missing piece in her life, and it’d taken her over a decade to figure it out.
“When the boys go upstairs to play video games, we should take advantage of the fire.” He winked at her, melting her insides.
“They’ll be playing for hours.” She held his gaze, desire burning in it. “Are you up for good old-fashioned necking?”
With a seductive grin, he said, “I’m up for anything as long as it includes you and me together,chérie.”
“Is the hot chocolate ready yet, Mom?” Andrew asked as he walked into the kitchen.
“It is. I’m just mixing in the cocoa.” She took off the plastic covering a large plate of freshly baked cookies. “I want you and Jack to have your snack at the kitchen table. After that, you can go upstairs to your room.”
Andrew nodded. “Jack! Cookies.”
Jack’s stockinged feet slid on the hardwood floors in the kitchen as he rushed in. When he saw the stack of chocolate chip cookies, his eyes grew big. He plopped down on the chair next to Andrew, both of them grabbing a cookie. She placed their steaming mugs in front of them, then set a place for her and Rock. As they ate, the boys recounted the building of the snowman.This is just perfect. I couldn’t be happier.She reached out and squeezed Andrew’s and Rock’s hands.
It had been a series of upheavals for them to arrive at this point, but all of the evil things that surrounded them had gone away. Armand had admitted that he had participated in the murder of Rock’s mother. He admitted it was solely for financial gain. He also admitted that he’d killed Madame Vincennes.
As Rock had predicted, both Henri and Armand turned against Frederick and testified at his trial. They had explained to the jury how Frederick had offered them a lot of money to kill Henri’s mother. Henri had held his head down when he testified that in killing his mother, he profited by inheriting her land in addition to the large sum of money Frederick had paid him.
During Henri and Armand’s testimony, Clotille held and stroked Rock’s hand. His body had been so tense as he’d stared at his brother stone-faced. His expression had changed only when the pictures of his mother’s battered, bloody body were shown to the jury; sadness and regret etched all over his face.
Frederick had kept turning around, staring at her and trying to hold her gaze, but she never looked at him directly. Her focus was on Rock—the love of her life. The jury had found Frederick guilty of conspiracy to commit murder on both counts. It had come out through Armand’s testimony that Frederick had paid the cook a large sum of money to poison Rock’s father; Henri didn’t know about it. Frederick and Armand had tried to tie up all the loose ends, and when Rock had found out his father was innocent, the two culprits had planned on getting rid of him too. When the jury foreman had read the verdict, Frederick had seemed shocked. The court sentenced him to life without parole.
Henri and Armand had each received life sentences. At their sentencing, Rock, Isa, and Lille told the judge how empty their lives had been without their mother. Their statements were compelling, and Henri had cried like a baby. He asked his siblings for forgiveness, but Isa and Lille just shook their heads and Rock glared at him.
