Page 139 of You Saw the Best In Me

After Katherine left me an enormous amount of money, I decided to open my own spa salon. With Reilly by my side, we run something special together.

We got our licenses in waxing and service our clients like no one else.

We offer hair coloring and cuts, complete waxing services, and pedicures. It’s a one-stop shop decorated head-to-toe with self-care slogans and adorable pictures.

My favorite is the waterfall wall. It’s in the lobby and runs into a small pond with cute fish we picked out.

“You’ll never guess who came in today,” she says, the gossip queen at it again.

“Hit me,” I laugh.

“Alivia. Our old boss!” she tells me, and I’m shocked.

When the salon we’d worked at closed, we heard whispers that her mother was embezzling the money, and Alivia skipped town.

Reilly goes on to tell me all about it, down to the way Alivia admired our spa.

“Alright, Reills, fill me in tomorrow. I have to go,” I say, knowing she'll talk all night if I don’t hang up.

Maverick is bribing the kids with chocolate milk to go inside, and I shake my head at him. Always giving them sugar and treats.

We live in the same house Mav bought all those years ago, and it’s our home. Every day, we fill it with love and laughter; this is the home we’ll someday pass on to our children.

When Harper left for culinary school two years ago, Pips was a newborn and let us turn her room into a nursery. Lucky for us, she didn’t move too far away, and Auntie Harper babysits the rascals every weekend.

The life we’ve built is comfortable. We do things our way and never let the rest of the world bring us down. Mav and I face every challenge together and work as a team.

I wouldn’t have it any other way.

After we cook dinner and get the kids in bed, we treat ourselves to a glass of wine.

Today is a day we honor every year.

Five years ago to the day, Asher killed himself in prison. He hung himself in his cell, and I received a call from the domestic assault worker assigned to my case.

Even though Asher pleaded guilty, I was still given constant updates on if he was transferred or anything that could threaten my safety.

That included when he chose the coward's way out, ending his own life.

We’re not celebrating his death but my freedom. I finally felt free, knowing he was no longer breathing.

The first year we decided to celebrate the date, Maverick confessed something that shook my core.

I remember how nervous he was to tell me, but it didn’t make me love him any less.

Maverick visited Asher in prison and made good on what he’d promised him in that hospital bed. His final instruction was to take his life and finally give me the closure I deserved.

Shockingly, he had listened and did it later that night.

Before he hung himself, he wrote me a letter. It was sent a few weeks after getting the news, but I refused to read it.

Maverick did and to this day, he hasn’t told me what was written. I didn’t want to know, and he respected my choice.

I’m a survivor. I wear it with pride, never forgetting my history.

One day, my kids will ask what my tattoo represents, and I’ll have to tell them the truth.

When they’re teenagers and want to date, they’ll know what I had to endure. Not to scare them but to give them the knowledge to make the right choices in who they trust and love.