They played a game and every one of them lost.
Except me and Killian. Because we found each other and because of all that greed and those schemes, we got our chance. The chance to be something that Ray took away from us because of his own greed, his own desires to win at something.
It’s crazy.
The games people play can alter their fate. And it can alter the fate of others, too.
If Ray hadn’t been plotting with those guys to steal from and ruin Killian, Killian might not have been sent to a meeting in that bar that night which meant he saw Ray and wanted to come back to my place to see the girl that he lost in a coin toss. A rigged coin toss that got revealed to set Ray’s fate in motion.
And if all those things didn’t happen, I wouldn’t be in his arms right now, carrying his child, and knowing down to my bones that he and I are meant to be together and that yes, sometimes things happen for a reason.
***
We’re lying together in bed in a hotel room after spending the day with my family at Grampa’s place. We’ll go home in the morning to pack and get ready to go to Tahiti tomorrow night.
It’s the perfect time for a getaway. Far away. Paradise. Just us. No problems on the horizon, all the bullshit behind us. Hopefully.
The apartment was no place to sleep after all that, the police presence, bloodstains on the floor and rugs, and the blown-out window. We didn’t get back here until almost three in the morning after all the conversations with the police.
There was a dose of powder on Trey Ricci that has also been sent off to be examined to find out exactly what was in the mixture Killian and Jagger took.
There was no way I couldn’t try to go for that gun. I was terrified of him giving that drug to me, of the danger to our baby.
Last night, I cried in Killian’s arms until I fell asleep, telling him that he now had my permission to do whatever he had to do to protect us. Shaken to my core after all we’ve been through, I told him I never liked violence but if it was necessary to protect our family, I’d overlook it. Because fuck them. Fuck Ray. Fuck Guy/Trey. Heidi. Even Shara. Fuck all of them for hurting us.
Killian said he doesn’t want me to turn bitter, jaded, and distrustful. He wants me to continue to believe the best in people and let him handle the rest. He promised he will do whatever it takes to keep us safe. And the way he said it, the green fire in his gaze?
I believe him.
Though after everything, I’m certainly going to be unable to help myself from looking at the world through a different lens from now on.
***
January 2
He stirs and our eyes meet.
“Good morning,” he says.
“Good morning,” I parrot and snuggle in.
“My first thought this morning? I can’t believe it’s all over.”
“Yeah.” He caresses my face. “I hear that.”
The revelations are still hitting hard.
Heidi survived getting shot and was spilling the beans to the cops before she got taken into surgery about everything she and Trey did as well as pointing fingers at the other people involved. She might get a slightly reduced sentence for co-operating, but Killian has already told me, not hiding his rage, that she won’t have an easy sentence and if he has his way, she won’t make it out of jail. Neither will Stephanie who is the person who got into his office to spike his booze. Heidi was willing to watch me die after I’d been nothing but kind to her, so I say nothing.
“Is it really over? Nobody else in any basements anywhere for you to torture when the mood strikes?”
“Nope. Not today, anyway.” He smirks.
“I almost wish… never mind.”
“What?” he asks.
“I almost wish I could’ve brought myself to let you get rid of Ray. I find myself wondering where he is, what he’s doing, and whether or not he’ll suddenly cause problems for us again.”
“He won’t.”
“Are you sure?” I look into his eyes.
“He won’t.”
“Well, I’m guessing it’s good he’s out of reach for you. You can’t get to him, right?”
“Nope. Not unless I get a bigger in with the people behind Porto Campo and I have no intention of seeking out that connection.”
“Well, let’s just say that if for some reason he suddenly seems like he’ll be a threat again, you have my permission to eliminate that threat. I don’t wanna know about it unless I need to.”
“Okay,” he whispers and then he puts his mouth to mine.
“Just… don’t lie to me and make sure I know about stuff if I need to,” I tack on.
“You got it, Dimples. But don’t worry about it. Let’s put him out of our minds.”