“It’s done,” she repeats, a sense of disbelief in her words.
I cup her face. “It’s done and now we leave and never look back. Now we begin our new life.”
EPILOGUE
Harper
Two months later…
I exit the conference room in the Bennett corporate office with Dan Miller, the soon-to-retire head of Miller Enterprises, next to me, adrenaline coursing through me. The meeting was good, so very good. We pause in the hallway and shake hands, with him giving me a little wink as well. “You know how to make a grandpa happy there, ma’am. A second life after retirement. I’m excited.”
“As are we,” I assure him, thankful I’d bonded with him when he was supplying parts to Kingston in mass volume. “As are we.”
I hand him off to my assistant, Meika Reynolds, who looks about twelve and manages everything like she has a hundred years of experience. She’s amazing and a sweetheart to boot.
Once she and Dan depart, I dash toward Grayson’s office and his assistant is nowhere in sight, but I don’t even knock. I know the whole clan is inside waiting on me. I burst into the office and find Grayson, Mia, Davis, and Eric waiting on me. Eric is the one I’m focused on, though, and God, he’s gorgeous in a blue pin-striped suit, his blue eyes piercing as he anticipates my update. Everyone is staring at me and I explode with the news. “We did it!”
Clapping ensues and Eric and I rush toward each other, colliding in a huge hug. “You did it?” he confirms, kissing my neck and leaning back to look at me.
“We did it. He wired the final two hundred and fifty million we needed for the NFL buyout while he was here. It’s done.”
Shouts of joy explode all over in the room and they are loud and plentiful. When we all come down enough to speak, I breathe out, “Now I've earned my keep.”
Mia laughs and rushes around the desk to hug me. “Honey, you earned your keep the minute you walked in the door.” She’s become a good friend, the kind I didn’t make time for in Denver. The kind I needed and didn’t even realize how much.
“You earned more than your keep,” Grayson offers, while Mia releases me, and Eric settles his arm around my shoulders. “One percent of the profits,” he adds. “Your one percent. Not Eric’s. He already gets his share.”
I am stunned, unable to fathom how much money that might be, when I shouldn’t be. I’ve seen who Grayson is up close these past couple of months. “You’re generous as always. Thank you, Grayson.”
“Very generous,” Eric says. “It’s a lot of money, but it’s not about the money.” He glances down at me. “It’s deserving, and it’s about your freedom.”
I instantly know what he means. In my time with Mia, we’ve talked intimately. I’ve learned how much she once feared Grayson’s money. How much she feared he’d think she was with him for it, not love. Eric confirms my assumption. “He’s made sure that we both always know you’re here for me and us, not my money. He’s given that gift to us.”
My heart warms with this new life, with these people who fill it. “Thank you, Grayson. Not for the money, but the true gift.”
“The gift of love,” he says, pulling Mia close. “Go celebrate with your man.” His eyes land on Eric and they share a few moments of friendship before Eric guides me out of the office, and down the hallway into his office. The minute I’m inside, the earthy scent of him surrounding me, I rotate to face him, barely giving him time to shut the door. “I was never interested in your money,” I say, as we step into each other, his hands at the waist of my dress. Mine on the lapels of his jacket.
“I know that,” he says. “You still won’t even spend it. You live on your trust.”
“That I have because of you. You pay for everything, Eric. I feel guilty when I shop. And I like to be able to buy you something and not feel like it’s with your money.”
“Our money, Harper,” he says, his hand sliding under my hair to my neck. “Our life. One day, I’m going to make you see that. Feel that. I want you to feel that.”
“I just want you to know you are what matters to me. You are the man I love. I love what we’ve become.” I think of us working out together, eating together, working together, watching movies together. “I love us.”
“I love us, too, baby.” His forehead rests on mine. “More you than you know.” He sighs. “I hate to bring this up now,” he inches back to look at me, “but I heard from your mother.”
In the two months since she went to Europe, I’ve spoken to her once, and I know what this must be about. “What did she say?”
“Now that the drug test came back clear and the heart attack ruling was filed officially, she’s holding a service in Italy, where she plans to live with Gigi.”
“When?”
“Next week, but we’re not invited. Obviously, neither is Isaac. She just wanted to be sure, when we heard the buzz about invitations, we didn’t decide to come anyway.”
“Of course she did. Changing the subject slightly, but how is Isaac?” I ask, knowing that Blake’s team is keeping an eye on him indefinitely.
“He inherited and moved into the Kingston mansion. Nicholas invested money in the company. All is well for him, aside from the part where the mob could kill him off at any time.”