God, she’s so fucking perfect.
I groan, kissing the side of her face as I pump into her a few more times. Finally, it’s my turn. I let loose inside of her, filling her up and then collapsing on top of her.
We’re both breathing heavy, both our hearts pounding. I push my weight off her, not wanting to crush her. Autumn crawls over to me immediately, wrapping her arms around my body and burrowing into my chest.
I hold her as she comes back down, absently stroking her hair, kissing her forehead, telling her how beautiful she is. Her breathing starts to slow down and her whole body relaxes, grows heavier.
I realize she’s asleep before I look down and see for myself. She looks so peaceful sleeping in my arms, I can’t bring myself to wake her.
There’s a lot we still need to discuss, a few decisions she needs to make…
But I guess all that can wait until morning.EpilogueChristmas Eve, three years later
Autumn“Big snowman. Big, big, big snowman!”
I squat down on the ground behind my bossy little toddler, watching with amusement as her father sighs dramatically and gets more snow to pile onto Frosty’s already massive torso.
“What is it with little girls wanting giant ass snowmen?” he mutters.
I grin, locking my arms around the tiny tummy of our beautiful daughter, Olivia. She’s only two, but she already has her daddy wrapped firmly around her stubby little finger. Consequently, he keeps packing the snowman even though it’s dark outside, intent on building Livy her perfect Christmas snowman.
Since it’s getting late and she’ll keep him out here all night if I let her, I lean my chin on her dainty shoulder and ask, “Do you think the snowman might be big enough now, baby?”
“Uh… no,” she says, shaking her head.
“Are you sure? The sooner we finish the snowman, the sooner we can go inside and warm up with some hot chocolate.”
She pauses to ponder this new wrinkle she hadn’t previously considered. Her dark pigtails bounce as she turns to look back at me. “Hot chocolate?”
I nod enthusiastically. “And then you know what time it will be?”
“What?” she asks.
“Time to put out the milk and cookies. If we keep Daddy out here too much longer, it might get so late, Santa will fly right over us.”
Grabbing her face with both of her mitten-covered hands, she says, “Oh no!”
I nod solemnly. “So, now do you think Frosty might be big enough?”
“O-tay,” she says.
“Did you hear that, Daddy?” I ask, turning my attention to my handsome fiancé. “Livy says the snowman is big enough now.”
“Finally,” he says, dusting off his gloves. “I was about to run out of snow.”
I laugh at the absurdity of that statement, looking around at the massive back yard we have to play in. It’s not really ours, but it is where we live, and we could spend three more hours making snowmen and still not touch all the snow in this yard.
When Jasper showed up in my apartment three years ago, he didn’t come without a plan.
Apparently, after talking things over with Adrian, they devised a safe way to bring me to Chicago. Jasper’s concern was obviously my safety, and Adrian had an idea that would kill two birds with one stone—keep me safe, and keep me close enough for the more skeptical Morelli associate to keep an eye on me.
I didn’t take it personally. Adrian didn’t know me yet. I didn’t know he’d ever get a chance to, but since Jasper had already let it slip that I knew some of what he did for work, the decision was made—I’m not even sure by who—that I would move to Chicago, but I wouldn’t stay at Jasper’s apartment. I would stay at the safest place in the whole city.
Mateo’s house.
It’s enormous, with separate living quarters for servants. Adrian and his family live in the upstairs apartment, while Jasper and I moved into the downstairs rooms.
It was never meant to be a permanent situation, but since the servants’ quarters are essentially an entire two story house, we haven’t been in a hurry to leave. Even with a baby-turned-toddler, we have plenty of room here, and it never really feels like we’re living in someone else’s house.
Jasper still does work for Mateo, and, well… now I do, too—just the domestic kind. I finally got to meet the enigma, and boy did he not disappoint.
Even though his boss is married with a beautiful wife he’s clearly crazy about and not one drop of interest in me (beyond what Jasper may have shared about his business, of course), Jasper wasn’t okay with me living under his roof alone—even in the servants’ quarters—so he moved here with me.
He’s a crazy, senselessly jealous man sometimes, but it’s okay. I love him, anyway.
I’m a maid for the family, an assistant to the aging housekeeper, Maria. I guess she lived in the servants’ quarters downstairs before we moved in, but whether it was to give us more space or her more privacy, Mateo moved her into one of the rooms in the main house shortly before Jasper and I moved in.