Epilogue

EPILOGUE

Ella, Three Months Later

" Chérie ."

Sleep is a heavy, comfortable blanket.

I grunt and yank my pillow over my head.

Too early.

Five has come far too early.

" Chérie."

"Too early," I rasp, giving voice to my thoughts. "Too damned early."

"It is early, baby, but you need to wake up anyway." His words are gentle and paired with him sliding the blankets down my body, tugging me from the last vestiges of sleep with the cool air hitting my naked skin.

Frowning, I manage to peel open my eyes and see…

"What the hell?"

It's dark outside.

It's nowhere near morning.

"It's three?—"

The rest of my complaint is cut off when Riggs tugs a sweatshirt over my head, lifts my leg one at a time and tugs thick socks over them.

It's firmly springtime in the Sierras, but the middle of the freaking night is still chilly.

Sweats come next and then my thick, fuzzy boots.

My heavy, puffy jacket.

I don't know how he found all this. My stuff's in boxes all around the room because I just moved in today, but I don't have a chance to ask because Riggs is sweeping me up in his arms and carrying me from the room. "What?—"

"Hush, chérie ," he whispers. "Unless you want to wake the old man."

Because Todd's still here.

Though, he's moving out next month when he closes on his house…three blocks away.

So, less tighty-whities…but just as frequent visits to the salon.

Lips twitching, I don't make a peep until Riggs carries me through the back door, and then it's to gasp.

Because—

"What did you do?"

"Up you go, chérie ," he murmurs, nudging me toward the ladder propped against the side of the house.

I can see the twinkling lights from the deck, but it's not until I reach the final step and climb over onto the roof that I see the cushions, the blankets, and…the thermos.

"Keep moving, baby."

Somehow I manage to make my way to one of the cushions. "What did you do?"

He settles next to me, cups my cheek. "I'm here."

"I love you," I whisper.

"I know." A grin as he reaches for the thermos, as he pours me a cup of…

Hot chocolate. Of course it's hot chocolate.

And then hands me a Snickers bar.

My chest hitches.

"I see you," he whispers.

"I haven't had one," I say, unwrapping the candy. "Not since the last time we—" I shake my head, eyes stinging.

"Is it too much now?"

I stop, consider that. Really consider it. Because this man gives me the space to. Because this man makes sure I'm safe to take that time.

"No," I eventually say, breaking the candy bar in half and passing him one piece. "It's…perfect."

Because he's here.

Because I don't have to be anyone but myself with him.

Smiling gently, he brushes his thumb over my bottom lip. Then he hands me a cup of hot chocolate positively overflowing with mini marshmallows, and asks?—

"Will you tell me about her?"

Overhead, the stars glimmer, all those constellations she once taught me beautiful and sparkling and…not cold at all, I realize.

They blaze with memories.

With love.

With my mom.

And suddenly, more than anything, I want to tell him.

So, I recline back against the cushions, nibble on my candy bar, drink my hot chocolate with loads and loads of marshmallows, and…

I tell the man I love all about my mom.

Knox

"You never learn, do you?"

I straighten with a grunt, my legs on fire?—

Hell, my entire body is on fire.

But I don't stop moving.

I can't stop.

If I stop, the voices get too loud and?—

The dumbbells are ripped out of my hands and I growl, "What the fuck?"

Ivy drops them onto the rack and whirls around to face me. "The workout ended two hours ago."

God, she's beautiful.

Even when she glowers at me.

I shrug, move to the bike, I'll just do more cardio.

I sit down, start to clip in, and?—

She yanks the plug out of the wall. "It's enough ," she grits out.

Fucking women.

I stand up, avoid the weights, because she'll probably just take those away too—or try to, anyway—and make my way to the pull-up bar, jumping with a grunt (and significant burning in my quads).

Ignoring that, I start driving.

One. Two. Three?—

A hand on my leg, yanking down, nearly succeeding in dislodging me.

"Get a fucking clue, lioness," I say, shaking her off and continuing.

"Ugh!" She tosses up her hands, shakes her head. "Fine. You want to fuck up your body by pushing it too hard? Whatever. But just remember that your team needs you for the playoffs, so if you injure yourself like an idiot because you don't know when to quit that's on you."

Rant complete, she marches away, giving me a glimpse of those seriously toned legs, that lush ass.

Fucking sexy as shit.

And she hates me, no matter how hard—or not—I work.

Ignoring the bolt of lust as I always do—or as I've done since she made it very clear she wasn't interested, I keep going.

Four. Five. Six?—

She's reached the door now, but…paused.

Seven. Eight. Nine?—

No, not paused. She's jiggling the handle and…

Ten.

I jump down, swipe my arm over my forehead and move over to her. "What's the matter?"

She jerks away from me when I get close then scowls up at me. "The door's locked."

"It's never locked."

"You think I don't know how to turn a handle, along with knowing nothing about how to do my job?"

I wince. "I didn't say that."

"Maybe not in so many words," she mutters.

And…that's hurt in her eyes.

Fuck.

"Ivy."

She steps back, mask firmly in place. "Never mind." She nods at the knob. "Aren't you going to mansplain how to open a door for me?"

"Lioness—"

She waves a hand at the door. "Nope. Let's see it, hotshot."

Sighing, knowing I won't get any further, certainly not now that I've pissed her off, I reach for the knob.

It turns beneath my fingers and I look over to see the fury on her face when she realizes that she really was struggling to open a door?—

But that's quickly replaced with dismay.

Because the knob comes off in my hand.

Gaping, I stare at the door, at the empty spot where the handle had once been.

"What the fuck?" she breathes.

Then pushes by me to shove at the door.

It doesn't budge.

She scrabbles at the metal pieces of the lock, trying to get them to engage?—

They don't move either.

Slowly, she turns to face me, horror on her face.

Because…

We're trapped.

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed Ella and Rigg's story as much as I loved writing their happy ending! Know and Ivy will get their chance in THE BIG SKATE . I've sworn off love…until her. The only problem? She can't stand me.