Epilogue

One week later…

"You okay?" I look up from my plate of angel hair pasta and see Teeny smiling.

We've become fast friends since she and her husband Bull showed up at Rogue's place a week ago. Rogue was insistent on me needing a bodyguard. I thought he was being a little over the top, but I let him have it. His over-the-top ways are what had me falling hard for him in the first place. His forcefulness works because it makes me feel wanted.

"I'm fine." I think I'm fine, or at least I should be. My life has done a 180 in the past week and I've gone from living in a rough part of town to living in the richest neighborhood in the city. Rogue sent someone to pack up all my stuff without me even knowing it was happening. When I told him I couldn't just move out on Diamond, he went and paid the rent for the next two years for both of us.

It was so bossy and pushy that of course it made me fall more in love with him. This is all so different from what I've grown up with. At every turn he's fighting for me when something steps in his path. When something tries to block me, he pushes forward, but if there's peace, he's fine right where we are. I'm not so sure I am because I want more.

"This is the best pasta I've ever had, but you're over there just moving it around your plate." It is good pasta, I'm just not that hungry.

"Rogue told me he loves me," I blurt out, needing to talk to someone about it. Someone else that's madly in love and gets it.

"You didn"t know that already? Anyone with eyes can see it." She gives me a funny look.

Everything he does screams that he wants me, but love is different. "He said it a week ago and hasn't said it again since." I bite the inside of my lip. I keep waiting for him to say it again, but he hasn"t.

"Did you say it and then he said it back and now you're worried he only said it because you did?" she asks, trying to solve the riddle of what I'm saying.

"No, I haven"t said it to him at all."

"I'm so confused." She grabs a piece of garlic bread and takes a giant bite.

I have no idea how Teeny can not only eat so much but also be with someone as big as her husband Bull. He's sitting at the bar right now keeping a watchful eye on us and her baby bump. I didn't tell Rogue I was going out to lunch with Teeny, and I wonder if Bull told him.

"He said it while we were having sex. I think it was in the heat of the moment." That's what I've been telling myself the last week because otherwise he would have said it again by now. Right?

Hearing it shocked me, but it wasn"t until I was falling asleep in his arms that I couldn't remember the last time someone said those words to me. It felt too good to be true. It's all happening so fast, and I'm scared to grab onto those three simple words. More than anything else that has happened to me, those words could break me if they aren"t real.

"Do you not love him?" Teeny's face softens as she reaches out and takes my hand.

"I do, I just keep waiting for the other shoe to drop. We come from two very different worlds."

"You do know that not saying I love you back isn"t really protecting yourself. If that's what you are trying to do."

Is that what I'm doing? Crap. I do love him, so even if I don't say it out loud I could end up hurt because I'm already so deep.

"You're right." I let out a long sigh. "I think it's that he's so pushy. He demanded I work for him, then he demanded I move in with him. Why hasn"t he demanded I marry him and love him?" Teeny snorts. "Saying it out loud really makes me sound crazy."

"No, it doesn"t. You're scared, but I can promise you he's going to marry you and love you no matter what."

"It's been a week, I'm being ridiculous." Of course we aren"t getting married or throwing the L-word around. It's nuts because we live together already, but it hasn't stopped me from wanting all of it.

"You're not. You're in love and love makes you do and say crazy things."

I smile at that. Rogue does all kinds of crazy things that make me fall head over heels.

"Did you not tell Rogue you were going to lunch with Teeny?"

I look up at Bull, who is standing next to our table. The man can move quickly for someone so big. When I went to lunch with Teeny, my new bodyguard hadn"t come since Bull tagged along. Rogue's in court and this was better than lying around his office since he never gives me real work to do. "You said you texted him."

"I forgot?" Did I really forget, or had I wanted him to come back to his office and get worked up when he saw I wasn"t there?

"Oh my." Teeny's whole face lights up. "There's nothing like an alpha in pursuit."

"What?" Before she can respond, Rogue is on me.

I feel myself being lifted out of my chair like I weigh nothing as he tosses me over his shoulder.

"Rogue! We're in a restaurant!" I can feel my face burn with embarrassment. It's a really nice restaurant, but thankfully no one can see my face with my hair blocking the view.

He smacks my ass, and I let out a small scream. He did not just do that! Of course he did. I knew what I was doing the second I left his office without telling him.

Someone, I'm assuming the manager, approaches and says, "Sir, you need to put that woman down before—" Whatever he was about to say is cut off. I'm sure Rogue shut him up with one glare.

"I'm okay," I say to the manager, unable to see anything but the floor. I don't need the cops called.

Rogue deposits me in the back of the town car and I call out a hello to Kurt the driver before Rogue puts up the partition.

"I don't like not knowing where you are," Rogue grits out.

"You track me on my phone," I point out.

"I'm starting to think you enjoy driving me crazy."

Do I? I squeeze my thighs together and my sex clenches. I guess that's a yes.

"It turns me on," I admit, and his lips twitch.

"I know, baby." He grabs me, pulling me into his lap so that I straddle him. "I've been trying to be patient with you and let you get used to us."

"This is you being patient?" He pulls me down to him, and my forehead rests against his.

His warm breath tickles my lips. "Tell me that you love me," he orders, and tears instantly sting my eyes. He knows. I don't know how he can read me so easily, but I think it's because I'm meant to be his. "You going to make me work it out of you? I'll do it."

I shake my head because when it comes to me Rogue, he's made it clear nothing stands in his way.

"I love you." I tell him the truth because it's what he deserves. I love him so damn much it scares the crap out of me.

"I know. And I love you more than anything." He brings his mouth to mine and the kiss is soft and sweet.

"We're getting married." I bite my bottom lip after I say it, and a slow smile spreads across his face.

"I don't have to pull that one out of you?"

"No, I'm all in." Why run scared when I can run to him?

"If my mom wouldn"t skin me alive, I'd marry you right now." He shifts and pulls a box out of his pocket.

"Rogue!"

"Give me your hand." This time I can't stop the tears that escape as he slides the ring on my finger. I laugh while crying when I see the huge stone that no one will ever miss. "You're going to be my wife." I nod in agreement—I want to be his wife more than anything. "You're also fired."

My mouth falls open in shock. "You can't fire me."

"You hate working at the office."

"It has its perks." He's right, I do hate it, but I lick my bottom lip as I think about those perks.

"You don't need to work for me to have me when you want. My mouth and cock are all yours, baby."

"I know that, but I can't not work."

"You're going to go to cosmetology school. It's what you wanted, right?"

"Yeah..." But more than anything I just want him.

"Then you'll go. You can open a salon, or if you hate it, who cares? You tried it out." He shrugs like it's no big deal. "Don't give me shit about this. We're getting married, this is a team, deal with it."

"Deal with it?" I repeat.

"Yeah, deal with it." I think he's waiting for me to challenge him. "You might be pregnant anyway."

I fight a smile. I've had that thought a few times too and dreamed about it. I didn"t know a family was what I wanted so badly until it was an option. I never allowed myself a moment to think it would be.

"Okay," I agree, because I want it all. I'm not going to put up a fight against something I really want. Rogue is bound and determined to be the hero of my story, and I'm going to let him.

"Okay?" He doesn"t believe me.

"I'll take your deal even though you drive a hard bargain."

"When it comes to getting what I want, I can be relentless."

"And I wouldn"t want you any other way." I kiss him, agreeing to his terms—all that I could have ever dreamed of.

Relentless is what I want, and Rogue is what I need.