Total pages in book: 102
Estimated words: 97185 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 486(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 324(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97185 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 486(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 324(@300wpm)
“Well, not quite. Maybe this is the best thing I could give you. My grandfather’s ring. The one I’ve been waiting a decade to put on your finger. It’s the real reason I went into the fire at Mom and Dad’s house that night.” Well, that and the letters, but he already knew about those.
I could tell he was torn between wanting to shoot me and kiss me. “Don’t you know that your healthy body is worth more to me than any symbol you could ever give me? I don’t need a ring nearly as much as I need your steady heartbeat next to mine in bed every night, Otto. How could you take such a risk?”
I could feel my tears coming but my jaw tried to remain firm while I spoke. “Because we’ve had too many of our dreams taken away from us, dammit. And I didn’t want to lose this too.”
I pulled back from our embrace and got down on one knee.
“Please.”
It was all I said.
But from the look on his face, I could tell it was enough.
Epilogue
Walker - Three Months Later
My hands were shaking, and I couldn’t stop cursing.
“Fuck.”
Otto bit his tongue to keep from laughing at me. “Baby, it’s going to be okay. You’re going to survive it, I promise.”
“Shit. Fuck. Goddammit,” I muttered, looking away.
“Baby.” This time it was Nico who muttered the word, and it wasn’t an endearment.
“I’m sorry? Just because you’re a human pincushion doesn’t mean other people don’t feel pain,” I snapped. “Now get on with it before I change my mind.”
Nico’s eyes met mine. “Dude, I know how much a tattoo hurts. Believe me, I do. I’m healing one on my tit right now.”
“Oh Jesus,” Otto muttered, leaning back in the chair next to mine and closing his eyes. “Here we go.”
It was West’s turn to chime in. “Show it to him, Nico.”
That was all it took for Nico to strip down and parade his boobs at me. The reddened area over his heart was puffy with fresh ink.
“What’s it say?” I asked. “Is that a website address?”
“No, jackass. It’s West’s initials with the word Pipsqueak weaving in and out of it. See?” He shoved his left pec in my face, and I couldn’t help but notice the nipple piercings. I had to admit those were hot.
I turned to Otto. “Would you ever—”
He cut me off. “No.”
“Dammit, you didn’t even let me finish.”
“You were going to ask me to get nipple barbells,” he said, closing his eyes like he was relaxed enough for a nap despite the giant stranger pressing needles into his skin.
“I… but I…” I looked from Nico to West and back to Otto. “But I really want you to get some. They’re hot as fuck,” I whined.
“Then you get them,” he muttered.
My eyes shot to Nico, who had a decidedly evil grin on his face.
“Don’t even think about it,” I growled. “The wedding ring tattoo is all I can handle right now. Whose idea was it anyway? I have a perfectly good ring right here that you walked into an inferno to get for me, remember?”
“These are for when we can’t wear our rings when we’re in a dangerous situation for work. And I’m sorry to be such a burden on you,” Otto said. “If you were so opposed to marriage, why’d you do it so many times?”
“Twice, jerk face. Two times. That’s my limit. If this one doesn’t take, I give up,” I promised.
“Then I guess we’d better make it work,” he said with a wink.
I reached out my right hand to squeeze his shoulder. “I love you.”
“I know,” he said with his eyes closed again. “I’m still not getting the nipple piercings.”
“Dammit.”
Nico tried to distract me from the pain. “Hey, I heard the judge went easy on Hal. How’s your family doing?”
I blew out a breath. “Yeah. The prosecutor was a single mom who really worked with us. Agreed to plead it way down to a Class C misdemeanor vandalism charge, which just carried a fine. John and Beth insisted he do community service too, so she included that. He’ll do most of it through the youth center. I think the biggest help was Bill and Shelby, honestly.”
West looked up and met my eyes. “Mom and Dad didn’t want Hal to be hobbled by this, Walker. You would have done the same thing in their shoes. Plus, John and Beth are paying out the cost of the house in their financing of the purchase, so Mom and Dad didn’t have to claim it on their insurance.”
“Yeah. My parents are helping them. Dad leased out some of his pasture land to help pay for it. If you ask me, he should have been doing that all along since the family ranch hasn’t been used for cattle in decades,” I said.