Kai smiles as the plane lifts off the ground and my stomach goes out with it. Adrenaline courses through my veins as I’m acutely aware that we’re in the air.
“Good.” Kai’s lips curl upward into a playful grin as he leans forward and peers out the window beside me. “I don’t think you’d survive that jump now.”
Chuckling, I shake my head lightly and push him sideways. He sits back in his seat and wraps his arm around me as he pulls me as close as our seats allow.
“I don’t need to worry about surviving anymore,” I whisper against his chest. “It’s time for us to live now.”
EPILOGUE
Dahlia
six months later
The warm ocean breeze blows wisps of stray curls across my face as I sit on our balcony, watching the sun slowly descend into the horizon. Tucking my hair behind my ears, I settle deeper into my lounge chair as Kai steps through the sliding glass door.
Six months ago, we left everything we had ever known behind and moved to the Keys. New York held too many painful memories, it was where our demons were bred, and it wasn’t where we were meant to be.
Here, together, in our own little paradise is where we belong. We came here to start a new life, a better life, and that is exactly what we’re doing.
We bought a condo in one of the buildings and try to live a modest life without flashing our money. People tend to ask questions though when they find out you live in the penthouse on a bartender’s salary.
We spent the first few weeks down here in a daze from the trail of bodies we had left behind us. After we began to settle into our new life, we realized we could be whoever we wanted to be.
I landed a bartending job at a local beach bar two or three nights a week. Kai got a job at the Marina, working in their boat rental shop.
The Keys and the people that live here welcomed us with open arms and a clean slate.
◆◆◆
Kai walks across the balcony and sits down on the chair beside me as he stares out at the ocean with a content smile. His hair is slightly longer and tousled from the ocean air. His naturally tan skin is darker from the hours spent shirtless and under the sun.
Life in the Keys has been kind to both of us, mentally and physically.
“What’s on your mind, bambolina?” Kai asks as he turns to face me. His soft, brown eyes are warm as they caress mine.
Standing up, I smile down at him as I move in front of him. Kai wraps his arms around me as I sit down on his lap.
“This is nice,” I say quietly, resting my head on his bare chest.
Too nice.
Kai lightly kisses the top of my head before resting his chin on it. “Get used to it, bambolina. This is our forever.”
With his arms wrapped around me loosely, we sit quietly, listening to the waves crashing on the shore as the sun sets in the distance. Kai lifts me to my feet as he slowly stands up. A fire dances in his eyes as he stares down at me with a smile playing on his lips.
Grabbing my hand, Kai pulls me inside with him into the kitchen. Spinning me around, he wraps his hands around the backs of my thighs and lifts me onto the counter.
With his hands on my knees, he parts my legs and moves between them as I wrap my arms around the back of his neck. Gripping my thighs, Kai’s fingertips dig into my skin as he dips his head down to mine.
His lips are but a breath away when the sound of his phone interrupts us.
Resting his forehead on mine, Kai lets out a frustrated breath. “Fuck,” he mutters and reaches for his phone on the counter beside me.
His brow furrows as he looks at the screen and slides his finger across, answering the call.
“Hello?”
Kai takes a step back, just out of my reach as he stares down at the floor. A few moments pass as he listens intently and his body suddenly grows rigid.
“Anthony,” he barks at the phone. “Spit it the fuck out.”
His worrisome eyes flash to mine as his expression becomes troubled. Sitting in silence, I tuck my hands under my thighs as I watch Kai. Tightening his grip on his phone, his knuckles turn white as he listens to Anthony on the other end.
Closing his eyes, Kai takes a deep breath and swallows hard before looking back at me.
“So, what happens next?” His voice is soft as he speaks. “What do you need from us?”
Silence fills the room again as Kai stares at me, but he’s not here, not mentally. His eyes are glazed as Anthony continues to talk and he nods absentmindedly. A million questions run through my mind, but Kai’s last question drowns them all out.
The ground falls out from underneath me.
What does Anthony need from us?
A few minutes pass, although it feels like hours, before Kai is hanging up the phone. Setting it down on the counter, his eyes meet mine as he lets out a sigh of relief.
“What’s going on?” My voice shakes as I drop down onto my feet.
Kai steps in front of me and gently brushes a stray curl from my face. “Mia is sick,” he says quietly. “She has leukemia and needs a bone marrow transplant, but they are hopeful that Bonnie or Paul are a match.”
Leukemia.
Cancer.
The fucking devil.
“Will she be okay, then? If they’re a match?”
Kai nods as he gives me a small smile, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. “If they’re a match, then her prognosis is good.”
But…
That’s always what comes next, right?
I wait for him to offer any other information, so when he doesn’t, I ask the question that’s hanging heavily in the air.
“What does Anthony need from us?”
Resting his hands on my shoulders, Kai takes a deep breath and exhales slowly. “If they aren’t a match, there’s a chance one of us could be.”
There it is.
I knew things were too good to be true.
“So, what do we do now?” I ask him, letting out the breath I didn’t know I was holding.
“We wait,” he says matter-of-factly. “Her parents don’t want us involved unless it’s their last option. If they need us, we will be there and do everything in our power to help Mia. But until then, there’s nothing we can do but wait, bambolina.”
Kai wraps his arms around me and pulls me in close. “We have each other and at the end of the day, that’s all that fucking matters.”
Inhaling deeply, I breathe in his words and hold him close. He’s my everything, my perfect ending… but in the back of my mind, thoughts of a little girl with soft brown eyes linger.
We got our happily ever after, but will Mia ever get the chance to have hers?
The end
for now...
Books by C.M. Radcliff
Darkness Duet
When Darkness Consumes
Returned to the Light
Traces of Her (Spin-off)
Entangled Series
Chaos
Severance
Veiled Love Duet
Mirage
Clarity (coming Fall 2020)
Standalones
The Life and Death of Curtis Matthews
About the Author
C.M. Radcliff lives in Pennsylvania with her husband and two demon children. Known as the Psycho Queen, she speaks fluent sarcasm, dark humor, and has the mouth of a sailor. If she isn't reading or writing, she's probably on an adventure with her little family.
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Severance (Entangled Series Book 2) Page 14
