A Co-Worker's Crush
Page 21
“Wait, there’s one more cookie, because you have to sign your Valentine, so people know who it’s from. You don’t want to say yes if you don’t like the person.”
She nods and looks at my hands.
I place the final cookie in front of her.
“Daddy,” she reads before I can say it. Her eyebrows scrunch together.
“I love you, Jolie, and I’d be honored to be your other daddy, if you’ll have me.”
I can’t replace Michael, and I won’t try. Maybe he’ll end up back in her life if he can get his shit together, and maybe not. But either way, Jolie will always have one daddy who will have her back no matter what.
She looks to Frankie for confirmation that she understands. Frankie nods, looking as if she might burst out in happy tears.
Jolie crawls over the counter and wraps her hands around my neck. “You love me?”
I nod, fighting back the tears.
“Mommy loves me. You love me. I love you. I love Mommy. So can I sleep in your bed too?” she asks.
Frankie laughs, and I open my arms for her to join our hug. Jolie puts one arm around Frankie’s neck and one across mine until all our foreheads are touching.
It took me a long-ass time to get here, but this feeling is worth risking everything for.
Epilogue
Jax
A year later…
* * *
Frankie’s on my table. It’s the first time she’s allowed me to ink her, but it won’t be the last. I can promise her that.
Jolie sits on a waiting room chair, staring over the half wall. “Why can’t I get one?”
Frankie turns toward her and I look up, both of us saying in unison, “When you’re eighteen.”
She blows out a breath.
“This is taking longer than our wedding ceremony,” Ethan says from the waiting area, his hand on Blanca’s swollen stomach.
All of our friends watch as I tattoo a wedding band on Frankie’s finger.
“At least we’re not listening to a one hour mass.” Seth sits on the counter in the front.
I finish the tattoo and Frankie raises her hand to look at it. “I was honestly worried you were going to do something obnoxious.” She sits up, and I kiss her.
“I probably sketched it out a hundred times.” I inspect it to make sure I’m happy with it.
“It’s perfect.” She puts her arm around my neck. After we kiss again, she hugs me. “It’s your turn, big guy.”
“First I have a present for you.”
“A present?”
Our friends grow disinterested in our way of celebrating our recent courthouse marriage.
I pull out the last “I got Inked by Jax” shirt that Kamea had made for me and hold it out for Frankie. “You have to wear it now.”
She laughs and puts it right over her very unique wedding dress. A simple white silk dress that clings to every curve but dips low in the back to show off her ink. And yes, I even wore a suit because we have to have pictures for our kids to look at later.
She jumps off my table and walks over to hers, then pats the bench. “Your turn.”
Everyone laughs. Frankie’s mad talented too.
“No looking until I’m done,” she says.
“Deal.” I get on the table and turn away and look at the group of our friends.
I’m not sure how long we’ll live in the Rooftop Apartments, but it’s a special place where I’d like to think we all found ourselves. Blanca’s ready to pop, Sierra and Adrian are two months from their wedding in Sandsal, and though they’re hiding it, I know Rian is pregnant. She and Dylan eloped six months ago after issues with her parents around the wedding, and she’s been wearing baggy clothes for weeks now. They’ll tell us when they’re ready.
Seth and Evan are getting married this summer, then they’re going on their honeymoon in Europe so Seth can photograph the landscape. Knox told me last night that he’s proposing to Kamea in the upcoming weeks.
We’ve all found our own happily ever afters, and though I never believed it was possible, waking up next to the woman currently inflicting me with pain is the best thing I could ever imagine. We explained to Jolie that she couldn’t sleep with us every night, but we let her sneak in on nights when she’s scared.
And now that we’re married, I think I’m ready for another kid or two. No way Jolie can be an only child. She’s already spoiled by all her aunts and uncles.
Sandy stares at us. She sat me down shortly after Frankie and I made our relationship public. Thankfully, Sandy was happy that I could step into a role her son was incapable of filling. She thanked me for taking on the family and protecting Frankie and Jolie. She’s still our biggest helper, and she’s kind of like a mother to both of us.
Michael hasn’t returned since she gave him money and he signed the paperwork giving Frankie sole custody.
My gaze falls to Jolie, and I wink. She smiles, but then Frankie’s cousin Aiden picks her up and throws her in the air. Jolie’s more enamored by the woman he brought with him.
“All done.” Frankie takes off her gloves.
I inspect the F in the center with her signature holistic style, surprised by how masculine she was able to make it, but still let it represent her.
“I love it.” And I mean it.
I hop off her table, ready to start the party to celebrate the fact that I married the love of my life, but she stops me with her hand on my arm. “I got a present for you too.”
“You did?”
She pulls something from her drawer. A black T-shirt. She holds it up for me. “I’d Rather Be Getting Inked By Frankie.”
I look back at Kamea and she hides behind Knox. Stepping forward, I take my new wife by the waist. “That better be a one-off.”
“I guess you’ll find out.” She leans back and pulls the T-shirt over my head.
“Perfect fit,” I say.
“Yep. So that’s it? You’re mine?” she asks.
“Appears so. What do you want to do now, Mrs. Owens?”
She pretends to think about it. “Live happily ever after?”
I chuckle. “You married Jax Owens. That’s a given.”
She rolls her eyes like she has since the first time I met her, but I dip her and kiss the living crap out of her while our friends hoot and holler. I stand Frankie back up and look at her and Jolie and all of our friends. Sometimes family is the people you choose. I sure as hell chose right.
Let’s travel in time.
Catch up with the Rooftop Crew a year after the epilogue! CLICK HERE!
Who is ready for HOCKEY HOTTIES!
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My Lucky #13
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Cockamamie Unicorn Ramblings
It’s sad to see the Rooftop Crew go. We fell in love with this group hard. Maybe because their characters were a little more broken than we usually write in our romcoms. Dylan and Jax being foster kids was a hard topic to tackle. Add on Frankie being in a relationship with a man who is not only addicted but has been physically abusive? Rom com gold right? Not. And that’s not even mentioning little Jolie who just wants a daddy to help raise her.
* * *
As most of you unicorns have probably clued in on, we decide on titles before we ever plot the book. And if you’ve read our ramblings before, you know that we’ve written ourselves into a corner numerous times. But A Co-Workers Crush was a nice change because we were able to tease it from the get go. Although we didn’t know about Jax until the end of book two, we did plan for Frankie to be the girl in this book. Thank goodness for the writing gods who brought Jax on the page because we can’t think of anyone better suited for Frankie.
* * *
There isn’t much that changed in this book after we plotted from to when we were writing, except tha
t Jax wasn’t going to search out his birth parents at all but we felt it was his character arc, to find the closure from his past to set forth into the future. Michael wasn’t going to play such a major role in the story, he was going to be long gone the entire book, but then we had him around more than anticipated because that’s not always real life. Real life is messy.
We hope you enjoyed the uniqueness of each couple we wrote in this series. Each one brought something different as far as their wound of why they couldn’t love. And that is what we strive to bring you—different journeys with a variety of heroes and heroines.
Now let’s all go to the rooftop and have a drink with them! Cheers.
* * *
Once again, thank you to our tremendous team!
* * *
Danielle Sanchez and the entire Wildfire Marketing Solutions team.
Cassie from Joy Editing for line edits.
Ellie from My Brother’s Editor for line edits.
Shawna from Behind the Writer for proofreading.
Hang Le for the cover and branding for the entire series.
Wander Aguiar for the amazing photo of Frankie and Jax.
Bloggers who consistently carve out time to read, review and/or promote us.
Piper Rayne Unicorns who shout from the rooftops about our new releases and love our characters like we do.
Readers who took a chance on our book with so many choices out there.
* * *
Aiden, our Lucky #13, is first up in the Hockey Hotties series and was originally just going to be a guy who came into Ink Envy for a tattoo. BUT… making him Frankie’s cousin was so much better. His series will be coming in June 2021 and there will definitely be some cameos of the Rooftop Crew.
* * *
XO,
Piper & Rayne
About the Author
Piper Rayne is a USA Today Bestselling Author duo who write “heartwarming humor with a side of sizzle” about families, whether that be blood or found. They both have e-readers full of one-clickable books, they're married to husbands who drive them to drink, and they're both chauffeurs to their kids. Most of all, they love hot heroes and quirky heroines who make them laugh, and they hope you do, too!
Also by Piper Rayne
The Rooftop Crew
My Bestie’s Ex
A Royal Mistake
The Rival Roomies
Our Star-Crossed Kiss
The Do-Over
A Co-Workers Crush
* * *
Hockey Hotties
My Lucky #13
The Trouble with #9
Faking it with #41
* * *
The Baileys
Lessons from a One-Night Stand
Advice from a Jilted Bride
Birth of a Baby Daddy
Operation Bailey Wedding (Novella)
Falling for My Brother’s Best Friend
Demise of a Self-Centered Playboy
Confessions of a Naughty Nanny
Operation Bailey Babies (Novella)
Secrets of the World’s Worst Matchmaker
Winning My Best Friend’s Girl
Rules for Dating your Ex
Operation Bailey Birthday (Novella)
* * *
The Greenes
My Beautiful Neighbor
My Almost Ex
My Vegas Groom
* * *
The Modern Love World
Charmed by the Bartender
Hooked by the Boxer
Mad about the Banker
* * *
The Single Dad’s Club
Real Deal
Dirty Talker
Sexy Beast
* * *
Hollywood Hearts
Mister Mom
Animal Attraction
Domestic Bliss
* * *
Bedroom Games
Cold as Ice
On Thin Ice
Break the Ice
Box Set
* * *
Charity Case
Manic Monday
Afternoon Delight
Happy Hour
* * *
Blue Collar Brothers
Flirting with Fire
Crushing on the Cop
Engaged to the EMT
* * *
White Collar Brothers
Sexy Filthy Boss
Dirty Flirty Enemy
Wild Steamy Hook-up