Page 104 of Twisted Princess

I suspect that he wouldn’t mind me using it for that purpose. Though I haven’t figured out how I’m going to repay him for the immense debt of gratitude I owe both him and Denka.

Neither had families I can look after.

But I will find a way to honor their sacrifice.

They were good, loyal men to the very end.

And I owe those two men everything.

We enter the condo a short time later, and somehow, the air feels lighter, the sun brighter.

“What shall we do today?” Mel asks, giving Gabby an affectionate jiggle in her arms.

Gabby’s happy giggle fills the space, brightening it even further. “I wanna build a pillow fort,” she says, swinging her feet.

“A pillow fort! Where’d you get a crazy idea like that?” Mel teases as she sets Gabby down.

“Isa showed me,” the little girl says proudly, planting her fists on her hips and beaming up at her mom.

Mel laughs. “Alright, Gleb, do we have enough pillows?”

I tsk, glancing around the condo as I mentally take stock. “I don’t know…” I say reluctantly. “I’ve only got a handful.”

“Aw,” Gabby says, her shoulders slumping in defeat.

“But I do have plenty of blankets,” I offer.

And immediately, the light returns to her eyes. “We can make a fort with blankets?” she asks curiously.

“I don’t see why not.” I glance toward Mel and am rewarded with one of those earth-shattering white-toothed smiles.

We spend hours setting up a massive blanket fort around the house, utilizing the vacant space in my living room where my destroyed coffee table no longer resides. And by the time we’re done, my house has never felt more like a home.

Collapsing onto our backs beneath the sunlit walls of our creation, all three of us lie close together. Mel tucked beneath my arm, her head on my shoulder, with Gabby snuggled against her side.

“Mama?” Gabby says thoughtfully in the peaceful silence.

“Yeah, keiki.” Mel’s voice is infused with such love and contentment, it makes my heart squeeze.

“Can Geb be part of our fam’ly?”

Stunned by the weight of her innocent question, and overcome by emotion at its significance, I turn my head. And when I find Mel, she’s looking up at me with tears in her eyes. The sweetest smile graces her lips, and she releases a sound that’s somewhere between a sob and a laugh.

Her lips press together, her chin trembling with her effort to keep from crying. When she does finally speak, her voice is thick and breathy with unshed tears. “Yeah, baby. Gleb’s our family,” she promises and turns to kiss Gabby’s forehead.

If hearts could explode from joy, mine would.

I’m staggered by how these two enchanting women could want me in their lives. The privilege is something I intend to prove worthy of every day for the rest of my existence.

Reaching over Mel to wrap an arm around Gabby, I scoop our daughter up onto my chest. And I bring us all into a tight group hug. Gabby releases an elated giggle that sends Mel into hysterics. And I reward the little girl by trapping her cheek against my shoulder and showering her face with kisses. That only makes her giggle harder, and Mel, right along with her.

This, right here, with both my girls trapped snugly in my arms, this is my happily ever after. I never envisioned I could find such happiness. I don’t know that I deserve it. Not after all the blood on my hands.

But whatever put these two in my path—god, luck, fate, whatever you want to call it—I know I am truly blessed.

38

MEL

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