Page 142 of Crossover

Luna’s gentle touch on my chest silenced my protests. “Don’t listen to them, Grayson. It’s beautiful. And for the record, I adore that elephant.”

Her adoration triggered that memory of her again—Luna, topless and covered in blood, crashing into me, begging for help. Maybe that’s why she always had my back when my brothers gave me a hard time.

Jace wandered over to the elephant, stroking its ear. “Dude, this thing’s the size of a Range Rover.”

“A Kia Sorento at best,” I countered. “Besides, it’s for those growth-comparison photos. You know, where you take pictures of your kid next to the same stuffed animal as they grow?”

Hunter’s eyebrow shot up, his gaze sliding from me to Ivy with a mixture of amusement and curiosity.

When her eyes sparkled with mischief, I knew I was doomed.

“Grayson has a Pinterest board.” She smirked, divulging a secret that should be more protected than any of the CIA’s.

I gave her a silentyou’re going to pay for that onelook.

She flashed back raised brows that said,Looking forward to it.

The little ravenous vixen knew exactly what she was doing, pushing my buttons. Pregnancy hormones made her sex drive insatiable, and she’d become an expert in creating sexual tension.

Even my brothers could sense it.

Hunter cleared his throat and said, “Well, this has been sufficiently awkward. Can we eat dinner so we can leave you two toargueabout the stupid elephantalone?”

Luna chuckled, following Hunter into the hallway. “We have first dibs on babysitting,” she called out over her shoulder.

As my brothers ambled out of the room, I gave Ivy’s ass a playful swat before we joined everyone in the dining room.

It was nice, having some of the Lockwood dinners at my house now, when all four brothers would be in attendance. Luna loved coming to them, too. She and Ivy had gotten pretty close, planning the upcoming baby shower and, yes, our wedding. A five-carat diamond now sat on Ivy’s ring finger.

“Grams, let me help you,” Ivy said, reaching out to take her grandmother’s elbow.

Ivy’s grandmother relished her time with us. She cherished her personal chef, her autonomy, and above all, the moments she shared with Ivy. Despite world-class physical therapy enhancing her mobility, I had my suspicions about her supposed difficulty getting into her chair, though.

“That’s okay, Ivy.” Ivy’s grandmother swatted her away, unable to take her eyes off my brother. “Hunter, dear, would you be so kind?”

Hunter smirked at me. After my brothers had escorted her off that plane, she had taken a liking to them, to put it mildly, and found all sorts of reasons to beescortedin other situations.

“Bryson, hold my elbow to steady me, would you, dear?”

“Jace, help an old lady off the couch, will you?”

My brothers always played along, and I couldn’t help but feel joy at her happiness.

And then there was Ivy’s mother, who’d embraced our relationship fully. At first, I wondered if it was simply because of the ultimatum Ivy had given her, but after a while, I could see that she had warmed to me. Not only because Vosch was dead and her daughter was safe, but also because she was looking forward to the birth of her first grandchild. She visited us almost every day.

Especially now that Ivy had cut back her hours to part-time after getting her job back so she could be off her feet more.

As I surveyed the dining room, teeming with life and laughter, I marveled at how my world had transformed. From cold isolation to this warm, chaotic family life. How strange that it felt natural, like it was always meant to be.

I took Ivy’s hand, pressing a gentle kiss to her knuckles. The future stretched before us—filled with shared meals, sleepless nights, and countless precious moments.

The hardened assassin was gone.

In his place stood a future husband and father, embracing and cherishing a life he never knew he wanted.

EPILOGUE

GRAYSON

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