Page 101 of Sass

“Come on.” I took his hand. “Apparently, there’s a tree planting happening with our name on it. Bloody rain.” I gave him a tug toward the Mini.

But Chris didn’t budge. Instead, he smiled and flicked his head toward the opposite end of the line of graves. When I followed his gaze, my knees almost crumbled at the sight of my entire family sheltering under a rainbow of umbrellas about fifty metres away. “How...?” My gaze jerked to Chris and he smiled and drew me close.

“They’ve been here the whole time.” He pulled the collar up around my neck.

“But... you did this?” I wiped at my tears.

He shook his head. “No. Did you really think your family would let you go through today on your own? They would’ve camped out here all day if I hadn’t agreed to tell them when you planned to come.” He frowned. “I hope that was okay?”

I cupped his face and kissed him hard. “Perfectly. And thank you.”

His smile broadened. “Good. Then go on. They’re waiting.” He let go of my hand, but I grabbed his back.

“No.” I held those beautiful green eyes. “We do this together, understand? We do italltogether.”

He stared at me for a moment, then beamed one of his bright smiles and nodded. “Together.”

EPILOGUE

Five months later.

Kip

“Ouch, ouch, fuck!”I fired a glare at my boyfriend. “And people actually pay you for this shit?”

He snorted but kept working the shading needle. “I warned you it was a tender spot.”

“No fucking kidding.” I gritted my teeth but couldn’t stop a slight jerk at the next burning sting. “Goddammit!”

He glanced up. “If you keep doing that, you’ll have a wonderful tattoo of the Southern Alps and not the lotus flower you wanted.”

“All right. All right,” I growled. “Fucking grumpy pants.”

He arched a brow and leaned forward to plant a sweet kiss on my lips, sneaky fucker. Like he thought he knew me, or something.

I shot him a withering look. “Pfft. If you think that’s gonna get you any sugar when we get home tonight, you’re sadly mistaken. Stick me with that needle again and the next time you take my arse you’ll have to brush the cobwebs aside.”

Ty’s loud snort of laughter floated over the closed curtain. “I’ll take that bet.”

“I heard that,” I called out. “You just said goodbye to that Stef Hamilton bracelet you’ve had your eye on,Tyson. I’ve got a list of customers who’d buy it in a snap.”

The curtain whipped open. “You wouldn’t dare.” Ty glared.

I waggled my eyebrows. “Oh wouldn’t—ouch!” I whacked Leon on the shoulder. “You did that on purpose.”

He pushed back his stool and got to his feet. “Aw, baby, I would never do that to you?”Total lie.“But you’re in luck, we’re done for the day. One more session should finish it.”

“Thank Christ.” I blew out a relieved sigh and sank back onto my pillow. “Stop perving.” I waved Ty back into his cubicle.

“As if.” He eyed me up and down. “You’re way too skinny for my taste.”

I scowled at his disappearing back. “No one believes you,” I called through the closing curtain.

Ty laughed and I turned back to Leon who was wearing another one of his trademark teddy bear smiles that melted my heart. I was so ridiculously gone over him. “Remind me never to undergo another one of these acts of torture ever again.”

Leon grinned but said nothing and we both knew why. It had been my idea and I wouldn’t change a thing. We’d spent hours flipping through books and scouring the internet before I finally settled on a lotus flower, a universal symbol of rebirth.

Seemed fitting.

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