Page 78 of Stick Handled

Oh, God.

I turn to Rowan with a scowl, and he shrugs apologetically.

“He got to you too, huh?” Damien laughs.

Ares gives Rowan a wink before slinging his arm over Damien’s shoulder. “What do you say?” he asks Damien in a conspiratory tone. “Should we give our brother a matching bruise?”

Damien’s lips stretch into a grin as both men stare at my brother, wide-eyed with a nervous half-smile on his face.

“Don’t even try,” he says right before the two men lunge at him. “Avery, help!” he calls out with a laugh.

It’s a playful fight with light deadlocks, curses, and occasional grunts. As I watch the three men wrestle each other, the lump in my throat grows. This is us. We’re messy and loud and might not be perfect by other people’s standards, but we’re a family. And that’s all I’ve ever wanted.

Epilogue

~DAMIEN~

It’s six months later, and if you’d told me back then that I’d be living in a house with Rowan’s little sister, I would’ve laughed in your face. Hell, I’m still kind of laughing. Life has a funny way of throwing curveballs at your ass, and this one landed square in my lap.

The hockey season wrapped up in a blur. The Panthers won the championship—but the other teams damn well put up a fight.

After a lifetime of threatening to personally kick anyone’s ass who got close to Avery, Rowan finally came around. Well, he stayed true to his word anddidkick my ass, but it was well worth it. I’d never imagined this was where we’d end up, but here we are.

Avery’s not just skating again. She’s owning the rink. Rowan even found her a new coach. He’s a retired professional who used to skate with the damn ice gods, or whatever they call them. The woman’s been pushing her, and it’s paying off. Avery’s light on her feet now. She smiles more and laughs more, and I’m keeping up with her just fine. I love watching my girl happy.

She moved in with me, too. Yeah, you heard that right. The cocky, “I’m always alone” guy lives with his girlfriend now. A gorgeous, brilliant, smart, hot-as-fuck girlfriend. I get to wake up to her every day, which still feels like a goddamn miracle, considering how rocky the start was.

Tonight, we’re all at my place having dinner with the guys—Ares, Rowan, and my girl. A typical family dinner. We’ve started doing these quite often now, and I can’t complain.

I lean back in my chair, cracking open a bottle of wine. Rowan’s already halfway through his fourth glass, looking like he’s two seconds away from starting a debate on what constitutes ‘proper etiquette’ when eating a burger.

Avery’s telling him about her last lesson, talking with her hands. I watch her, like I always do because it’s impossible not to. Avery’s happy. She’ssodamn happy. Her laughter, her joy, everything about her pulls me in deeper than I ever thought possible.

Once dinner is done, Rowan and Ares move to the couch to play UFC on my PS5 like usual. After we clean up and Rowan’s made a few passive-aggressive comments about Ares winning, I grab Avery’s hand.

“I want to show you something.”

“We’renothaving sex with them in the house, Damien,” she whisper-shouts.

“Why not? They’re distracted.” I grin, knowing full well I’ve kept this secret long enough. “As much as I want to see if you can keep quiet again, I’ve got something else in mind. Come.”

We make our way up the stairs. Avery’s so damn curious, her eyes flicking between me and the closed door at the end of the hall.

“Ready to see it?” I ask, following her gaze.

“You’ve been telling me to stay away from this room forever,” she says. “I’m not ready to see it; I’m dying to see it.”

“Whatever my princess wants, my princess gets.”

When we reach the door, I open it, revealing a room completely transformed. The space that was once filled with arcade machines and game consoles now looks like something I never thought I’d have in my house. Bookshelves line the walls, filled with all sorts of books—some old, some new. I bought all of them with Sarah’s help and Avery’s journal. There’s a reading nook by the window, a couple of cozy chairs, a minifridge, and a small fireplace set in the corner.

“I—Damien…” Avery’s voice falters as she looks around the room, clearly overwhelmed. “What is this?”

“A home library,” I say, smiling.

“That’s why you wanted me away from this room? You built me a library?” She turns to me wide-eyed before turning back to the bookshelves.

“Yeah,” I say, leaning against the doorframe. “This used to be my game room, but I wanted you to have a place in the house that’s yours. Not that the whole house isn’t yours, I mean. I just wanted you to have a place to keep your books.”

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