Page 97 of Fixate
EPILOGUE
Pharrell
As more time passed,it was like things settled into an eerie sort of calm. I knew life wouldn’t be sunshine and roses from here on out, yet with all the chaos finally gone, I almost believed it could.
The only loose end I had was Jean and the project I’d assigned him to months ago. I’d only received one message from him in all that time, and even that didn’t give me insight as to where he stood with things. I’d tried to tell him he could pull back, but the stubborn man decided he should finish what he started.
I suspected there was more to it, though I had no proof. Other than going to retrieve him myself, which wasn’t an option, I could only wait him out for now. I had more important things on my mind anyway.
My boy’s idea to start a kink-based support system for customers turned into an extremely profitable endeavor. Not only were customers excited to have some kind of guidance through the buying process, but we even had people signing up from all across the country to tune into the classes.
Dario suggested we open up a subscription platform for those who wanted to return, and with that addition, our income soared. It took the pressure off me in a way I hadn’t expected.
And with those changes, I finally relaxed into my roles more. Those roles being the man at the head of Lyon Enterprises and Daddy to my boy.
For theLa Famigliaside of the business, I did as others suggested and put another person in charge. Ricardo was the perfect fit, given he’d helped Dante for so many years. Plus, with his connections to the other entity, it made sense to have him be the one to work with Dante and Preacher.
The transition for my boy was natural. My men didn’t even balk when I made the announcement, given how hands on Ricardo had been up to that point. In fact, most seemed to be relieved to have one person to report to rather than trying to figure out who needed to handle what.
Each new day that moved by had the businesses growing in a way I’d never seen before. It was like we’d breathed new life into them.
Ricardo even consulted for some of the Lyon Enterprises side since he had so many ideas. I’d bring him into meetings with the team, then sit back and watch him pitch whatever new plan he’d come up with. His brain was an endless sea of money-making plans.
Henri and Pip had also stepped up to lend a hand where it was needed. The pair bickered endlessly, yet when I gave each a task, they’d work together to get it done. I found it rather amusing, and often would make up things just to see if they’d break.
Soon, the tension between them would become too much. Hopefully, it wouldn’t end with a bullet in the brain for one of them.
“Dante’s plane should have arrived by now,” Ricardo said as he paced in our living room.
I smiled from my spot on the couch. The distant sound of Henri and Pip arguing in the kitchen only added to my amusement. What a different life I had now compared to a year ago.
Stasia would have been playing something in Russian while we ate at a table together, floating between talks of business and her family. We’d have gone into separate rooms, then repeated the same day over and over again.
I never realized how mundane it was until fate had changed it for me.
Because yeah, I did believe it had to be fate that led up to the events happening. For a long time, I thought maybe it was bad luck my wife decided to turn against me. Maybe karma had gotten to me after all the bad things I’d done.
But then my boy showed up on my doorstep.
And with his arrival — along with the disastrous months right after — I accepted that the life I knew was hardly the one I’d wanted. Now, I got to live exactly how I wished, loving who I wanted and running my business as I pleased.
“I’m sure they’re almost here, mon chou. No need to fret like a worried mother waiting up past curfew.”
He snorted, which relieved some of the tension I saw in his body. Unfortunately, he kept up with his pacing until we heard the loud ding of the elevator.
I stood to move beside him, only to freeze when a loud cry echoed around the room.
Was that a baby?
“You had a baby?!” My boy shouted the words at the grinning couple stepping out of the elevator.
A little pink bundle was strapped to Dante’s chest, and Preacher was carrying a car seat with a diaper bag seated insideit. They were the quintessential dads, only I could also see the guns and knives clearly strapped to them both.
“Don’t upset her anymore. She’s had a rough go since the plane ride,” Dante said with a very dad-like tone.
Preacher shook his head as he sat the car seat down. He leaned over, then with quick movements removed the baby from Dante’s chest contraption.
“She’s just hungry, baby. Go say hi to your friends. I’ll get her fed.”
