Page 61 of The Gambler

“Ah, baby.” He smirked. “Never gonna happen, but it’s good to have dreams.”

Ha! They would just see about that.

EPILOGUE

Three months later.

Tess closed her mail and got comfortable on the kitchen counter. It was her favorite place to sit and wait for Luca to get home. How her life had changed since she’d met him.

She had a sister now, though she wasn’t sure how to feel about that. Regardless, knowing that Onyx had come through when she’d needed her the most, was enough for now. She’d learned about her sister’s deal with the twins. It was no wonder she’d fled before she paid them her debt. If anyone could avoid those two, it would be Onyx. Tess still had hope that one day they might grab a cup of coffee and hold a game night.

All in all, lately, life had been pretty great. Of course, Luca still had his Boarding School moments. The other day, she’d come home and was greeted by a Tiffany box. To be fair, any other woman on the planet probably would have been delirious with the content. Her, not so much.

When she saw her guy come in, her heart started beating faster, making her feel alive and kicking. Like it did every time they were in the same room.

He kissed her cheek. “I got you a gift.”

Oh God. What horror awaited her this time? Another blood diamond? An impractical couture dress, or—she swallowed—the keys to a sports car that sucked up fresh air, killing the environment?

“There’s no need for that. Really, no need.”

“Remember Damon’s two weeks’ notice?” he reminded her.

“How could I ever forget? We practically ended up engaged because of it.” She frowned. “Don’t tell me he’s still holding you to that ridiculous deal. Three months late, I might add. Besides, Cruz is caught. Onyx sent that footage of him killing Grace.” The guy was looking at a lifelong sentence.

Luca gave her a long, lingering kiss. “He isn’t holding me to it, no. But even still…” He pulled out a little box. “Will you marry me, and turn our fake engagement into a real marriage?”

A happy flutter rippled her stomach. It was a plain silver ring. “I love it. Though, I have to admit, it doesn’t really scream ‘Mrs. Boarding School Detta,’” she joked.

Was that a slight flush on his cheeks?

“Well, in the spirit of your radical honesty, I have to admit that initially, I got you a diamond ring. Then I decided to check it with Jazzy. She dropped some sarcastic comment on how you could spot that rock from Mars. Then she went off on how you disliked blood diamonds and how those rocks came from little villages in Africa, over to stores in the U.S.. I think there was even a part about little orphans in her story. Suffice to say, I returned the evil rock and got you a silver ring by an indie designer who ‘doesn’t work as a slave on minimum wage for some big corporate asshole.’ I don’t know how my brother deals with my sister-in-law.” He frowned. “She can have a real foul mouth on her.”

She put her arms around his neck and returned his long, scorching kiss. This was her favorite place in the world—lips locked and skin to skin with Luciano Detta.

“You’re my hero.”

He pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. “You didn’t answer my question.”

Marry her own corporate asshole? Like there was even anything to consider. “Yes, I will marry you, Luciano Detta.”

As he deepened their kiss, she wondered how he would feel about aStar Wars-themed wedding.

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