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It was surreal talking about this. Seeing Sadie in Spark accessories. Even Greta never put them on.

“What was Race talking about?” Sadie said. “What deal did you make with the Supers?”

“If we helped them, me and Mark and Perry can get out of the life. As long as we don’t do anything to give them cause for concern, they’ll leave us be.”

“You really were serious about wanting to do that.”

“Every word.”

After a few moments, Sadie said, “How was it working with the Supers? That had to be weird.”

“It was weird. But good? I don’t know. There’s a lot of bad blood there.”

“They were willing to work with you. And you were willing to put aside your differences…”

“For you,” Joan murmured.

“Really?” Sadie’s eyes shone with the appreciation Joan thought she’d never see again.

“We all wanted to stop Trick. But I was there for you.”

Sadie beamed a glorious smile. “My hero.”

Joan had been called many things in her life.Herohad never been one of them.

Her heart pulsed with warmth and…pride? Was this what virtuous pride felt like?

Pulling the wig off, Sadie said, “It feels kinda wrong wearing this.”

She tossed it and the gloves back into the closet. Joan closed the door. That was enough for an already very long day.

“All right.” Sadie waved at the open doorway. “Go get changed, hot stuff.”

“Oh, so it’s gonna be Spark jokes from now on?” Joan teased.

“I think I’ve earned the right to all the jokes.”

“You can do whatever you want to me, Sadie Eagan.”

Sadie pinched her ass on the way by. “I absolutely will, Joan Malone.”

CHAPTER22

Sunlight streamed through the bedroom curtains. Joan rolled over, feeling the fading heat on the sage-green sheets where Sadie had been. At some point after falling asleep on the couch last night, they’d stumbled to bed and drifted off in each other’s arms.

Familiar sounds came from the kitchen. Her heartbeat drummed in anticipation. She couldn’t wait to kiss Sadie good morning. To kiss Sadie every morning they were together. Which would hopefully be many, many mornings to come.

She tossed the covers back and snuck into the bathroom to take care of business. She splashed some water on her face and rinsed her mouth out for a certain degree of freshness.

Sadie looked perfectly at home in the kitchen, scooping coffee grounds into the filter for pour-over coffee. “Good morning,” she said brightly.

Everything seemed bright this morning. “Hi,” Joan said.

She wrapped her arms around Sadie from behind, loving how they fit together. Joan kissed her cheek a few times, then nuzzled her ear.

Sadie hummed in pleasure and set the small bowl of coffee grounds down. “Did you get some sleep?”

“Yeah. I hope I didn’t drool or snore.”