Page 46 of Last One Standing (Saint Brothers #5)

ANGEL

Ten Years Later

My cheeks hurt from smiling: five words I’d never thought I’d say or think. But the last ten years had been nothing but smiles, happiness, endless love, and growth.

Kona was currently trying to teach Lizzy and Four’s daughter, Darby, how to do some sort of dance step.

He wasn’t having much luck. Phoenix, on the other hand, was in fact succeeding in showing his nephew how to do the same pose; he was a well sought-after dancer, naturally.

Hazel’s son, Ryder, was about the same age as Darby, and just like Lizzy and Hazel, the two of them were the best of friends.

Watching another generation blooming was a beautiful thing.

Those two would be a handful, though. As best friends, when one was in trouble, the other would cover for them. We were all doomed.

Our backyard was fuller than it had ever been, and so was the house. We’d expanded, added an elevator, and made sure we always had a room for all our family—even the ones we didn’t see much of, like Heather and Andrew.

They’d both grown up to be extraordinary people. Heather was a social worker focusing on helping children of abuse. Andrew, well, he was on the fast track to being an FBI agent…and we weren’t holding that against him.

He had struggled with relationships but brought with him his lovely girlfriend who doted on him. Heather was married and expecting her first child in the fall.

I never heard from Two again, but Aziza told me he’d moved to Ireland and opened a pub there, where he lived happily with his six dogs, five cats, and apparently sheep.

He favored his solitude and while I sometimes wished we could have been friends, I was just happy he was living the life he wanted.

We’d had three years of weddings. Noel and Phoenix had started it off, and four years ago Kona and I finished the trend.

Where we’d begun as five Saints, we were now fourteen…

yes, Pika changed his name to Saint, and Four officially did as well.

When he married Lizzy and they had Darby, our numbers grew.

Pika was twenty-five and had just begun working for a video-game designer. Noel and Nick were thrilled, not just because they got games before anyone else but because they had someone else who was as technology savvy as they were.

The twins had helped the FBI with over a hundred cases in the last decade, and when Carmichael retired last year and moved away, I could have sworn Noel was going to cry. The two of them had become friends over the years. Who’d have seen that coming?

We still helped people, but for the last few years, we’d taken on less and less cases.

We’d never be able to turn anything down, but we were bringing in the next generation and we wanted them to know life without the bloodshed and bullets.

Before Aziza moved to England with her husband and children five years ago to help head an amazing psychological program for abducted youth and helping them integrate into society, she’d expressed how proud she was of how we’d all grown and while she’d always be just a phone call away, she believed we would all be just fine.

Saintly Sweets had been rebuilt and improvements made, such as the outdoor patio.

Lizzy didn’t return to the bakery, but she’d also never really left us.

The loss of Darby was too much and it wasn’t until the birth of her daughter, and naming her after her friend, that Lizzy really came back to us completely.

Shep spent most of his days at Saintly Sweets. JJ was always with him, as were Mason and Gabe. I popped in sometimes, but I lived with these guys and ate Shep’s food—I didn’t need to be with them every second of the day.

I actually spent my time as a doctor. I finally got that medical degree and only helped people who didn’t have the means to pay for medical care. Not at all lucrative, but it was fulfilling.

“Whatcha doing?” Kona plopped on my lap and planted a sweaty kiss to my cheek.

“Watching all of you.”

“ Hmm …creepy.”

I chuckled. “I’m just feeling grateful for my life.”

Kona smiled and wrapped his arms around my neck. “Me too.”

Stilettos and Sangria became so wildly popular that Kona opened a few more clubs all along the coast. He only ran the one near home, but his queens, as he called them, had the others under control.

The shows were Las Vegas worthy, but Kona refused more times than I could count, saying he loved how it all was, and no thank you.

“Food’s ready!” Shep shouted from the grill.

“Let’s get a plate before everyone descends.” I stood, Kona still in my arms, and walked to the barbecue.

“Put me down.” Kona laughed.

“Nah, you carry our food. I’ll carry you.”

“I want to be carried.” JJ pouted.

Shep turned with his spatula in hand and sweat dripping from his face. “Maybe I want to be carried.”

JJ’s eyes widened and he beamed. “I’ll carry you, my Viking.”

“Ha. I’d like to see you try, my Vicious Viper.”

Of course that was the beginning of seeing who could carry whom, and the fact that no one walked away with broken bones was astonishing.

As night fell, Four, Lizzy, and Darby hugged us farewell and drove the two miles to their home.

They didn’t live with us, but that was fine—we saw Four all the time.

Lizzy was a crisis counselor now, and he was working with her since she oftentimes went into unsavory neighborhoods.

No one would touch Lizzy with Four there.

Heather and her husband, as well as Andrew and his girlfriend were staying for a few more days and bade us good night.

The house quieted as everyone went to their rooms, and Kona offered me his hand to take after I’d done one last sweep of the house, and I took it.

We ascended the stairs and into our bedroom. As we showered I peppered him with kisses, and he did the same for me. For the last ten years, I’d fallen asleep with Kona and woken up to him, and it was always such a thrill to know I was his and he was mine.

Gabe, Shep, Noel, Nick, and I had been five angry men set on seeking revenge, secure in the fact that the five of us were all we had and that we’d likely die in our quest for vengeance.

Who could have known two best friends would crash into our lives and steal the hearts of my brothers and start a domino effect?

Love had found each of us after that, and we weren’t angry anymore. When my heart felt the fullest, my thoughts would drift to Scarlett, but I wasn’t sad. There was not a doubt in my mind that she’d be happy for all of us and maybe…maybe she was looking down on us, smiling.

Life was a funny thing. I’d once been ready for it to end, now I wanted eternity.

“Night, Angel. I love you.”

I kissed Kona’s head. “I love you right back.”

The End