Page 54 of Sunrise (Monarch Club #3)

Knox

Sophie made it through another night. I’m so proud of her.

Getting over her attack hasn’t been easy on any of us, but in true Sophie Motherfucking Ross fashion, she’s a goddamn baddie. Seriously? Best main character energy I’ve ever seen in my life. And as a top tier bookworm, I’ve lived a thousand lives.

“Where are we going?” Vault asks.

“To the bookstore.”

“What? No. You already went there last week.”

“Are you trying to hold me back from living my best life?” I smack Vault upside his head. “Not cool.”

Sophie laughs from the back seat.

It’s the first time she’s giggled in weeks.

Every day she’s returned more and more to herself, but it’s hard to watch the progression. I want to speed it up and can’t. Good thing I’m a patient boy when I need to be.

She starts work on Monday, and I think that’ll help a lot.

She’s not good with having downtime. And get this…

the team she created at work? They showed the fuck up for our girl.

Bill-the fucktwat and James-the-shitstick got canned.

Sophie’s back on the roster as lead researcher and she’s got a brand-new office and st ate-of-the-art lab to work her magic in.

Our girl is going to change space fuel with her big, beautiful, sexy brain.

I honestly think when she learned what all her team did for her, it helped her work through her trauma. They’re one more layer of people surrounding her, watching her back.

The gun I killed Christopher Rivetti with was the same one I took away from Vault all those years ago when he tried to permanently delete himself.

It wasn’t registered and only fired once.

Vault caught that one and only bullet in the shoulder to save me all those years ago. Talk about weird symmetry, am I right?

If I’m going to Hell for my sins, I’ll freefall down there and high five Satan when I arrive.

I’ve gotten away with murder number two, thanks to the detective wanting to wrap the case up fast and put a pretty bow on it.

They didn’t think too hard about why Rivetti killed himself beyond the fact that he was too injured to run after Sophie got away, which meant he would finally get caught.

Death was the easy way out, so suicide made sense.

Who am I to argue with that logic?

“And when we’re done blowing an insane amount of money on smut, we’re going to Midnight Run for lunch.” I waggle my eyebrows.

“You said you were taking the day off,” Vault growls at me. “We’re supposed to be—”

“Shhhh.” I blindly shove my hand over his mouth while I drive. “No talky.”

Vault growls and leans back in his seat.

“You know, they really should have a preferred parking space for me with all the dough I spend in this place,” I huff as I pull into the lot and park in the back corner.

Getting the door for Sophie, I hold her hand and help her get out of the car.

Her color has returned and so has her spicy wardrobe.

When her stilettos hit the asphalt, a rush of excitement zips through my bloodstream. I swear she wears them all day as foreplay.

It’s torture. I’m being tortured, ladies and gentlemen.

I love that for me.

Holding hands, the three of us meander around the bookstore. Vault jerks me to a stop at the omegaverse section. “Aren’t I supposed to read one of these?”

Hellllll yeahhhh. I pluck seven off the shelf. “Trust me. They’re worth it.”

Then I grab some for Sophie. “More inspiration, Mistress.” I waggle my eyebrows at her.

She giggles again.

Oh my god. Two giggles in one day? I’m on a rolllllll.

And because I’m the best boyfriend in the whole wide world, I snag twelve new books for myself as a reward.

Vault gawks at my stack.

“What?” I know he’s not going to deny me this moment. “Some are for Dmitri.”

He rolls his eyes and chuckles, following me to the cashier. As we wait in line, I admire the dopey, happy expression on Sophie’s face. “What are you thinking about, gorgeous?”

“I’m trying to recall when I fell in love with you.”

The books almost slide from my grip. “Oh yeah?”

“Mm hmm. Both of you.”

“And?”

“I don’t think there was an exact moment. I just… I think I’ve always been in love with you. I just had to find you for my heart to beat right.”

“I’ve tried to find the moment I first fell in love with you,” Vault says to her. “I think it’s a combo of everything I catch you doing. You’ve always made my chest warm inside.”

She beams at him with this great big smile.

“What about you?” he asks, putting me on the spot. “When did you fall for our girl?”

“I actually have the exact moment. It was Three-thirty-seven on a Saturday. We’d all gone out for pizza and you laughed at something D said.

” I tip my head and smile at her. “When you laughed, you leaned into Vault. Then Ryker saw there was an eyelash on your cheek, and he blew it off. You looked me dead in the eyes and smiled just before snatching a fry off my plate and proceeded to argue with me about pineapple on pizza. That was it. That was the moment I fell in love with you.”

“I don’t even remember that.” Vault frowns.

“Probably because all those energy drinks are giving you brain rot,” I tease.

“I remember.” Soph grins up at me. “You asked me to go to the butterfly conservatory with you later that day.”

I nod.

“You fell in love with her because she likes pineapple on her pizza? ”

My god, Vault is a fucking idiot sometimes. “No, dipshit. I fell in love with her because I realized how we all were around her. She’s literally our safe, happy home.”

Which isn’t something any of us really knew about growing up.

“I’m your home ?” She clutches her heart. “That’s so… that’s really… I’m out of words, guys. Wow.”

Stealing a kiss from her, I drop my big fat tbr pile on the counter to pay.

Life is good.

“Noveling always makes me ravenous,” I say, after we get back to the car.

We opted for one of the Monarch’s fancy sedans instead of riding our bikes together.

It’s hot as balls out and I like us all being in a closed space.

Maybe later we can fight over who gets Sophie as their backpack and go for a midnight ride, but for now… this works best.

A half hour later, we pull up to the front of my club.

I roll my shoulders back and open the door for Sophie, but she lets Vault get her out this time.

Oh right, we’re taking turns as a team to spoil our girl.

I unlock the Vinyl Club, and we head straight back to the storage room, down the steps, and through the purple double doors.

One flick of the switch and the lights turn on.

I love the expressions on their faces when they see what I’ve done.

“Oh my god, Knox!” Soph spins around, taking in my hard work. “This is incredible .”

I think Vault is glitching.

Two thousand flowers cover the floor. Double that are strung from the ceiling. Electric candles light the area, so nothing burns down.

“We tried to do this once before.” Vault’s playful smile hits me in the heart.

Yeah. We did, but Sophie didn’t make it over to my house to see any of it. And this is wayyyy more extravagant. I wink at him. “It’s nice to have a do-over, right?”

“A second chance,” Sophie teases, knowing what she’s insinuating.

“That’s always been my favorite trope.”

Vault laughs, and it’s real. It’s deep. He’s got these creases on the side of his eyes and more around his mouth. I want to kiss every single one of them.

“Hang on.” Digging the remote out of my pocket, I hit play and…

The beat starts slow. It’s unmistakable.

Vault’s smile falls as he listens to it. We lock gazes and Sophie sways to the side of us. “I love this one.”

Work Song by Hozier brings him and I closer together.

“I knew you’d come back to me,” I say, taking his hand in mine, and wrapping my other around his waist, right over the sound waves he has tattooed back there.

We sway together for the beginning of it, then Sophie cuts in and takes him away, so naturally, by the end of the song, I steal her from him.

“I fucking love you so much,” he says.

“We love you too,” Soph and I respond at the same time.

Before our emotions get a little too ahead of us, I snap out of it and turn the volume down on the next banger. “Time to eat.”

Retrieving lunch from the back, I present it with a little flair at our booth.

Vault arches his brow. “Pizza?”

“What? I told you I wasn’t cooking!”

Sophie lifts the lid and inhales. “Mmm, that smells good.”

We inhale the whole thing as if we haven’t seen food in days. Popping the top off three cold beers, we raise them up.

“To Sunrise,” Sophie announces.

“To Sunrise,” Vault and I echo.

It will always chase away the darkest night because it has no choice. That’s its nature. Its reason for existing. To keep life going for another day. It’s not something you see, it’s something you are . For yourself… and for those you love.

After we finish lunch, I look around. “What time is it?”

Vault huffs. “You’ve got a watch.”

“It’s broken. Which you very well know since you gave it to me.”

“Well, you’re the one who broke it by stomping on it.”

Sophie laughs at us and I’m now three-for-oh and feeling like a fucking king. Her giggles are such a drug. I’m addicted, guys. Surprise, surprise.

“It’s two-thirty,” he says, glancing at his cell. “Why?”

“I was just curious.”

“You got a hot date?” Sophie teases me.

“As a matter of fact, I do. With you .” I poke her arm. “But that’s not why I want to know the time.”

Her brow pinches together in confusion .

“I like to know the exact moment when my life is perfect. Today, it’s at two-thirty.”

Sophie rests her chin on her hand and looks at me all dreamy eyed. “Do you record all the perfect moments in your life, pup?”

“Just the ones that feel like a happily ever after.”

And as far as this one goes, it’s just as legendary as I knew it would be.