Filthy Bastard by Madison Faye

Epilogue

Nicole

I love this part of the world this time of year. It’s late spring, and the Cape isn’t quite full of tourists yet, even if you can tell they’re about descend like a tidal wave. Through the trees on my left, I can see the water glowing brightly in the early evening light, and I grin as I push the gas a little harder.

I’m almost there.

It’s been a long week, too. Shocking literally no one, classes at Harvard Law are hard, and the workload that comes with them is like a fucking mountain. Add on to that my internship, my independent study with one of the head professors—this amazing woman who’s really taken me under her wing—and I’m pretty much a walking zombie all the time these days.

Luckily, I’ve got a pretty freaking amazing husband whose main hobby besides motorcycles seems to be pampering the hell out of me. Pampering, and of course, screwing me absolutely silly. Yeah, that usually does a fantastic job of taking the edge off the week.

Today though, Friday, all I got was a mysterious note passed to me by an undergrad while I was in the library—one that just said “Take the Charger. Meet me at the camp.”

The camp is Killian’s—well, our—shore house way out here on Cape Cod. That’s another thing he’s been fixing up over the last year, after he helped Grey patch up the place that got shot up. We don’t get out here as often as we want to—in fact, we’ve maybe been once since the honeymoon where we spent a week out here. But man is it great to just truly escape the city out here when we can.

Right, so, clearly, Killian and I got married. Actually, it happened like three months after meeting. But when you know, and when that person just makes you feel whole, and more like yourself—your real self than you’ve ever felt before—then you know.

My mother, obviously, objected. I told her that was her prerogative. My father threatened to write me out of the will, but then my mom told him to go fuck himself. Yeah, my parents are weird.

They ended up getting a divorce shortly after that, and honestly, I think it’s the best thing that’s ever happened to my mom. She got a decent chunk of the money the government didn’t confiscate from my dad, she sold the house, and she ended up moving in with Harry, her fifteen-years-younger-than-her gardener. She doesn’t have the luxury cars or the bottomless charge accounts anymore, but she’s been smiling more this last year than I’ve maybe ever seen her smile. Oh and she’s really into gardening now.

She did end up coming to the wedding, too. It’s not like we’re best friends or anything, but we’re certainly closer. Oh and she also ended up really liking Killian. I mean, what’s not to love?

Is it weird to be studying law while married to an outlaw? Maybe at first, but I like this middle ground I’ve found myself in, and realizing that the Bastards aren’t doing like, destructive crimes like selling hard drugs or pimping girl, or going around wantonly murdering innocent people has been one of the reasons I’ve settled into it all. Now, the Bastards are like the extended family I never really had—like a bunch of brothers or uncles watching out for me.

Who knew being kidnapped would turn out to be the best thing that ever happened to me?

Eventually, I pull off the main road, onto the side ones, and the finally onto the gravel road that winds down through the trees to the shore. One of Killian’s project bikes is parked out front, and through the open garage doors, I can see the mess of sawdust and cut boards next to the circular saw. He’s been building a deck out the back of the house, and it looks like he’s been working on it.

“Killian?”

I step out of the car after it’s off, but there’s just silence. No pounding nails, no him calling out for me. Just the waves on the rocky shore and the soft wind in the trees.

“Killian? Hey babe?”

I head into the house, but the second I open the door, I freeze. My heart skips, and my eyes go wide as I bring my hands to my mouth. There, right inside the door on the floor, is a bouquet of roses, and tracing away from it through the small house is a trail of petals.

“Oh you sneaky, sneaky man,” I giggle to myself.

On the counter, there’s a bubbling glass of what looks like champagne, and next to it, a short glass of whisky. I giggle as I pick up the note next to them.

“Your choice tonight, princess. Bubbles or Irish. Follow the petals.

Love, K”

I blush, grinning like an idiot as I glance between the glasses before reaching for the liquor. Yeah, Irish it is. What can I say? I really have gotten a taste for it. I take a sip as I follow the rose petals through the house, around the corner into the living room area, and when I look up, I gasp quietly.

Holy shit.

Where there used to just be a window, there’s now gorgeous double French doors leading out to a beautiful fully built deck overlooking the water. And standing there against the railing grinning at me with a glass of whisky in his hand, is Killian.

I open the doors and step out, and he winks at me.

“Okay, what is all of this?” I gasp.

“This is a deck,” he grins.

I roll my eyes. “Yeah, well you didn’t tell me it was done! How often have you been sneaking out here?”

He chuckles. “Here and there.”

“And the roses?” I gush. “The champagne?”

“I see you went with the whisky.”

I grin. “I’ve got a thing for Irish.”

“Good choice,” he purrs.

I move into him, beaming as he wraps his arms around me.

“What is all of this for, though?”

He chuckles. “You don’t know?”

I frown. “No?”

“What day is it?”

“Friday.”

He laughs. “No, the date, princess.”

I frown, and then suddenly, I think I get it. I look up into his eyes as he grins at me.

“Happy kidnapping anniversary, beautiful,” he chuckles darkly.

I giggle loudly, falling into him and kissing him slow and deep before I pull back.

“Happy stalking me anniversary,” I murmur back.

“I figured I could go with the traditional approach and stuff you into my trunk,” he winks as I snort a laugh. “But this seemed like more fun.”

“We can still do the trunk thing if you’re really hung up on it.”

He shrugs, waving a hand. “Nah, I’m over it.”

I giggle again as I sink into him, nuzzling his chest and looking out over the water as I sip my drink.

“You like it?”

“Like?” I snort, shaking my head as I look up into his eyes. “Babe, I love it. This is incredible, Killian.”

He grins as he leans down, his lips searing to mine and taking my breath away like he always does.

“I hope your schedule’s clear for the weekend.”

“Oh yeah?” I smile. “And why’s that?”

He turns, and nods, and when I realize what I’m looking at, my face burns as the heat instantly sizzles through me. The living room isn’t the only wall that’s been expanded to doors out to the new deck. The bedroom also has a set of double doors leading out here, but that’s not all. Our bed is now on wheels, and it’s been wheeled halfway out onto the deck, under the branches of some cherry blossom trees looking out over the water.

“I thought we should break the new additions in properly.”

“Oh, my schedule is fucking cleared,” I murmur, knocking back my drink and turning into him. He grins, pulls me close, and his lips crush to mine.

“Happy anniversary, baby,” he growls. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” I whisper before our lips come together, and then I’m lost.

First, he stole me, then he stole my heart. And now? Now I’m never going to let him go.

The End