Artem’s eyes found their way to mine. “If you have a piercing, I am going to lose my fucking mind.”
“No,” I laughed as I reached down and untied my bottoms. “I was just going to tell you I have easy access tonight.”
“Thank fuck.”
Epilogue
Six Months Later
I climbed out of the car and tried to stem my excitement as I mounted the stairs to the front door. This was the longest I had ever been gone from Emma, and though we’d talked and texted frequently during the four days I was gone, I still felt like it had been years.
I was eager to see my wife and since it was the longest night of the year in Alaska, I didn’t expect either of us to get any sleep.
“Welcome back, boss,” Anatoly stated as he greeted me at the door. “All is well here.”
“Good,” I answered, shedding my coat. “It’s cold as balls out there.”
Anatoly chuckled. “Yeah, it is. Those for me?”
I looked down at the bag of chocolates I had been holding. My trip had taken me to Switzerland and at the recommendation of my sister, I had found a shop that specialized in chocolate truffles.
It had been laughable, me searching for the damn shop for an hour just so I could bring something back for Emma, but the jewelry store had not been hard to find. Now I had a pendant in my pants pocket that she would be getting once I saw her. “That’s a no.”
Anatoly shook his head. “She’s upstairs. Vincent reported in a little while ago.”
The tension eased out of my shoulders. Every time I left, I expected to come home and to find Emma gone. No matter how many times she told me she wasn’t going anywhere, there was still that irrational fear that I wasn’t good enough for her and that one day, she would leave. “Thanks. Give the guards in the house a night off. I can take care of my wife.”
My cousin clapped me on the back. “In more ways than one, huh? Enjoy your reunion, man. She’s missed you too.”
Despite my worry, I grinned as I headed to the second landing, my steps faster than normal. I had missed the hell out of my wife. After six months, the pull between us had only gotten stronger, and each time I left her in our bed, I worked my ass off so that I could climb back in at the end of the night. Not having her around me was like someone had robbed me of the very air around me.
Pushing open the door to the suite, I crossed the room and found Emma in our bed, curled up on my side no less, with her hands wrapped around my pillow. I also saw that she had stolen one of my shirts to sleep in, and possessiveness surged through me like I had never felt before. This was my wife, my fucking everything.
I kicked off my shoes and placed the chocolates on the bedside table before climbing into the bed with her, carefully wrapping my arm around her. My lips nibbled at her shoulder and she mumbled something unintelligible, shifting directly into my arms.
Damn, I had missed her.
It didn’t take her long to realize she wasn’t alone, and I watched as her eyes fluttered open. “Artem?”
“Hey, love,” I said, pressing a kiss to her temple. “I’m home.”
Emma snuggled into my chest. “Thank God. It’s about time.”
I held her tightly, thinking the very same thing. “You know the northern lights are tonight.”
That got her attention. She sat up abruptly, pushing her hair out of her face. “I almost forgot! I’m so excited. Is it time?”
I nodded, and she bounded off the bed, giving me a glimpse of her pert ass as she did so. “Emma, love,” I groaned as she rummaged through the drawers. “What if I just had Anatoly record it?”
Emma shot me a look over her shoulder. “Not even, Artem. You promised.”
I gripped my cock through my trousers and her eyes widened. “I did promise, but love, I’m dying here.” Jerking off in the hotel bathroom hadn’t been even close to what she could do for me.
“You are going to have to wait, Artem,” she finally said, sliding on the sweats she found. “I won’t keep us longer than needed.”
I groaned and pushed out of the bed, sliding my feet back into my shoes. “Fine, but this is also the longest night in Alaska. I fully expect to take advantage of it.”
Emma met me at the door, and she wrapped her arms around my waist. “I’m happy you are home.”
I was too. “Come on,” I told her before I dragged her back to the bed. “Let’s see your fucking lights.”
I had to admit, it was pretty awesome seeing them for the first time with Emma. We watched them from the balcony out back, both sitting on a lounger that she had purchased months ago, where I had teased her about having sex outside on the damn thing.
And we had, many times. I rested my back against it as she sat between my legs, reclining against my chest, our hands intertwined together. This was pretty close to fucking perfect.
“That is beautiful,” she said, pointing to the mix of colors as it shimmered over the sky. “I really can’t believe this is natural.”
I rested my chin on top of her head. “It is.”
She sighed happily and my entire body warmed at knowing that she was happy here with me. Her father was in jail, having had the book thrown at him for the long-ass rap sheet he had accumulated. I would never have to worry about him seeking his revenge, for he would die in prison.
Emma’s brother had found a new passion with computers, and he called me from time to time but had not taken me up on the offer yet. I had met him for golf once since we had returned to Alaska, though I had kept the meeting from my wife. I wanted to learn about her brother outside of her pushing us together, though I knew that whatever I was doing with Harvey would make her happy.
Her mom had also sold the house and moved away, and I had helped her purchase the small beach house she had on the coast, ensuring that she had more than enough money from her husband’s dealings to set her up for life.
Irina was also happy, and though she had started hinting about whisking Emma away for a girls’ weekend, Emma had yet to act on it. That, I hadn’t hidden from her. I wanted her to feel like she could go off with my sister.
Gertie and Noah visited often, and I found myself warming up to the gruff old man and his wife. They genuinely cared about Emma and her safety, though I didn’t feel like they were checking up on her as much anymore. Hell, I enjoyed Noah’s war stories, and he fucking loved to piddle around in my garage. He was like the father that I should have had in this stage of my life, and while they didn’t know, I had been secretly pumping money into their accounts so that they didn’t have to worry about the rest of their life either.