Chapter 10 - THE PROMISE AT THE LAKE
Spring arrived in Evanston, bringing warm air, green grass, and blooming jasmine flowers along the garden fence.
I sat on a wooden bench in the backyard, watching Vincent push a stroller back and forth along the paved garden path.
Jasmine was six months old now—chubby, healthy, and constantly laughing at her father’s silly voices. She had two tiny lower teeth coming in and a joyful personality that filled the entire house with light.
Miles Serrano walked out onto the patio carrying a box of legal documents. He was no longer a security chief; he was now the managing director of the legitimate Caruso Real Estate Trust.
“Boss,” Miles said, holding out a pen. “The final papers for the children’s hospital donation are ready for your signature.”
Vincent stopped the stroller, signed the documents on the stone table, and handed the pen back to Miles with a nod.
“Everything quiet in the city?” Vincent asked.
“Quiet and peaceful,” Miles reported with a genuine smile. “Sal Moretti is serving twenty years in federal prison, and the syndicate has completely disbanded its local operations. You’re a free man, Vincent.”
“I’ve been a free man for six months,” Vincent replied, looking over at me with a warm, loving gaze.
Miles smiled, tipped his hat to me, and walked back toward the front driveway.
Vincent walked over to the bench, lifted six-month-old Jasmine out of her stroller, and sat down beside me. Jasmine instantly reached for my hair, gurgling happily.
“Look at her,” I laughed, taking her tiny hands. “She’s trying to eat my hair again.”
“She takes after her mother,” Vincent teased, leaning over to kiss my lips. “Relentless.”
I kissed him back, letting my hand rest against his cheek. The scar on his jaw felt soft under my fingers, a remnant of a life he had left behind to build a future with us.
“Do you ever miss it?” I asked softly. “The power? The city?”
Vincent looked at Jasmine, who was currently giggling as he gently tickled her stomach, then turned his eyes to me.
May you like
“I have everything I ever wanted right here,” Vincent said, his voice filled with absolute conviction. “Power doesn't keep you warm at night, Hannah. Family does.”
He pulled both of us close against his side as the warm spring afternoon sun bathed our garden in golden light. The secrets were gone, the danger was past, and for the first time in our lives, we were finally whole.
