Mila

One month.

It took one whole month to find a witness who could support Mike's theory. A woman who worked for Harvey Kreppel, the man my mother investigated, came forward with her own story.

Apparently, she worked as his assistant, and one day one of Kreppel's emails got forwarded to her. It was an invoice for a contract she couldn't find in their files, she only read the subject Lyne Deal.

She took the email to him, asked which money she should use to pay the invoice, but Kreppel instantly hit the roof. He threatened to hurt her daughter, saying this email wasn't supposed to be in her inbox and if she told anyone about this, he'd hurt both of them.

After keeping her mouth shut for years, she saw Dad's and my face on TV, and when she realized he has a daughter just as she does, she decided to step forward. She wanted to give this information to the police directly, but when she called them, they only waved her off, saying this was a closed case and she shouldn't call them further.

Luckily, she saw Mike on TV too, and went to visit him. They talked it through, and he got her a deal; she would lay the truth out there in exchange for immunity regarding her work with Kreppel, and a place in the witness protection program for her and her daughter.

The state is preparing a completely new case to look into Harvey Kreppel's business now; they've already arrested him to investigate Mom's death and countless other crimes I don't even want to think about. Kreppel will definitely go to jail—so much is clear after we heard our new witness's statement a few days ago. She had a lot to say about the man.

Even the prosecutor laid off. I guess he realized this statement changes things. They contacted internal affairs to investigate the police department and to find out who told our witness not to call again. It became obvious the justice system failed on multiple levels here.

"Jesus, what's taking so long?" Jas paces up and down the court hallway, a coffee in each of our hands as we wait impatiently for the jury to return. It hasn't even been ten minutes, but it feels like ages.

"Those things take time, usually." Hayden tugs me into his side. The nervousness in my veins instantly calms when he strokes my back and places a kiss on my head. "We'll be okay, peanut." It's his newfound nickname for me since it's still not time yet to tell everyone. He started using the word whenever the others are around, just to let me know he's thinking about our little peanut as well.

Also, my addiction to peanut butter cups makes the whole thing fitting and amusing, and I can't deny I could literally swoon every time he uses the name. I already know he's going to be a great dad.

"Guys!" Mike's voice makes all of us turn our heads, and he comes walking toward us with Dad on his heels, an excited look on both their faces. "The jury is back!"

"Come on, let's get this shit show over with," Dad says, and even though I feel like I'm about to faint from the nervousness, I can't help but smile at the fact that my dad actually cursed in front of me.

We're ninety-nine percent sure this will go in our favor, and still I run into my father's arms once more. We've been surprised too often to take his presence for granted.

"Come on, buttercup." He presses another kiss on my head, and Hayden takes my hand as we walk back into the courtroom.

God, my heart is pounding so hard in my chest, I feel like it might explode any second now. I do the breathing exercises Dr. Jones taught me, focusing on the feeling of Jasmine's hand in my own and Hayden's arm around my waist.

"We got you, Mimi," my best friend whispers, and only hearing her words make it hard not to burst into tears.

I can't really focus on much when the judge speaks; I only hear my blood rushing through my ears until he announces the jury will now tell us their verdict.

My whole body goes numb when a man gets up, unfolds a piece of paper, and starts reading. I don't hear anything suddenly—only those two words keep repeating over and over in my head:

Not guilty.

Not.

Guilty.

Everyone around me starts jumping and cheering, but I can only bury my face in my hands as I let go, unable to hold myself together now.

Holy shit. We actually did it.

"Baby." Hayden's hands cover my own on my face and he gently tips up my head, placing my fingers on his cheeks when he whispers, "We did it, peanut. He's free."

And all I can do is cry more as he wraps his arms around me, my face buried in his chest as I take in his scent, letting it run through my veins to calm my soul.

"Buttercup..." Dad's voice makes me look up, and without thinking twice, I jump from my seat and into his arms.

"We did it, Dad." I hold on to him, almost like I need him to understand this is real. This is really happening now. My dad's a free man again. The happiness that rushes through me has me on some sort of high. At least, that's how I explain what I say next. "I'm pregnant, Dad."

And as he pulls back, I see it in his eyes. I see he knew, which I honestly already suspected, considering he lived with us while I vomited my brains out. "I know, buttercup. And I'm so, so happy."

I grin when we wipe away each other's tears, the feeling of pure and utter joy running through my veins as I look at him.

"But I gotta say, I'm a little young to be a granddad, don't you think?" he whispers back, and I can't help but laugh before I pull him into my arms once more.

"I think you'll be the perfect grandpa, old man."

"Oh, Lord...please don't start calling me that."

***

Hayden

Jesus Christ.

What a fucking rollercoaster these past few months have been.

God, I'm so glad this nightmare is over. We finally managed to get back to normal, slowly but surely. Sam's trial ended about a week ago, and it's the first time in forever that Mila and I actually have the time and energy to take a day off, just spending it on the rooftop terrace with no intention of going anywhere.

"Are you excited?" Mila asks, her head on my chest when I wrap my arm around her shoulder, making her look up at me with those brown eyes of hers.

"Am I excited to see our baby tomorrow? Of course I am." I press a kiss on her cheek.

It's true. The baby belly is showing now. Just a little, but it's there. And I can't deny I'm excited as hell about that. Because she's becoming more and more beautiful every goddamn day, and knowing this nightmare is over now makes it all so much better.

She's finally coming out of her shell again, and we're slowly getting back to our rhythm, our dynamic. And good fucking Lord, am I thankful for that.

"What do you wish for?" she suddenly asks, and I think about it for a second.

"You mean gender wise?" We decided not to find out the gender before birth, which is why her question confuses me.

"Yeah."

"Honestly? You know I really don't care. I wouldn't mind having a mini-me running around. That would also save me the trouble of being the bad dad whenever anyone tries to touch my daughter." I laugh at that thought. "But in the end...it really doesn't matter. As long as he or she or they are healthy and happy, nothing else matters."

And then her face breaks out into this gigantic smile, a smile so bright that I could confuse her with the sun once more, because holy hell, she just has this ability to light up, to get my undivided attention no matter when or where.

Her eyes search my own, like she was looking for the goddamn meaning of life in them, and when she places her hand on my cheek, I see it all written on her face again. I see the love we share, the memories in our minds, the things we went through... And I just know she's it. She is, and always will be, the love of my life.

"You know," she interrupts my reverie, "sometimes I still think I'm dreaming."

And she doesn't even need to elaborate. I immediately know what she means. "Well, if it is a dream, I don't ever want to wake up."

Like, never ever. Because I honestly did not expect my life to turn upside down so drastically, in such a short amount of time. But I wouldn't change it for the world.

"Yeah, me neither." She whispers the words, and I can feel how much she means them when she places a soft kiss on my lips. It's not urgent, it's passionate but slow, and it feels like we're establishing an entirely new connection, one that will bond us for life, that will fuel the love we already share with every second that passes. "I love you more than life itself."

"Same goes for you, Lucky."

She smiles again, her fingers playing with the hair at the back of my head while she studies me with intrigue. "How is it possible I still don't know where that name comes from?"

"I'm really goddamn surprised about that too, love. And you say I'm the one who slow off the mark because I didn't understand what you were trying to say one time."

She laughs so wholeheartedly, I almost feel bad for calling her out. But the way she shakes her head in amusement only makes me grin widely. "I'm sorry, but I mean... Dad sweater, Dad jokes... And you still didn't get it?"

And now I can't help but laugh as well, because, well...yeah. I was a bit slow on that one. "Okay, okay, not my finest moment."

Once more, I can't stop looking at her beautiful appearance, happiness rolling off her in waves. "Well, I still need an answer, though," she says with a smile.

It's insane how oblivious she is to what she means to me. What kind of an impact she has on my life. "It's simple, really. You're my lucky charm."

"Really?" she asks with wide eyes. I nod, and then she laughs a laugh that makes my heart swell, a laugh so full of love, I just want to capture it and keep it forever. "It was that easy?"

"Told you." I wink.

"How did you even think of that?"

"That's just as easy. Ever since I met you, I aced every single game. Literally. I was on a run. I've never been that good, Mila. You just had that effect on me. You made me want to be a better athlete, a better man...and I did it."

She smiles, her brows furrowing when she mutters, "But you called me that from, like, the very beginning..."

"Well, I guess I knew what I was getting into." I grin, and I swear even now she actually blushes, like I'm complimenting her for the very first time. It's so fucking precious, holy shit.

"You mean to tell me that on the day we met, you knew we'd end up right here on this rooftop, pregnant and looking for a house to move in to?"

I know what she means. Neither of us imagined our story would progress this way, and still I can only shrug when she raises her cute eyebrows at me. "Not necessarily, no. I just knew I'd be with you. Where and when? No idea. But I knew I'd have you by my side, no matter the cost. And that's all that mattered."

She laughs again, shaking her head in amusement. I'll never get sick of seeing her happy like this. This is what she's supposed to be like, what she's supposed to feel, every second of every day. "My God, you really are..."

"Full of myself?" I complete her sentence. "I know. Don't say I didn't warn you though, love. Because I did. I have screenshots of that."

"You have screenshots?" She gasps, slapping my chest in a mock gesture, a laugh on my lips when I grab her wrist and pull her into my lap.

"Only of the good stuff."

"The good stuff?"

"Jesus Christ, Lucky. After that ultrasound, I'm dragging your ass to an ear specialist." I shake my head.

"Oh, come on!"

We end up in a laughing fit, with me just teasing the hell out of my woman, because fuck—she just makes it so goddamn easy.

And then we lie there on blankets on the wooden floor, her head resting on my chest while I run my fingers through her hair, just enjoying this moment of silence, of contentment, of pure and utter happiness.

Because it's been so long, so long since we could do just that. Since we could simply be us, enjoying each other's presence without a giant sword hanging right over our heads, ready to destroy us.

I just know. I just know we're meant to be together. And I'll make sure everyone sure as hell knows that soon enough.