“I do love her, Stan, and I’ll always love her. I will.”

“I know, and because of that, the answer is yes. Markus, you have my blessing—or whatever you want to call it. You can marry her, and hell, I’ll even pay.” Markus laughed, but before he could say anything more, Stan stood, pulling him up into a backslapping hug. “Thank you for asking, Markus. I didn’t think guys did that anymore. To know you wanted to, and you have, leads me to believe you are a gentleman and you’ll love her right and for the rest of her life.”

“Oh, I will,” he promised, hugging his future father-in-law. “As long as she says yes,” he joked. Though, he was sure she would.

“She’d be crazy not to say yes.”

“I hope you’re right.”

“When will you ask?”

“Christmas, maybe? I’m not sure. When the moment feels right.”

“I’ll keep my mouth shut, won’t even tell Linda.”

Markus nodded. “Thanks. I haven’t told anyone either.” Well…Jace and Avery didn’t count.

“So we wait,” he said, holding out his hand, and Markus took it with a huge grin on his face. He hadn’t thought Stan would say no—that thought hadn’t even crossed his mind—but now that he had said yes, a sense of relief washed over him. He hadn’t really planned the proposal. He wanted to do some huge scene, make it special, but he needed time to plan it. He wasn’t sure what he was going to do, but he wanted it to be unique and perfect.

Because Mekena deserved that and more.

And Markus was going to give it to her.

Looking out the window as the hills of Tennessee passed, Mekena smiled while Avery sang along to Taylor Swift on the radio. The last four days had been a blast. Mekena and Avery’s Wild Adventure, as they were calling it, had started in Fort Lauderdale where they sat on the beach for a whole day doing absolutely nothing. It was glorious. They then went and packed up the trailer with all Mekena’s things, and then her car before hitting the road. They stopped in Jacksonville to get Markus’s things from his ex-roommate and then stopped in every town along the way that interested them.

They went to old music stores, stopped at some parks, and sometimes just parked the car and lay on the hood. They stayed at funky hotels just for the thrill of it and even went to the Space & Rocket Center in Alabama, something Mekena had always wanted to do. Whatever they felt like doing, they did, and it was amazing. They ate until their guts were full, and boy, was the food good. It was all awesome and everything that Mekena needed to clear her head.

It had been five weeks since Skylar had passed, and Mekena still wasn’t totally okay. If it weren’t for Markus, she would probably still be in bed, with no purpose but to breathe. It was heartbreaking, and she didn’t really understand her feelings. She was mad at the person who had killed her sister. Who had tried to rape her boyfriend and then took him away from her for two years. But she loved and missed the sister who taught her how to do her makeup and attempted to teach her how to talk to boys.

That person she missed more than she could ever put into words. But as bad as it sounded, she was glad the person who had been killing her sister slowly was finally gone. The only problem was that villain took her sister with her. There was a hole in Mekena’s soul, one that would slowly heal, but at that moment, it still felt empty. She didn’t understand why or how this could have happened to someone who used to be so vibrant and fun. Her sister was supposed to go places, be an amazing dancer with a huge career, but instead, Mekena had found out that Skylar was working at a strip club as a dancer, doing cocaine every night.

It made her sick.

She didn’t want to know that side of her sister.

Thankfully, she wasn’t going through this alone.

She had Markus.

God, he was an angel. So understanding, so sweet, and helpful. He did everything he could to make the loss of Skylar that much easier. He listened, he fed her, made her comfortable, and by God, he loved her. He loved her so much that sometimes it was suffocating. But he picked up on that, and he gave her space. He knew her inside and out, and it was nice to be certain he was there. No matter what. Not everyone got that person who would die for them, and Mekena had two.

Avery and Markus.

Like Markus, Avery had been there every step of the way. She didn’t leave for the three weeks after Skylar had passed, sacrificing time with her husband to be there for Mekena and her family. Mekena owed Avery the world, but they both joked that since Ashlyn almost killed Mr. Right on numerous occasions, they’d call it even. A grin came across her face as she remembered Ashlyn lying on her baby, holding him down as he tried to get away. But he wouldn’t bite her because he loved the sweet baby too. It was great, and a really good laugh.

One she had needed.

“I’m sad this is over,” Avery said once they entered Nashville, and Mekena looked over, a smile on her face.

“Yeah, but we can take another trip soon, can’t we?”

“Yes, we shall plan one for the off-season. Maybe we can go to Fiji,” Avery suggested with a nod. “Find an awesome hut that will take my kid, and make Jace pay for Autumn and River to come so they can keep her while we all go out.”

“That sounds magical.”

“It does, and we can make Markus and Jace rub our feet, or better yet, rub sugar all over us… And eat it off us.”

Mekena snorted as she nodded. “Yes, yes, I agree.”

Laughing, Avery reached over, taking her hand in hers. “Did you have fun, bestie?”

“I did,” Mekena said, smiling. “A lot of fun.”

“Good, I worry about you.”

“I know. I’m fine, though. I swear.”

“Oh, I know. I made Markus keep tabs on you since I left.”

Laughing, Mekena squeezed her hand. “Making my man keep tabs on me, how rude. I don’t lie to you!”

Avery flashed her a grin. “Yeah, ’cause you know Markus is watching!”

Grinning, Mekena shook her head. “He’s been wonderful.”

“He’s awesome. I always knew that guy was it for you.”

“You offered to kill him with me when it all went down,” she reminded her, and Avery shrugged.

“That’s what best friends do, duh. But I knew something was up. I love Markus. I just hated him for you.”