Epilogue

**10 Months Later**

*Payton*

Funny how life turns out I think as I watch Dusty rolling on his back, allowing two smaller dogs pretend to attack him. Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought that a year after graduating with a Masters in Accounting I would be starting a non-profit with my best friend and hanging out with a group of bikers.

I look toward the men now, standing at the grill. Luke is talking about something as Jake, Mike, Rocky, Dillon, and Conner listen intently. I’m sitting on the patio with Melissa, Kara, Mom, Elaine and Conner’s girlfriend, Melanie. We are all celebrating the end of Roland’s trial. Talk about a rollercoaster ride! The man was pure evil but in his attempts to hide his money, he was not very smart.

He had put his house in mom’s name and because he had it before his involvement with the Devils, it has reverted back to her. She has no desire to live in it and is actually only here because of the trial and to put it on the market. As she is not entitled to any of his actual money, despite there being no prenup, the courts have it all. The house is valued at an outrageous amount and it should keep mom comfortable for a considerable amount of time. Mom has decided to move to New Mexico with her sister, at least until she decides what she wants to do. She is still young but has never really had her own life. I think it will do her good.

Jake is now a millionaire many times over but wants nothing to do with “Roland’s dirty money”. Again, because the accounts in his name and his late mother’s was not included in that connected to Roland’s criminal charges, Jake was entitled to it all. While there is no doubt in our minds, that too was obtained illegally, there is no proof so the Feds actually encouraged him to make good use of it.

That is how Melissa and I were able to start a non-profit to foster and house abused animals. Rocky is currently training to take in war dogs like Dusty, retrain them and find them good homes. As for Melissa and Rocky, they are now living here together where they house the more needy animals at night. Dusty takes on a big brother role to all the animals they bring home, like the two sisters he is currently allowing to maul him. So, her dream of a big backyard for her dogs came true. I'm not sure how far she has gotten with her dreams of a husband and children but Rocky is here, so I guess that is a start.

I am living with Jake in Luke’s apartment above the clubhouse for the time being. Our house should be finished in a few months. We will live on the same property as where the non-profit will be located, right next door to the clubhouse. Luke had actually purchased the property years ago and just hadn’t thought of a use for it. So, in an attempt to get Jake to put Roland’s money to good use he gifted it to Jake on the condition that he do something to honor his mother, Luke’s little sister.

I look over at Jake to see him staring back at me intently. He has one hand in his jeans pocket and the other is holding a beer. I can see the heat in his eyes from here and while it makes me shiver, it also calms me. I have been sensing a nervousness in him these past few days and while I know the trial has been hard on him, I sense it is something more personal. I feared for a very short time that he may be thinking of breaking up with me but Melissa and Kara assured me I was losing my mind.

Suddenly, he puts his beer on the railing and, not taking his eyes off me, walks directly toward me with obvious determination in his eyes. I take a deep breath….

*Jake*

I’m trying to keep my mind on what is being said around me but it is not an easy task. My fingers keep playing with the ring in my jeans pocket as my mind goes over this past year. So much has changed, some things hard to deal with yet I wouldn’t take them back because it got me where I am today.

My eyes travel to Payton, who is chatting with the girls on the patio. My breath hitches at her beauty and the realization that she is mine. Hopefully after tonight she will agree to make it official. I don’t want to push her but our house is almost ready, so surely she must be willing to admit that she wants this for life? I know I sure as hell do.

I just want to move on. Put all the bullshit with my father in the past where it belongs. He will never be a free man again, so I will never have to deal with him again. The trial is finally over and as much as I despise the fact that his plea bargain allowed him to spend the rest of his life in what is basically a criminal’s Club Med, I got some much needed answers because of it. He finally admitted to pushing my mother down the stairs during an argument. While he insists he did not intend to kill her, he still had manslaughter added to his crimes. At least Luke and I can feel a little bit of closure on her behalf.

Joe’s friend, Detective Smith, encouraged me to take the money Roland had squirreled away in my name and my mother’s before it was confiscated by the Feds. It could not be directly connected to any crime, all I had to do was pay taxes on it, which was in itself more money that I had ever seen in my life. Detective Smith said he would rather see it put to good use than simply turned over to the IRS. I didn’t want to touch it but Luke convinced me to do something good with it. Something my mother would support and be proud of.

With Payton having no job and Melissa’s obsession with Dusty and all abused dogs, we can come up with an idea for a non-profit. Luke signed over a huge plot of land next to the clubhouse to us, so we are in the process of opening up a Pet rehabilitation center there. Payton and I are building our house on the property so that there will be someone there at all times. Melissa will take the more fragile cases home with her by night. I’m pretty sure Rocky is basically living with her now but he doesn't give much away when it comes to his private life, or anything for that matter. I know he is training to take in war dogs and find proper homes for them once they are retrained for civilian life.

Luke gave us the five acres of land for our non-profit and to build our house on, on the condition that we name the non-profit after my mom. I wanted to honor Luke as well, so we decided on using Luke’s nickname for her. When she was little, mom used to make Luke put ponytails in her hair so that she could look like Pippi Longstockings. He began calling her Pipps, something that he often called her right up until the day we lost her. Hence our nonprofit's name; Pipps’ Pets Rehabilitation and Rehoming.

With Melissa’s way with dogs and legal knowledge, Rocky’s training abilities and Melanie’s Veterinarian skills, we have the animal side taken care of. Payton will take care of the finances and public relations aspects. Me, well, I guess I am just there to give my support. Payton likes to remind me that none of this could be possible without the startup money I signed over but I don’t see that as being mine, so it is not like I gave anything to the business. I’m just glad it could do some good. I will continue to operate my security business and maybe stay home with the babies when the time comes. Wow, that thought came out of the blue but it is not one I feel uneasy about. I just got to get her to accept my ring.

With that thought in mind, I put my beer down on the patio railing and stalk towards the women. Towards my sister, my lover, my best friend, my future.

The End.