Prevail - [Charles Leclerc]

[E P I L O G U E]

Four months have gone by within the blink of an eye. Sara had fully recovered from the gunshot wound to her abdomen, and Charles' hegemony in the mafia world was reestablished like never before. Since Matteo Abril was no match to anyone anymore in Spain and the Baleares, Carlos had taken his chance to rule the market there. The two were more powerful as partners than ever, and business was booming. Sara couldn't complain, definitely not when they landed in Charles' brand-new jet that was running on sustainable fuel, made by a company he had some assets in, at the airport of Santorini. A sustainable king, he was, too. Charles looked like the personification of summer as he sat across her, wearing white slacks and a wide, baby blue button-up that accentuated his muscled frame and at the same time his already tanned skin. "Almost time to go to our yacht, bébé," Charles spoke up, reaching for her heeled lace-up sandals she had kicked off as soon as they were in the air. "Can't wait," Sara said, watching with a small smile as he put her foot on his lap, slipping the sandal on it and then delicately lacing up the straps as he had seen her do this morning before they left.

He did the same to the other, placing a kiss on her calf before patting her skin to get her to stand up too. The stairs were pushed down, and their luggage was taken out of the aircraft. Charles and Sara thanked the pilot and then went to the car that was ready for them. The past months with Charles had been more than pleasant. Buying the penthouse in Monte Carlo was probably the best thing he had done to give their marriage the stable foundation it had missed ever since they got married. It felt weird to imagine they were together for six months already. Because of everything that happened, it felt like they were together for way longer. Sara leaned her head back against the leather seat of the car as Charles leaned his arm on the door, his fingers gently drumming on the interior, clad with rings, a couple of bracelets around his wrist. Sara sighed dreamily, also not able to imagine that she hated this man with all her might when she just arrived in Monte Carlo. The soft sound caused Charles to look her way, and she took his face in her hands to smash their lips together. He was a little surprised, but recovered quickly as his hand buried in her hair in the nape of his neck and his tongue glided over her lower lip to deepen the kiss. The poor driver in the front.

"What was that for?" Charles asked, pressing a last peck to her lips. "Nothing. I just love you," Sara replied, leaning her head on his shoulder while his hand moves to her thigh to rest there. "Te amo mucho tambien, mi corazon," he replied to her, making her smile. He had been learning more Spanish from Carlos. The driver dropped them off at the marina of Santorini, where the staff of the yacht immediately picked up their luggage and brought it onto their new yacht. Charles had only showed her a video of it during Christmas, and now they were finally able to see it for real. The vessel was enormous, and the captain was waiting for them on the deck. Sara and Charles took their shoes off and greeted the captain. Not much later, they received a glass of champagne, and they were guided through the endless cabins and decks of the boat. It was a fact that her husband had a great sense of yachts, cars, restaurants, gifts, even designer bags. Fashion... Not always, but they could work on that. He looked great now, and Sara would lie if she said she didn't crave any alone time with him. Their luggage was unpacked in the master cabin, and everything was just perfect.

They spent some time on the sundeck to look over Santorini as they departed further onto the sea. When the yacht was on anchor later that afternoon, they got changed and spent time in the water with the jet skis, although Sara preferred tanning on the sundeck while Charles was on his surfboard and asking her for her attention like a five-year-old by calling her over with 'babe, look!'. The crew was amazing for providing everything they needed. When the sun was setting, the crew started to prepare the table for dinner, and Sara and Charles got changed. While it was just the two of them, Sara still got dressed in a pretty summer dress, her hair half up half down and the jewelry he had gifted her was sparkling around her wrist, in her ears and around her neck. The crew started with a water and wine service first, and Sara gladly took a sip of her red wine, leaning her head in her hands after to take in the view, Santorini in the background and her husband in front of her. Charles gave her a small smile, reaching into his pocket and shoving an opened box her way. "Marry me again?" he asked.

Sara's heart skipped a beat at the sudden moment that caught her in absolute surprise. The look on her face made him laugh. "Whát?" she said. Charles stood up and grabbed the box from the table. She was still in shock as he moved to sit in front of her, kneeling down on the floor and opening the box again to reveal a sparkling diamond ring to her eyes, one that was even prettier than she was wearing now. "We didn't have the wedding we deserved, we didn't get together the way we deserved. We didn't get to know each other in a way that should have been. But from now one we can shape or own future. And it bothers me that you couldn't have the wedding of your dreams. I want to hear you say 'I do' while you mean it," Charles said. "Baby..." Sara felt her eyes becoming watery, and she reached up to stop the tears. "My makeup is too expensive for this," she said, making him laugh again as she was obviously joking. "Of course I want to marry you again," she said, laughing now too. She cupped his face again to kiss him, nuzzling her nose against his. "But nobody has to know. We get married again with just the two of us, no nosy people, no big wedding," Charles spoke against her lips.

"Yes, please," she chuckled, watching as he took the previous ring off of her hand and put the new ring on her finger. Sara held it up, watching the gold and the diamond shimmer in the light of the setting sun. They stood up to move to the balustrade, watching the calm sea splash softly against the yacht. Sara had the other wedding ring in her hand and she opened her palm. "Let's leave the horrible start of our lives together here, to drift away," she said. "I agree," Charles kissed her cheek, watching as the ring fell out of her hand and fell into the water, sinking below the surface and soon out of sight. This was a ring he had chosen with passion, which he had put effort in, the date of this day engraved into the gold on the inside, his initials on there with it. This was the way it was supposed to go. But at the same time, he was glad it didn't go the way it was supposed to go. Else he probably wouldn't have met Sara. The warm evening breeze felt comfortable as his arm wrapped around her to bring her into his chest. Charles kissed her temple now, gladly having her close, for the rest of his life.

A/N: This was really the end! Again, thank you so much for supporting my story in any way possible. I'm so happy to read that you loved this story as much as I did while writing it.

While I am very resolute in my decision to not allow any translations, formula1fan2004 has translated one of my works before, and I know I can trust her with this book too. She is translating the story into Dutch, so any Dutch readers should take a look at the translated version of this story! I do not allow any other translations by authors I'm not familiar with. I'm sorry if that's unfair, but it's also unfair if my work gets taken and I'm not credited for it, which has unfortunately happened more than once.

Lastly, I'd like to mention that, if you like these type of books, I have also written Corrode, which is also a mobster!Charles book. The sequel, Abrade, is on its way. Thank you all and see you there ;)