The Arrangement | Book 2 | Completed

Epilogue: Part 2

Evan

"How have things been with you and Clarissa?" Matty asks me over the phone. I peek around the corner of the apartment to see if Clarissa is anywhere nearby. If she isn't in the living room, she's definitely asleep. I don't see or hear any sign of her, but turn the TV volume up so she can't hear what I tell her next.

"We're great, actually. I mean, she's been so sweet and affectionate lately. Plus, i'm getting laid like every single night now." I tell him.

"That's the pregnancy. Enjoy it now, because once that baby comes, you won't be getting a whole hell of a lot of anything. Especially sleep." He says with a laugh.

"Oh, i'm enjoying it. Even nights when I don't really want to do it because of work or exhaustion or whatever, she begs me until I finally do. I mean, I can't say no to begging." I say with a shrug. I hear the master bathroom door shut, and I know Clarissa must be awake now.

"How are you and Candace doing? She's got to be due soon, yeah?" I ask.

"We're great. Yeah, any day now. We're just glad that we're actually in Florida now and semi-settled into our house. There's still things that need to be done, but the majority is already finished. Thank God." He tells me.

"Yeah, that move sounded awful." I agree.

"I don't even know why I'm complaining. You're the one who had to move across the globe." He says with a laugh.

"It wasn't too bad. It's not completely done yet, though." I say, rolling my eyes.

"What all do you have left?" He asks.

"Not much. There's only a few things left, but I've got them in a storage unit that my parent's have. They make sure it all safe or whatever. I think when Clarissa and I go over there to visit my family, we're going to try and get some of it shipped back over here." I tell him, already dreading that visit.

"How do you think that's going to go?" He asks with uncertainty in his voice.

"I honestly have no idea. I hope it goes well, but I always assume the worst case scenario."

"They don't really know about you and Clarissa, yeah?"

"I mean, they know about us." I mumble.

"But do they know you got her pregnant?" He asks with a laugh.

"My sister knows. We're just waiting to tell them. I just know that once they meet her and get to know her, they'll love her just as much as I do. I just want them to meet her before deciding their opinion on her." I defend. "They already thought my sister ruined her life by marrying an American man that they hadn't met. But once they met him, they loved him. So, I want them to just meet Clarissa first. Then, i'll slowly let them know about the baby. I just want to make this as easy as possible."

"I don't blame you for that. I'm sure they'll love her. What are you even worried about?"

"I don't know, maybe her age. They'll probably get suspicious." I mumble.

"Suspicious about what?" Clarissa asks, sneaking up behind me without any warning.

"I've got to go." I say to Matty and then quickly hang up the phone. "Hey, baby." I say with a sweet but very guilty tone.

"Who were you talking to?" She asks, looking at me suspiciously.

"Matty." I say as casually as possible.

"What were you guys talking about?" She asks.

"Just...his move and everything."

"You were talking about your parents, weren't you? And me?" She asks, crossing her arms across her chest. She isn't mad, but she definitely looks sad.

"He was just asking if we were ready to go to Russia or not." I assure her.

"And about your parents possibly hating me." She adds.

"They aren't going to hate you." I sigh.

"Maybe not right now. But once they find out about the baby, they're going to freak out. Plus, when they find out i'm nearly ten years older than you they will definitely hate me." She huffs.

"No, they won't. Listen, they're going to love you. They're going to be happy for us." I try and convince her.

"You say that now, but you are also the one who is making a point to hide it from them and planning this trip before I start really showing." She accuses, and she's absolutely right.

"I just don't want any judgement from them until they get to know the real you. Plus, this will be fun! I'll get to show you around Russia. It's beautiful there. You're going to love it. I'm excited. I'm more excited than I am nervous, and I hope you are too. This will be fun, okay?" I promise her.

"Okay." She says, nodding her head and walking into my arms that are held open for me.

"I have really good news, too." I add, excited to tell her about the phone call.

"What is it?" She asks.

"The realtor called while you were sleeping. I didn't want to wake you up and tell you, but she told me that the owners have accepted our offer." I tell her with a soft smile. She smiles widely and shrieks in excitement.

"Really? They did?" She asks, making sure that I'm serious.

"Yeah, they said that they were ready to start the closing paperwork. We've got our dream home."

"Finally! I was starting to get worried that our offer was too low."

"Our offer wasn't low enough in my opinion, but if you're happy then i'm happy." I say.

"We're moving." She says, smiling at me.

"We're moving." I say in agreement.

It's moments like this where i'm nothing but happy with the way my life has turned out. If anyone were to tell me two years ago that not only would I be moving out of Russia, but that I would also be engaged to the most beautiful woman and have a baby on the way- I would have told them that they were crazy. Yet, here we are. I love every second of what this life has to offer to me, and every day is more exciting than the last. Despite the ups and downs in our relationship in the beginning, Clarissa reminds me every day why I was drawn to her. She is strong and passionate and loving. She is going to be an amazing mother.

"I love you." She tells me.

"I love you, too."