Passion.

Chapter Forty One- The Final Chapter

TEN YEARS LATER
                         Reggie Richardson
I knew I would fall in love with her the moment I met her. But a cold blooded killer like me, would usually never admit that. She was Roan's woman, David's love, and one of the most incredible people I had ever met. She still is. Sixteen years ago, I was married to a woman named Grace. She was captivating and gorgeously unique. But The Mafia lifestyle took her away from me. Mark Stone took my Grace away from me. Which is why I murdered him. With his cancer, he was close enough to death anyway. I never thought I would fall in love with his daughter. Roan And David Smith Died. That statement is something I haven't been able to get off my mind for years. Even with knowing who murdered them, their death will forever haunt me. After becoming The Leader of the Stone- Smith Mafia, Claire was not in the right headspace. She killed anyone and everyone who got in her way. No matter what the repercussions were. She didn't care about intimacy, because it had only become about one thing. Numbness. For four entire years she was completely numb. It was like she had turned her humanity switch off. Emotions never accompanied her. Until one day, when my daughter changed her. Rosie Richardson. Grace and I's child. Rosie doesn't remember her mother, since she was only a baby when she died. Claire had been trying to fuck me for the longest time, and one night I caved in. I didn't fuck her though. I made love to her. I handled her body with carefulness, yet tenderness. I gave her everything she could've ever dreamed of. I gave her something she had never experienced with one whole man before. Love. It wasn't sex that brought us together. It was the intimacy of our eyes. The caressing of our lips. Ah, look at me, all soft and shit. After we spent the night together, Claire was walking downstairs for water and nearly had a heart attack when she saw my six year old daughter eating pudding at the kitchen table. I kept my daughter a secret because I knew if anyone had found out, they would come for her. She is the most valuable person to me. Claire and Rosie went on to truly become the best of friends. For so long I assumed that Claire would never feel for another person again. But when Rosie asked her to stay over, she did. When Rosie asked "Can you be my new mom?" She responded with the gentle saying, "No, I can't. Your mom was phenomenal. And while I can't ever be that wonderful, I can be your friend." She hadn't known of Grace then, but she still called her phenomenal. When The Smith Men died, a part of Claire did too. I loved her back to life. As she awoken my soul in a way that even Grace couldn't. Demetria Stone killed Roan and David Smith. It took me and Claire almost a decade to figure that out. But we did, and when we did, there was only one thing to do. Set flames to Mark Stone's ashes, and throw Demetria right in the fire with them. It was a hard thing to do, especially for Claire. To kill your half-sister, who you had assumed was great, can't be easy. She did it, though. With that fire, she let go. She let go of The Stone Legacy. She let go of The Smith Legacy. And we created our own. I married Claire three years ago, and one month ago we had our first child, Ava Grace. She is the most beautiful baby girl in the world. She looks a bit like Rosie when she was a baby, and that brings me happiness. She has golden blond hair, and light green eyes. Her nose is as cute as a button, and her lips are just like mine. Plump, and even a little odd shaped. But she has her mother's smile, and even her sense of humor. My three girls are the greatest blessing I could've ever asked for, and I never thought I would ever get to be so lucky in this lifetime. When Claire and I married, we decided it was best to move away from Seattle. Although it will forever be a part of us, there is more bad there than good. Here we are. On the island of Panarea, Italy. When I asked Claire where she wanted to move, her one and only answer to my question was Italy. We completely left Seattle behind and sold The Smith Mansion to the person who had begged for it, David's mother and Roan's ex, Victoria Floriski. Claire was hesitant, but every grieving person needs something to help them heal. For Claire and I, that was each other. Roan and David Smith were Claire's first loves. I am her last. And no matter who she has been with, that makes me the most fortunate. Both Claire and I have made poor decisions. We've made mistakes, we've hurt people, and hell, at times we've even hurt each other. But we have been through enough devastation. I have lost. She has been heartbroken. Our relationship is not perfect. We are not two perfect human beings, who are entirely happy, and live in a fairytale. This is the real world. Where people get hurt, people die, people grieve, people love, people laugh, and memories are made. The good has been cherished, and the bad has been learned from. 
Now, I'm holding Ava while Rosie catches up on her school work in her room. Claire has been consumed with her job, and I'm grateful for her, that she has the opportunity to do what she is doing. I should check up on her. I leave the deck and walk back into the house, making my way to her office.
"Hello you goddamn goddess." My choice of compliments are always a bit much. "Are you finally done?" I ask. She takes a deep breath, releasing all tension. "Yes. It's finally finished." "Let me see." I hand the baby to her. I sit down and begin to read her book. "Chapter One- Passion."