Sold To The Mafia Don

Chapter 241: Epilogue

A year.

Twelve whole months since the chaos, the blood, the hospital lights, and the whispery, terrifying first days of Eliana’s life.

And now?

Now the house was quiet, warm, lived-in... and mine.

Ours.

The night felt like velvet. It was soft and slow,, the kind that made my heartbeat skip just by walking into our bedroom.

Jace was already there, leaning against the headboard with that annoyingly unfair glow he got whenever he finished a long day and finally relaxed. The lamp cast golden light over his chest, and I swear it should’ve been illegal for anyone to look that good after fatherhood, stress, and board meetings.

He glanced up when I stepped inside.

And that look...

God, that look.

Like he’d been waiting all day just to breathe again.

"Hey," he murmured.

I closed the door behind me, my smile tugging up on its own. "Hi."

He pushed himself off the headboard and sat forward, that familiar spark sliding through his eyes — the one he only ever wore for me. The one that hadn’t faded, not once, no matter how exhausted we’d been as new parents.

"You took your time," he said, voice low.

"I was checking on Eliana."

"She’s asleep," he said. "Completely out. I already checked."

"You checked twice."

He didn’t even deny it. "So what if I did?"

I walked toward the bed, letting the silk of my robe brush against my legs. I swear I felt his gaze trace every step. When I reached him, he slid a hand up the back of my thigh and tugged me gently onto his lap.

"You’re supposed to be resting," he whispered, lips grazing my jaw.

"I am resting," I breathed.

His hands were warm. Familiar. Certain. I melted instantly, my fingers threading into his hair, my knees bracketing his hips as his mouth found the sensitive spot beneath my ear. The heat rolled in slow waves between us, slow and deep, like something rediscovered instead of rushed.

We hadn’t been intimate in weeks. At least not properly. Toddlers were adorable blessings, but they were also tiny, loud alarm systems with a sixth sense for parental affection.

Tonight though, the house felt peaceful.

Jace slid the robe off my shoulder and kissed the bare skin he uncovered.

"You’re beautiful," he whispered against my collarbone. "Still drives me insane."

My breath shook. "Jace..."

He kissed me — slow at first... then deeper, like every thought he hadn’t said all week poured through his mouth into mine. His hands splayed over my waist, grounding and possessive in that protective, reverent way he never outgrew.

I sighed into him, leaning fully into the moment...

And then—

"AHHH!—"

A wail blasted through the baby monitor with the force of a tiny siren.

We froze.

Jace’s lips hovered half a millimeter from mine.

Another wail. Louder. Dramatic. Very dramatic.

I dropped my forehead against his shoulder and groaned. "She hates us."

"She doesn’t hate us," he muttered, equally pained. "She just has impeccable timing."

"Eliana!" I whined into his chest.

He chuckled — softly, reluctantly — and kissed the top of my head. "I’ll get her."

"You got her last time."

"That was at two in the afternoon."

"Still counts."

He sighed, defeated. "Fine. Stay here. I’ll be right back."

But as he tried to gently shift me off his lap, I held firm.

"You think I’m letting you leave me like this?" I narrowed my eyes. "Absolutely not."

His laugh vibrated against my chest. "You want to walk into her room like this?"

I looked down at my rumpled robe, the exposed skin, the clear evidence of what we were about to do.

"...No," I admitted.

"Exactly."

He kissed me one more time. It was brief but hot enough to make my toes curl before he finally slipped me off his lap and stood.

Jace disappeared into the hallway. I heard his voice, low and soft, the way he only ever spoke to our daughter.

"There you are, sweetheart. What’s wrong?"

Eliana’s cries softened immediately.

I lay back on the pillows, staring at the ceiling with a helpless, ridiculously lovestruck smile tugging at my mouth.

This was my life now.

A man who could terrify half the city but turned into melted chocolate the second our daughter cried.

A baby who wielded the power to interrupt any romantic moment without remorse.

And me, laughing through it because somehow, after everything, this messy, beautiful reality was exactly what I prayed for.

A few minutes later, Jace returned with Eliana tucked against his shoulder, her fist curled in his shirt, her dark curls a sleepy mess.

"She didn’t want her pacifier," he explained, gently bouncing her.

"She just wanted you," I said, smiling softly.

His chest rose with a slow exhale, and that tenderness, that unguarded softness he only ever showed when it came to her. It filled the room like warm light.

"She always wants you more," he murmured.

"That’s because I feed her." I said with an eye roll.

"That’s because you’re her entire world," he corrected.

He rocked her until her eyelids fluttered closed again. When he finally lowered her into the crib near our bed and returned to me, I watched him closely.

Not the don.

Not the businessman.

Not the feared name in LA.

Just my husband.

He sank onto the bed beside me, brushing a hand over my cheek.

"Still awake?" he whispered.

"How could I sleep? I was interrupted." I scoffed.

He let out a low chuckle. "We’ll pick up where we left off."

"We have to be quick," I warned. "She could wake up again."

He leaned in, brushing his lips over mine. "Challenge accepted."

I laughed quietly, pulling him toward me by his shirt.

But before his mouth reached mine, I paused.

"Jace?"

"Hm?"

"We made it."

He stilled and something in his face softened so deeply it felt like gravity shifted.

"Yeah," he whispered. "We did."

Then he kissed me slowly,, full of that quiet victory that only survivors and lovers shared.

Behind us, our daughter slept peacefully.

And for the first time in a long time...

Everything felt whole.

Our journey had been a long, hard and painful one. But now, looking back, it felt like it was all worth it.

I may have wanted a different life in the beginning but right now, in this moment...

I wouldn’t have it any other way.