Page 45 of Margo

“What are we toasting, Mister Knox?” Jade asked.

“We are toasting many, many things. Friends who became family, fresh starts, a brand-new year, and Margo finally agreeing to be my Little girl.” He touched the tip of his pizza to the tips of theirs, and raised it to his mouth, taking a huge bite. The girls stayed frozen, looking from Margo to him and back again.

Jilly reacted first, smashing Margo into a hug, pizza still in hand. “Oh my gosh! Really?” she cried. “That’s wonderful news!”

Mariah, Jade, Tessa and Ellie all nodded their stunned agreement before lining up to hug both him and Margo.

“Well, you weren’t kidding when you said you had lots to celebrate,” Mariah quipped. She hesitated, a sneaky smile playing on her lips. Knox braced himself.

“Since it’s New Years, and you’re in such a good mood… does that mean we get to stay up late? Like ‘till midnight?”

Knox looked around the room at their already weary and tired faces. His Margo looked especially exhausted, probably from all the crying and panicking she’d done. But even she leaned forward, hopefully waiting for his answer.

“Sure, why not?” he agreed cheerfully, knowing full well not a single one of them would make it that long.

And if they did, why not indeed? They, after all, had lots to celebrate.

Epilogue

January 4th

Margo

Margo was bouncing on the balls of her feet as she waited outside the casino entrance with Knox and her friends. Baze and Luna were finally coming home!

They’d only been gone ten days, but it felt like a lifetime with how much had happened.

“Lift up!” Jade hissed, from the other end of the large hand-painted banner they’d made. “You’re dragging it on the ground.”

“Nuh-uh,” Margo argued. “You’re holding it too high! My arms aren’t as long as yours. We can’t all be giants!”

“Who are you calling a giant, short stuff?”

“Girls,” Knox warned from the other side of Margo. “That is quite enough. I know you don’t want to miss Baze and Luna’s homecoming because you’re standing in timeout. Or do you?”

“No, sir,” Jade answered with an exaggerated sweetness.

“No, Daddy! That would s-be awful!” Margo exclaimed, catching herself before she used one of the forbidden words. There’d been some majorly close calls over the past several days, but so far the memory of soap and the spoon he’d used had been enough to keep her in check. Her mouth anyway.

She’d been sitting on a perpetually sore bottom since then, thanks to her habit of testing her heart out. She may have managed to watch her mouth, but she’d broken almost every other rule she had. She couldn’t help herself. It was a trauma and anxiety response. So far, Knox had passed every single test with flying colors.

Beside her, her Daddy squeezed her hand. “Good catch,” he whispered.

Margo grinned. “Does that mean I’m gonna get a reward tonight?” she asked, waggling her eyebrows. Knox had started her on a reward system and even though spankings were still her love language, the rewards were even better.

“We’ll see.” Knox’s answer was noncommittal, but Margo didn’t even have to look to know he’d be sporting a semi under his thick work jeans. That seemed to be as perpetual as her sore bottom was.

“There’s a limo! I see them! I see them! They’re almost here!” Ellie exclaimed, jumping up and down and pointing.

Margo rolled her eyes because a limo was a normal occurrence, even this far down the strip, but her tummy still squeezed in excitement.

“Is it really them, Daddy?” she whispered, soft enough so that only he could hear her.

Knox took a step forward, peered down the strip and nodded. “I think so, babygirl.”

“Yayyy!” Margo jumped with such exuberance she dropped her end of the banner.

Before Jade could say a word, Knox scooped it up and held it high, shaking his head when she tried to take it from him. “I got this. You greet your friend. Here they come.”