and Lex began sharing stories about the brothers and all the trouble they’d gotten into when they'd been younger. After another hour had gone by, I knew Lex was done, so I gave his hand a squeeze and said, "I'm going to check on the girls."
Lex nodded. "Tell them we’ll be back soon."
I stepped out of the room long enough to call Emma. Satisfied that both girls were okay, I hung up the phone and prepared to return to the living room. King met me just outside the entryway.
He held his hand out and I immediately took it.
"Take care of him," he said softly.
"I will," I responded. "Are you and Con going to be okay?"
King leaned back against the wall and crossed his arms. "We all have our secrets," he said. "Con knows that better than anyone."
The cryptic statement didn't really answer my question, but I knew better than to ask King to clarify what he meant. I’d learned enough about him to know that he was the kind of guy who talked only when he had something to say.
And he clearly didn't have anything to say about whether or not Con would forgive him.
King pushed off the wall and headed for the front door. Just as he was leaving, I saw him look over his shoulder. But he wasn't looking at me. He was looking beyond me at a set of stairs. Standing on them was Gio. I thought maybe he was waiting to talk to his uncle, but he only stared at King for several long seconds before he turned and hurried up the stairs. By the time I looked again, the front door was clicking shut.
I returned to the living room and found Con and Lex embracing as they said their goodbyes. When Con pulled back, he touched Lex's face affectionately.
"So, we'll see you tomorrow morning at the hotel?" Lex asked.
"I'll be there," Con said. He gave Lex another hug and then he cast me a glance before he headed in the direction of what I now knew was the kitchen.
"You ready to go?" I asked Lex.
Lex nodded and made his way toward me. He took my hand when I held it out to him and then we walked to the car. "How are the girls?" he asked.
"I don't know, they were too busy doing their nails and braiding each other’s hair to talk to me."
Lex laughed and gave me a hard shove. I chuckled and put my arm around him. "How is Con?" I asked.
"I think he's okay. Or he will be, at least."
"How do you think he'll take the news that we’re going to be staying in Argentina for a while?" I asked.
"I think he already suspects. He said he just wants me to be happy, no matter where I end up."
It was a decision Lex and I had reached in the past few weeks. Even once I got custody of Emma, the last thing I wanted to do was rip her away from the place she’d called home for the past couple of years. She’d simply been through too much at a young age and I wanted her to focus on just being a kid. But while there wasn't anything waiting for me in the States, the situation wasn't the same for Lex. I’d said as much when we’d discussed what the future would bring. Lex had been pretty clear in his response.
"My home is wherever you are. And now, it's wherever Emma is too."
As hard as it would be for Lex to leave his brothers behind, the fact was that the brothers were leading different lives. Vaughn was living in Seattle with Aleks and there was a good chance that Luca would end up there as well. From what Lex had told me, Con called Las Vegas home and King really didn't have any one place that he stayed in for any extended amount of time. As for Lex's company, he’d accepted that he no longer wanted to run the business day-to-day. In fact, he seemed more interested in my career plans than his own.
"Were you serious about what we talked about last night?" I asked as we made our way down the stairs and to the waiting car.
"I can't stop thinking about it," Lex admitted.
"Traveling the world so I can take pictures once Emma is in college?" I clarified. I shook my head because it just seemed like too much to ask for to be able to live my dream so late