Three years later, Gray sat at her desk with her legs crossed, gazing out the window. Finally everything was as it should be. All of her hard work and determination had paid off. She now had a corner office on the twenty-fifth floor, right next to Sienna. Gray was the editor at large of Haute Couture magazine and Sienna’s new right hand. After Jean-Pierre retired, she was a shoo-in for the job.
Gray had come a long way. She was no longer the little mixed girl with homemade clothes. She proved to everyone that dreams really do come true; you just have to reach out and grab them one at a time.
She now knew that to love someone, you have to be comfortable with yourself. When she first met Gunz, she wasn’t. She was lonely and desperate for companionship. Instead of letting things go as they may, she latched on, determined to make him be the man she wanted. But what Gray had to learn was that love shouldn’t be forced. It should come naturally, and eventually, in its own time, it did.
Sometimes nightmares of the day Truth tried to kill her invaded her mind, but Gray wasn’t going to let the negative experience take over her life.
A scar from the cut on her back still existed, but she’d forgiven Truth and moved on. She even attended his funeral. Gray knew that no one was perfect. She’d made her fair share of mistakes too. Gray recognized that she hadn’t been the best friend to Truth at times. It didn’t excuse what he’d done to her, though.
At peace with her life, Gray took a much needed breath and spun around in her chair. A photo on her desk caught her attention. It was a picture of her three-year-old daughter. Aoki was her world, her inspiration, and the love of her life wrapped up in one.
“Gray,” her loyal secretary, Breann, buzzed her office.
“Yes.”
“You have a call on line one.”
Gray pressed the button.
“Gray Rose speaking.”
“You miss me?” Gunz asked.
It took him a minute, but after seeing how his choices affected the people around him, he backed out of the life and went legit. Gray couldn’t have been happier. Their relationship was more solid now than ever.
“Of course I do.” She lit up and smiled.
“What time you gettin’ home?”
“I’ll be there no later than four.”
“A’ight, well, I was just callin’ to see what was up wit’ you.”
“How did the meeting go?”
“Good. I signed the contract. My fifth restaurant will be open in the fall.”
“I’m so happy for you, babe.”
“Thanks.”
“Love you.”
“I love you too.”
Gray hung up the phone and took a glance at the ring on her left hand. After dating exclusively for almost three years, Gray finally felt that they were ready for marriage. She wasn’t willing to say yes until Gunz had proven himself worthy of a lifelong commitment, but surprisingly enough, Gunz had gone above and beyond proving himself worthy.
With his actions, he showed that he was the man for Gray. He lived up to his words and loved her unconditionally. He loved Aoki just like he said he would. She was his daughter, and he was the only father she knew. And no, getting to the point they were at hadn’t been easy; but kinda like the old saying goes, if you love it, then you should let it out of its cage, and if it comes back, then you know it’s there to stay.