Chapter 10
Three months later.
The shop was busier than ever.
Jake was back to work.
His shoulder still ached sometimes when it rained, but he didn’t complain.
He’d restructured the company.
The pension fund was fully paid back.
Every retired worker got their money plus interest.
He’d started a foundation in his dad’s name.
Gave scholarships to kids who wanted to learn a trade.
Built three new trade schools on the South Side.
He still owned forty-eight percent of the Whitmore company.
But he let the new CEO run it.
He only went to board meetings once a quarter.
Said he’d rather be under a car than in a suit.
Vanessa had gotten a job at a nonprofit helping single moms find housing and jobs.
She loved it.
She’d met a guy there.
A teacher.
Nice.
Normal.
No money.
No yachts.
She was happy.
Really happy.
Mom had sold her old house.
Bought a small condo two blocks from us.
She came over for dinner every Sunday.
She and Jake had become close.
She’d tell him stories about his dad.
He’d fix her car for free.
It was nice.
Today was our seventh wedding anniversary.
We’d decided to renew our vows.
Right there in the shop.
The guys from the shop had strung fairy lights from the ceiling.
Covered the tool benches with white tablecloths.
Made a cake out of a giant tire with frosting on top.
Vanessa was my maid of honor.
Mike was Jake’s best man.
Mom cried through the whole ceremony.
When the pastor said we could kiss, the guys cheered so loud the cars on the street outside honked.
Afterward, we all ate cake and drank beer out of plastic cups.
Vanessa made a speech.
She cried.
Said I was the best sister anyone could ever ask for.
Said Jake was the brother she’d never had.
Said family wasn’t about blood or money.
It was about showing up.
Even when it’s hard.
Later that night, after everyone left, Jake and I sat on the steps of the shop.
His arm around me.
The Chicago skyline glowing in the distance.
“Remember your sister’s wedding?” he said. “When she called me a poor mechanic?”
I laughed.
“How could I forget?” I said.
Jake pulled a small box out of his pocket.
Opened it.
Inside was a ring.
Simple.
Silver.
With a small diamond.
Nothing fancy.
Nothing like the giant rock Vanessa had gotten from Ethan.
“I know we already have rings,” he said. “But I wanted to get you a new one. To represent the new us. No more secrets. No more lies. Just us. And whatever comes next.”
He slipped it on my finger.
It fit perfect.
“I love you, Sarah Bennett,” he said.
“I love you too, Jake Bennett,” I said.
I leaned my head on his shoulder.
Thought about everything that had happened.
The wedding.
The thirty-two million.
The threats.
The gunshots.
The lies.
The truth.
It had been the hardest year of our lives.
But it had also been the best.
Because we’d found each other.
Really found each other.
And we’d found our family.
Broken.
Messy.
Imperfect.
But ours.
A car pulled up in front of the shop.
An old lady got out.
Mrs. Henderson.
She’d been coming to Jake since he opened the shop.
“Jake!” she yelled. “My car’s making that noise again! Can you take a look?”
Jake laughed.
Stood up.
“Duty calls,” he said.
He kissed the top of my head.
Walked over to her car.
Popped the hood.
Got to work.
Grease under his nails.
A smile on his face.
I sat there on the steps.
Watched him.
Thought about what Vanessa had said at the wedding.
About how she’d thought money was everything.
And how wrong she’d been.
Jake was the richest man I knew.
Not because of the stocks.
Not because of the money.
But because he was kind.
And honest.
And good.
Because he loved me with everything he had.
Because he’d rather fix an old lady’s car for free than sit in a boardroom making a million dollars.
He was my husband.
My best friend.
My “poor mechanic.”
May you like
And I wouldn’t trade him for all the money in the world.
The end.
