Redeemed (Dirty Air Series Book 4)

Santiago and I have fallen into the best kind of routine together ever since he asked me to move in. While he busies himself with practice rounds at the racetrack with Bandini, I spend my days with Matteo and work on my latest designs for my Etsy shop. I already have a few orders after Maya helped me take photos of the different pieces of clothing I made.

Somehow while searching for my father, I found a man to love and a job that makes me happy to wake up every morning. It’s as if every last piece clicked into place for me.

Well, almost every last piece. I never thought I’d truly find out what would make me happy in life, but it seems like everything I could possibly want has fallen into my lap when I least expected it.

Even Brooke shipped over all my belongings, with Santiago’s help. What once was a house devoid of emotion now bursts with colorful blankets and plants on windowsills. We turned his house into a home, and it’s somewhere I wouldn’t mind spending many years of my life sprucing up.

Santiago preps dinner while I sip wine and stare.

He pauses his chopping to look up at me. “Are you happy?”

“Moi?” I lift a brow.

He smirks. “Yes.”

“Of course! What kind of question is that?”

He shrugs, resuming his cutting of tonight’s vegetables. “Yesterday you were kind of mopey.”

“That’s because I’m on my period, you dufus. I can’t always be the type to throw confetti around wherever I go.”

He frowns. “Is that why you cried while watching Bridesmaids?”

I cringe. Did I really cry during a comedy? Okay, maybe I was a bit emotionally reactive yesterday. “It made me emotional.”

“Because?”

“Because it’s Brooke’s favorite movie and it made me miss her. I haven’t seen her in forever and she’s so far away that even our usual phone calls aren’t enough.”

“I gathered that after you fell asleep with your laptop while video chatting with her last week.”

“I’m not cut out for long-distance relationships. They suck.”

“Thank God for that.” He smirks.

“Are you seriously smiling? You’re evil.”

“Only in the ways that count.” He winks.

I throw my hands up. “What does that even mean?”

Santiago looks over at the clock on the oven. “3…2…1…”

Nothing happens. A bird chirps from outside, adding to the awkward silence between us.

I somehow found someone about as crazy as me. What a feat to accomplish. “Are you feeling okay? That was anticlimactic, to say the least.”

He rolls his eyes. “I expect too much out of people. It seems that being on time is a thing of the past.”

“What are you going off ab—”

The front door bangs open in the distance. “When you told me that you were staying in a castle that had a Transylvania vibe, you were not kidding!”

The sound of Brooke’s voice has me screaming as I run through the halls to meet her.

I hurl myself into her arms, forcing her to drop her luggage on the ground. “Oh my fucking God! You’re here! You’re really here! How did you even get here?!”

She lets out a huff of air. “God you weigh a lot more. What have they been feeding you over here? Cookies for breakfast, lunch, and dinner?”

I cackle, letting go of her. “What are you even doing here?”

“Santiago asked me to come visit you.” She beams.

I look over my shoulder, catching Santiago smiling at us. He waves at Brooke and introduces himself.

“Seriously? Are you always going to be this perfect or will it wear off like a car’s warranty?” My eyes slide from Santiago to my best friend, ensuring I didn’t make any of this up.

All Santiago does is smile at me. It’s one that beams from the inside out, practically lighting up the damn entryway with his positivity.

“The dynamic duo is back.” Brooke does a little dance around me.

“You’re actually going to be visiting us for a while? I can’t believe it!” I wrap my arms around her again and give her a squeeze.

She matches my hug with one of her own. “Well…”

I release her and take a step back. “What?”

She bites her lip. “Since I now am a proud graduate with a degree under my belt, and we are in the land of designer royalty…”

“No.” My mouth pops open. Is she saying what I think she is saying?

“Yes!” she squeals. “I applied to a bunch of jobs here. London, Paris, Milan. If there’s a country with a fashion magazine, I’m attempting it.”

“You’re going to live in Europe? Like permanently?”

She beams. “It depends where I get hired, but it’ll be somewhere on this side of the world, that’s for sure. I can’t let my best friend move to Europe without me. We’re like a pair of kidneys.”

“Better off together than ever apart.” I smile.

Santiago walks up to my side and throws his arm over my shoulder. “We have a guest room set up for you upstairs. I can imagine you want to relax and take a shower after that long flight.”

I look up at the man who repaired my cracked heart with superglue and sheer willpower. “Are you sure that you want to sign yourself up for another roommate?”

“For a little while, at least until she gets on her feet and lands herself a job. Not to mention when she suggested staying at the same place you did, I told her I couldn’t allow that. I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy… Well, maybe Noah, but only because it would be a humbling experience for our Royal Highness.”

I struggle to hold back my laugh.

“Speaking of Noah Slade… Does he have any friends? Any single friends, that is.” Brooke waggles her brows.

Santiago shakes his head. “Unfortunately, all of us are taken.”

“Do you hear that?” Brooke leans in and whispers.

“What?” I raise a brow at her.

“I thought I heard all the women in the world sobbing, but maybe I’m just going crazy.”

Santiago and I both laugh. He looks at her with a bit of wonder. “I see why Chloe loves you.”

Brooke preens like a damn show-off. “Oh, do tell. I love compliments.”

“You’ve got the same kind of magic she has.”

I blush.

“Is it possible for me to vicariously fall in love with you too? Asking for a friend?” Brooke speaks with her most serious face even though I can tell she wants to burst into a fit of laughter.

I laugh up to the ceiling. My chest fills with a new kind of warmth at the idea of having my best friend living on the same continent as me.

I didn’t even need to make a wish for it to come true. All I needed was Santiago—a man set on proving the magic isn’t the wish itself, but the people who make the dream come true.