Chapter 16: Epilogue

1 Month Later...

Monday morning found Rey waking up next to her love, who had captured her in a bear hug while he slept. She laughed against his broad chest, finding him already up and watching her.

"Why didn't you wake me?"

"I thought you could use the extra five minutes," he responded, leaning down to plant a kiss on the end of her nose.

"I think you just like having me here."

"Guilty," he agreed.

"Do you think you can let me go long enough for me to grab a shower?" she asked. "It's an important day, you know."

Today was the first day of their new life together. They'd spent the weekend moving all of Rey's stuff from her apartment with the Tico sisters to his penthouse suite. Finn had shown up to help, as had Poe and Kaydel.

To ease the transition, Ben had taken them all out to dinner afterwards, even going as far as to thank Poe for helping. It was the calmest Rey had ever seen him around their former PR manager. Of course, it didn't stop him from putting his hands on her every chance he got, regardless of the fact Poe and Kaydel acknowledged they were in an HR-sanctioned relationship.

The month prior had been an adjustment for both Rey and Ben. Without jobs, they were left to their own devices during the day. For the first week, that meant not leaving Ben's bedroom. Then one day Lando called. First, he insisted Rey call him by his first name, as she was the reason they were expanding. He enlisted Ben and Rey to help with preparations for the new East Coast office.

It was during one of those days, while they ran around New York City meeting with contractors and organizing the extensive office supply shopping list, Lando proposed an idea to Ben.

"Written anything lately, kid?" he asked over the lunch.

Lando had flown in to finish some final details for the office and offered to take them out.

"Been editing the last seven or so years," Ben informed him. "Why?"

"The fallout from your exit from Force Publications is quite a story, you know," the older man smirked, before glancing over at Rey and giving her a mischievous wink.

"If you have something to say, Calrissian," Ben grumbled, "Just say it."

"The office on Greenwich Street is larger than our California space and there's a reason for that," Lando admitted.

"Which is?" Ben asked, considerably more irritable the longer his quasi-uncle kept them in the dark.

"Before your offer I was considering expanding, not in terms of location, but in terms of industry," Lando shared.

Rey mulled over his words as she chewed on her chicken Caesar wrap. Lando had made quite a name for himself with the Chronical but he'd originally gotten his start in a different type of publication."

"Books," she grinned, intrigued by the idea. "You want to open a publishing house for books!"

Lando flashed her a charming smile before turning to her boyfriend. "So Ben, tell me. Have you ever considered writing a novel?"

And that's where it started. In the past two weeks, Ben had spent a good portion of their free time outlining and mapping out chapter titles while Rey cooked up more of her father's best recipes.

She loved watching him work. Unlike how he'd operated at the First Order, now he was passionate, engaged and constantly seeking her opinion. Nothing made her feel better than seeing him so happy.

Except for maybe seeing him inside her.

Their time in bed may have been limited as they rushed to get the new office opened and expand the business both geographically and beyond the newspaper, but what time they did find together was put to good use.

Today was the culmination of all their hard work over the past month. Today they opened Rogue One, Inc.

The name of the publishing house had actually been her parents' idea. Apparently word of her and Kylo's walk out from Force Publications has earned Internet fame. Someone — Leia — had leaked a video of them being escorted by security off the premises the day they'd been let go. Not long after it was all over the news that they'd been fired for their forbidden love.

As if they were the modern version of Shakespeare star-crossed lovers, people became vocal about their dismissal. Strangers from all over began taking to social media to yell about how unfair it was to punish a young couple in love. The video went viral, expanding the network in support beyond their own nations. It was a phenomenon unlike anything Rey had ever seen. But it gave Ben more material for his book.

They were classified as 'going rogue' from their harsh corporate atmosphere and 'rebelling against the emotionless mandates' of New York business. So her parents' came up with the phrase, Rogue One.

And it stuck.

Lando, of course, capitalized on the whirlwind storm of free publicity making sure every time Rey and Ben were mentioned it was connected to the launch of the new company, named for their famed love affair.

Donations began pouring in to help them get their office up and running, while eager applicants began applying for all available positions. They even had volunteers showing up to help the contractors work. Eventually Ben and Rey shot their own video, with the help of Mitaka, to respond to the wave of support they had received.

That one went viral instantly, only increasing the love and support of their 'fans' as they neared the day of Rogue One's grand opening.

Rey managed to pry herself out of Ben's arms, heading to the bathroom to shower. Lando had prepped them last night on how to handle the media, because they were expecting a huge turn out. Rey was excited because her parents were included in that. They were flying in for the ribbon cutting and staying the entire week.

It had been too long since she'd seen her parents and Rey was practically bouncing up and down as she got dressed, ready for them to see the life she'd made. Her dream was beautiful, but reality was even better because it included Ben.

Kylo stared at himself in the foggy bathroom mirror. Today was the day. Not only were they opening Rogue One but today was the day he asked Rey to be his wife. She was already his partner, his equal in all things, but now...now it would be official.

Just then his phone chimed on the marble counter.

With a tap, he grimaced noticing the message was from Dameron. Ever since he'd bought the man dinner, he assumed Kylo and he were friends. Nothing could be further from the truth, but for Rey's sake, he tolerated the man's annoying antics.

Good luck today, boss man ;)

Kylo held back an eye roll. Could he be more juvenile?

Poe knew, as did the rest of Rey's friends and family, which was why he'd paid to fly her folks in. She thought they were arriving this morning, but in fact they had come in a day early and were staying with his mother. Leia was all too eager to offer up her guest quarters, and it gave Kylo a chance to formally ask Cassian and Jyn for their blessing.

Meeting Rey's father, while Rose and Paige managed to keep his girlfriend occupied, had been the single-most intimidating moment of Kylo's life. He hadn't earned himself any brownie points by making Rey Internet famous for violating company policy which put her work visa in jeopardy. Thankfully, Cassian overlooked that when he recognized how happy his only child was.

Jyn and Cassian gave their blessing on the condition that Rey and Kylo came to visit for at least two weeks each year. "I can't afford to leave the precinct too often," Cassian admitted and Kylo acknowledged what a sacrifice it was for them to travel in such late notice. He promised they would visit for two weeks, if not more, so Cassian and Jyn would see their daughter more regularly.

When he shook Rey's father's hand, Kylo knew it was a promise he'd keep no matter what.

As he reminisced, he finished buttoning up his dress shirt, fixing a blood red tie on as the final accent. It was his own subtle way of sticking it to the First Order and Hux.

The man had suffered a fate much worse than a simple firing. When the video of Kylo and Rey had been leaked, it was shortly followed by another video. This one starred Hux and his unfortunate temper in the elevator with Rey. His violent outbursts blackballed him from any potential offers from future employers. No one wanted to hire the most hated man in New York City.

The last Kylo had heard, Hux was editing instructions manuals for an IKEA competitor. The thought of his ginger-haired nemesis stuck in a tedious, dead-end job brought a smile to his face.

Bazine hadn't faired much better. She'd backed on Hux becoming the new editor and had burned bridges with nearly everyone in the First Order. When it became apparent Hux wouldn't be her new boss, she cried wolf, saying Hux blackmailed her like he planned on doing to Kylo and Rey.

It might have worked, if Mitaka hadn't stumbled across footage of her hacking Kylo's phone. Once those clips were released Bazine was out. Like Hux, no one wanted her on their payroll.

A light knock at the bathroom door, reminded him of the time. "Ben, are you ready to go?"

"Be right out," he called through the door to Rey. Checking his pocket one last time, Kylo smirked at his reflection. "Show time."

Greenwich Street was blocked off for an entire city block for the grand opening. News choppers and floods of press and fans alike swarmed the front steps of the building. Flashes of light kept going off, making it hard for Rey to focus on any one face in the crowd.

As she desperately searched through the fray for her parents, Rey felt Ben wrap an arm around her.

"Did you ever think this was how we'd end up?" he asked, his voice low so only she could hear him.

"No," she smiled shyly up at him. "Did you?"

"No," he chuckled. "I didn't even think I could convince you to have another drink with me."

She laughed, tilting her head back so he could kiss her. There was a loud cry from the crowd as people began chanting 'Reylo' over and over again. The masses turned into a hyper frenzy.

Rey blushed all the way to the roots of her hair. Since they had gone viral, people had taken to mashing their names together to create what Rose informed her was called a 'ship name' for their relationship. Rey still didn't get it, but it was nice to feel their support, even if the term still sounded weird.

Lando appeared next to them, ready to make his opening speech and cut the ribbon.

Rey and Ben turned their attention to their boss, listening as he thanked everyone for coming out and talking a bit about their mission statement. At the end he produced a pair of giant scissors — One gold and one silver. He handed them off, one to Rey and one to Ben to cut the thick red ribbon stretched over the front doors.

"Together?" Ben asked her.

"Together," she echoed back.

Rogue One was beautiful. As the newest publication house in the city, they were starting out with an open design plan and the best in technology. Despite having two separate core functions, the employees were encouraged to sit where they wanted and interact with everyone else, regardless of department to increase cross-functional efficiencies.

Along the back wall were a row of offices and soundproof meeting rooms for conference calls and client appointments. Kylo retreated into his office as soon as the festivities began to die down.

The room was smaller than his space at Force Publications, but unlike his former office this one was filled with personal knick knacks. There were several photos of him and Rey together, along with the desk calendar she'd bought him last week and a small air plant, because she thought he needed more color in his life.

Rey had gone off with her parents, excited to show them the office she'd had a hand in creating. He was proud of her. She'd taken to the business aspects of Rogue One just as brilliantly as she wrote. She was an exceptional woman... one whom he hoped to call his very, very soon.

Unable to stop himself, Kylo pulled the ring box from his pocket, admiring the antique band inside.

The ring was actually a set of two, which sat within one another. The smaller one would be given to Rey on their wedding day so for now he was focused on giving her the thicker band adorned with diamonds clustered around the center gem, a sapphire.

Once upon a time it had been his grandmother's and now he planned on passing the piece of his heritage onto Rey, making her a part of his family forever.

As if sensing his intentions, there was a light tapping at his door before his girlfriend walked in. Quickly, he snapped the ring box shut and dropped it back into his pocket.

"Busy?"

"I am the boss," he reminded her.

As part of their arrangement, Lando made Kylo his partner and gave him a seat on the board, which was more a cover for him to have his own office right next to Rey's, but no one questioned it.

"This reminds me of old times," Rey gestured to the dark wood accents of his office, crossing the room to where he sat.

"Is that so, Ms. Andor?" he asked, spinning his chair around to meet her.

"It is, sir," she purred, as she reached down to take hold of his tie. Rey stepped closer until she was standing between his legs, leaning over so her lips hovered over his. "Is there anything I can do for you, Mr. Ren?"

"As a matter of fact," he locked eyes with her, "there is."

Kylo retrieved the ring box, opening it between them. Rey released his tie, straightening up and taking a step backwards. Her eyes widened upon seeing what he held out to her.

Shifting out of his seat, he knelt down before her. Rey gasped, one hand reaching behind her to steady herself against his desk while the other covered her mouth.

"Rey Andor," he started. "When you came into my life, I knew you were special. There was something about you that drew me to you and despite all the reasons why it shouldn't have worked out between us, it did so now I know. The reason you were so special, the reason I was instantly yours was because my soul found its match with you. All this time I was waiting for you. Please say you'll join me in this and all things...as my wife."

"Ben," Rey's voice cracked as tears streamed down her cheeks. "Yes, of course, I'll marry you!"

She dropped to her knees next to him, ignoring the fact she was dressed in her best pencil skirt and white blouse. Kylo gave her a chaste kiss before slipping the band onto her left ring finger.

"This is the best day of my life. I love you more than anything else in this world. I think we should invite Hux to the wedding."

Rey laughed, wiping her face clean of her tears. "You joke but we really should send him a fruit basket or something. Without him reporting us, none of this would have ever happened."

"Now that's a lie," Kylo scoffed. "I wasn't going to let you go so easily, kitten."

Rey hugged him, sighing happily as she sagged against his chest. He ran his fingers through her soft chestnut waves, gently combing through the tendrils.

"Mmm, Ben?"

"Yes, baby?"

She leaned back on her heels. "We haven't broken the new office in yet."

And she calls me insatiable!

"Is the door locked?" he asked, already loosening his tie.

Rey nodded.

"Well then, get in position, kitten," he instructed.

She stood up, unzipping her skirt until it fell to the floor. Bending over his desk, Rey shot him a wicked grin over her shoulder.

"Ready when you are, sir."