“I only have one question,” I whispered, humming as Dean’s lips kissed a path up the column of my throat.
“Ask me anything,” he replied, his voice hoarse with pent-up need.
“Will we live happily ever after?”
Dean’s lips curved, and in his smile, I saw the promise of the future and the family that we’d build together.
“Oh, sweetheart. You better believe it.”
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Epilogue
Dean
It was a beautiful day for a wedding.
The sun was shining, and the humidity that had plagued the Hudson River Valley for the last few days had vanished, leaving in its wake air that had a certain crispness, a not-so-subtle reminder that autumn was on its way.
But it wasn’t here yet.
No, it was most definitely still summer, I thought, as I stood in the small side garden outside the Caseys’ home. It would be warm by this afternoon, making me glad that, after much discussion, we’d decided to book a pretty event room overlooking the river at the Thayer instead of holding the reception outside.
In her stroller next to me, Rose gurgled and reached for her toes. She’d only just discovered her feet in the last few weeks, and it never failed to amuse me when her blue eyes grew wide as she stared at these amazing appendages.
As I’d predicted on the day she was born, my daughter was clearly a genius.
I’d volunteered to be in charge of Rose this morning while the women fussed and prepped for this afternoon. There was definitely an overabundance of estrogen inside, I thought ruefully.
Surprisingly, Willow’s friends Violet and Cindy were among the females primping for our wedding. Over the past few months, Willow had reached out to her friends, and after many phone calls and one much-anticipated visit, the three had recovered their friendship. I liked them, but I had a feeling that eventually, contact between the women would dwindle to an occasional social message or an annual Christmas card. They just didn’t have very much in common anymore. Even so, I was glad that Willow felt better about the situation and had found peace.
Speaking of peace . . . I’d done my own reaching out about a month after Rose was born. Since I hadn’t told my mother anything about Willow or her pregnancy, I’d had a lot of explaining and groveling to do before I’d brought my two best girls back to my hometown. My mom had instantly fallen in love with both Willow and Rose, and she’d exclaimed and fussed over my new status as a second lieutenant. To my shock, she had a picture of me receiving my diploma at graduation hanging over the fireplace.
“Your friend Norton sent it to me,” Mom had explained. “I was just so tickled to see it.”
While I was back in Pebbleton, I’d gritted my teeth and called Lori to see if we could meet up. But all I got was a recorded message letting me know that her phone was no longer in service.
“I haven’t seen Lori in months,” my mom told me, almost apologetically. “She got mixed up with a bunch of people who are no good, and she lost her job at the factory. Even her own mother isn’t sure where she is these days.”
I felt a pang of sorrow for my oldest friend—not for the bitter woman on a path for self-destruction I’d hung out with last summer, but for the girl who’d been my constant companion when we were children.
To my joy, my mother was here today, another one of the females preparing for the ceremony. She had accepted my offer of a train ticket, and the Caseys had insisted that she should stay here at the house with the rest of the family, as they’d phrased it. I owed my soon-to-be in-laws a bigger debt than I could ever repay.
Willow’s brother Todd was also home for the wedding, though he’d decamped to the gym earlier today. His girlfriend Angie had come up with him, and unless I was sorely mistaken, there would soon be wedding bells in their future, too.
“There you are!”
A familiar voice made me turn with a smile. Norton stalked into the garden, ducking under the hedge arch, his grin bright and infectious.
“Dude!” Norton greeted me with a big old man hug and thumped my back. “What the hell, man? You’re getting married? To Coach’s daughter?” He wagged his head as though he’d just heard the news, when in fact, he had been one of the first people I’d invited for today.
“Yeah, that’s the plan.” I gestured toward the stroller. “And I’d also like you to meet my daughter, Rose.”
Rose blinked up at him, interested but not one bit fazed.
“Duuuuude.” Norton dragged out the word. “You have a baby. And hey, she’s a looker. Must take after her mama.”
