Those people have suffered too much.
But we can be who we are now.
We are two hearts, stitched from the broken remnants of a love that was once too young to bear its own weight.
Epilogue One
Charlie
Five Years Later
“There’sstilltimetomake a run for it. We can steal the limo and ride off into the sunset and say fuck these guys,” Amelia says, adjusting the clip to the veil in my hair.
I laugh softly, my thumb toying with the engagement ring on my finger. “I love you, Amelia.”
Her eyes turn glassy as she wraps her arms around me from behind. She rests her cheek next to mine and holds my eyes in the mirror. “Love you too, bitch. You may be about to walk down the aisle to him, but you’ll forever be my ride or die.”
Amelia has weathered her own storms with David. I spent years worrying about her, watching her shoulder pain in silence. Her miscarriage shattered something inside her, and it took agesfor her to find her way back. But now, when I catch the light of happiness flickering in her eyes, I know she’s finally okay.
Love can shatter you, but it’s also the force that gathers your pieces and makes you whole again.
Mom flutters anxiously around the room while Norma smooths every last wrinkle from my train.
A gentle knock interrupts the bustle, and Dad peeks in. Tears well up as he takes in his first glimpse of me in my dress.
“Charlie-girl,” he chokes out, his eyes roaming over me as he comes into the room. “You look stunning.”
“No crying, daddy,” I say with a watery laugh.
“You can’t tell me not to cry when I’m about to hand my daughter over to another man,” he grumbles, taking the tissue from my mom and wiping his eyes.
Amelia presses a kiss to my cheek before stepping aside, and Dad takes my hand, spinning me gently to face him.
“Are you ready for this, kiddo?” he asks softly.
I smile at him, lifting to my toes and brushing a kiss against his scruffy jaw. “I am.”
He clears his throat and places my hand in the crook of his arm. “Then what do you say we get you to that impatient man waiting for you at the end of the aisle?”
Mom and Norma each kiss my cheeks before slipping out. At the door, Kayla and Vin wait patiently, but Amelia breaks formation, rushing back to my side.
She cups her hands around my cheeks and places her forehead against mine. “You'd better name them after me.”
I jerk my head back in surprise, my eyes searching hers. “You know?”
Nobody knows yet. Not even Keaton.
“You’re my best friend. Of course, I knew. Next time, don’t worry so much about me. Let me celebrate with you.”
“Ride and die,” I whisper.
“Ride and fucking die, babe.”
She plants a quick kiss on my nose, then darts back to join the bridesmaids.
Since Keaton’s betrayal, I’ve witnessed his tears more times than I can count.
But watching tears slip down his face as my father leads me to him is a memory I’ll never let go of.
