Hours blur into music and drinks and never-ending line dancing. Stacey holds court from her corner, getting fed snacks and mocktails and occasionally yelling at Oscar to hydrate. The Sinclairs have settled into Moonlight Falls surprisingly well. Tavish is arguing with Austin about which whiskey is better, Rowan is deep in conversation with Jesse about horses, and Callum is teaching one of the locals how to say something rude in Gaelic.
And through it all, Charlie drifts in and out of my orbit. Always close. Always within reach. A hand on my back, a smile from across the room, a shared look that says, ‘Can you believe this is our life?’
By the time closing time creeps up, the bar is a happy mess. People are flushed, tired, and a little hoarse from shouting. Snow has piled up outside, soft and thick and glittering under the streetlights. Slowly, the Moose empties out. We all peel off into the parking lot, where the party buses are waiting for us. The cold hits my face as soon as we step outside, sharp and clean. Snowflakes catch in Charlie’s hair, on his lashes, on the shoulders of his jacket.
We lag behind the others without really trying to.
“Hey,” he says softly.
“Hey,” I answer.
For a moment, the noise fades. All I hear is the muffled hush of snow and distant laughter from our friends.
Charlie bumps his shoulder against mine. “You have a good time?”
I huff out a little laugh. “The best.”
He smiles, eyes crinkling at the corners. “Good.”
We stand there a second longer, breath fogging the air between us. “This weekend,” he murmurs. “We get married.”
I look at him, really look at him, standing in the snow outside a cowboy bar in a town I never expected to love, surrounded by people I never expected to call family.
Warm.
Heavy.
Right.
“Yeah,” I say quietly. “We do.”
His hand finds mine, fingers lacing, familiar and sure as he kisses me softly.
“Get a room, guys,” Christian calls out from the party bus.
“Let’s go home, I’m frozen.” I shiver.
94
DERRICK
The first thing I’m aware of when I wake up is that Charlie isn’t beside me, and the second thing is the snow. It’s falling in soft white sheets outside the window, settling over Moonlight Falls like the whole town is being dusted in magic. November here feels like stepping into a Christmas postcard.
The third thing I’m aware of? I’m getting married today.
The words hit me in the chest all over again. Warm. Heavy. Right.
I’m getting fucking married. Me. To the man of my dreams. In one of the dreamiest locations with all our family and friends around us. I can’t believe it. I never thought it would happen, but it is.
I swing my legs out of bed, pull on a sweatshirt, and walk into the cabin. Once Charlie’s parents found out we wanted to have the wedding here, they went out and ordered all these prebuilt Amish cabins to dot around the property for friends and family to stay in, because there wouldn’t be enough places to stay in town for such a big event. It was so generous of them.
My brothers shared my cabin last night, so I’m surprised to find so many people in the kitchen when I wake up. Theplace is buzzing. Just the low hum of people laughing quietly and preparing breakfast. It seems like the caterer,Sebastien Sanchez,dropped off some breakfast platters for us. The pop of a bottle of champagne catches my attention.
“I’m getting married, bitches,” I call out, which makes the entire cabin erupt.
Sienna comes running over to cuddle me. “Good morning, groom.”
“Here, you’re going to need this,” Vanessa says, sliding a mimosa into my hand.
