THE END
Epilogue
Four Years Later
He sent a car for me. The seats were leather and the driver offered me a bouquet when I slid into the back. I pressed the flowers to my nose, trying to hide my wide grin. The purple hybrids Dakota perfected years ago smelled sweeter than ever.
It was Super Bowl weekend, so the traffic was a mess. The driver weaved in and out of cars, determined to get me to my destination on time. According to him, Dakota instructed he get me home no later than nine-thirty.
We were heading away from the stadium, towards the quieter side of the city. Dakota’s house was a two-story dream. His teammates teased him for picking something far outside of the city in an area with mainly families. But it was quiet and the decision fit him. It fit us.
When Dakota originally went house hunting, he begged me to come to every viewing. He’d ask me for my opinion even though I wasn’t signing my name on the dotted line.
“I don’t care,” he had said. “I still want your opinion. As far as I’m concerned, whatever I get is as much as yours as it is mine.”
“Always saying what a woman wants to hear?” I had teased.
“I’m serious. This will be your home, Emmy. Whenever you’re ready, we can make it official.”
I sighed, remembering how he wanted me to move in. How I told him I wanted to finish school in person. He’d been more than willing to pay for my flights back and forth to Westbrooke. Dakota would spare no expense. He never did when it came to me.
I hadn’t admitted out loud yet but I enjoyed being spoiled. Enjoyed him treating me to things neither of us grew up with. Still, a small part of me was desperate to be able to do the same one day. When my career finally got going, I’d give him luxury too. He’d probably protest like he did whenever I treated him to surprise trips during the holidays. The protests would make things even more fun, though. I suppose that’s how he felt too when giving me extra. I hadn’t been expecting the car to pick me up from the airport. And I sure as hell didn’t expect a golden gift bag waiting for me when I opened the front door.
Dakota’s home felt spacious with towering ceilings and columns bordering the front door. I’d helped him pick out the majority of his furniture, so the warm greens and blues gave off a calming effect. I took in a deep breath, smelling the vanilla candles he knew I liked to burn whenever I visited.
The alarm system beeped when I shut the door behind me. I hurried to punch the numbers in before venturing towards the present that awaited me.
I pulled a glass container out of the gift bag. It took me a moment to recognize the small figurine behind the glass. I laughed at the perfectly creepy stop-motion character staring back at me. Dakota’s note taped to the gift bag read,
Still can’t believe you hadn’t watchedNightmare Before Christmasuntil I showed it to you. I saw this at auction and knew it had to be yours. I’m determined to build up your collection with non-demonic-looking figures.
Love you forever,
Dakota
My heart warmed at the wonderfully creepy gift. I loved that he knew me. I loved that even though the horror stuff was terrifying, he showed interest in it for me.
I held the figurine close to my chest as I climbed the staircase. The wheels of my bag clicked against each stair. When I got to the master bedroom, I saw that Dakota had surrounded the king-sized bed with LED candles and more of my favorite flowers. The sheets looked like clouds and were turned down as if to beckon me in.
I nearly abandoned my luggage in exchange for a quick nap. A sound in the walk-in closet scared me out of falling into the bed.
“Shit,” I whispered when I heard the noise again. Common sense told me to back out of the room, so that’s what I started to do. I was halfway out before Dakota appeared at the opening of the closet. My eyes widened at the sight of him in all his beefy arms and long hair glory. I hadn’t been expecting him until later. He smiled when he saw me and leaned on the doorframe with his hands in his pockets like he had all the time in the world.
Dakota still wore his post-game press conference attire: black slacks and a black button-down. The sleeves were now rolled up, showing off years of weigh-lift training. He glanced down at the silver watch on his wrist and said, “You’re a minute late. I assume you found your first present?”
I laughed and deposited my belongings on the couch near the door. He welcomed me as I tackled him with a hug. As always, Dakota stood firm and steady. He lifted me up, so my legs wrapped around his waist. We kissed like we hadn’t seen each other in ages. Three months sure felt like that, especially since for the past two years we’ve been dating long distance.
Dakota held onto the back of my head, keeping me close for him to enjoy our kiss. He moved slowly towards the bed and laid me down on the warm, soft sheets. I sighed into his mouth as he crawled on top of me. He smelled like he always did, like spice and winter.
“You stayed away too long, Emmy,” he whispered against my lips. “I could barely stand it this time.”
“I know, I know.” I traced his jaw as I spoke. The sight of him professionally dressed paired with his voice sounding completely undone made me melt. “It was hard for me too.”
“Hard for you too?” he asked in a teasing tone and then, shifted so I could feel his stiff cock on my leg. “How hard?”
My laugh was cut short when he dipped down to bite my neck. I arched into the pain and moaned at the pleasure of him licking the bite.
“How hard?” he repeated with his mouth still biting and kissing my skin. “I want to know.”
