"Wouldn't dream of it," I breathe, pressing my lips to hers in a hard kiss. "I just want to be the man lucky enough to stand at your side, butterfly."
The rest of the morning is a dream.
Ma disappears with Hattie for a while. When I try to follow, they both tell me to go find something else to do. God onlyknows what they're doing, but when it's time to go, Hattie is smiling bigger than ever.
"I love your family," she whispers as I help her into the truck.
"They love you too, butterfly."
She beams at me, the brightest smile I've ever seen from her. It's still firmly in place when we get to the airport. It wavers slightly when she spots Tye.
"It's okay," I murmur, leading her forward to greet him.
He scrutinizes her expression, and then his gaze falls to the ring. Something drifts through his eyes that I can't read. But he doesn't hit me. Instead, he swallows, pulling his sister into a big hug.
"Tye!" she sobs, clinging to him like a little koala.
"Are you happy, Half Pint?" he asks.
"So h-happy."
"Then I'm happy for you," he whispers, his mouth close to her ear. "You deserve someone who looks at you like he does. You deserve to know that you're perfect. Don't ever forget that."
She cries into his chest for a moment before pulling herself together. "Promise you aren't going to fight anymore?"
"Promise, baby sister," he says, holding his pinky out for her to hook hers through.
As soon as she does, it's like the final weight falls from her shoulders. The last lines of worry vanish from her expression. Her body relaxes.
She shines like a fucking star.
Epilogue
Hattie
Six Years Later
"Daddy, I hab a question."
"Fire away, baby girl," Sidney rumbles to our daughter, Alice. He's supposed to be getting her ready for bed. But Sidney is a big pushover. Alicealwayshas questions at bedtime. And her daddy will spend an hour answering every single one she thinks up, just to delay closing her little eyes.
I was the same way when I was little. And my dad was just like Sidney, answering every single question.
I linger outside her door, listening.
"You hab parents, and I hab parents," she says. "How come Mommy and Uncle Tye and Bwiggs and Harlan doesn't hab any parents?"
"They do, baby girl," Sidney murmurs. "Remember us telling you about your grandpa in heaven?"
"Yeah…"
"He was their dad."
"Oh," she whispers. "Is their mommy in heaven, too?"
My heart clenches.
"No, sweetheart," Sidney says, his voice gentle. "Your grandma is still alive."
