“Why do I feel like this isn’t our usual ‘catch-up and take a moment to be with one another’ chat?” I lean back slightly to examine him more, as if I’m trying to solve a riddle. Then I notice Stone and Briggs standing by the window, pretending that they’re not observing. It seems Briggs won the battle of who gets to hold the niece.
Vaughn grabs my attention when he breaks my daze with a kiss to draw me back to him. A long kiss, and I can feel his hand rummaging around our middle, as if he is adjusting his coat.
Our lips part, but I just want to dive in for another kiss. Yet I can’t because his eyes have locked with mine.
“I’m giving us a few options for when you’re ready, but I think our slow ship has sailed.” His gaze lowers then pops back up.
It was a sign for me to search, and when I follow the line of his coat zipper down to his hand, I gasp.
A ring.
A big ring.
A ring that signals commitment.
A forever type of ring.
Forever.
We’re not fast, we’re not slow. We’re exactly on track.
Bliss hits me in a swoosh, and I throw my arms around his neck again. “Yes.”
“Uh, I didn’t even ask. It could be a promise ring for all you know.”
“Oh, shut up, you know you want to lock me in for the future.”
His suave grin appears while he begins to grab my finger. “Marry me, Isla. We can wait or not, but just know that I want the longest game there is… with you.”
The moment the ring slips onto my finger, my life changes yet again.
Crap, tears again. Happy tears, yet still tears.
We’re going to need to start that reservoir.
EPILOGUE
VAUGHN
6 MONTHS LATER
The sun is holding out on us, yet the dark clouds to the west should be concerning.
I’m confident Illinois June weather will hold out for us a little longer. Enough time to seal this deal, anyway.
Standing at the end of the aisle in dark jeans and a white linen shirt with the lake behind me, I wait impatiently for the next moments of this day.
I glance to my side and my face still puzzles. Who the hell knew that Briggs would go this far for his sister, that he would be the guy to marry us, since he got ordained somewhere between scoring goals.
“Remember, I’m not retired yet, which means my physical strength may be strong in the event it is ever needed,” Briggs informs me in a low voice so only I can hear, but then he pats my shoulder, and a beaming smile hits him.
My eyes travel to the front row where Hadley is sitting with Connor who winks at me, and Declan and Violet smile as they wait for the big show. My brother gives me a thumbs-up from where he sits at the end of the row.
Isla and I decided that we would do simple. Casual yet elegant were her words. A buffet is waiting for us inside, with a hell of a lot of champagne, cheese, and cobbler.
My instinct has me search the aisle until the end, and there she is.
We acknowledge one another with soft smiles in a perfect image that will be imprinted in my brain and heart. Isla’s in a thin-strapped white gown that looks like a second skin and has a plunging line along her breasts. She’s radiant, especially as one hand holds a small bouquet, and her other arm is carrying our daughter who is in a puffy dress with a headband bow that I didn’t quite agree with.
