Phineas looked at her seriously. “Of course. You’re the woman I love, Pearl. I’ll wait forever for you. You’re the only one I want to be with.”
“I’ll try to come home as much as I can.”
“And I’ll visit,” Phineas said before kissing her.
She widened her eyes. “You’ll visit?”
He nodded. “I’ll get a car. It’s about time. I can’t keep relying on Finn to borrow his truck to deliver my peat moss. And seeing my brother making something of himself, I want to do better. I don’t want to be afraid anymore. Besides, if I do deliveries and pickups for Pierre’s bistro, I will need a truck.”
“You’re going to help Pierre?”
Phineas nodded. “I was going to tell you last night over eggplant parm, but our plans quickly changed.”
“I’m so proud of you.”
Phineas touched her face. “I’m proud of you going to school and pursuing your dream. We can make this work. I promise you that.”
Her heart was soaring. “I want that.”
“Good, because I do love you, Pearl. I always have and I always will.”
“I love you too.”
“So, what’s next with your brother?” Pearl asked.
Phineas sighed. “I want to get to know him more, but it’s going to take some time.”
“He’s telling the truth.”
Phineas looked at her questioningly. “Really?”
“Unicorn, remember? I get no bad vibes from him.”
“That’s good to know. And I do know. I spent time with him. I trust him. I’m glad he found me.”
She nodded and sat up. “Well, I think we need to go talk to Finn. I know he was here last night.”
“He was.” Phineas nodded.
“We have to tell him and my mom too. She was already pretty excited when I told her I was going on a date with you.”
Phineas chuckled. “Right, we better. And then what?”
Pearl shrugged. “We have the whole summer to figure it out. Together.”
Phineas dragged her onto his chest, her body heating with need as she stared down at him. The man she’d wanted for so long was hers.
“Together,” he said, showing her with a kiss how much he meant it.
Epilogue
Two years later, Room with a Tomb
Pearl woreher pin proudly as she walked hand in hand with Phineas into the big white tent in the garden of Room with a Tomb. The ghosts were filtering in and out and Mario, thankfully, was wearing his wet clothes.
Everyone was gathered to celebrate Pearl’s convocation, her pinning ceremony as a new nurse, and her new job. The moment she walked in with Phineas at her side, everyone erupted in cheers.
“To the newest nurse in Harmony Glen and the highest marks in her graduating class!” Finn shouted proudly, holding up a glass of champagne, his arm was wrapped around his wife Margaid, who held their little daughter.
