Epilogue

Tully

3 Months Later

The leaves hadn’t even started turning colors yet. The temperature hadn’t come down out of the usual summer range of burning your bare feet on the pavement and hotter than the surface of the sun. Boon still hadn’t finished out his last season of baseball.

But we were having this wedding.

I wasn’t waiting any longer to marry the love of my life.

For the second time.

Our house was currently a concrete slab and a maze of tractor tire tracks in the dusty dirt we’d cleared. I had about a thousand plans for each nook and cranny of this house. Our architect probably thought I was bonkers, but he’d quit arguing with me and gone along with my plans once Joselyn caught wind of everything and pulled some strings. This ol’ house of ours would be featured in the latest Architectural Masterpiece Magazine once it was finished. Guess my guy wanted to be in a magazine because suddenly my idea about a living waterfall wall wasn’t so ridiculous after all.

But all that to say, we had to have the wedding outside Gigi’s house instead. And it was beautiful in its simplicity. Gigi walked Colson down the aisle. Mama walked me down the aisle, then sat next to Gigi. Georgia was our flower girl and Gabi and Joey were our attendants. We kept the ceremony simple. We knew what we meant to each other, and while Colson wanted the whole town to see us get married, it really came down to just the two of us when we said our vows and exchanged rings.

I hadn’t cared where we got married, as long as we came away with rings and a piece of paper rectifying my mistake from nineteen years ago. As everyone ate and drank around me at the six-foot tables set up under the giant oak tree, I held up my left hand and let the spots of color dance around as the string lights hit my giant diamond. Colson and I had gotten me a new engagement ring for our new life together, though my old wedding band was also on my finger. I’d also had to get him a new wedding ring because the old one had turned his finger purple. In fact, Joey had to cut the damn thing off at the fire station just two days after I’d proposed.

“No, Pookey. Over here!” Georgia was trying to lead the beer donkey back to the kitchen where Gigi would probably rearrange his flower crown that had gone crooked and reload the saddlebags with more beer. Em would freak out about the donkey being in Gigi’s house, but then Vivi would giggle and kick her legs seeing the animal and Em would forget why she was mad.

“That ring’s not as pretty as you, wife,” Colson came up behind me and slipped his arm around my waist, pulling me into his body. He nuzzled my neck and I let my eyes close, savoring the moment. I was doing that a lot more these days, just enjoying where I’d ended up in life. “Feels nice to be able to call you wife now and you not correct me by putting ex in front of it.”

“I always liked you calling me wife,” I admitted.

“I know.”

I jammed my finger in his side for being so cocky, but he just held on to me. I snuggled back into his chest.

“It’s funny how getting fired feels like the worst day ever when it’s happening to you, and then in hindsight it’s the greatest gift life could ever give you.”

He hummed and then kissed the top of my head. “I don’t wish our crooked path on anyone else, but I can’t be mad about it since we ended up here. Together.”

Warrick annoyingly tapped his champagne glass with his spoon somewhere behind Colson. “Kiss!” he shouted. The rest of the guests started chanting it too.

Colson had no choice but to spin me around and lay one on me. I pretended to protest, but gave it up quickly when he made my toes curl in my fancy heels. By the time we separated, the crowd had forgotten about us and gone back to eating.

Colson looked over my head. “Well, I’ll be damned.”

I craned my neck to see a familiar brown head of hair marching our way. He had sunglasses on, which was hilarious considering the sun had gone down a few hours ago. Colson muttered something under his breath and stuck his hand out. Boon shook it, then pulled him into a hug before reaching over to hug me as well.

“Hey, Tully. Nice seeing you again.”

I pulled back and took him in. The man had certainly changed from the skinny kid I’d known when I was with Colson years ago. “Dang, Boon! They give you steroids in the majors?”

He grinned and I saw it in action: the swagger that had women lining up in droves to date this man. “No, ma’am. This is all just hard work and a natural gift of testosterone not known to most men. Sorry to say, you chose the wrong Wolfe brother.”

Colson snarled and put his arm around Boon’s neck. The two tussled until Boon held up his hands. “Don’t hurt me, bro! I’m worth several million at least!”

Colson rolled his eyes, but let him go, straightening his white dress shirt. Boon adjusted his sunglasses that had almost gotten knocked off. Colson shook his head at his little brother.

“You missed the wedding, asshole.”

“I came as soon as I could. We’re in playoffs, dude. Coach already gave me shit for leaving. I have to be back by nine tomorrow morning.” Boon shifted and turned his attention on me. “Now that you’re married again, you going to pop out some kids?”

“Dude? What is wrong with you?” Colson smacked Boon in the back of his head.

Boon held up his hands. “What? Are kids off the table?” Boon leaned in closer to me, whispering, “Are you going through the change ?”

Colson stepped between us. “Okay, that’s enough out of you. We don’t want kids and you should know better than to ask a woman that.”

Boon sidestepped him lightning quick and put his arm around my shoulders. “She’s my sister! I can’t ask my sister about her health? Jeez, Colson.”

I slugged him in the gut with my fist. He bent over with a wheeze, letting me go. “As your sister, I guess it’s okay that I respond with fists instead of words?”

Boon looked up at me from his bent-over position, smile brighter than the moon shining overhead. “I always liked you, Tully. Seriously. Welcome to the family. Again.”

I grinned down at him. He was annoying—and more handsome than was good for him—but he was all right. Georgia came out of the house with the donkey in tow. She saw Boon across the lawn and her face lit up. Colson put his hand on my back and moved us away so Boon could go be the fun uncle and spoil the hell out of Georgia.

We mingled long into the night, enjoying time with our friends and family. When we finally couldn’t keep our eyes open, Colson tossed me over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry and headed for his truck. Thank goodness I had a long white dress on. The remaining die-hard guests whistled and hollered.

“Time to take my wife home,” Colson muttered, placing me carefully in the truck and fastening my seat belt. He kissed me, lingering with that look in his eye that told me we wouldn’t be getting any sleep for a little while longer.

I kissed him right back, all too happy we wouldn’t be sleeping. He held my hand the whole way back to the carriage house. We’d outgrown the space, but didn’t want to move anywhere else until our house was built. This way, I could check on Mama and spend time with her easily. Colson still mowed her yard and kept up with the house maintenance for her.

When we got to the house, I jumped out of the truck the second he got it in park. He hollered at me, but I ran, dress held high in my hands so I wouldn’t trip.

“What are you doing?”

I heard him coming up behind me as I knelt down and carefully opened the front door. Tiny paws scraped at the floor right before a fur ball flew into my arms. I stood back up and turned around, the fur ball tucked tightly to my chest. Colson’s jaw dropped, his eyes going wide.

“She’s your wedding present.”

She was an eight-week-old Labrador from the same family line as Hayes. I’d spent weeks tracking down where Colson got Hayes, then tracked his pedigree and found a litter of puppies ready to be born. I’d just about hurt myself keeping the secret until our wedding.

Hayes, who had been introduced to the new puppy earlier today, sat by my side, leaning against my leg. He continued to get slower and slower with each passing day, breaking our hearts slowly at the inevitable, but like the good guy he was, he was patient with the new addition to the family.

Colson put out a big hand, hovering it over the puppy’s head before he allowed himself to give her a gentle pet behind the ears.

“What is this? Where did you get her?” He couldn’t take his eyes off of her and it made all those maternal instincts I didn’t usually pay attention to melt.

“She’s Hayes’s great-great-granddaughter.”

Colson’s gaze whipped up to mine. “Seriously?” When I nodded, his eyes took on a shine that told me just how much he loved the gesture. “What’s her name?”

I shrugged, lifting the puppy and placing her in Colson’s arms. “That’s up to you, husband, but I’m partial to Millie.”

Colson’s gaze came right back to me, eyes no longer just shiny but filled with tears. “I love you so much. Always have.”

I nodded, reaching up to kiss him over the head of our new baby girl. “I love you too. Forever.”

And then we got a puppy tongue joining in on the kiss and we broke apart laughing. Hayes joined us on the floor inside the carriage house where we played with both of our fur babies until it was time to put them to bed and crawl into each other’s arms.