Epilogue

Three Weeks Later

N ate waved goodbye to Tia at the front desk of the Destiny Police Department and jogged out of the building to his truck. He couldn't wait to see Bailey and the boys. The last few weeks had been crazy busy since he'd decided to accept Chief Dolman's offer to get his job back. It wasn't an easy process. There were tests to take, evaluations to go through, and enough paperwork to make his head swim.

He punched in the code to get onto the Thompson Family Farms and drove past the store. After everything that happened, Bailey chose to close the farm to the public for the time being. Not only did she not have enough help to run the store, but she was worried there'd be too much interest from the public when it came to the barn and the murder of Sophia Tinsley.

While he hated to see her give it up, he agreed completely that it was the wisest course of action for now. Thankfully, once the news had run the story, things calmed down a little, and people had mostly left Bailey alone.

He found her and the boys at the goat pen. Jordan and Seth were standing on one of the fence rails and feeding the goats pieces of lettuce and carrots. Bailey was watching from nearby with Minnie.

Bailey turned and flashed him a brilliant smile. Her beautiful dark blonde hair flowed around her shoulders, and those gray-blue eyes sparkled. Man, this was seriously his favorite part of the day.

He'd barely stepped out of his truck when both boys ran over to give him a hug. Jordan lifted a large lettuce leaf. "Do you wanna feed the goats, too?"

"Maybe in a few minutes, buddy. I'm going to talk to your mom first, okay?"

"Okay!" With that, the boys got back to sharing their produce with the goats.

Minnie tried to run toward him, her whole body wriggling with excitement. As soon as Bailey let the leash go, the dog flew into Nate's legs with a happy whine. He laughed as he petted her and picked up her leash.

Finally, he strode to where Bailey was waiting and pulled her into his arms before kissing her thoroughly. When he ended the kiss, he placed another right on that cute little dimple of hers. "I'm really glad to see you," he said, his voice just above a whisper.

"I'm glad to see you, too." She stood on her tiptoes for another kiss. "How was your day?" Her brows furrowed in concern.

He kissed her there and then laced his fingers with hers. "It was rough, but I'm glad I went."

Paris had invited him to make the trip back to Austin to return Sophia's watch to her father. It'd taken a while to get it released from evidence. The fire department was able to put the fire out before the entire old barn went up in flames, but it was several days before anyone could get in to investigate further.

The police finally went in through the side wall and found the remains of Sophia right where Rachel said they would be. Once everything was finalized with the case, the remains would be returned to Mr. Tinsley.

"He broke down when he saw the watch, but I think we were finally able to give him some closure. He'll finally be able to lay his daughter to rest. I'm just praying he'll find some peace now."

"I've been praying for him, too."

Nate raised her hand and kissed her thumb. "How about a walk by the sunflowers? They'll only be around for another week or two, right?"

"If that." She turned and addressed the boys. "Come on, guys. Let's go for a walk. Then we'll go home and eat dinner."

The boys found sticks and ran a little ahead of the adults, dragging the sticks behind them to make trails in the dirt. Nate let Minnie off her leash so she could trot along with them. It only took a few minutes to reach the sunflower field. The sun was dropping low in the sky, and the golden light painted an amazing picture behind the sea of flowers.

While the boys played, Nate stood behind Bailey and curled an arm around her waist.

"I think I've made a decision about this place." Bailey glanced back at him.

"Oh?" Nate knew she'd been struggling with whether she wanted to continue living on the farm or if selling it might be the better option. He'd told her he supported whatever she wanted to do, and he still felt that way.

"I'd like to keep about ten acres of it and sell the rest. I really love it out here, and I like the idea of having some land so we can keep the goats, have a big garden, or do anything else we want to do. But the farm and everything else is a lot." She leaned back against his chest.

"I think that sounds like a great plan. Are you thinking about having a new house built?"

"Maybe. It seems like a big decision to make on my own." She tipped her head back just enough to look at him, and a mischievous smile curled her lips.

They hadn't talked about marriage outright, but they'd both danced around the subject enough to know it was on the horizon.

"I couldn't agree more. Then we'll just have to figure it out together, won't we?" He kissed the tip of her nose.

"I like the sound of that." Her voice sounded wistful.

"So do I." He moved to stand in front of her, reached into his pocket, and pulled out the ring that he'd chosen a week ago. It wasn't huge or fancy, but the moment he saw it, he knew it was made for Bailey. He got down on one knee and held it out in front of him. "Bailey, I realize all of this is still kind of new between us, but I've loved you for as long as I've known you. You're my best friend, and I want to go through life with you by my side." He took in a steadying breath and memorized the way her eyes sparkled and that little smile played at the corners of her mouth. "Will you marry me?"

"Without hesitation. I love you, Nate."

"I love you ." He stood, slipped the ring onto her finger, and pulled her close for a kiss that left them both breathless. "Hey, check it out." Nate gently turned her in his arms so she was facing the sunset behind the field of flowers.

"Absolutely breathtaking."

"Yes, you are." He put his arms around her waist and nuzzled her neck. "No matter which ten acres we choose to keep, we have to have a sunflower field."

"Agreed." She looked down at her left hand. "This ring is perfect."

Seth and Jordan ran over to them with Minnie on their heels, their sticks forgotten.

"I'm starving." Jordan patted his belly.

"Can we go home? I'm ready for some pizza." Seth asked. He looked up at Nate. "Are you eating with us tonight?"

Nate ruffled the boy's hair. "Are you kidding? I wouldn't miss it for the world."

I truly loved the chemistry between Nate and Bailey. One of my favorite tropes is best friends to lovers, and this one was a lot of fun to write. Wasn't Minnie sweet? I must admit, I wouldn't mind having a Rottweiler now. Ha! Thank you for reading In Pursuit of the Truth .