Epilogue

EPILOGUE

EASTON

The Grand Dining Room buzzed with excitement, a symphony of clinking cutlery and animated chatter. I couldn’t help but smile as I watched my parents’ excitement, taking in the opulent surroundings of our first family cruise.

“Oh, Easton, honey, isn’t this just marvelous?” Mom gushed, gesturing with her fork. “I’ve never seen so many options for breakfast! Did you try the made-to-order omelets?”

I nodded, adjusting my glasses. “They’re great, Mom. I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself.”

Weston leaned in close, his breath tickling my ear. “Your parents are adorable,” he whispered. I felt warmth spread across my cheeks. Even after all this time, his proximity still had that effect on me. I cleared my throat, trying to focus on the conversation at hand.

Dad chimed in; his enthusiasm palpable. “And the activities! Did you see they have a rock-climbing wall? Maybe you could give that a go, Weston. Show off those firefighter muscles of yours.”

Weston laughed; a sound that never failed to make my heart skip a beat. “Maybe later, Mr. Beckett. I hear there’s a pretty impressive gym on board too.”

“Speaking of activities,” Mom interjected, her eyes twinkling, “your father and I signed up for a ballroom dancing class this morning. Can you believe it?”

I raised an eyebrow, amused. “Really, Dad? I didn’t know you had it in you.”

Dad puffed out his chest, a mischievous grin spreading across his face. “Oh, you just wait and see, son. I’ll be sweeping your mother off her feet in no time.”

Mom rolled her eyes good-naturedly. “Just try not to step on my toes while you’re sweeping, dear. I’d like to enjoy the rest of the cruise without limping.”

As they bantered back and forth, I felt a surge of affection for my family. I glanced at Weston, who was watching the exchange with a fond smile. It struck me then, how seamlessly he fit into our dynamic, how natural it felt to have him here with us.

“What are you thinking about?” he asked softly, catching my gaze.

I shook my head, feeling suddenly shy. “Just... how happy I am, I guess. How perfect this all is.”

His hand found mine under the table, giving it a gentle squeeze. “Me too, East. Me too.”

As my parents continued to chat excitedly about their upcoming dance class, I let myself bask in the warmth of the moment. The cruise ship, the breakfast, the company—it all felt like a dream come true. And as I looked at Weston, his blue eyes twinkling with joy, I realized that sometimes, love stories do come true after all.

When we’d finished eating, I felt a gentle nudge from Weston, his voice low and warm. “What do you say we hit the pool? Seems like a perfect morning for it.”

I nodded, a smile tugging at my lips. “Sounds great. We could use some sun.”

We stood, and I turned to my parents. “Have fun at your class, guys. Try not to outshine everyone else on the dance floor.”

Mom laughed, pulling me into a quick hug. “We’ll try our best. You boys have fun too.”

“Ready to go change?” Weston’s voice broke through my thoughts as they walked away, arm in arm.

“Yeah, let’s go.”

Back in our cabin, I rifled through my suitcase, pulling out my navy swim trunks. Weston was already changing, and I couldn’t help but steal a glance at him. The compass tattoo over his heart caught my eye, the red E and W standing out against his flawless skin. Sometimes I needed to pinch myself to make sure this was all real and that he really was mine.

As we made our way to the pool, the excitement of vacation thrummed through me. The ship’s corridors were alive with laughter and chatter, festive holiday decorations in every corner, the smell of saltwater growing stronger as we neared the deck.

“I can’t believe we’re finally on a cruise again,” I said.

He slung an arm around my shoulders, pulling me close. “Believe it, babe. We’ve got a whole week of this ahead of us.”

The moment we reached the pool, Weston’s eyes lit up with boyish excitement. “Last one in is a rotten egg!”

I shook my head, smiling. “You go ahead,” I said, settling into a nearby lounge chair. “I’ll just read for a bit.”

He shrugged, then walked over to the pool and executed a perfect dive into the sparkling blue water. I pulled out my book, determined to lose myself in its pages, but found my gaze constantly drawn back to the pool instead.

As Weston cut through the water with powerful strokes, memories of the past two years flooded my mind. I thought of the day we moved into our little fixer-upper, Weston insisting on carrying me over the threshold “for practice.” The time we brought home our rescue puppy, Cassie, and how Weston had fallen asleep on the floor next to her crate, so she wouldn’t be alone on her first night. The proud smile on his face when he told me about his promotion to Fire Chief and my move up to Library Administrator.

“Life has definitely been good to us,” I murmured, watching him effortlessly glide through the water.

My book lay forgotten in my lap as I lost myself in thoughts of Weston. How could I focus on fictional characters when the most captivating story was right in front of me? Our story. A tale of friendship, love, and passion.

I couldn’t tear my eyes away as he swam. His strong arms propelled him through the water with effortless grace, muscles rippling beneath his smooth skin. As he reached the pool’s edge and pulled himself up, droplets clung to his sculpted chest, drawing my attention to the compass tattoo over his heart. The E and W in red ink seemed to pulse with each breath he took.

“Like what you see, East?” Weston called out, a playful grin spreading across his face as he sauntered towards me.

I felt my cheeks flush, caught in my blatant staring. “I was just... admiring the water,” I lied, fumbling with my book.

“Oh really?” His eyes sparkled with mischief. Before I could react, he shook his head vigorously, sending a spray of cool water cascading over me.

“West!” I yelped, jumping up from my lounge chair. “You’re worse than Cassie after a bath!”

He laughed, the sound warming me more than the sun ever could. “I couldn’t help it. You looked so… hot sitting over here, I thought maybe I should cool you off.”

I tried to glare at him, but I couldn’t help the smile tugging at my lips. “I was perfectly dry and happy right here with my book, thank you very much.”

“Didn’t look to me like you were doing much reading.” he teased. He lowered his voice as he leaned down over me, water dripping off him and onto my chest. “Looked like you were thinking some pretty good thoughts. Would they by any chance have to do with me?”

“Mmm. Maybe.” My pulse began to race as the tip of his tongue peeked out, swiping over the silver ring in his lip.

His eyes gleamed as he leaned in closer, his hands gripping the sides of my lounge chair. “Maybe, huh? I think I can do better than maybe.”

He closed the distance between us, capturing my lips in a kiss that tasted of chlorine and sunscreen. I melted into it, forgetting about how wet he was getting me and the busy pool deck around us. My fingers found their way to his damp hair, pulling him closer.

When we finally broke apart, both a little breathless, Weston gave me that heart-stopping grin of his. “How’s that for maybe?”

I laughed, pushing at his chest playfully. “Okay, okay. You win. I was definitely thinking about you.”

“I knew it,” he said triumphantly, settling onto the edge of my chair.

I rolled my eyes, but couldn’t suppress my laugh. “You’re incorrigible, you know that?”

“Mmm, big words,” he teased, leaning in closer. “You know what they do to me.” He kissed me again, and my toes literally curled.

As we parted, breathless and grinning, a voice startled us. “Oh, you two are just adorable!”

We turned to see a woman in her sixties smiling at us from a nearby lounge chair. Her eyes crinkled warmly as she continued, “I hope you don’t mind me saying, but it’s so refreshing to see a couple so in love. How long have you been together?”

I felt a flush creeping up my neck, torn between embarrassment at being caught and pride at being recognized as a couple. Weston, ever the social butterfly, beamed at the woman.

“Thank you, ma’am,” he said, giving my hand a gentle squeeze. “We’ve known each other since kindergarten, but we’ve been a couple for two amazing years now.”

The woman’s eyes widened. “Childhood sweethearts! How wonderful. I can see the bond between you, it’s really something special.”

Weston’s eyes lit up, a familiar sparkle dancing in their sea-blue depths. “Oh, it’s quite a story,” he said, leaning forward conspiratorially. “Would you like to hear it?”

The woman nodded eagerly, settling back in her chair. I felt a mix of curiosity and affection wash over me as he launched into our tale.

“We’ve been best friends since we were kids, but it took us a while to figure out we were meant to be more,” he began, his voice warm with nostalgia. “East here, he’s always been the shy bookish type. Me? I was the jock who couldn’t sit still. But somehow, we just clicked.”

I listened, mesmerized, as he wove our story. He spoke of lazy summer days spent reading under our favorite oak tree, of me cheering him on at every game, of late-night study sessions that turned into deep conversations about life and dreams.

“And then, two years ago,” he continued, his eyes meeting mine, “I finally got the courage to tell him how I felt. Turns out, he’d been in love with me for years too.”

I smiled softly at him, my heart so full of love it felt like it might burst. The gold band on my finger caught the sunlight, and I absently twisted it, feeling its weight and warmth, remembering the day he’d put it on me, promising to love and cherish me forever.

“Life isn’t always easy,” he continued, “but every day with East is an adventure. He’s my rock, my soul mate, my home.”

I swallowed hard, overcome by the sincerity in his voice. This wasn’t just a story for our audience anymore. This was us—our friendship, our love, laid bare in the Caribbean sun.

As Weston finished, I realized with a start that none of it was pretend anymore, every word had been true. We’d found our happily ever after in each other and created our own epic love story. And I couldn’t wait to see what the next chapters had in store for us.

THE END