Epilogue

Three Months Later

Kindra

R ain patters outside the window on this dreary October night. I'm busy in the kitchen, trying to carve a pumpkin. Cat thought it would be fun to have a contest and vote for the best one. I think this is just a mess.

But sometimes, a mess is okay. Cat taught me that.

I called her from the hotel that first night back in Miami and apologized profusely. She accepted, and we've gotten even closer since then. We're like oil and water on the surface, but scratching a little deeper showed me we don't have to share a million similarities to become best friends. Now, we're almost as inseparable as me and Ezra.

Speaking of Ezra, he's out on the porch with his creation. He didn't want to work on them side by side because he wanted it to be a surprise. I told him I didn't need more surprises, that he was the best I've ever received, but he just laughed and told me to go inside.

I make the final cut, remove the last piece of pumpkin flesh, and take a step back. It's not great, but I can only hope it looks better once it's lit up.

The front door opens and closes, and Ezra's footsteps draw closer. I spin my monstrous creation so he can't make fun of it yet. There will be plenty of time for that once Bennett arrives.

"Have you finished already?" I ask as he enters the kitchen. "I figured you'd be out there for at least another hour."

He raises an envelope with a puzzled look on his face. "This was in the mailbox. It says it's from Jim."

"Jim? From the retreat?"

He nods and motions for me to follow him into the living room.

We take a seat on the couch, and Ezra pulls the wax seal from the envelope—so extra—and opens it. Inside is a handwritten letter.

"An email wouldn't suffice?" I ask.

Ezra begins unfolding the parchment. "In case the retreat wasn't any indication, Jim is a bit...eccentric."

"Understatement of the year."

As he begins reading the letter to himself, his expression shifts from perplexed to overjoyed.

"What?" I say. "What is it? Did he finally get rid of Chef Maurice?"

Instead of answering me, he places the letter in my hand and gestures for me to read it for myself.

Ezra,

Hey, kid. I've been running the summer retreat for a while now, but I've always wanted to expand to something bigger. After all, folks like us shouldn't be relegated to one vacation a year. What would you think about a winter retreat?

I wouldn't be able to run it, mind you. I'm far too busy with work and the island. But I would be happy to fund it. Jeff decided to go on a spree in Europe, so he isn't available, and between you and me, I wouldn't trust him with something this complex.

Would you be interested in taking this on?

I've already scouted a location in Alaska. If you give me the green light, we can start planning. My full account would be at your disposal. Ideally, I'd like you to host the first retreat this winter. Say, after Christmas?

Let me know how this suits you. If it doesn't, scratch out your name and give it to your brother.

Jim

I hand the letter to Ezra. "What do you think? Is this something you'd want to do?"

He pauses and stares down at the letter. Without answering me, he stands and grips my hand. "Come with me. I need to show you the pumpkin I've carved."

I don't really have a choice in the matter because he yanks me up from the couch and drags me toward the front door like a child who's just said fuck in church. As I step onto the porch, he turns and grips my shoulders.

Why are his hands so shaky?

"Kindra, when I first met you, I had no idea how you would capture my heart. Your looks ensnared me, but your wit and intelligence bound me to you for eternity. My heart is yours."

He steps to the side, and I see his pumpkin. It sits on a small table. The top has been cut away, and a hand sticks from the opening. Whoever created this fake appendage has a real eye for detail because it looks incredibly realistic. They even took the time to chip some of the nails and add a really convincing yellowish glaze to the skin. And is that bruising?

Ezra pulls the hand—complete with attached arm—from the pumpkin and turns it over. Attached to the palm is a small velvet box.

"Is that the fucking hand from the beach ?" I screech as realization dawns on me.

Ezra winces. "I wanted to use that one, but the gulls had already destroyed it by the time I went back for it. I had Jim go into the ravine and cut the arm from that woman who attacked me. He shipped it to me, and I've been storing it in the freezer at mine."

I should be disgusted. I should be so repulsed that I throw this rotting arm at him and tell him to fuck right off.

But I'm neither disgusted nor repulsed. I am a woman in love. Ezra has given me the perfect proposal. All he has to do is ask the question.

He plucks the ring box from the decaying palm and opens it. "I needed to show you this first because if I take on this winter retreat, you'll have to be part of it too. The time for making decisions on my own has passed. Now I want to make every decision together. Starting with this one. Kindra, will you marry me?"

I stare down at the ring. Though Ezra has plenty of money, he's chosen a simple diamond on a simple white-gold band. It's simply me.

Unable to form the word, I nod my head.

He pulls the ring from the box and slides it over my finger, then kisses my hands. "You have made me the happiest man. Now, what do we do about this winter retreat, Mrs. Carter?"

His arms wrap around me as he pulls me in for a kiss. We lose ourselves in each other, and his length hardens and presses against my stomach.

"How much time do we have before everyone gets here?" I ask.

A car door shuts in the driveway, and Ezra groans. "Not enough, I'm afraid."

Bennett charges up the steps and stops in his tracks when he sees us wrapped in each other's arms. "Aw, for fuck's sake, do you two ever stop? You'll put New York into a condom shortage at this rate."

"Where's your pumpkin?" I ask.

He scoffs. "I'm not carving a shitty pumpkin. That's kid stuff."

Ezra looks behind Bennett and studies his car before turning to him. "Where's Cat? Wasn't she supposed to arrive with you?"

"She wanted to ride with Maverick ." He uses a whiny baby voice when he says their friend's name. "The girl is barking up the wrong tree with that one. She's not his type."

"Is someone a little jealous?" I ask.

That earns a laugh from Ezra and a scowl from Bennett.

"Whose shit-ass pumpkin is that?" Bennett points to Ezra's pumpkin. "And why is an arm on the ground?"

I look at Ezra, and he gives me a slight nod, so I push my hand toward Bennett.

"Ezra just proposed," I say.

"And she said yes," Ezra adds. "Well, she nodded yes."

Bennett takes a deep breath, and I'm not sure if he's going to turn and leave or explode right here. Then he steps toward me and puts his hands on my shoulders.

"Welcome to the family." He smiles and pulls me in for an awkward hug, though I can feel the sincerity in it.

"Don't touch him!" Cat screams from the car window as she and Maverick pull into the driveway. "You'll get rabies!"

Bennett mumbles something under his breath and swipes his hand down his face. "I was hoping to give you guys some news before the blond squad arrived, but I guess I'll just have to tell everyone."

"We have some news too," Ezra says, then glances at me. "Or we might. I'm not sure yet."

"Don't tell me she's fucking pregnant," Bennett says.

Cat rushes up the stairs. "Kindra's pregnant? What?"

"Congrats, man!" Maverick pushes past Bennett to get to Ezra. He pulls him in for a hug. "If Bennett doesn't want anything to do with it, can I be the godfather?"

Cat grips my hands and starts jumping up and down. "And I can be the godmother! This will be so much fun!"

"Stop!" I shout, and everyone freezes. "Jesus fucking Christ, I'm not pregnant. Ezra and I are engaged, and Jim offered to let Ezra run a winter retreat in Alaska. That's it. That's all the news."

"You're engaged?" Cat shrieks, and there go my eardrums.

I hold up my ring, and she fingers it like it's the Hope Diamond. I'll never stop being amazed by the way my successes become her successes. Friendship is pretty badass, not gonna lie.

"Wait, go back a step," Bennett says. "A retreat in Alaska? I hate snow."

Ezra holds out his hands. "Nothing is set in stone as of yet, but Jim approached me with it, and I'm waiting for Kindra's input before I decide."

"I say we do it."

All heads turn toward me.

"Think about it," I say. "We all met because of the summer retreat. We made some really good memories. Imagine if we could do that more than once a year. We could get the entire gang back together."

"So you're on board?" Ezra asks, his eyes wide with excitement.

I nod, and his smile nearly splits his face.

"I won't be going," Bennett says. "You all can freeze to death in Alaska this winter. I'll be on a cruise somewhere warm."

"This winter retreat just sounds better by the second," Cat says with a dreamy look in her eyes.

Eyes that are firmly set on Maverick.

"I used to snowboard when I was younger," Maverick says. "Any chance we'd have a little slope action?"

Ezra laughs. "With Jim's budget, I'm sure we can make that happen."

"What about a ride on a horse-drawn sleigh?" Cat jumps up and down. "That would be so romantic!"

"We'll consult you all when we're ready to start planning," I say, "but that may be a ways off yet. Right now, let's get inside. It's getting chilly."

We all head into the house. While everyone settles themselves in the living room, I prepare a tray of apple cider spiked with rum. Ezra and I have learned that alcohol makes the Cat-Bennett dynamic a little more tolerable, though only slightly.

I return to the living room. As we sip cider and talk, the pumpkin contest is quickly forgotten when Bennett drops a bombshell.

"I think I found a sibling," Bennett says, and we all fall silent. Cat doesn't even have a snide remark. "Daddy Dearest tried to keep a clean trail, but he left a little evidence behind. So far, I only know of one more Carter sibling out there somewhere. No clue if it's a sister or a brother, but they're in the States."

Ezra lowers his mug to the table. "We always knew there were more of us. Father loves women."

"Right," Bennett says, "but we didn't know we had one so close to home. The child was born to a woman named Margaret somewhere in Texas, but I don't have more than that. It could have been last year or forty years ago."

I turn to Bennett. "How do you even know what you know?"

"My mother," he says, though it seems to pain him to speak those two words.

Ezra squeezes my hand in silent communication. Say no more , this touch says.

"Why don't we get to the pumpkins?" I stand and smooth the front of my pants. "Ezra, set yours up in the kitchen beside mine. Cat, you and Maverick do the same."

Bennett excuses himself to the bathroom while the four of us busy ourselves in the kitchen. Cat carved a hissing cat into her pumpkin. It's pretty good, but I don't think it stands a chance against Maverick's. The man is an artist. He etched a detailed Ghostface into the orange flesh, and when we cut out the lights, it gets even better. He's hidden a bloody knife within the lighter areas, but it's invisible until the candlelight shines through.

Ezra plops his pumpkin next to Maverick's and we share a good belly laugh. It's kind of sad looking when you don't know the story behind it.

Bennett enters the kitchen as I prepare to spin my pumpkin around. It's only fitting that he's here. He's part of this.

I didn't carve something scary. It also isn't very artistic. But it's from my heart, and for the Heartbreak Killer, that's saying something. For nearly an hour, I scratched and scrawled our story into this pumpkin, with a stick figure to represent each of us.

There's Cat, with her big tits and perfect hair, as she struts on the beach. Bennett stands beside her with a flail in his hand and a scowl on his face. I thought about adding a pineapple, but I didn't in the end.

Stick figure Ezra clings to a rope with a smile on his face and a meat hook in his hand. Those metal hooks don't bother me anymore. Ezra made the right decision, and I know that now.

"You put me on there too," Maverick says. "I feel so honored."

Yes, he's there too. Our story wouldn't have had a happy ending without him. His little stick figure holds a phone. The truth set us free.

"But what is your stick figure holding?" Ezra asks me. "What's that in your hand?"

"It's my heart," I say.

Bennett groans. "Fuck, here we go," he mutters.

I won't let him deter me from what I need to say. Feelings are hard for some people. I should know. They were once impossible for me.

"This trip gave me so much. A best friend. The love of my life. Some really good banter. And answers." I look at each of the faces in my kitchen. This wouldn't have been remotely possible before the trip, and now I don't know how I would live without each of them. Even Bennett. "Thank you all for showing me that it's okay to open up a bit."

"Aw, come here, you!" Cat pulls me in for a hug, and I let her. I let them all as I'm surrounded by smiling faces and warm embraces—sans Bennett. Affection isn't his thing.

I get it.

"If this concludes our business, I think it's time for me to get the fuck out of here," Bennett says. "I've got a sibling to find."

Maverick looks at his watch. "And I have a plane to catch. You'll send the details for the winter retreat, right?"

Ezra puts his arm around the younger man's shoulders. "You'll be the first to know, since Bennett won't be joining us."

"I'll be there too," Cat says. "Maybe I can finally get my first kill."

As Ezra and I walk everyone to the door, it almost feels like the last page of a really good book. In reality, our story is still being written.

And I can't wait to see what happens next.