Epilogue

ABEL

I watched her walk down the aisle, and my heart clenched inside my chest. She looked beautiful in a satin sage green dress that showed off her curves. I had to bat away the green-eyed monster that tried to stir to life inside of me. Let them watch her. Let them eat their hearts out. The men in this small town had been idiots. Never making a move on my princess.

But thank fuck for that because Abby was all mine.

Her eyes sparkled when they connected with mine and she winked. I loved when she did that. Gave me little glimpses of the sweet little sassy thing that I was happily coaxing out of her little by little. She stood off to the side.

When the Wedding March began, I lost her gaze. She turned to watch her sister enter the end of the aisle with their dad at her side, and her eyes turned glassy. She was emotional. Her baby sister was getting married. I patted Dan, my best friend, on the back but didn't tear my eyes from my princess.

My girl.

My woman.

We had been official for a couple of months, but I was ready for more. I'd been worried to push her too fast. But who the hell was I kidding? I was ready to make her my wife, and the way she turned to look at me, I had a feeling she was ready for the same thing.

Maybe I'd been an idiot by being patient?

I had already basically moved her into my place.

Before I knew it, Dan and Karol's ceremony went off without a hitch. Dinner had been served, and when I spotted the man I had been looking for, I walked over to him with purpose in every step I took.

"Abel." He grinned. Rodrigo Rivas was a good man. Solid and caring, it was obvious he was respected by his family and had been there for his kids in every way he could be. "You doing okay? You eat?"

"Not yet." My voice cracked, and a sudden bout of nerves struck. I knew from Dan that Rodrigo and his wife had both given him their blessing.

But I was not Dan.

I was older.

But that wasn't going to stop me. I wanted to marry Abby, and I needed her dad's blessing.

"I was hoping we could talk," I blurted and cleared my throat.

"Come on." He tossed an arm over my shoulder and led us to the makeshift bar. "I got a feeling we're going to need a drink for this."

"Sir—" I started to say, but he chuckled.

"Tequila it is." He served us two shots and handed me one. "Okay. What do you want to talk about?"

"Abby." He nodded, and I felt someone walk over to us. Camila Rivas, Abby and Karol's mom, hooked her elbow with mine, and when I looked down at her, I felt myself relax. Abby took after her mom a lot.

"I told you. You owe me fifty!" She hip-bumped him.

"He hasn't asked." Rodrigo chuckled, and I joined him. Breathing a little easier as I relaxed.

"I love your daughter," I started to tell them and continued about why I loved her, how important she was to me, and all the plans I had for the future.

By the time I was done, the older couple simply looked at one another, communicating in a way that only developed through time together. I was about to keep pleading my case when Mr. Rivas reached for his wallet from his back pocket and handed a crisp fifty-dollar bill to his wife.

"You knew I was going to win," she gloated quietly. He shrugged.

"I can't say I'm upset about losing this bet," he murmured then turned his attention to me. "I think you get that Abby is special. She's kind and sweet and was always so…"

"Shy," I guessed. He shook his head.

"No and yes. She's always lived in her head. In her books. I've been watching her with you, the way she's changed. She smiles easily now. She laughs out loud more than when she was a little girl. I guess what I'm trying to say is, we would be more than happy to give you our blessing, son." I nodded then hugged the two of them.

Today was all about Dan and Karol, but come tomorrow, my princess would finally be wearing my ring.

I was nervous.

I opened the front door to our place and watched her walk in and stop mid-step. I didn't have to look at what made her hesitate.

We'd spent the day at the beach. Yep, my girl had actually wanted to go to the beach. We had lounged and read, side by side, while the last bit of the summer sum shined brightly on us. The day had been great. Perfect. After eating lunch on the pier and grabbing a snow cone, we had headed back. Between her parents, Susie, and my future brother-in-law, they had been busy setting up the surprise for me.

"Abel?" she whispered and turned to face me.

"I love you," I said. Her lips wobbled.

"What did you do?"

"Go in and find out." I winked, and she dropped the bag she'd insisted on carrying and followed the trail of rose petals that led from the front door to the backyard.

Battery-operated LED candles flickered all over the place and along the way. Pink balloons floated around us. She stopped at each one and looked at the pictures that floated on their strings and read each and every special note I had written on them.

We might not have been together a long time, but I loved taking pictures of her every day. My camera roll was filled with images of her and the two of us. From quiet moments at home on the couch or cooking dinner together in our kitchen to pictures I'd taken when we had finally been able to take that hike I had originally planned.

There wasn't a moment I felt was too small or simple. Hell, those were my favorite. "Abel." Her glassy gaze met mine, and I walked right to her. She stood at the end of the trail, and I took her hands in mine, stroking the top of them before raising them to my lips.

"Princess, I love you. I love you so much, I have no idea how the hell I'm capable of doing anything else. You make me want to be a better man. You woke something up inside of me." I lifted her hand to rest against my chest. "You made this beat. Really beat."

I dropped our hands but didn't let it go. Instead, I kneeled in front of her after taking a small wooden box from my front pocket.

"Abagail Rivas, baby girl, will you do me the honor of being my wife?"

"Yes!" She nodded, and I stood. Her hand shook as I slipped the ring that fit perfectly on her finger. But she didn't even look at the diamond solitaire. Her eyes were on me and only me. "I love you. I can't believe…" Her voice cracked, and I leaned down to kiss her. Like it usually did, the kiss got out of hand, and when she pulled away, her eyes shined brightly.

Before I knew what happened, my princess pushed us into the pool, and when we popped up from the water, her laughter surrounded me. I couldn't wait to hear that sound for the rest of my life.