Epilogue

EPILOGUE

REED

Six Months Later

“ A re you ready for this?” I ask, brushing a loose strand of black hair out of my face.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” Valerie says, staring out the airplane’s tiny window at a city growing ever smaller as we soar into the clouds.

I sense no fear in her. No regrets or worries about the decisions we’ve made. She’s overflowing with beauty and radiance, ready for our next step. Together.

“Are you ready for this?” she asks with a sly smile.

“God, no,” I admit. “My heart’s thumping in my throat, and I might puke.”

She giggles and wrinkles her nose at my comment.

“Well, you’re a big boy. You’ll get through it.” Valerie takes my hand and runs her thumb over the golden band signifying our marriage. “You’ve trusted me this far. A little more faith won’t hurt you.”

“Faith isn’t the problem.” I lift her hand and brush her knuckles against my lips. “It’s hitting the ground that scares me.”

“We’re bound to hit the ground eventually. Just make sure you don’t do it too hard.” She smiles that smile that knocks the breath out of me.

“When did the roles reverse?” I raise a quizzical brow. “Isn’t it supposed to be me who’s strong, confident, and impossibly handsome?”

A cheeky smirk darts across Valerie’s face. “Well, you are impossibly handsome. The rest, I’m not so sure about.”

“You two, you’re next,” Bill Matherson interrupts us. The sheepish grin on his face says all I need to hear. The prick’s relishing in my fear.

Valerie slaps my thigh and gets up. “I’m so excited,” she squeals gleefully.

And it’s her sheer delight that has me on this plane, letting Bill strap me into a harness and a parachute. But Valerie’s beaming smile and the twinkle of nervous excitement in her eye make it all worth it. Her happiness, no matter how deeply it pains me to attain it, is the only thing that matters.

And Lord knows she likes to make it hurt.

When we’re dressed to jump, Valerie takes my hand in hers. She pulls me into her and presses our lips together in a tender kiss.

“I love you, Reed Murphy,” she whispers.

“And I love you. More than the moon and stars I’ll never see again,” I tease. She chuckles and breaks away from me.

Bill Matherson straps himself to my jumpsuit, and a lady I don’t know the name of does the same to Valerie. We stand beside the plane’s door. With one hard tug, it opens, and torrential air bursts into the cabin.

I take Valerie’s hand again, gripping it tight, as the four of us launch out of the airplane and hurtle toward the Earth.

And as we descend, I can’t hear the gleeful squeals she’s making. But her face shows the pure joy of a kid in a candy store. Her happiness, even in my terror, is all that matters.

Good Lord, I don’t pray nearly as much as I should. But right now, I ought to thank you for all the blessings you bestowed on me.