Epilogue

I LOVE YOU, ALEX & SIERRA

One and a half years later

Cara

“You look stunning,” I say to Allie who is currently standing in front of me wearing her royalty-worthy wedding gown. We have dreamed about our weddings since we were little and for the past year, we’ve been planning this like our life depended on it. She gets to marry her best friend today and I don’t know two more deserving people.

“Thank you, babe. I feel like a princess,” she beams, smiling at me as she touches the top part of her dress.

“You are a fucking queen. Feel it!” I tell her, giving her a hug and being careful not to smear her makeup everywhere. Allie is an emotional babe and today won’t be the day she stops crying about everything. Neither will I.

“Alright, I’ll see you out there,” I add, kissing her cheek and holding her hands in mine.

“I’ll be the one walking down the aisle,” she sniffles, her eyes glossy with emotion.

“I’ll be the one sitting next to the hottest man I’ve ever seen, waiting for her best friends to finally seal the deal.”

“Please stop calling my brother hot, Cara.”

“You’d think you’d be used to it by now.”

“I don’t think I’ll ever be used to it,” Allie adds. “Maybe next year when you officially become my sister.”

Manny and I got engaged last week after he surprised me at school with a flash mob. A freaking flash mob. This adorable puppy-in-human-form pulled it off, and it was the most precious thing I’ve ever seen in my life.

The past year and a half has been… well it has been something. I wish I could say that it was easy but it was really hard work. Not Manny, Manny is so easy to love. What was hard was trying to work through all of our insecurities while trying to build a life together. We moved in together soon after the whole love declaration. Sharing a puppy in two different households was hard, plus Foster really liked my house better, so Manny just moved in. We attended couples therapy soon after because we kept living in fear that at any point we were going to come home and find the other one gone. I had the fear he would leave me for someone else and he had the fear I wasn’t going to take him seriously once he decided to cut his hours at work. As if having less work made him less desirable.

We worked through it and here we are ready, to start the next chapter of our lives together. Well, after we get his sister married, that’s for sure. Allie was really the most supportive person through it all and she said she always knew we would end up together. What she never saw coming—I mean none of us did—was Gus and Nellie ending up together, too. Those two are something else for sure but I’m happy for both of them. They have been through so much and they deserve each other. Even if I wanted to kill Gus half the time for pursuing my little sister.

The wedding venue is beautiful, right by the water with a mix of earthy colors. I sit in one of the outdoor chairs we brought, per Allie’s request, and wait for Manny to take his seat next to me. He’s probably been walking Foster around since we brought him with us this weekend and he will be alone in the hotel room for hours while we celebrate with our friends.

All of our friends are here. Well not all of them, considering Natalie is sitting with baby Vero and Bella and an empty chair with a portrait of Nick next to her. Jake wanted to still pay tribute to his best friend so there’s an empty chair, a beer, and a picture of him on top of it. They went back and forth about it but finally Natalie said that Nick would’ve wanted that way too. I’ve never met anyone stronger than that girl and I just need to keep checking on her through the night. It can’t be easy sitting at a wedding after losing the love of your life less than two years ago but she’s still here supporting her friends.

“What’s going on in that pretty head of yours?” Manny asks as he kisses the top of my head and sits next to me. He holds my hand and traces my pretty ring with his fingertips. Manny picked the perfect ring for me and I also can’t stop looking at it. The band is crafted in white gold and at the center it has a stunning round diamond that mimics the heart of a flower. It’s surrounded by smaller petals formed from clusters of smaller diamonds. It’s delicate and enchanting and perfect.

“Just thinking about how unfair life is sometimes.” When he follows my gaze to Nat, he nods.

“I’m sorry, Carita. I know it hasn’t been easy. Just let me know if I can help in any way. ”

“Always,” I reply.

The music plays, signaling the ceremony is starting, and we all stand up to see Jake walking down the aisle.

Manny

“Tonight was seriously so much fun,” Cara exclaims as we walk through the hotel room door. I have her shoes in one hand and her purse in the other because she said she was a tired girl and couldn’t deal with life. I’m surprised I didn’t have to carry her here judging by how much she danced, cried, and drank all night.

She plops herself onto the bed, pulling herself back with her arms until she reaches the top of the bed. She’s laying down in her beautiful terracotta gown, with that damn slit that drives me crazy over her legs. Barefooted and wild on top of the bed.

I stand there looking at this beautiful girl I still can’t believe is mine. Rosy cheeks, disheveled hair, sweaty body, and tired legs. And mine . I still pinch myself every morning waking up next to her.

The past year and a half has been movie worthy. Living in Baker, as much as I hate to admit, is what I needed—and stepping away from working every day of my life was too. I have two full-time assistants right now and my life has never been better. I let the company run itself and I just oversee the operations. The empire we built is finally working on its own and now we get to enjoy our lives.

“You need help taking that off?” I ask Cara. She brings her hands to her chest seductively, pulling her hair up and away from her face and twisting it into a loose bun. I still don’t know how she manages that without a hair tie, but she’s magic so I don’t question it.

“You first,” she adds with fire in her eyes. There’s not a day that passes where I don’t feel like the most desired man in the world by the way she looks at me. I unbutton my shirt slowly, taking it off and then tossing it to the ground. I climb onto the mattress and crawl to Cara.

She bites her lips as I reach her, pulling the lip from her teeth and kissing her softly. I will never get tired of kissing her either. That’s for sure. I break the kiss, bringing my lips to her ear as I growl, “Turn around.”

She turns around, placing her head sideways on the pillow as I kiss her cheek, her ear, and her neck. I pepper kisses all the way to the middle of her back where her zipper rests. I pull the zipper down slowly, enjoying seeing every inch of her skin revealed to me. The zipper stops right above her ass and when I pull the dress off her body, I see the tiny lace panties she has on. Such a tease. She knows how much I love these and she only wears them when she’s hoping I’ll see them, which is practically every night if she’ll let me.

I climb her body again, peppering kisses over her back. She’s eerily still which is unlike her considering she’s a ticklish wiggle worm. I kiss her neck again and when I go to kiss her cheek, I see her lips slightly parted and notice her breathing is heavier now. She fell asleep . My sweet, sweet girl. The day must have gotten her bad because she’s sound asleep right now. Her body is relaxed across the bed, her hand tucked under her face and her eyes closed peacefully. I love seeing her like this. So at peace with everything that she can just close her eyes and sleep soundly. She danced for so long tonight that I’m not surprised at all.

I get up, finish taking my clothes off and after a cold ass shower, I dry myself up and walk to her. I pick her up gently, moving the blankets and placing her back on the bed. I cover her up and give her a kiss goodnight at the same time that she whispers, “I love you, Manuel Zabana.”

“I love you too, Cara. I love you too.” I hop in the bed next to her, bringing my arm around her and pulling her flush to me. Right where she belongs, next to my heart.

Thank you for reading! I hope you loved The Road Sometimes Taken.