Epilogue #2
“Mom,” Ashley laughs, “they know how to spell.”
“Yeah, Grandma,” a few of them chime in.
I set my cornbread down and let the noise settle then smile sweetly. “You really want to know the reason I stayed married to Hess? It was Bart’s steaks.”
“Finally, some appreciation.” Hess’s dad puffs up with pride like a turkey.
“Bart’s over-seasoned steaks,” Anita mutters.
“Over-seasoned! Did you hear the girl? My use of garlic salt single-handedly saved Hess’s future.”
“So, are you two planning to have another wedding ceremony?” Ashley asks as she takes her seat. “Maybe a reception this time? Something we can all actually come to?”
I glance at Hess next to me, and without even thinking, we both shake our heads. “No, one ceremony was good enough for us. We don’t need to do it again.”
“Shame,” his mom says, piling green beans onto Hess’s plate like he’s still a boy. “I don’t even have a wedding picture of you two.”
“Oh, we have a few pictures,” Hess says with a grin. “My best man, Sam, took them.”
Anita looks like she might cry. “One of your brothers should’ve been your best man.”
“No wedding sounds good to me,” his dad adds. “I don’t like wearing a suit.”
“You only have a blue one, and blue makes you look washed out,” she says.
Bart sits up taller. “I thought you couldn’t wash suits.”
“Not wash,” Anita fires back like she’s annoyed. “Washed out. Like pale.”
He shrugs his shoulders as if he doesn’t care and takes another bite of potatoes.
I soak it all in—the noise, the teasing, the warmth.
This isn’t the kind of family I was born into. But sitting here, passing dishes and jokes around the table, I realize it’s the kind of family I always wanted.
The kind of family I want to have.
Hess squeezes my hand under the table, his thumb brushing lightly across my knuckles, and I don’t even try to hide the smile that spreads across my face.
Because in the middle of all this beautiful chaos, I know I don’t just belong here.
I’ve found another safe place to call home.
We’re all crowded around Juliet’s kitchen table, voices blending together as we sing the birthday song to Emma. The candles glow bright against the chocolate frosting, her face lit up in warm flickers.
Juliet leans in, clapping enthusiastically. “Make a wish!”
Emma’s gaze flicks—just for a heartbeat—toward Vinny. She closes her eyes, sucks in a breath, and blows them all out in one smooth go. Everyone cheers, and Juliet immediately starts cutting slices of cake while Vinny opens the carton of ice cream, spooning scoops like he works at Ben and Jerry’s.
The front door bangs open. Blair breezes in like a chaotic mess. “I’m so sorry I’m late! Work was insane. Did I miss the candles?” She wraps Emma in a quick hug. “Happy birthday!”
She pulls back, and Emma gasps. “Blair, what happened to your lip?”
We all look closer. The corner of her mouth is swollen, a fresh cut splitting the skin. Blair’s fingers fly up, brushing it casually. “Oh, this? Nothing. Some idiot at work was carrying a box, turned too quickly, and elbowed me in the mouth. Total accident.”
“Blair,” Carly says sharply, grabbing her arm. “Are you dating someone who’s hitting you?”
Juliet covers her own mouth with her hand. “Oh, no, Blair.”
“What? No!” Blair scoffs, pulling back with a toss of her short black hair.
“You guys. Please. You think I’d let anyone get away with that?
I can handle myself. Trust me.” She flashes that defiant grin of hers, the kind that dares anyone to question her strength.
“If a man ever touched me, I’d kill him. ”
And I believe her—maybe too much. Blair is not the type of woman anyone pushes around.
Everyone scatters to the family room, except Emma and me. Vinny slides a plate of cake in front of her, the frosting piled high, a neat scoop of ice cream melting at the side.
“Happy birthday, Emma.” His eyes are soft, smiling at her in that way that feels just a little too warm.
Emma’s breath catches, though she tries to cover it with a quick thank you before he joins Juliet on the couch.
I lean closer, dropping my voice so only she can hear. “Emma. I can’t watch this anymore. I know you’re in love with Vinny.”
Her cheeks flush pink instantly. “What? No. Camila, don’t. He’s engaged to Juliet. I can’t believe you’d even say that.”
“So you’re not going to admit it to me?”
“No!” She shakes her head furiously, lowering her voice until it’s barely a whisper. “Juliet is one of my best friends, and I’m her maid of honor. I would never do that to her.” She shakes her head again and walks away, signaling that this conversation is over.
I frown, guilt prickling at my chest. Emma is too sweet, too kindhearted, to be tangled up in something this painful.
Hess finds me, pressing a plate of cake into my hands. He kisses my cheek, soft and sure, and I can’t help smiling up at him.
Looking around the room at Blair and Emma, I feel a quiet relief settle over me. I’m not single anymore. I’m not searching, aching, wondering. I found him. My perfect guy.
Harvey stretches out like he owns the bed, his warm body pressed up against my hip as I flip through the stack of real estate contracts on my lap. His head is heavy against my leg, soft snores puffing in and out. I absently scratch behind his ear while I study a zoning clause.
Hess steps out from the bathroom. “Well, look at you, Harvey. In my spot again. I swear that dog thinks he’s your husband, not me.”
“He does love me.” I smile. “Probably more than he loves you.”
“Real comfortable, huh, buddy?”
Harvey’s tail thumps against the comforter, but he doesn’t move an inch. Hess nudges him gently, and the poor dog heaves a dramatic sigh, like his heart is broken, before slinking down to the foot of the bed.
“Oh, poor Harvey.” I frown, looking down at him on the floor.
“I’m reclaiming what’s mine. You. And the best side of the bed.
” He pulls his shirt over his head, and my gaze betrays me, lingering on the curve of his shoulders, the strong lines of his chest. Suddenly, my work contracts feel like the most boring thing in the world. I set them aside on the nightstand.
The lamp clicks off, and the room glows with soft silver light from the moon slipping through the window. The mattress dips as Hess climbs in, then he’s over me, his weight warm, his presence filling every space.
“Have I ever told you how beautiful I think you are?” He brushes a stray strand of curls from my face, his thumb lingering at my temple.
I smile up at him. “You tell me every day.”
“You took my breath away at the Waffle House all those years ago and again on the airplane when you fainted in my lap. You’re the best inconvenient thing that’s ever happened to me.”
“I hope I’m not inconvenient anymore.”
“Nope, you’re everything to me, and I love you, Camila.”
My chest tightens, but in the best way. I reach up, cupping his cheek. “I love you too.”
And then Hess kisses me, slow and deep, the kind of kiss that feels like the happiness of forever. The kind that tells me this life we’re building is the ending I never knew I wanted or needed.
The seemingly unattainable fairy-tale ending we all hope for.
The End