Epilogue
CIARAN
Ciaran had just finished washing the dishes when Teddy called for him to join them in the living room.
He walked in, still drying his hands, to find two older men standing with Teddy and Geoff.
One of them had hair that was a mixture of chestnut and white, his beard speckled with white.
The other had salt-and-pepper hair, which matched his beard.
Both men were thickset and had broad smiles.
“This is Bernard and Rory. They had their wedding here a few years ago.” Geoff pointed to each man in turn. “Guys, this is our partner, Ciaran.”
Ciaran held out his hand. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“Nice to meet you,” Rory said with a Scottish accent.
“Hello,” Bernard greeted him.
“It’s so good to be back here,” Rory told them. “We would have come in the spring, but we decided to take a trip to Scotland to visit my dad and his husband.”
“Your dad’s gay?” Ciaran asked.
“He’s bi,” Rory said. “I found out twenty years ago. He never mentioned it. Now he’s living happily with his husband, Angus. They’re a wonderful couple.”
Ciaran wanted to ask about Rory’s mom, but thought it would be a touchy subject.
“We’re going to head over to our room,” Bernard said. “Then we’re going to head into Thistle for lunch.”
“Nonsense,” Teddy said. “You’re going to have lunch with us.”
“You don’t have to do that,” Bernard said. “Besides, we don’t want to make the other guests jealous.”
“We have one couple and a single bear. I don’t think they’ll notice you’re spending lunch with us, since they’ll probably be in their rooms or down in Thistle for lunch,” Geoff said.
“That’s true,” Rory said. “What do you say, sweetie?”
“Okay. We’ll join you for lunch,” Bernard agreed.
“Great,” Teddy said. “We’ll see you at eleven-thirty.”
They all hugged, and the men headed to their room.
“You don’t usually invite guests,” Ciaran said. “Bernard and Rory must be special.” He waggled his eyebrows at them.
“Good God, you’re the worst,” Geoff laughed. “We don’t have sex with Bernard and Rory.”
“Have you?” Ciaran smiled.
“No,” Teddy replied. “We never had sex with guests.”
“You did with me,” Ciaran corrected him.
“At the time, you were not a guest of the bed-and-breakfast; you were staying with us,” Teddy reminded him.
“Still.” Ciaran grinned.
“All jokes aside,” Geoff said. “Bernard and Rory are in a monogamous relationship and don’t sleep around. We’ve had lunch with them before and discussed our lives.”
“We also learned Rory came out at thirty-five, and Bernard is the only man he’s been with,” Teddy said.
“Seriously?” Ciaran’s mouth gaped.
“Yup,” Teddy said.
“That’s wild.”
“Now.” Geoff clasped his hands. “We have work to do. We have some guests coming in this afternoon, so I’m going to get their rooms ready.”
“I’ll work on the websites for Trudy’s Diner. I can’t believe it took this long for her to decide to make a website.”
“I bet her daughter is behind that,” Teddy laughed. “I’m going to check the reservation registry for any special requests.”
They all hugged and kissed before going their separate ways.
Geoff, Teddy, Ciaran, Bernard, and Rory all sat around the table, plates empty, and bellies full.
“That was fantastic as always, Teddy,” Rory agreed.
“Thank you.”
“So, tell us how you guys became a throuple,” Bernard inquired.
“It’s an interesting story, to say the least,” Geoff started.
The three men entertained Bernard and Rory with the tale of how they ended up together. The avalanche, the snowstorm, and being stuck together for more than a week. They left out some of the more intimate details, though.
“That is so sweet,” Bernard sighed.
“What about you two?” Ciaran asked.
Bernard and Rory gave each other sweet smiles.
“We actually met in middle school,” Bernard said.
“But it took us over twenty years to actually date.”
“Teddy and Geoff told me you came out at thirty-five, Rory.”
“I did,” Rory said. “There was a lot at home preventing me from being who I was. I think I’d always known I didn’t like girls, but I couldn’t explain why…
” he paused. “Then, when I reunited with Bernard, long-buried feelings came flooding back. I decided to explore them and realized I was in love with him.”
The two men kissed. “I’ll never forget the night you expressed how you felt.” Bernard smiled.
“No, I don’t want to talk about that night. I was a mess.”
“You were an adorable mess,” Bernard reassured him.
“What happened?” Ciaran asked.
“He came to my house, crying and panicking, thinking he’d never be able to be with me because he waited too long. Then, I held him and we kissed.”
“That’s so sweet,” Ciaran said. “Two men finding love in their thirties.”
“So did you,” Teddy reminded him. “You met us in your thirties.”
“True,” Ciaran said. “But theirs is sweeter because they were childhood friends.”
They all laughed.
Ciaran had a life here. He didn’t miss California, and he was closer to home if he wanted to take a weekend to visit his family. Nothing could have prepared him for the love and happiness he’d found in the snow-covered mountains of Washington.