Epilogue #2
When I spotted Mom behind the food trucks, I headed her way. She was talking to one of the vendors and the conversation ended just in time for me to get to her.
“Oh hey, sweetheart,” she said as she turned around. “Everything good with your part?”
I nodded, mouth full of churro. I swallowed, then took a sip of coffee. “At least when I left to eat, yeah.”
“Your man has been such a help.” She smiled in that gentle kind of “you’ve done good” way she sometimes did when she was extra pleased.
I smiled back and felt a buzz of happiness within me.
“I’m so happy for you,” Mom said, then quickly hugged me. “He fits in, just like Mal.”
Strong arms wrapped around me from behind as soon as she let go, and I couldn’t help the pleasant shiver that went through me.
“What are we talking about?” Carter asked, then chuckled as I offered the last bit of the churro over my shoulder to him.
She looked at us and I could see her eyes glistening just a little. “Just that he chose good.”
“Oh.” For once, Carter was a bit speechless.
I patted his hand that rested over my stomach. “I’d say so.”
Someone called Mom away, and she walked a few steps, then stopped to halfway turn around. Before she could speak, Carter said, “I know. I’m keeping an eye on the clock!”
She waved her hand dismissively, laughed, and walked away.
“What are you doing later?” I asked.
“For some reason, Aria wants to hang out with me. So I’m tagging along with her, Demi, and Luke for trunk or treating.”
I blinked at him. “What?”
“Look, Hawkle,” he began. I pinched his side and he laughed, twisting away for a second.
He shook his head and continued. “She’s a toddler, but she looks adorable in her butterfly princess costume and her lip wobbled when she pointed at me when Mike asked her who she was going to trunk or treat with.
It’s not like she knows what any of that means, but it doesn’t matter.
” Carter looked fucking adorable as he rambled about my niece.
“Besides, they have three kids and they’re starting in about half an hour with the other families with smaller children. ”
“Hey, I’m finding all of this incredibly hot for some reason, so there’s no need to explain,” I teased him a little because I could.
“I’ll take a photo. You’ll see,” he vowed, then kissed me and stepped away from me. “See you after everything winds down?”
“Yeah! I’ll head to yours once we’ve washed off the paint. We could leave it for tomorrow, but outside of the crew that’s hanging with their families tonight, we’re taking the morning off. They’re going to do the feeding and whatnot tomorrow.”
Carter’s expression got a bit heated. “So we have a morning in bed?”
“Yeah.” I danced out of his grabby reach and laughed. “Go. Give the babies kisses from me. I’ll see you later.”
He pouted but turned to walk away.
I headed back toward Tommy, ready to move the horses to where we needed them. Wy saw me walk toward the ATV and jogged to catch up with me.
The evening had turned dark, and we were in position to let the horses go.
Dad had been voted for the master of ceremonies for this part, and so Wyanne and I waited to hear the cue from the speakers placed strategically around the main area less than fifty yards away.
Humphrey and Jaina looked gorgeous. I was holding them while Wyanne and Tommy, who had gotten away from his original post and got to help after all, shone the UV lights at the paint to make sure it popped in the dark.
Spooky music began to play, and Wy handed her light to Tommy.
Then she took the leads from me. I gave both horses a treat, and started the walk to the midway point where I would stand to direct them once Wy let them go.
I jogged around the barn in the dark, listening to Dad’s voice tell a tale of two ghost horses we sometimes saw during Halloween night, and how if we were lucky, we might just see them tonight, too.
When he stopped talking, a hush fell over the crowd, and I turned to wait for the horses. The sound of echoing hooves came from the speakers, and there were excited and nervous laughter and cheers from people of all ages.
I could see the lights around them, but turned to watch as the two horses appeared from around the corner of the large barn.
“Come on, you can do this,” I murmured, as they trotted into view of… I don’t even know how many people. There were a lot , though.
I clapped my hands twice, a signal we’d taught them to switch to canter. They did, and two horse skeletons seemed to float in the dark while the audio playing enhanced the spookiness.
I realized I was grinning when I started to run next to the horses for the last bit.
Clicking my tongue, I kept them in pace, and the next twenty seconds or so were pure magic.
As we rounded the corner of the barn again, vanishing from view, I laughed and whooped, and both horses slowed down with me.
I patted them in the dark, giving them treats and love, and soon enough I heard Wyanne’s delighted laugh approaching us.
“Oh my God! My wife video called me during. It looked incredible, Hawk!” She gave me an exuberant hug, then loved on the horses for a moment, before we slid the halters on them and started the walk to my barn.
Two hours later, I was finally ready to head home.
I sat in my truck and sent a message to Carter.
I just thought I’m on my way home.
I put the phone away and started the engine, not caring about his immediate response. I knew that as soon as I got to him, he’d show me exactly how happy he was about those words.