Epilogue
Jolene
“Mama, we’re gonna be late!” I called out impatiently from the entryway.
“I’m comin’, Lee Lee!”
Slow as molasses.
She emerged from her bedroom with my daddy right behind her.
“Daddy, you’re comin’, too?”
“Yes. Dakota is bein’ named Firefighter of the Year. Of course, I’m comin’!”
Smiling, I opened the front door, the spring breeze sending my hair flying.
“Big Jake is waiting for us so let’s go!”
Loading up in my daddy’s truck, we set off towards the civic center. Unsurprisingly, the parking lot was packed, the people of Creek’s Edge coming out in droves.
“All of these people are here to support your man,” Mama teased. Laughing, I climbed out of my dad’s truck.
Big Jake met us just inside the entrance, an enormous grin on his face.
“Hey, daughter!” he greeted me with a hug. “How’s my favorite girl doin’?”
Even though Dakota and I had only been dating a few months, he had taken up calling me his daughter. He was as overjoyed as my parents about the new relationship, and it was crazy because not much had actually changed. It’s just being with my long-time best friend all the time but with some incredibly hot sex thrown in the game.
The things that man can do with his tongue…
“Let’s find our seats!” Mama piped up excitedly.
As we walked down the aisle towards the section labeled reserved, I spotted Cassie with her new boyfriend, a deputy from Creek’s Edge Sheriff’s Office. She smiled at me, and I waved at them both, happy to see that she was happy.
Things between her and I would never be the same, but I had hope for the future going forward.
As Chief Hennessy took to the stage, a silence fell over the crowd.
“Good evening, ladies and gentlemen and welcome! Tonight, we will recognize some local heroes that represent excellence, bravery, and brotherhood. Heroes that are the very definition of ‘the first in, the last out’. With that, I would like to ask Carter Neyland and Jace Reynolds to join me on stage.”
Carter and Jace, dressed sharply in their Class A uniform, joined the chief on stage where he placed a medal around their neck and presented them each with a plaque.
“It is my pleasure to present the both of you with the Firefighter Excellence Achievement award. The both of you have proven your dedication and determination, not only to this team, but most importantly, the community.”
Applause broke out amongst the crowd, our row clapping hardest of all.
They deserve this so much.
On the stage, Jace stepped up to the microphone.
“I speak for myself and for Carter when I say thank you to our community for this incredible honor. Being a firefighter is one of those jobs where you have to do it in order to understand how quickly things can go from calm to chaos,” he spoke eloquently. “You have to do it to understand how important it is to have this camaraderie with the guys that you work with. Last December, we had a night that changed the way we worked as a team, the way we viewed the world, and especially, the way we viewed each other. I can tell you with absolute certainty that I am only standing here today because of the heart and the courage of someone else on our team. A man that exemplifies professionalism, dedication, and loyalty, even to those that – trust me – do not deserve it,” his voice wavered. “I’m able to stand before you today because of his selflessness and bravery. With that, I’d like to introduce you to our Firefighter of the Year, Lieutenant Dakota Clayton.”
Thunderous applause erupted throughout the auditorium. People began to stand up, our row joining in the ovation with tears in our eyes.
Dak walked up on stage proudly, hugging Chief Hennessy and Carter on his way over to the podium.
Jace placed a large medal over his head and presented him with his award, a moment of eye contact being shared between the two. They hugged like the best friends they no longer were, mutual respect, gratefulness, and memories taking them over.
With tears streaming down my cheeks, I stole a glance at Cassie. She happened to be staring right back at me, her eyes filled with tears to match mine. I smiled at her, and she smiled back, an unspoken agreement of how proud of them we were.
Dakota took over the podium with a huge smile on his face.
“I’d like to thank the folks of Creek’s Edge for this honor. Being named Firefighter of the Year just seems like the Lord is playin’ favorites considering I get to do something I love, and I get to do it with family,” he gestured towards his team. “I couldn’t do this job without my brothers at Engine Company 11, my family, and one pretty special girl.”
Ooh, he’s gettin’ his soul sucked out tonight.
“If I could,” he continued. “I’d like to ask her to come up on stage.”
I’m gonna beat his ass.
After squeezing my way past everyone on our row, I nervously walked up on stage.
As he stood at the podium, he reached for my hand, his eyes brighter than I’d ever seen them before.
“Lena, Lord knows, I never expected to be here. You’ve been my irritating best friend for nearly two decades and I was happy with the way that worked out… but then something changed, and I started wanting to plan out forever, and that was terrifying for me because I never even planned on loving you… but now that it’s happened, I know I can’t go back to anything that’s less than loving all of you, every single day. And the only conclusion I’ve came to – to make sure that happens – is that you’ve gotta let me marry you.”
The auditorium went unbelievably insane as he dropped to one knee, pulling a ring box out of his pocket.
Tearfully, I nodded, with an absolute “yes.”
As he pulled me into his arms, I pressed my lips to his ear. “Why did you make your day all about us?!”
He pulled away, grinning, with a gleam in his eye.
“I told you, Lena Loo. When you love someone, you don’t want to hide it.”