Epilogue
Sadie
Forever Family
By the time spring finally arrives in Briar Cove, the whole town seems determined to act personally responsible for it.
Flower boxes appear beneath shop windows overnight.
Wreaths of pale pink blossoms hang on front doors.
The snow that once buried the sidewalks has melted into bright puddles that catch the morning sun, and the harbor—gray and frozen for so long—shimmers blue again beneath a sky that looks almost too hopeful to be real.
It feels like the entire town has exhaled.
Or maybe that’s just me.
Because today, I am standing in front of the mirror in an upstairs room of the church, wearing a wedding dress I never thought I would have the courage to choose.
It isn’t grand. It isn’t dramatic. It doesn’t sparkle beneath every light like something borrowed from a fairy tale. But it’s me. Simple. Romantic. Mine.
It’s soft ivory lace with delicate sleeves, a fitted waist, and a flowing skirt that sways gently whenever I move. Comfortable. Pretty. Uncomplicated. The kind of dress that feels less like something I’m wearing and more like something that belongs to me.
And somehow, standing here today, that feels exactly right.
Behind me, Jillie stands on the edge of the sofa in her flower girl dress, holding a basket of petals like she has been entrusted with the crown jewels.
“Mom,” she says very seriously, “I need you to know I practiced walking slow.”
I turn from the mirror. “That sounds promising.”
She nods. “But not too slow. Mrs. Bellamy said if I go too slow, people will start crying before you even come out.”
Across the room, Mrs. Bellamy sniffs loudly while pretending to adjust the curtains.
“I said no such thing,” she declares.
Jillie gives me a look that says grown-ups are unreliable witnesses.
I laugh, and the sound catches me by surprise. It’s not because I haven’t laughed lately. I have, and more than I ever expected.
But it’s because there was a time when joy felt like something I had to earn carefully, slowly, without taking up too much room.
Now joy seems to live everywhere.
In Jillie’s grin.
In the flowers waiting outside.
In the man standing at the end of an aisle somewhere downstairs, probably trying not to pace a hole through the church floor.
My throat tightens.
Jillie’s expression softens. “Are you nervous, Mom?”
“A little.”
“Because of the wedding?”
I look at her, at my sweet girl with her spring curls and serious eyes. The little girl I spent so long trying to protect from disappointment. From instability. From anything that might hurt her heart.
“No,” I whisper. “Not because of the wedding.”
“Then why?”
I kneel carefully in front of her, smoothing one loose curl away from her cheek.
“Because sometimes,” I say, “when something really good happens, it takes your heart a minute to believe it’s allowed to keep it.”
Jillie studies me for a moment. Then she wraps both arms around my neck.
“You’re allowed,” she whispers.
And just like that, I nearly ruin all the careful work a friend did on my makeup.
Downstairs, the church is filled with spring. Briar Cove fills every pew. And around them there are tulips and white roses tied with pale ribbon at the ends of the rows.
As we descend to the main floor, I see beautiful sunlight spilling through the stained-glass windows, casting soft colors across the floor. Someone has opened the doors at the back, letting in a breeze that smells faintly of rain, flowers, and the ocean.
And at the front of the church stands Benjamin Carter.
My heart forgets how to behave. He’s in a dark suit, hands clasped in front of him, shoulders broad upright, and his expression steady.
But his eyes— his eyes find me, and everything else falls away.
The town. The flowers. The whispered sighs.
For one small, impossible second, I am back in winter. Back in the snow. Back in all those quiet moments when he kept showing up before I knew how badly I needed someone to.
Then Jillie starts down the aisle.
Slowly.
Very slowly.
A few people laugh softly when she pauses halfway to glare at her basket, as if making sure the petals are cooperating. Someone behind her whispers, “She’s adorable,” and Jillie looks briefly pleased with herself before continuing.
When she reaches the front, Colby bends down to her and murmurs something in her ear.
Whatever he says makes her beam.
That is when I nearly lose it.
Not because he loves me, but because he loves her, too.
Gently. Patiently. Without needing to be asked.
When it is my turn, Mrs. Bellamy hands me my bouquet and straightens my veil. She pats me on my cheek and tells me I am the most beautiful bride she has ever seen. I’ve never felt more beautiful and she just reminded me of it with such love. I squeeze her hand and smile.
Now it’s time, the most wonderful time imaginable. I walk toward Ben on legs that don’t feel entirely trustworthy.
His eyes never leave mine, and when I reach him, he takes my hand like he’s been waiting his whole life to do exactly that.
“You came,” he whispers.
I smile through the ache in my chest. “You sound surprised.”
His thumb brushes over my knuckles. “Not surprised. Grateful.”
The ceremony is beautiful in the way the best things are beautiful—not perfect, not polished, but full of feeling.
The pastor talks about love as a choice. A shelter. A promise made not only on the easy days, but on the hard ones, too.
I hold Ben’s hand and think of snowstorms. Of school parking lots. Of porch lights. Of the night I realized I was no longer trying to protect myself from love. Only Jillie.
And how somehow, impossibly, this man has made room for both of us.
When it is time for vows, Colby turns fully toward me.
His voice is low, rough around the edges.
“Sadie,” he says, and just my name in his voice feels like a vow already. “I used to think love was something people said when they didn’t know what else to do. Something pretty, maybe. Something fragile.”
His jaw flexes.
“Then I met you. And I learned love is showing up. It’s patience. It’s listening. It’s standing close enough to be trusted and far enough not to push. It’s making room for someone else’s fear without asking them to apologize for it.”
My eyes burn.
He glances briefly at Jillie who stands beside her mother, and his expression softens.
“And it’s loving the most important part of you as carefully as I love you.”
A sound moves through the church—soft, emotional, impossible to hide.
“I promise to choose you in every season,” he continues. “In winter, when things feel hard. In spring, when everything begins again. In every ordinary day after this one. I promise to protect your heart, not because you need saving, but because your heart is precious to me.”
He squeezes my hand.
“And I promise Jillie will never have to wonder whether there is room for her in our family. There is. Always.”
That is when Jillie starts crying. Which means I start crying. Which means half of Briar Cove follows, including the full front two rows of big burly hockey men.
My vows are not as steady, but they are true.
“I spent a long time believing love had to be measured carefully,” I tell him. “Like if I wanted too much, trusted too quickly, hoped too hard, I would lose something.”
His eyes stay locked on mine.
“But you never made me feel foolish for being afraid. You never rushed me. You simply stayed. You made ordinary things feel safe. You made my daughter laugh. You made my house feel less like a place I was surviving in and more like a home.”
My breath trembles.
“So, I promise to love you honestly. Bravely. Even when it scares me. Especially then. I promise to build this life with you one day at a time. And I promise that when the seasons change, when storms come, when joy surprises us, I will reach for your hand.”
His eyes shine.
“Because I know now,” I whisper, “I don’t have to do this alone.”
By the time the pastor pronounces us married, I am already crying too hard to look graceful. Colby does not seem to mind. He kisses me softly at first, sweetly, like he is sealing the promise between us.
And then he dips me backward, one arm securely around my waist as laughter bursts from both of us.
The move is dramatic enough to make the photographer cheer and gentle enough to remind me he would never let me fall.
His grin is pure happiness as he pulls me back into his arms, looking at me like winning the Stanley Cup could never compete with this moment.
Then the church erupts. Jillie cheers the loudest.
At the reception, Briar Cove fully loses its mind.
There are flowers everywhere. A cake with slightly uneven frosting because Jillie insisted on helping decorate it.
Children run across the lawn behind the church.
Mrs. Bellamy directs guests like a general in pearls.
Someone’s uncle is trying to teach half the town a line dance that no one understands.
And through it all, Colby keeps finding me. Across the room. Across the lawn. Across every conversation.
It’s as if even married, even surrounded by witnesses, he still cannot quite believe I am his.
***
At one point during the reception, I notice Colby kneeling beside Jillie near the edge of the dance floor. She's still wearing her flower crown, though it's slightly crooked now, and she's busy stealing extra strawberries from the dessert table. At Colby’s nod, I wander closer without interrupting.
"Hey, Bug," Colby says.
She looks up immediately. "Hi."
He smiles. "Can I ask you something important?"
Her eyes widen. "Important, important?"
"The most important."
She nods solemnly. Colby glances briefly toward me before looking back at her.
"You know how you're already my favorite six-year-old in the entire world?"
Jillie beams. "Obviously."
"Obviously."
I have to bite my lip to keep from laughing.
He reaches into his jacket pocket and pulls out a small velvet box.
Jillie's mouth drops open. "Is that jewelry?"
"It's something even better."
Carefully, he opens the box. Inside is a delicate silver charm bracelet. Hanging from it are three tiny charms: a hockey skate, a cupcake, and a heart.
Jillie gasps so loudly several guests turn to look. "Those are us!"
"They are, yes."
She gently touches the charms with one finger.
Then Colby's voice softens. "Jillie, I know I'm not the dad who was supposed to be there when you were little."
The smile slips from her face.
"But if it's okay with you..." He pauses. "I'd really like to be your dad from now on."
For one heartbeat, she just stares at him.
Then: "What?"
Colby laughs softly. "I'd like to adopt you."
Silence. Then Jillie's eyes fill with tears.
"Really?"
"Really."
"You mean forever?"
"Forever."
"You won't leave?"
His answer comes without hesitation. "Never."
The tears spill over – in all three of our eyes. Before I can move, Jillie launches herself into his arms. Colby catches her instantly. The two of them hold on to each other while my vision blurs suspiciously.
"You promise?" she whispers.
"I promise."
She squeezes him even tighter.
Then suddenly she pulls back. "Wait."
Uh-oh. Colby looks alarmed. "What?"
"Does this mean I get your last name?"
A laugh breaks out from several nearby guests.
"It can, if you want it to."
Jillie gasps. "I'm going to be Jillie Reid!"
She immediately starts testing it out.
"Jillie Reid."
Pause.
"Jillie Reid."
Another pause.
"THAT SOUNDS AMAZING."
The entire crowd that has gathered around us is laughing now.
Then Colby clears his throat. "One more thing."
Jillie freezes. "More important than becoming Jillie Reid?"
"Maybe."
Her eyes become enormous.
"You know how your mom and I are leaving tomorrow?"
She nods sadly. "For two whole weeks. Which is approximately forever."
"True."
Jillie sighs dramatically.
"But..." Colby says. Her head snaps up.
"We're only going alone for the first week."
She blinks. "What?"
"The second week, we're coming back for you."
Now she looks confused. "Why?"
Colby grins.
"Because we love you and we're taking you to Disney World."
For a second she doesn't react. Then realization hits. The squeal that erupts from her could probably be heard three towns away.
"DISNEY WORLD?!"
People clap. Someone laughs. Mrs. Bellamy starts crying. Liam and Toby do a hockey man dance step or two.
Jillie bounces so hard that Colby nearly loses hold of her.
"WITH CASTLES?"
"Yes."
"AND PRINCESSES?"
"Probably."
"AND RIDES?"
"Definitely."
She turns toward me. "Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!"
I can't stop smiling. "Yes, Bug?"
"We're going to Disney World!"
Then she throws her arms around both of us at once.
And standing there beneath the string lights, surrounded by family, friends, laughter, and far more happy tears than I ever planned to shed in one day, I realize something wonderful.
This isn't just the start of a marriage.
It's the beginning of a forever family.
***
Later, when the sun begins to set and the string lights flicker, music drifts soft and slow through the open air. Colby comes up behind me, wraps his arms around my waist, and presses a kiss near my temple.
“Dance with me?”
I lean back against him. “At our own wedding? Bold.”
“I’m feeling brave.”
So am I.
He leads me beneath the lights, and the world softens around us. Jillie spins nearby with her petals basket on her head like a hat. People laugh. Someone claps. And I sway in my husband’s arms while spring opens all around us.
For so long, I thought safety meant holding back. Keeping my heart guarded. Keeping Jillie’s life small enough that nothing could break it.
But I was wrong.
Safety is not always a locked door.
Sometimes it’s a hand that’s reaching for yours. A man who stays. A child laughing under spring lights. A town that somehow becomes family.
Colby lowers his forehead to mine. “Happy?”
I look up at him. At the man who walked through snow for us, the man who waited, the man who became home so quietly I almost missed it happening.
“Yes,” I whisper. “More than happy.”
His smile is soft enough to undo me.
And standing there in the middle of Briar Cove with his hand wrapped around mine, I realize the safest thing I have ever done…
is to love him back.
THE END