Epilogue
Carson
“The new computers arrived!” Emma says, looking at the email on her phone.
“It’s a Thanksgiving miracle.”
Daryl finishes checking the temperature for the turkey and slides it back into the oven.
I’ve gotten along great with Emma’s dad since I started dating her.
I think our Sunday dinners have really helped.
This house is starting to feel like a third home to Penny and me.
The second home is obviously Emma’s. Sometimes, I wonder if we’re there more than we’re at my mom’s house.
Penny runs into the kitchen. “What’s next?”
“Napkins?” Emma says, pointing to a stack of cloth plaid napkins on the counter. “Each setting needs one, and we’re going to run them through the acorn holders and put them on the center of the plates. Should I show you the first one?”
“Yes, but then I want to do the rest by myself.”
“Deal.” Emma demonstrates, using her mom’s brass holders, before Penny takes over.
Penny looks up at us. “Always feel hungry or always feel full?”
“That depends,” Daryl jumps in. “Is it Turkey Day full or regular full?”
“Stuffed super full!” Penny says, bouncing on her toes.
“Hungry?” Emma responds, like it’s a question. “No, full! That’s a hard one, Pen.”
“Hungry,” Daryl says.
“I’m going to ask Dominic.” Penny piles all the finished napkins in her arms and takes them into the dining room.
“She doesn’t even care about my answers anymore,” I mutter. “You’ve all eclipsed me.”
Emma laughs, shaking her head. “No one could ever eclipse you, Carson. You know that.”
“I saw the Ednas at the Turkey Bowl this morning,” I say. “They mentioned something about the Santa suit having a massive stain. Trying to get me to influence your decision, I think.”
Emma nods. “They want to order a new one, but I think I can replace the stained panel. It’s just the trim, anyway. Do you know what a new suit would cost us?”
“A lot?”
“Yeah.” She brings all the peeled sweet potatoes to the cutting board and slices them, tossing them in a baking dish. “I probably need to bring the entire board into the conversation, because Ari and Reese will side with me.”
“I love a good majority vote rules situation. Isn’t Maven in your group chat? She’d side with you.”
“She’s not technically on the board, but we all count her vote. She’s part of the team.”
“I love you.” My arms go around her waist and I rest my chin on her shoulder, inhaling my favorite apple-scented shampoo.
Emma’s hands still. “That’s so sweet, and I love you too, but if this keeps happening I’m gonna chop a finger off.”
“I won’t move a muscle.”
“Hey,” Daryl says. “Quit your canoodling when there’s knives involved, you two.”
Canoodling. If only Todd from Burlington could see us now. Is he going to get a shock when I send him this wedding invitation…someday? I wish I could see his face.
I press a kiss to the side of Emma’s neck before backing away, and she gets the chills.
“Here, make yourself useful.” Daryl hands me a bag of green beans. “Get snapping.”
“Yes, sir.” I sit on a stool over the trash can and snap the ends off the green beans.
Mom slips through the doorway. “Penny is doing a great job setting the tables.” She looks at my beans. “Want me to start a pot to boil?”
“Sure.” Still not sure entirely what I’m doing with these, but that sounds like the logical next step.
Emma points out the pots and Mom fills one with water, then puts it on the stove. “I heard Penny got to talk to her mom this morning.”
“During the game.” I nod. “Jen called while I was out in the field, but Penny had her little flip phone on her, so she was able to answer it.”
“I think that was the best call. Penny has a direct line, but it’s not a smart phone.
Best of both worlds.” Mom leans against the counter and pushes blonde hair behind her ear.
She’s in scrubs because she has to go in to work, but this is a familiar sight.
We’ll take her as long as we can get her. “Is Jen still in LA?”
“Yeah, she has a few more auditions coming up. She told Penny that Nurse B for some doctor show sounds promising. I guess she gave up on the singing thing, but things seem to be working out for her.”
The door opens and Ben and Maven file in, holding pies. “Hello! Happy Thanksgiving!”
“Is that Rosie?” Daryl asks.
“Not yet.” Emma wipes her hands and heads around the kitchen island to hug them.
I lift my beans, and Ben claps me on the back. “Brutal game this morning,” he says.
“Glad we were on the same side. We were so close to winning.”
“Next year.”
Dominic hears us, because he leaves the living room to lean in the kitchen doorway, arms crossed over his chest. “Next year you’ll lose again, old men.”
Ben laughs. “We’ll see.”
Emma rolls her eyes. “They’re literally two years older than you, Dom.”
“Still older.”
Mom claps her hands twice. “Okay, if you aren’t actively cooking, I need you out. Help Penny set the table—”
“I don’t need help!” she cries.
Mom laughs. “Or not. There’s probably a game on or something. Reese started a puzzle if anyone wants to jump in.”
“I’m game,” Maven says.
“I’ll join you soon.” Emma keeps slicing her dwindling pile of sweet potatoes.
Everyone files out of the kitchen except me, Emma, Daryl, and Mom, who’s putting a second pot to boil for the mashed potatoes.
“Smells amazing in here,” Daryl says, inhaling. “A baking turkey always makes me think of your mom, kiddo.”
Emma reaches over with her knife-free hand and hugs her dad. “Me too.”
“Sounds like we’re using Sally’s Thanksgiving dining set,” Mom says. “That might feel like having a piece of her with us.”
Daryl nods, his eyes misting.
Mom gives him a hug, then pats his shoulder. “I’ll watch the turkey if you want to work on the puzzle.”
I lift my beans. “Tell me what to do with these?”
“Sure thing, honey.” Mom takes the beans to the sink to rinse, taking over the green bean casserole while Daryl heads to the living room.
“We haven’t had such a busy Thanksgiving in a while,” Mom says, smiling widely. “This is a truly beautiful day.”
I look at Emma, the woman who has my entire heart, and can’t help the warmth that bleeds through my chest and fills my body with need and want and love.
We agreed we’d wait six months before even discussing marriage, to slowly ease Penny into it after uprooting her entire life and moving her to Vermont.
But we spend every dinner together and Penny has asked me twice now if she gets to be the flower girl when I marry Emma, so I think she’s adequately warmed up.
I also already bought a ring that is sparkly and tasteful and elegant, one that will look really good on Emma’s finger.
“What?” Emma asks now, tilting her head and looking at me over the kitchen island, pausing in arranging pats of butter over the sweet potatoes with one in each hand.
I love her so much I could just squeeze her. “Nothing.”
She gives me a yeah, sure look and goes back to her casserole.
Maybe I’ll hide with the ring in her shower, holding tiles and a bucket of grout. We already finished tiling it, but it would make her laugh.
No, that’s not enough for Emma. She deserves the most romantic thing I can come up with.
Or rather…the most romantic thing me and Mom and Penny and Maven can come up with together.
I’m up against a lot of romance novels. But I know I’m her favorite, even over Gilbert Blythe and the guy from Little Women.
I know this, because she told me so.
Oh, I’ve got it. I can hang some mistletoe on the shower head…have the ring ready…
Yeah, I’m still brainstorming the proposal.
At least I know that the answer will be yes.
Thank you for reading Falling for Keeps!