Epilogue
He gazed over the scene. Adelaide and Evolette were standing next to his bride, wearing the beautiful dresses they’d gone to pick out a few days before. He was about to say his vows to Blythe on the porch at Silo Springs—exactly one week from the night he’d put his grandmother’s ring on her finger.
She was wearing a calf length, solid white dress that clung to every single curve. The vintage veil she’d chosen looked like a small hat, with a net that covered her forehead, and draped across her nose and one eye. Her hair was flowing over her shoulders, and she wore a simple set of short heels.
Justin wore a fitted, black suit and tie. Rather out of character for him, but it was his wedding day. He felt more like James Bond than the farrier he was.
Chris had applied to be an ordained minister online. He’d busted out his laptop the second they’d asked him. He stood between them as he spoke the words that every couple hears on their wedding day.
Justin had a piece of paper hidden in his pocket, just in case, but he ultimately decided not to use it. He knew speaking from his heart was the way she would want it. He held her hands in his as he spoke. “Blythe, sugar…from the moment you stepped into my life, you turned my world upside down, and I’ve loved every second of it. You’ve taught me how to be patient, and what it’s like to love someone so deep it hurts.
"I promise to be the man who protects you and your heart as best I can. I will cherish you every damn day I’m breathing on this earth. And I swear to love you and our child fiercely, to my core. I promise to always listen, and to carry you when the road gets rough. You’re woven into the fucking fabric of my soul, every thread of it…” His eyes darted to Addie and Evie when he realized the language he’d just used. “Sorry, princesses.”
Looking back to his bride, he continued. “I give you all of me—my laughter and my tears…and I promise to spend the rest of my life proving just how much I love you.”
He got a little choked up when Blythe dabbed at the corner of her eye with the tissue Addie had handed her part way through his declaration.
He held her hands as she began to speak. “Justin, you loved me and forgave me when I didn’t deserve it. You came into my life like a whirlwind, and, somehow, you rebuilt everything I thought I’d lost…then gave it back to me a million times better. You’ve shown me compassion, understanding, strength, and a love I didn’t know if I’d ever find. I promise to never take that love for granted. I promise to never leave your side, through thick and thin. I promise to be your lover, your confidant, and your best friend. You’ve taught me how to trust again, how to open my heart, and how to accept and believe in true love. I swear to love you without holding back, to give you my whole heart. You, my backwards hat cowboy, are what dreams are made of. You’re everything I could’ve asked for and more, and I promise to spend forever making sure you know just how much your love means to me.”
Justin swooped her legs under his arm and carried her over the threshold of their front door. He held her that way until he reached their bed, and gently put her down to sit on the edge. Reaching under her ankle, he took off one of her heels, then did the same with the other.
Wrapping his hands around her waist, he brought her to a standing position, and whispered in a deep timbre through the dim light, “Turn around, sugar.”
She did as he told her to, and he began unbuttoning her dress from the neck down. When he got to the place at the small of her back, he stopped. He smoothed his palms over her perfect behind, before pulling the shoulders of her dress down and off her arms. He shimmied the dress over her hips and let it fall at her ankles. He watched as she stepped out of it and turned to face him.
He eyed the simple, white bra and panty set she was wearing and couldn’t believe she looked even more beautiful than the first time he saw her this way.
“Why are you staring all dreamy eyed and quiet?” Blythe breathed out a laugh.
“Because I’ve never seen an angel before—but I’ll be damned if you don’t look like the closest thing there ever was.”
Justin reached behind her and flicked the clasp of her bra, just like he did the first time. It fell down her arms and to the floor with the dress. He palmed her breast with one hand and dipped his other between her thighs, over the white panties there.
“If I was a betting man, I’d say you’re already primed and ready for me, sugar. These things are ruined.”
She bit her lip and gave him a challenging smirk. “Why don’t you take ‘em off and see for sure, cowboy?”
Justin hooked his fingers into the band over each hip and dragged them down to her ankles. She stepped out of the cotton, soaked down the center, and used one foot to kick everything to the side.
Justin was still fully clothed, and she was completely bare, except for the single string of pearls draped around her neck. She reached behind her to play with the clasp but stopped when he softly grabbed her wrist.
“No—leave it on.”
He tugged at his tie and removed his suit at lightning speed. When he was as naked as she was, he hooked his arms under her legs and gently flipped her back onto the mattress. Her wavy hair was fanned around her, ivory skin glowing through the darkness. Justin parted her knees further and positioned himself between her thighs.
“This feels as special as the first time. Look how fucking pretty you are…”
He touched her with his fingers, then his mouth, and finally buried himself deep inside of her as they danced in fluid motions together. Their moans and movements felt more like a chorus—a symphony of passion that only they could sing together.
They brought each other to the edge and tumbled over the side—forever forging an eternal bond that would be strong enough to weather any wind the state of Montana could blow.
The End.