Epilogue
PIPER
That afternoon, I picked the boys up from school while Rhett went to the kitchen to prepare dinner. When the three of us walked into a warm house redolent with the smell of onions and garlic cooking in olive oil, I couldn’t help the smile that stretched over my lips.
I could get used to this.
The boys had more important things to think about.
“A cat!” Nate cried.
“He’s stripey!” Alec added, pointing.
Rhett appeared at the end of the hallway, a dish towel slung over his shoulder. “Hi, boys. Careful with the cat. He gets grumpy.”
Nate and Alec were already on their knees, trying to coax the cat out from behind the sofa. “What’s his name?” Alec asked.
I glanced at Rhett, who inhaled deeply, pulling his lips into a straight line. “I, um, don’t know.”
The boys tore their gazes away from the cat to look at Rhett. I frowned. “What do you mean, you don’t know?”
“I’ve just been calling him ‘cat.’”
I rolled my lips inward to stop from giggling.
That was so Rhett. To be so kind, take in a stray, care for it, but tell himself it was all an act.
He didn’t realize that actions spoke louder than words.
Rhett was a good man, no matter what he thought of himself.
I hoped that over time, I’d be able to convince him of it.
And we’d have time, I realized—because this was my home.
“I think his name is Jeff,” Nate proclaimed.
“Hi, Jeff!” Alec said.
Rhett’s eyebrows lifted, and he shrugged. “Jeff,” he said, as if he were testing the name.
The cat had slinked out from behind my beautiful sofa and was stepping lightly over the boys’ legs. “It suits him,” I said.
Rhett approached, his arm moving around my waist. He stroked me softly, then dropped his hand and moved to sit on the floor next to the boys. “I think he likes you,” Rhett said.
The cat hopped clean over Nate’s legs and settled on top of Rhett’s lap, curled into a ball, and went to sleep. Rhett looked incredibly put out, but his hand moved to stroke the cat’s head, big fingers stroking gently between Jeff’s ears.
A giggle escaped my lips. “I think he likes you,” I said. “And I don’t think you’ll get rid of him so easily.”
Rhett sighed. “I’m used to him now, I guess,” he grumbled.
“Can we come visit Jeff at your house?” Alec asked, creeping closer. “Does he like fish?” He turned to Nate. “Cats like fish.”
Nate nodded solemnly. “They do.”
“You can come visit him anytime,” Rhett answered, his eyes lifting to meet mine. I smiled, heart light, and mouthed the words that kept spinning around my head: I love you.
Rhett stayed true to his word—of course—and let me buy him out of his half of the house.
It was easy to do, with the gigantic bonus I got.
Maybe to some people it would have been silly to go about things this way, but to me it felt significant.
I knew Rhett was being incredibly generous.
I knew I was accepting a gift. But officially buying him out—with money I’d earned—was significant to me.
It honored my need for independence while still accepting his generosity. It was a gift that felt balanced.
It was exactly like Rhett, to find a solution that was lavish without being imposing.
That was why everyone in town loved him so much.
He really was a good man—my good man. I intended to spend the rest of my life reminding him that he wasn’t wearing a mask when he did good deeds. He was just being himself.
We broached the topic of our relationship with the boys after the holidays. They took the news well, especially when I told them that we’d be staying in our new house. No more moves. No more packing boxes. No more new schools.
This was our home now.
Jacob didn’t take the news so well. He chewed me out on the phone when I told him I was seeing someone, but I felt oddly detached from his tirade.
He had no power over me anymore. And the next time he came to town to spend time with the boys, he told me ahead of time, and he never made it past my new front door.
The next Lovers Peak Charity Home Raffle night was held at the ski resort.
The whole town gathered in the lodge in mid-October my second year in town.
Rhett, predictably, went all-out. He hired caterers and insisted on funding all the carnival games that were set up throughout the lodge.
I had a lanyard around my neck to match Mila’s, two precious tickets on full display over the fabric of my favorite lucky dress.
One was for this year’s raffle—and one was the winner from last year.
I stood on the edge of the room, watching Alec and Nate throw rings at a pole, a plastic cup full of bad wine in my hand.
“Imagine if you won again,” Mila said beside me.
I grinned at her. “I’d feel bad.”
She rolled her eyes. “Of course you would.”
“Someone else needs it so much more than I do,” I told her. “I’ve already got my home.”
“And everyone here is glad for it,” she said. “You’re one of us now.”
I flushed, smiling. A hand on my shoulder made me turn, and Rhett slid his fingers down my arm to tangle them in mine. “Hi,” I said, tilting my head up for a kiss.
He pressed one to my lips as he squeezed my hand. “I want to show you something,” he murmured. “Mila, will you excuse us?”
Her eyes glimmered, and she nodded.
“The boys—”
“I’ll keep an eye on ’em,” Mila said, waving us off.
I had no choice but to follow Rhett. He kept his hand clamped around mine as we wound our way through the happy crowd.
We made it to the gorgeous staircase, where Rhett took a turn toward the bank of elevators—but he didn’t press the button.
Instead, he tugged me toward a service door tucked into the corner of the landing.
“We’re going up?” I asked as he ushered me inside.
“We’re going up,” he confirmed.
“If I miss the draw, I’ll be very angry,” I teased. “Dave was getting ready to go onstage!”
“It’ll be worth it,” Rhett promised. He smiled at me as we ascended the concrete steps, then shouldered his way through another heavy metal door. We were on the roof.
I shivered—then gasped.
The roof had been covered in flickering candles, with dark red rose petals strewn from the door to an open area. A wine bucket sat in a stand, with a bottle of champagne chilling inside.
“Rhett,” I whispered. “What’s this?”
He walked backward, catching both my hands in his, and tugged me toward the champagne. A blanket had been set up, with two heat lamps blazing on either side. When we got closer, their warmth made me relax, and I glanced at Rhett, curious.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
He stepped closer to me, still holding my hands, and leaned his forehead against mine. “I thought we should make new memories for raffle night,” he said, voice low and warm. “Better ones.”
“Better than winning a house?”
“Better than fighting over it and ending up in the hospital.”
My lips curled. “Fair enough.”
He brought my hands up and kissed the backs of my palms. Then he looked into my eyes, smiled softly, and got down on bended knee.
“Rhett—”
“I love you, Piper,” he said. “I love your strength and your determination. I love how caring you are and the fact that you’re an incredible mother to your boys.
I love your work ethic and your drive. You’re the most amazing woman I’ve ever met, and you’ve made me realize just how full and happy my life can be. You make me a better man.”
“You’re already a good man, Rhett. That’s got nothing to do with me.”
He shook his head. “You’re wrong. Before you came into my life, I acted like a good person because I thought I had to hide who I really was. You made me realize that I can be myself—and do good things. I don’t have to hide behind a mask.”
I reached over and stroked his cheek, my eyes already filled with tears. “I love you, Rhett.”
“That’s why I want to do this before you come to your senses.” His smile was a quick flash as he reached into his pocket, pulling out a small velvet ring box. He flipped it open, glanced inside, then turned it around. “Will you marry me?”
The ring glinted under the light of the heat lamps and the dozens of candles around us. It was an oval-cut diamond, and it threw fire and rainbows against the velvet interior of its box. I blinked, and tears slid down my cheeks. “Rhett,” I whispered.
“Say yes,” he whispered back.
I laughed, nodding. “Yes. Yes, of course I’ll marry you.”
His smile reminded me of the day last year when we were crouched at the bottom of the stairs and I told him I’d stay.
It was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.
My heart swelled, and I held out my left hand.
I trembled as Rhett slid the ring onto my finger; then I bent over and kissed him.
A yelp escaped me as he tugged me down, falling back onto the blanket as I sprawled on top of him.
“We’re going to miss the draw,” I complained, laughing.
“I just asked you to marry me, and you’re worried about a raffle,” he grumbled good-naturedly, then pulled out his phone. “If I put the live stream on, will you stay here and let me make love to you?”
I dipped my head and kissed him. “Yes.”
He kissed me back, then set up the video while I got us two glasses of champagne. We watched David read out the numbers, checking our tickets in the low candlelight.
Rhett clicked his tongue in disappointment when neither of us won.
I chuckled, leaning back. Rhett’s arms were wrapped around me as I leaned my back against his chest. “It’s okay. We already won the lottery tonight.” I lifted my hand to show off my ring, then turned my head to meet his gaze.
Rhett’s eyes were solemn as he held me. “I love you, Piper,” he murmured.
“And I love you,” I replied. I set my champagne aside. There was one more thing we had to do up here before we rejoined the festivities downstairs. I lay down on the blanket and tugged Rhett on top of me, smiling as his eyes darkened.
My lucky dress hadn’t won me another house, but I got something much, much better.