Epilogue
Jack
Markey’s is loud, packed with locals trying to forget it’s still February in Merritt Point, all crowded together as the Celtics play on the TVs behind the bar.
Izzy’s tucked against my side in the booth, her hand warm in mine, and my brother Nolan showed up without even having to be begged. That alone makes this a good night.
He’s been quiet since he surprised us coming home last month. He heads back to Montana later this week.
“To the Murphys,” Annie announces, raising her glass. “Together again.”
“I’m not drinking to anything that requires a speech,” I warn.
Ethan and Sloane sit across from us, their eyes shifting back and forth before Sloane grins and holds out her left hand.
“No speech, just an announcement. We’re getting married!”
My hearing might never recover from the shrieks Annie and Izzy make. Nolan gruffly adds his congratulations, spinning his empty beer over the tabletop.
“Did you know?” Izzy asks me as she examines Sloane’s oval diamond in a bezel setting.
“Helped pick it.”
Her mouth drops, her dark brows knitting together. “You knew and you—”
“I’ve had it for years,” Ethan mutters, as if embarrassed.
Sloane melts against his shoulder, her big brown eyes so full of love that it makes me sick.
“Sloaney, you’re doing it again,” I tease.
She grins, then sticks her tongue out at me before Annie jumps up from her chair at the end of the booth.
“My brother’s getting married!”
The bar erupts into cheers, and we all laugh until finally, we settle back down, and it’s Izzy who surprises me next.
“Since we’re all sharing good news, I think a toast is also in order for Jack’s rink project now that Merritt Point and Summit have signed off on it.”
“Wait, when did that happen?” Annie shoots off a text with a frown, then glances back at everyone. Her hair is full-on frizz today and about as chaotic as she is.
“Signed off on everything this morning.”
“Thanks for the tip.” Sloane clinks her glass against Izzy’s. “The Merritt Point Herald appreciates it.”
“Wasn’t sure it was going to happen, but I’m damn happy it is.” I can’t keep the satisfaction out of my voice. After some bureaucratic bullshit, the rink project is actually happening.
“You know what this means?” Izzy asks, looking up at me with those blue eyes that still make my chest tight.
“What?”
“You’re officially staying.”
“I was always staying.” I thread my fingers through hers. “I’m retiring.”
“I know, but now it’s real. You’re building something here.”
I bend down, my lips ghosting over the shell of her ear. “We’re building something,” I correct before I sit back up. “And speaking of—”
“No.”
“You don’t even know what I’m going to say, Iz.”
“That I should move Salty Romantic to that empty building by the new hockey complex?”
I grin. “See? You know me so well.”
“Jack—”
“You could though. It’s zoned for retail. Prime location, right by the beach. You could have that patio, and people could sit outside with their books and coffee.”
“Jack,” she laughs, biting back a grin. “I can’t just move Salty Romantic.”
“It’s in the literal name of the store. Now you can be on the beach.” Izzy rolls her eyes. “Come on. We could be business neighbors.”
“I like where my shop is.”
“But you could like it even more somewhere else.” I lean in again, gently squeezing her thigh. “Plus, I could come steal your lunch any time I want.”
She laughs, shaking her head. “You’re relentless.”
“You love it.”
“Debatable,” Ethan and Nolan chime in all at once.
But Izzy’s smiling, and that’s good enough for now.
Across from me, Nolan is nursing a beer, his attention somewhere else entirely.
I rap my fingers against the tabletop. “You good?”
He glances up, running his hand over his mustache. “Yeah. Just need another beer.” Nolan stands, clapping me on the shoulder as he passes. “Be right back.”
My brother heads toward the bar, his broad shoulders cutting through the crowd.
He’s got another two inches on me at least. Years of being a smokejumper have worn him down, and maybe it’s because I’ve been through the ringer this year too, but I recognize that pain there.
My brother’s never been good at sitting still. He needs a project, or a purpose, or—
I’m about to pull Izzy in for a small kiss when the crack of a fist connecting with bone cuts through the noise.
Everyone near the pool tables falls quiet. I’m already turning, and that’s when I see her.
Dark-red-brown hair with pink highlights, athletic build, standing over some drunk asshole who’s clutching his nose. Her knuckles are red, her stance wide, and judging by the fire in her green eyes, she looks ready to throw another punch if he tries to get up.
“Fuck, and you thought you had a good right hook, Jack,” Ethan jokes.
The bartender’s already moving, but Nolan gets there first.
He doesn’t rush. Just steps between the woman and the guy’s friends, his posture relaxed but unmovable.
I can’t hear what he says, but I see the way the drunk guy’s buddies take one look at him and back off.
Nolan’s always had this calm, steady presence that makes people think twice about starting shit.
The drunk guy mutters something and stumbles away with his friends. Nolan turns to the woman and says something quietly. She shakes out her hand, examining her knuckles, and replies without looking at him.
Then Nolan gestures toward the door, and she follows.
“Is he going—” Annie starts.
“To leave with the woman who punched that guy?” I finish. “Yep.”
Nolan’s hand hovers near her back but doesn’t touch, and even from here, I can see the tension in her shoulders. She’s wound tight, ready to bolt, but she’s still walking with him.
The door swings shut behind them.
“Well,” Sloane says eventually. “I think it’s just us for the rest of the night.”
Izzy looks up at me. “Should we—”
“Nope.” I settle back into the booth, pulling her with me. “He can handle himself.”
She studies me for a long moment, then nods. “Okay.”
The conversation shifts back to the rink, to Annie’s latest dating disaster, to the two new employees Izzy’s hired to help run the bookstore. But part of me is still watching the door, wondering what the hell just walked into my brother’s life.
Thank you for reading Hearts at Play!