Epilogue
BEAU
One year later – Christmas
I ring the doorbell and step back to take in the sheer number of Christmas lights and holiday displays on the Walters family house.
Stella warned me that they went super over the top this year, but her description did not do it justice.
I’m still taking it all in when the front door opens.
“Hey.” Felix tips his head in greeting. “You made it.”
He opens the door to let me in and I hold back a chuckle. If the outside of the house is over the top, the inside looks like something straight out of a Christmas catalog.
My gaze roams, noting the decorated trees in every room, more lights strung up inside, as well as wreaths and holiday pictures—it even smells like Christmas in here.
“Oh, come on,” Felix says, snagging my attention. He waves a hand in front of my T-shirt. “You can’t wear that.”
“What, this?” I ask, fighting a grin as I stare down at my football championship shirt.
We met Valley in the conference championship game earlier this month and pulled out a victory. It was close. Felix threw the kind of game that will be talked about for years to come, but we were better. At least that day.
“Is that Beau?” Stella calls from the kitchen.
Felix is still grumbling under his breath, so I holler back, “Hey, baby.”
A second later, she comes running and jumps into my arms.
“You’re finally here!” She peppers me in kisses, and I give them right back.
I don’t hold back in front of Felix. We’ve reached a sort of understanding. I do right by his sister, and he doesn’t try to murder me. Seems fair.
I place Stella on the ground when her parents join us. Mr. and Mrs. Walters are cool. I think they might even like me.
“Hey, Beau,” Mrs. Walters says, “Merry Christmas.”
“Merry Christmas.” I hand over the tin of cookies my mom forced me to bring. “These are from my family.”
“That’s so nice.” Stella’s dad pops open the top and takes one out. He bites into it with a satisfied smile. “Are you any good at board games?”
“Uh . . .”
“He’s on my team.” Stella tugs me into the dining room. There’s a stack of board games on the floor. Holly and Teddy sit on the far side.
“Hey, Beau,” Holly says. Now, the twin sister I have won over. Maybe even her boyfriend.
“Hey, guys. Merry Christmas.” I extend a hand to Teddy and take a seat across from him. “What are you playing?”
“We just finished Scattergories,” Stella says. “Holly destroyed us.”
“Nice.” I offer her a fist bump, and she grins proudly.
We play Scrabble next, followed by Cranium. Mr. and Mrs. Walters call it a night after that, and the five of us head into the living room to watch a movie.
Holly sets a tray of cookies on the coffee table. “Jingle All the Way or Home Alone?”
“Die Hard,” Felix says.
“We watched that one two nights ago,” Stella says. “Let Beau pick.”
“Uhh . . . I haven’t seen either of them.”
“What?” All four of them look at me with wide eyes.
“The TV at my house is either on football or Hallmark.” I shrug.
Felix grabs a cookie and waves it around as he speaks. “Let’s do Jingle All the Way tonight. We don’t have time to watch both Home Alone movies. We’ll do that tomorrow.”
“He’s seen the second one,” Stella says, and then blushes. “Or part of it.”
“You guys don’t have to do that. Watch whatever you want.”
Felix kicks back and rests his bare feet on the table. “It’s too late, Ricci. You wanted to date a Walters, well, that requires cramming as much holiday cheer as possible into every day between Christmas and New Year’s.”
I smile as I look around the room and a lump forms in my throat. It’s a peace offering. Not the first, but one that feels a hell of a lot more significant than the others.
“All right, yeah. Let’s do it.”
Stella snuggles up next to me and we watch the movie all the way through. When it’s over, everyone disappears, leaving us alone in front of the TV.
“How was Christmas with your family?” she asks, covering a yawn.
I play with a strand of her hair, curling it around one finger. “It was good.”
“And things with your dad?”
“That’s good too. He’s barely said a word about football since I’ve been home. It’s almost freaky.”
“You miss talking about it with him, don’t you?”
“Kind of.” I chuckle.
Last summer, about two years later than I should have, I finally talked to my parents about the pressure I was feeling with football and how it was impacting my love of the game.
My dad barely spoke to me for a week. I was sure we’d never see our way through it, but slowly, we’re finding a path forward.
One where we communicate a little better.
It hasn’t been one big conversation; it’s been a bunch of small ones.
We’re both more comfortable tossing a football around than talking about our feelings, but I’m glad I said something.
I never would have without Stella. I owe her a lot.
“I got you a present.” I get up and get my coat to retrieve the small box from my pocket. She wore the hell out of the beanie I got her last year. She even wore it to my game against Valley (though she had on a Valley U T-shirt too). But this year, I stepped up my gift game.
She tears open the paper carefully and then lifts the lid off the black box.
“Beau!” she gasps. “These are beautiful.”
She lifts one of the diamond star earrings and holds it up to her right ear. My girl isn’t big on jewelry, but these are simple and stunning, just like her. She puts one in each ear and then tucks her hair behind them. “How do they look?”
“Gorgeous.” I press my lips to hers.
“I got you something too,” she says, pulling back just enough to get out the words.
“You can give it to me later.” I slant my mouth over hers and deepen the kiss. The only thing I want for Christmas is her.
Cheesy as hell but absolutely, one hundred percent accurate.
Before you go, I want to say thank you! From the bottom of my heart, I’m so grateful that you took a chance on my book. If you enjoyed it, I hope you’ll tell a friend who loves swoony, spicy romance!