Epilogue
Seven Months Later
Lochlan
I didn’t realize that Dario’s back yard—sorry, our back yard—could fit so many people. I thought some of them would at least hang out in the kitchen, but apparently, they all need to be near the barbecue.
To be fair, the food is so amazing, I can’t blame them. Dario and I have provided the usual burgers and sausages as well as a bunch of salads, but he also marinaded a metric ton of chicken in some kind of spicy orange juice and tomato sauce that is going down like a storm. Lili is also fighting him for space on the grill with her Korean barbecue ribs. I’ve already eaten myself silly and I still want more of everything.
But that’s what holidays like the Fourth of July are all about, right? Good food and good people. What more could you want?
Well, the cold beer in my hand is also appreciated, as is the punch bowl of Tia Gaby’s margarita that she’s had to top up twice now. Lucky that most people don’t live far away, but I can already tell that Uber is going to be getting a lot of business from this house tonight.
Our house.
Maybe I moved in a little fast, but fuck it. Dario and I were spending all our time together anyway. It didn’t make sense for me to keep paying rent on my apartment when his place was three times the size. Or for Dario to buy more furniture when I had what he needed. Not to mention the yard we’re standing in that Rocky loves.
He was getting too big to stay cooped up in my old digs as well. He was such a cute puppy, but I kinda forgot how huge adult Dalmatians are.
Right now, he and Queenie are happily trotting around, scamming as many people as possible for tidbits of food, or just plain stealing leftovers off unattended plates. It’s pointless to try and stop them. We can balance it out by not giving them their regular dinner tonight and then hoping they don’t decide to throw up on our bed.
I’ve come to realize that’s what happiness is. Messy. Nothing is ever perfect, but when a guy like me is blessed with so much love in every corner of his life, that feels as close to perfection as possible in my book.
Following Rocky and Queenie around is Clover, who failed to become a guide dog when she refused to leave Zoe’s side during her recovery. Looking at our former teacher now as she flirts with Yara, you’d never know that Zoe almost didn’t make it out from under that rogue wagon wheel. But she’s back to a hundred percent now, and Dario and I have actually become good friends with her.
My sister is sitting in one of the chairs, holding my brand-new sleeping niece and showing her off to anyone who’s interested, which is most everybody. She’s obviously tired as all hell, but Greg is running around tending to her every need, and I think she’s enjoying that big time.
Orson is running around with Anton’s girl, Rebecca, while Anton and Sawyer challenge a couple of Dario’s tios at Uno. Tia Gaby is animatedly talking surfing with Rico. Mrs. Bloom is enchanting several of Dario’s second cousins as Margot performs pretty tricks for them. Teddy is in charge of the playlist, but Cap keeps winding him up by sneaking over to the laptop and switching in Jimi Hendrix songs.
My favorite sight, though, is my mom and Dario’s mom huddling in the corner with margaritas that never seem to run out, gossiping like schoolgirls.
This is what life is about. It doesn’t matter what’s in my bank account. I feel like the richest man alive.
I’m also celebrating something other than the national holiday. Well, technically we’re celebrating. But I have a feeling Dario doesn’t realize that.
Grinning to myself, I weave my way through the throng toward the barbecue, loving the way Dario’s face lights up when he sees me. Even after all this time, it’s like he still can’t believe I’m with him.
When any idiot can see I’m the one who hit the jackpot here.
“Hey,” I say warmly to both my boyfriend and my best friend. “Can I borrow Dario for a minute?”
Lili salutes me with her beer bottle. “I’ll make sure nothing explodes.”
“It’s mostly all done now anyway,” Dario says a little breathlessly as he wipes his hands on a dishcloth. “Do you think everyone’s having a good time?”
I scoff. “They’re having a blast. Don’t worry, baby. Come on. I’ve got something to show you.”
He frowns but follows me back into the coolness of the house and up to our bedroom where we can have a little peace and quiet. “Lochlan,” Dario says firmly. “We are not having sex while everyone we’ve ever met is downstairs.”
I burst out laughing. “Okay, well, that’s definitely not everyone we’ve ever met. We can save that for our wedding day, yeah?”
Dario stills and I curse myself for putting my foot in my mouth. Even after everything, I know Dario still needs to take things a little slow. I wouldn’t propose to him.
Yet.
Instead, I quickly fish out the picture frame I wrapped earlier and hid in my sock drawer. “I got you a little something.”
He seems relieved it’s not a ring box, which I’m glad about. Even if I have to wait twenty years, I know I’m going to marry this amazing man. But only when he’s ready. When he finally stops waiting for the other shoe to drop and for me to realize I’m made some kind of terrible mistake.
That’s never going to happen. So in the meantime, I will do all I can to convince him that I love him with everything I have.
“What’s this?” he asks.
I laugh, but not unkindly. “That’s kinda the point of wrapping it. So you can find out what’s inside after opening it.”
He rolls his eyes and snorts. “I meant why have you got me a present, dumbass?”
I huff and cross my arms. “How about you open it and stop ruining all my fun, loser?”
It’s funny how a little banter does him good. When we first met, he wouldn’t have found that funny. But we both know now with our whole chests that I’m not dumb in the ways it counts the most, and he’s the coolest person I know.
He blushes and starts sliding his finger under the tape holding the paper together. The pattern has little green men and flying saucers on it, and I know he’s enjoying that as he carefully reveals my gift.
“Oh,” he says softly.
It’s the picture Zoe put on Instagram of us. I know it caused a lot of trouble at the time, but ultimately, it was for the best. It flushed Shane out into the open and that asshole is currently doing two years for assault and stalking. I doubt he’ll serve all of it. I might not have known him long at all, but it was enough to tell what a master manipulator he is. All I care about, though, is I think he got the message that if he ever comes back to Redwood Bay, he’s going to be met by a world of hurt.
Dario didn’t even tell me about the photo for ages. Eventually, he confessed that he felt like he brought Shane’s return on himself by not asking Zoe to take it down straight away. Me pointing out that Zoe couldn’t have done that anyway, as she was too busy trying not to die, knocked some sense into him extremely quickly.
I know that he’s been working really hard with his therapist to stop blaming himself for the hell Shane put him through. But when he said he didn’t ask Zoe to remove the photo because he loved it so much and wanted to talk to me about it first, I knew it was a big deal.
“Today is our eight-month anniversary,” I tell him.
He frowns. “Of when we got together? You should have said something! I would have got you a gift, too!”
I shake my head and place my hands over his, cradling the photo frame between us. “You’re my gift every day, baby. But no, not when we got together. It’s the anniversary of the moment I saw you in that park. It’s the anniversary of when the rest of my life began. I love this picture as much as you do. I don’t want you to see guilt or failure when you look at it because none of what happened was your fault. I want you to remember your joy as well as mine. I want to hang it up and look at it every day. Because life isn’t perfect. We’re going to make mistakes and have to deal with bullshit that’s not either of our fault. But we’ll be okay because we’ll face all that together.”
“With Queenie and Rocky, too,” he says with a sniffle. His eyes are wet as he looks at me, but also brimming with the love I know he feels for me.
“Of course,” I tell him as I pull him into a hug. “Our little family of four. I’d fly to the moon and back for you guys. I’d travel across space and time just to keep you in my arms.”
“Nerd,” he says, making us both laugh because it’s true. “I’d defy the Empire for you.”
“That’s because you’re the bravest man I’ve ever met,” I tell him softly.
We stay like that until we have to go back downstairs and host again. But as much as I treasure our time alone, I know we’ll have plenty of that in the weeks, months, and years to come. This is the first time all of our favorite people have come together in one place, and although I’m sure it won’t be the last, I want to appreciate it today while it lasts.
Family isn’t just who you share blood with. Sometimes, those people are no family at all. Sometimes, family is a stranger you happen to meet in a park one day. Sometimes, it’s a four-legged friend you’ve rescued and promised to take care of for the rest of their lives.
No, family isn’t just blood. It’s who you let into your heart. The people ready and waiting to swoop in and save the day just when you need them the most.
They’re the real heroes. And my boyfriend and I are blessed to have the best of the best by our side.
Now and forever.
Thank you so much for reading Dario and Lochlan’s story!