Epilogue
Morgan
One Year Later….
The smell of fresh-cut cedar and buzzing saws have become the soundtrack of my life, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
A year ago, this lodge was nothing more than a burnt out frame and a dream that felt almost too big to hold.
Now, standing in the center of the great room as the evening sun bleeds gold through the floor-to-ceiling windows, I see the finish line.
The new floors shimmer in the soft lighting, the massive stone fireplace is cold but ready for its first winter, and my favorite alcove upstairs plays music from an antique record player.
If ever there was a crowning achievement for us, it is this lodge.
This past year has been the busiest, bumpiest, and most beautiful of my life.
Brant Brother’s Construction is more than a dream on paper.
It has become the most sought-after name in the valley.
Being local, good ol' boys turned out to be a good thing because clients trusted us because they knew us.
They wanted to work with us, sometimes over more established companies.
“It is beautiful,” a sweet voice calls from behind me.
Turning, I smile because, yes, it sure is beautiful up here.
This was our passion project, the one that got us started, so it’s natural it is the most significant one we’ve completed.
The lodge will host hunters in the winter, but also weddings or other big to-do's whenever we can book them. It is a beautiful place with the Brant Brother’s touch on each alcove, each intricate design of crown molding, and all the fireplaces there to warm its gusts.
“Yes it is,” I comment, never taking my eyes off the woman I love, as I respond the way I did on our first date at this very lodge. “Look how beautiful.”
Maren beams at me as she rushes across the distance between us, giving a little jump.
I am there to catch her, letting her wrap herself around me.
It is one of my favorite things she does.
At the end of each day, I am in some way or another wrapped up in this woman—and I wouldn’t want to end my days any other way.
“Hello Mr. Brant. Miss me?”
“Ms. Carter, I did. I think we have a long talk before I let you go off again.”
Maren laughs before she kisses me because I am being foolish.
I am not shy about my foolishness for her.
Though, telling her I won’t allow her a girl trip with her bestie Evie again is a stretch.
We both know I would never tell her no. Not about a girl trip that takes her away from me for a few days, not about hanging the Degas from my office above the main fireplace here, where she said it belongs.
“I love you,” she breathes against my mouth as the kiss slows.
“Mmm, I love you too, honey. You two have a good weekend?”
“We did. Except someone would not leave my best friend alone.”
Laughing, I nod. Yeah, Ethan has been pretty insufferable since they went out of town.
Their relationship is...complicated. Still, anytime my girl gets a desire to hit Silver Shores for a shopping trip or to spend a weekend in Sunset Springs to soak up the sun, she takes Evie along—and he is less and less happy each time.
“Really, baby, this place...it’s perfect. It’s ready for guests, yes? You did it. You boys actually did it. You got everything you wanted, Morgan,” she whispers, eyes shining with pride.
Stepping back, I set her on her feet. I have been waiting all weekend for this moment.
I take a trembling breath before I go down on my knee.
This is the perfect place to do this, so I am glad Evie played along to send her this way once they got back to town.
“Not everything. There’s one project I’ve been stalling on because I wanted to be sure the foundation was good. ”
Pulling the ring box out of my work vest, I take another trembling breath.
We talked about all this once. We don’t need marriage or kids to build the life we want.
But thinking about someone else getting married here at the lodge before us does not feel right.
I want to watch her come down those stairs, I want to stand in front of our friends and tell the whole world how much I love her, how I just hope I can measure up to be what she needs for the rest of our lives.
“I’ve built a lot of things in my life, honey.
A career I was good at but did not love.
A side hustle with my brothers that became my passion.
Friendships that I will always cherish but.
..what I’ve built with you, it’s...its the most important project of my life.
The one I want to be sure I get right. We said we don’t need a wedding to prove we’re building a life together, but I want one anyway. Maren, will you...”
Suddenly, I am flying backwards. I hit the brand new hand hewn hardwood with a heavy thud. I laugh. Because of course she would put me on my ass—didn't she do that the day I went to her office looking for an excuse to admit I wanted to go all in with my brothers?
“Yes! Yes, yes, so much yes. I may not need a wedding but I sure wnat one. Can we have it here? Oh, it would be so beuatiful here, Morgan1”
Holding her close as she rambles, I nod as I beam up at her. “Yeah, honey, we can have it here. That yes means...you want to be my wife?”
“I never thought I wanted to be a wife. Until this brute of a man, dirty and handsome, came onto me in the middle of a business meeting,” she teases about our first meeting. “But then being a wife, being your wife, it started to sound pretty nice. Yes, I want to be your wife, Morgan.”
I slide the ring on her finger before she is on me again.
I kiss her, soft and deep. Aside from the thrum of our heartbeats, the lodge is silent, yet it feels full—almost bursting.
It is full of the future we’ve already constructed together—a solid foundation, a blueprint for happiness that is inevitable.