Epilogue
Ella — Three Months Later
I could stay right here forever.
Lying on our yacht with Cole at the helm.
This is some whole-new-world, magic-carpet-level stuff right here.
He’s shown me so much, but I love it right here with him.
The slowly rolling waves and swaying palm trees are making this our own little slice of paradise. The sun is setting and painting the sky with glorious swipes of color. It’s pure splendor.
Yep. I really could stay here forever.
I never thought I’d see so many wonderful sights. It’s all breathtaking.
I was always so afraid I’d be homesick if I traveled too far away from the only place I’d ever been. Turns out that I was afraid for no reason at all.
As long as Cole is with me, I feel like I’m home.
At home on this yacht, floating in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico, no one else around for miles…
Cole comes up next to me. My eyes are closed, but I can see the way the sunlight dulls. He’s bigger than the sun. He’s massive. He creates his own solar eclipse wherever he goes.
He sits down next to me, but I don’t open my eyes. I reach over and grope around to grab him.
“Hey,” I say drowsily as I keep feeling around. My eyes flutter open and I grin when he comes into view with the most stunning background behind him; brush strokes of the pink and orange sun, laced with white clouds.
And him, a massive hunk of a man I cannot imagine living without.
I open my eyes and trace my fingers along his arm. I always find something new and interesting. A line that isn’t shaded quite right. A piece that’s fading. It’s all a tribute to the places he’s visited.
“Mmm,” I hum, coaxing him lower. He leans down slowly as I tug at him to get closer. His lips meet mine and he cups my cheek, running his thumb along my jaw.
He pulls back just enough to look deep into my eyes.
“I want to spend the rest of my days discovering you,” he says, voice low, serious but soft. My breath catches, the weight of what he’s about to say sinking in like the warmth of the sun behind us.
“Ella,” he says. “Will you marry me?”
The words make my brain shatter. My heart is pounding in my chest as he pulls a small box from his pocket and opens it.
Inside is a diamond ring fit for a princess. It’s a huge rock. Round. Shining. It takes my breath away.
I scramble to my knees and take my sunglasses off. I might be imagining this moment. Maybe lazing on the beach all day has made me dehydrated to the point of hallucinating.
“Marry you?” I put my fingers to my lips as I look up at him. The words sound beautiful as they flutter against my lips.
“I am absolutely fucking crazy about you, Ella. These past three months have been the most exhilarating, wonderful, and beautiful time of my life. I go crazy any time I’m around you, and I go even crazier when you’re by my side. I want to give you everything. The world. Me. A home. Everything.”
He leans down and kisses me. It’s the kind of kiss that feels like it could last forever. Everything seems to flow. Everything seems to melt away.
He takes my hand and slides the ring onto my finger. I run the tips of my fingers across it and look up at him.
“Marry me,” Cole says.
“Yes.” The word sweeps out of me. “Yes, yes, yes.”
He grabs my hand and pulls me to my feet. Then he picks me up bridal-style and carries me to his car.
I could stay right here forever…
But I’d go anywhere with this man.