Epilogue
“Remind me why I let you talk me into this?” Teonny huffed and puffed between every word.
Prosper chuckled as he looked back at her.
Sweat glistened off her peanut butter skin, and his dick twitched at the sight of her in the maroon-colored sports bra and matching biker shorts.
It didn’t matter that they had basically lived in each other’s skin over the past five years.
Teonny would always turn him on in the worst way.
“For this,” Prosper replied, a little out of breath himself as he took one last step and admired the view.
He didn’t hike often, but when he did, he loved taking this trail. It was long and pretty brutal, but the view of his city, Ellwood in all its glory, was always worth it. In the distance, he could even see Desmore Bay with its coastal line.
Prosper grinned when he heard Teonny gasp behind him. He turned around to face her with his brows raised in challenge.
Her chest heaved, but that smile, that damn smile he worked so hard for every single day, stole all his focus. Teonny shook her head before she grabbed a bottle of water out of her backpack and took a swig.
Prosper waited patiently as he watched her, and when she finished, she rolled her eyes. “Fine. It was worth it. This view is breathtaking.”
Prosper laughed. She was the only person on the planet who could make him so lighthearted, and he was addicted to the feeling, which meant he was addicted to her.
Teonny walked over to him, and he held her from behind while they took in the view. The sun was just setting, and the pink and orange colors made a dope ass contrast to the grayish blue sky.
After taking the scene in for several minutes, Prosper figured he needed to speak before the sun went down.
“I got you something.” He removed his arms from her warm body and pulled his backpack off.
Teonny’s eyes lit up. She learned pretty quickly that Prosper was a very thoughtful gift giver.
He nodded as he pulled out an extremely expensive camera from his bag.
She hadn’t picked up a camera in over ten years, but lately, he noticed she took photos of everything on her phone.
The other day, she halted their leisurely walk so she could capture a damn leaf on the ground because it “looked too perfect not to.”
He knew his baby. He knew when something was missing from her life, and he felt like it was time to encourage her to get back to one of her old loves.
Teonny often felt like she couldn’t bear to bring anything from her old life into her new one.
Prosper often had to remind her why that was actually okay.
This was one of those times.
Teonny took in a small breath of surprise as she gazed at the camera longingly. Her eyes watered when she looked at him, but she didn’t speak.
“I don’t know shit about cameras. The lady at the store said this was the best of the best.”
She took a tentative step toward him. “For me?”
He nodded. “It ain’t for me. You always say I take the worst photos.”
“And do.” She agreed as she reached out for the camera.
Prosper playfully sucked his teeth while she played around with the camera.
The first photo she took was of him. He was caught completely off guard, but he was used to it.
She had so many stupid ass pictures of him in her phone.
He left that fight alone a long time ago.
“Damn, I forgot how good it felt to hold a camera,” she whispered.
After that, it was game over. Her little ass walked around everywhere snapping photos. She even made him pose for some. He let her have her fun and watched on with a big smile.
Teonny had bounced back from hell. It may not have been graceful, and it may have been extremely messy at times, but his baby did it. She deserved the world at her feet. He only hoped what he gave her could be the equivalent to that.
As the sun finally dipped below the horizon, Prosper spoke up again. “I got something else for you.”
She snapped a couple more pictures with the last sliver of daylight before turning around to look at him.
“Something else?” she asked with happy tears at the corner of her eyes. “What the hell else could you—” She gasped when she watched Prosper take a knee and produce a small box from his pocket.
“Come here, Peanut.”
Teonny did as she was told and took a timid step toward him. “Patrick . . .”
He gently shushed her as he took her hand.
“Let me get this out. You know I been in love wit’ yo’ ass for a long time.
You are my everything. There ain’t nothing or nobody I have ever loved more in this lifetime or the last, and there will never be anyone I love more in the future or in the next lifetime.
I knew I was in love with you way before you even gave me a chance, and I been patient.
I wanted you to be ready when I finally asked you this question, and I think you are.
You let me know if I’m wrong. Teonny, will you marry me? ”
“It’s about damn time you asked!” She screeched as she jumped up and down excitedly.
He chuckled. “Oh, you been waitin’?” he asked with his brows raised.
Teonny bent down and grabbed his cheek before she laid a kiss on his lips. “I think I been waitin’ for you my whole life, Patrick.”
Tears filled his eyes. She had no idea how happy she made him. Those words falling from her pretty lips made him her prisoner for life, and she didn’t even know it.
“Is that a yes?”
She giggled. “It’s a hell yes.”
He slid the ring on her finger, and they solidified their new chapter with a sensual kiss.
This right here was what it was all about.
If he didn’t ever learn anything else in his life, he knew to be authentic.
He knew to stay ten toes down. He knew he needed to be real in order to get the very most out of life, because the one law he knew to be true in any situation was that Only the Real Prosper.
The End.