Epilogue
Ciarán
“You lied,” Emilia grumbles to me on our daily phone call. “You said you’d be home in three weeks. It’s been four. I dislike this…”
“I know, baby. I promise I’ll be back next week. And I tell you what, I’ll come to Starlight Bay and we can drive to Lake Renegade together.”
There’s silence on her end. That’s never a good sign.
“Baby?”
I hear her sigh.
“I miss you so much.”
“I miss you too. And I promise, it won’t be much longer. And then we’ll never be apart again.”
“Pinky swear?”
“Yes.”
What Emilia doesn’t know is that I’m already in Starlight Bay. I got in about an hour ago and we’re driving to her house now. I didn’t mean to be in Ireland for a month, but because of my shoulder, I couldn’t really pack or do much. So my family helped me do it and I couldn’t just up and say ‘Okay, thanks for packing my stuff. Bye.’ But my mam said it was time to finish up and start my new life with Emilia. My family will be coming back to Lake Renegade in two months for the grand opening of our dental office. So it won’t be long before we’re all together again.
My da has been talking to my grandparents and Aintín Caitríona everyday. While I was back in Ireland, we got to spend more time with my da’s biological parents. We also had a small gathering so they could meet his siblings. We even did a video chat with Aintín Caitríona and her family. I love how we’ve all become one big family. And I believe that if my da’s adoptive parents were alive, they’d be so happy for him too.
“Are you excited to start this new chapter?” I ask Aisling.
“I am. I mean, part of me is scared. But I have you with me so I think it’s going to be okay. And knowing our new family and how they’re always there for each other is really comforting.”
“Thank you for coming with me. I know making the decision to leave Ireland wasn’t easy.”
“It wasn’t, I already miss Da and Mam, even Fionn and áine. But I also didn’t want you to do this alone. We all need each other.”
Emilia
One more week. Fine. I can survive one more week without Ciarán. And now that I know he’s coming here first so that we can all drive to Lake Renegade together makes me even happier. Frank decided that he wanted to come with us and start a new life there. And my family is coming to visit us when we get settled. It’s a two-hour drive from my parents’ house to Lake Renegade.
“So how’s the packing coming along?” Courtney asks.
“I never knew I had so much crap. What the fuck? Like, where did all this shit come from?”
Courtney laughs.
“You buy all kinds of shit. I told you before—when you decide to move, it’s gonna be like purging your life.”
“Oh, shut up. I do not buy a lot of shit. You’re just jealous because you have to stay in Chicago.”
“Psh. I can move to Lake Renegade too. You’re not the only one who was invited.”
“Who the fuck invited you?”
“I invited me.”
“You dumbass.” I laugh. “I’m excited to see you all soon.”
“I miss you too. And in all seriousness, I’m really glad you’re okay. And that you have Ciarán. I really like him. By the way, how’s Kali?”
“Thanks, Court. I really like him too. Kali is doing okay. I talked to her earlier today, she still seems down and that makes me sad. She said that she finally blocked John’s number. Her mom agreed that it was time. And unless she was going to forgive him, there was no need to keep seeing his texts. It was only making her sadder.”
“I feel so bad for her. She didn’t deserve any of that.”
“She said she’s going to come and visit us next month. Maybe stay for a few weeks.”
“Aww that will be fun. Maybe I can come too.”
“Of course. You know I won’t say no to that. Well I love you, Court. But I have to finish packing and shit. I’ll text you later.’
“Love you too, sheepy.”
I laugh as I hang up. There’s a knock at the door and I frown. I’m not expecting anyone. I walk into the living room and Carmelo motions for me to stay back. He walks over to the door and looks out the peephole. He’s so tall that he has to bend down to do it.
I hear him chuckle as he opens the door. But then I don’t hear anything.
“Carmelo?” I call out.
When he doesn’t answer, I poke my head around the corner.
“CIARáN!” I yell as I run and jump into his arms.
Ciarán laughs and peppers my face with kisses. Aisling comes in behind him, smiling.
“You’re both here!” I say as I get down and hug Aisling.
“It was hard to keep this quiet.” Aisling laughs.
“I was so grumpy earlier.” I laugh. “I was just telling myself ‘one more week’. I can do it. And then here you are!”
“Frank knew.” Ciarán chuckles.
“What? Who else knew you were coming?” I squint at Carmelo. He looks at the floor and ignores me. “You suuuuck.”
Everyone laughs as Ciarán hugs me again.
The next day we all pile into the car. Frank takes the first shift of driving. Our plan is to stop every three hours for food, or just to stretch. This reminds me of road trips we took when I was growing up. We’ll be in Lake Renegade in two days. We plan on staying the night in Pennsylvania. Even though between the four of us, we could just keep switching off. But Ciarán and Aisling haven’t driven this route. Last time, they went through New York.
Part of me is sad to leave Starlight Bay. It’s where I learned to stand on my own two feet and be my own person. It’s also where I met the love of my life. The man who showed me what unconditional love is.
Wherever Ciarán is? That’s home for me and always will be.
Ciarán
Life in Lake Renegade has been like a dream. Aisling and I opened our dental practice, we named it The Cavity Crusaders. Our new town has embraced us and our practice. Emilia works as our receptionist and handles everything we don’t. I like it because I get to see her all day, everyday.
Emilia’s family lives a couple hours east of us and they come to visit at least once a month. They even switched to our practice so that Aisling and I are their dentists. Since then, Courtney’s bitten me once. I told Aisling she had a new patient after that.
Frank decided he wanted to open a pizza parlor. He’s renting the space from the Mancinis. They don’t charge him much, which makes him a little grumpy. He says they should charge him the same amount they would charge any other person. Enea laughed and said ok. He still hasn’t raised Frank’s rent. Frank specializes in making pizza puffs. All sizes—bite-size, calzone-size and even mini-bites. All different flavors too. He also makes regular pizzas. But he’s becoming well known for his puffs.