Epilogue
ONE YEAR LATER
The hallway is dark as I tiptoe down it. No one should be awake at this hour, and my empty bed is making it impossible to sleep.
That’s when, of course, I trip over someone lying on the floor. I nearly go tumbling, but manage to catch myself before crushing whoever was stupid enough to sleep in my hallway.
“I knew it,” Quinn mutters as she sits up. “You’re trying to sneak out again.”
My face erupts into heat as I realize why she is where she is. “You told me you were sleeping on the couch.”
“That’s what I wanted you to think. I gave the couch to Scarlett. She needed it anyway.”
Quinn knew about Scarlett from my stories, but I finally got my cruise friend to come to Nashville for one major occasion. It should make me happy that they were getting along.
But I am not in a good mood.
“Please let me pass,” I beg. “I need sleep.”
“You told me you didn’t want the bad luck.” She rubs her eyes. “It’s not even been twelve hours yet. ”
“That’s way too long,” I say. “Just forget what I asked you. Who needs luck?”
“And have your dad kill you? He’s not taking chances here, Maisie. I don’t want that smoke.”
I sigh. Dad definitely isn’t playing around.
And I hate whoever told him that it was bad luck for a bride to see her groom before the wedding day.
I don’t like to think about the last time I almost got married, but Dad wasn’t as involved that time. But he’s taken center stage with Nate and me.
He threw a party when Nate proposed. A literal party with balloons. And now that we’re only one night away from the wedding, he’s been involved in every step.
I’m not sure who’s more excited about this.
Still, I want to sleep with my man. In both ways, preferably.
“Quinn,” I beg again.
“You’ll survive.”
It’s not like Nate and I are never apart. We get plenty of time on our own, but we both prefer being together. It’s been like that since the day we met, even when I didn’t realize it.
Being together opened more doors. To some, Nate and I moved way too quickly. But to us, it feels like we’re catching up on lost time.
I attempted to strong-arm my way past Quinn and go sleep in the same bed as my fiancé. But I’m the one who put her up to this, and I know Dad is going to check in.
“Fine. Just know I’ll be miserable.” I poke my bottom lip out and hope for some sympathy from my friend. She only laughs.
When I get back to my room, I flop on the bed and wonder if I’m going to get any sort of sleep. There are a lot of things that my wedding makeup can cover, but I’m not sure it can conceal the dark circles I’ll have tomorrow.
I’m still mulling on sleep when there’s a tap at my window. At first, I think it’s a tree branch, but it’s persistent. Sitting up, I go to check, only for my jaw to drop when I open the curtains.
“Nate?” I ask as I shove the window open. “What are you doing here?”
“Sneaking in. Doesn’t it remind you of old times?” He hops through the window right into my room. He’s not wrong. This is exactly like when Mom and Dad tried to separate us when we were teenagers.
“You do know we’re not supposed to see each other before the wedding, right?” I ask.
“You do know I was never gonna listen to that, right?” he parrots back. “And besides, I heard you trip over Quinn.”
I have to hide my smile. “Yeah, yeah. Whatever.”
Nate leans in, a shit-eating grin on his face. “Just say it, berry.”
“Say what?”
“You have a crush on me.”
I almost laugh, but I elbow him instead. “You’re such a nerd.”
“But I’m about to be your nerd.”
“You’ve always been mine. It’s just in marriage now.”
“You’re very right about that.” He kisses me once before pulling out his phone. “Now, I have an alarm set so I can sneak back in before anyone else is up. Shall we try to get as much sleep as we can?”
“I wish we had time for other things,” I say with a sigh. “But I should sleep.”
“It’s almost like we have a wedding tomorrow.”
“Huh, how strange.” I grab his hands. “Now, get in bed. We have cuddles to catch up on.”
I can’t sit still the next day.
“It’s like you’ve had four cups of coffee,” Scarlett says as she curls my hair. “I’ve never seen anyone this excited about getting married ... ever.”
“They’re ridiculously in love,” Quinn replies with a roll of her eyes. “This is all your fault, I hear.”
“My best work yet. I tell all of my clients in denial about their love.”
“Hey,” I say. “One of them is right here. And are you almost done?”
“Almost,” she says. “You’ll have to wait, though.”
I groan and both of my friends laugh.
Neither Nate nor I were worried about having a big wedding. We have our families and our friends and need nothing more. I’m at my house while Nate will be arriving at our wedding venue any moment now. After our vows are exchanged, we’ll come back here and have a party.
It’s perfect.
“Who’s going to cry more?” Scarlett asks. “My money’s on Nate.”
“On Nate?” I ask. “You’ve barely spent time with him.”
“That man is down bad for you,” she says. “I don’t need to spend time with him to know that he’s gonna be emotional today.”
“My bet is on both of them crying an equal amount. It’ll be a sob fest. I can’t wait to get pictures.”
“I hate you all,” I say.
“We’re putting you in waterproof mascara for a reason,” Quinn says.
My leg bounces as Scarlett finishes my hair and they talk about things they want to get up to while I’m on my honeymoon.
Apparently, Scarlett is staying for a bit, and I’m bummed I don’t get to see her the entire time she’s in town.
The two of us have kept in contact, but it’s not the same as it was when we were on the cruise.
One of these days, I’ll convince her to move here .
Amy and Riley will no doubt be joining. At our rehearsal dinner, they all talked like old friends, and it’s nice to see such a big day come and go without any drama.
Today’s wedding is going to go the same way.
Once upon a time, I had a different idea of how all of this worked. But as I think about Nate being my husband, I’m so glad I got my head out of my ass.
I’m counting the seconds until both of my parents walk me down the aisle to him. I have a feeling they’ll be in as big of a rush as I am.
I don’t feel anything but that excitement until we pull up to the venue. Then I see Nate in the distance with his wavy hair styled, wearing a perfect suit, and it finally hits me.
We’re going to be married .
My heart rate kicks up. Not out of fear, but out of pure happiness. This is where I’m meant to end up. This is where I want to be.
That happiness grows until it causes me to tear up.
Quinn, who’s sitting beside me, hands me a tissue. “There it is.”
“Thanks,” I say as I blot the wetness from my eyes. “Now let’s do this.”
I’m pretty sure Mom and Dad congratulate me before they walk me down the aisle, but I can barely focus on anything other than Nate. The second our eyes lock, it’s all I can do not to run to him.
The same goes for him. He’s shuffling his feet as if he’s also fighting the urge.
I go through the motions of what we practiced, but I’m on autopilot, even as the officiant starts speaking.
The only time I’m truly listening to a thing anyone says is when Nate recites his vows.
At first, he clears his throat, looking uncharacteristically shy as he starts reading. My heart rate is probably dangerous for me, and tears are already welling up in my eyes again before he’s even spoken.
I’m so not making it through this unscathed.
“It was always a dream to marry you, berry. And for a long time, I never thought it would come true.” He squeezes my hands and takes a breath before he keeps going.
“Now that it has, I struggle to put vows into words, but I’ll do my best. The first thing I’ll do is always share the last strawberry with you, even if I’m starving.
I’ll always make you smile, even when I’m being annoying.
I want to be there for you, both as your protector and the one who pushes you to do something difficult.
But most importantly, I vow to love you every day, throughout every trial life may throw at us.
It’s all I know how to do.” He sniffles and wipes a tear.
I’m openly weeping as he finishes.
I want to kiss him right then and there, but I still have my own damn vows to do. “Wow, you really went for good ones, huh?” My voice is rough. I’m surprised I can talk at all.
“Well, you only get one wedding.” He shrugs.
I laugh and take a breath to get myself together. Then, I say mine.
“It’s taken me a long time to understand what love can be.
Sometimes it’s putting your feelings second when you want the other to be happy.
” Nate’s eyes widen when he realizes I’m not talking about what I’ve done.
It’s all the things he’s done for me. “Other times, it’s telling the truth even when it hurts to hear.
It’s holding hands when the other is scared, but also pushing them when they need it.
These are all things you’ve done for me since the day we met, and I have no idea how to repay all of those little things. ”
“Y-you don’t have to.” More tears run down his face now. I wonder if Quinn is cheering at the messes both of us are.
“But I’ll try. I vow to see you, to hear you. To accept the love that you’ve shown me for nearly our whole lives, and to give you just as much in return. ”
There’s still more that the officiant has to say, but Nate’s done waiting. Right when they start talking, he pulls me for a kiss and slips the ring on my finger, a detail we both had forgotten during our vows.
And we don’t separate until it’s over.
“I cannot believe I’m doing this again,” I say as we walk hand in hand along the dock.
“This was your idea,” Nate replies as cool air brushes over us both. “I would’ve been fine to stay in Nashville and never leave the bed.”
“We can never leave the bed here too,” I offer. “But we have to pay homage to how we got together.”
Both of us are in front of a massive boat. Instead of being on the tip of Florida, we’re in Alaska in the middle of summer. The sun will barely set, and it’ll be an adventure for us both.
I wasn’t sure I could handle another beach vacation, but this? This seems fun.
He squeezes my hand. “Are you ready?”
“Of course I am.” I lean my head on his shoulder. “I have you with me.”
“And you always will.”
I press my lips to his one more time before we get on the boat. The last time this happened, I was a nervous wreck and heartbroken.
This time, I have everything I could ever want.