Epilogue
Quincy
Christmas Eve had arrived, and my heart was full.
I’d never understood that saying before. Now I knew it was a legit physical sensation where you had so much joy inside of you your heart felt as if it was bursting with sparkles and overflowing with gratitude.
The best news was that Knox’s ex had signed a voluntary surrender of parental rights.
This little girl in my arms was his, and we no longer had to worry about Gina surfacing and demanding time with her.
It was the best Christmas present in the history of Christmas presents.
I would never understand the woman who gave birth to this beautiful girl, and maybe her mental health diagnoses were to blame, but I was grateful that Knox had closure.
Even before that news, Knox and I had planned a Christmas Eve party and invited everyone we loved. Now we just had extra to celebrate.
We’d decorated the house until it brimmed with holiday beauty, with evergreen garland, silver bows, white bulbs, and twinkle lights everywhere.
The tree was fourteen feet tall, reaching to the ceiling at that end of the living room, and we’d loaded its branches down with ornaments.
Underneath the evergreen was a bounty of wrapped packages, a good half of them for the baby girl who likely wouldn’t remember them anyway. We couldn’t help ourselves.
I was standing by the tree at Juniper’s insistence—she was obsessed with the reflections of the lights in the glass bulbs and loved watching them blink slowly on then off.
“Hey, honey.” My dad came up beside me. “Hi, Junie Bee.” His voice got ridiculously adorable when he spoke to Juniper.
“Hi, Dad. Having fun?”
“It’s been a great night, hasn’t it? All three of your younger siblings have behaved, gotten along even. Cynthia and Faye hit it off as if they’ve known each other for years. Your friends are a pleasure to talk to. Thanks for inviting us.”
“Of course,” I said. “But be honest. What you like most is the food.”
“Truth? The olive balls and the spiral-cut glazed ham are the best things I’ve eaten in recent memory. I could live on them alone.”
“If there were leftovers, I’d give you some,” I said, laughing. “Wouldn’t we, Junie?”
“We’re getting ready to leave, but I saw you and this cutie pie alone and wanted to tell you how proud I am of you.”
“Um, thanks, but we had the food catered in. I can’t take any credit other than the extensive tasting we had to do.”
“You poor girl.” He laughed. “I meant in general. This.” He looked around us, becoming entirely serious. “The life you’re making for yourself.”
“Thanks, Dad.” I wasn’t sure if you could call it that since Knox and I had only been together a little over a month, but whatever it was, I’d never been happier.
Grasping my upper arm gently and pulling me to face him more fully, he said, “Cynthia pointed out that, all these years, I might’ve made you feel pressured to go back to school, and I suppose she’s right.”
I nodded, surprised by the seriousness of the topic in the middle of the festivities.
“All I’ve ever wanted for you, Quincy, is a happy, fulfilling life.
Maybe I thought school could help you find that.
” He shook his head. “What’s important is that you find your path.
The Quincy path. Only you can say what that is, but from where I’m standing, it looks an awful lot like you’ve found it, daughter of mine. ”
I smiled, a little choked up. “Knox makes me happy, Dad. Juniper makes me happy.”
“It’s obvious. And that makes me happy.” He kissed the top of my head and squeezed my shoulder. “Good going, Quincy.”
I laughed, elated…at his long-awaited credit as much as with my current life situation. “Thanks.”
“I love you, dear girl.”
“Love you too, Dad.”
He hugged Juniper and me. “We’ll see you tomorrow for dinner, right?”
“Absolutely.” We planned to spend Christmas morning with the Norths and Henrys, then head to my parents’ in the late afternoon. It’d be a busy but full holiday for us, in the best possible way.
With June still in my arms, I got my family’s coats, met them at the door, and hugged Cynthia, Hannah, Molly, and Brayden. Knox joined us, sliding his arm around me.
“Thanks for coming,” he told my family as he hugged them too.
“Thank you for having us. This has been a delight,” Cynthia said as she wove her arm through my dad’s.
“You two have a good night.” My dad sent Knox a weighty look that didn’t make sense to me, but then he and Knox had spent time out on the deck together earlier, monitoring the snow that had begun coming down lightly.
Knox’s reply was a smile and a nervous nod.
In the past month, we’d had dinner with my family three times, allowing them to get to know Knox and vice versa. Cynthia and I had truly managed to smooth things out. Though we weren’t best friends, the tension had dissipated, and we were gradually getting to know each other on a deeper level.
Brayden and Molly adored Knox. Hannah doted on Juniper. And my dad seemed content to have us all get along. Their acceptance of the man I loved, plus my improving relationship with my stepmom, made me feel like I finally fit into the family.
Once we shut the door, Knox put his arm around me again, kissed my temple, and said, “A little over an hour till I get you alone.”
I laughed, noting the way my body responded to his suggestiveness. “This is our party and our friends. You’re supposed to enjoy every second of it.”
“Then you shouldn’t have worn that dress.” He breathed the words into my ear.
The sensation and the words were so hot that I wondered if there was a way to empty the house in the next thirty seconds so he could peel said dress off me. It was a simple dark green sequined thing that ended at my upper thighs and hugged my body just enough.
“A little over an hour,” I said. “In the meantime, this one is ready for her bedtime bottle.” Juniper was resting her head on my shoulder, her thumb in her mouth, lids starting to droop.
“I’ll get her ready for bed. I promised Faye she could give her the bottle.”
As if she had baby-bedtime radar, Faye scrambled happily over to us. “Is it time for bed for this princess?”
Laughing, I kissed the baby and handed her over and watched Faye and Knox head down the hall toward Junie’s room.
Piper, Hayden, Taylor, and Jewel were huddled together on one side of the sectional, engrossed in whatever they were discussing. Based on the way Hayden’s gaze ping-ponged between Piper and Jewel, my curiosity was piqued. I headed over to them and sat on the ottoman next to Hayden.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
Jewel’s eyebrows rose as she said, “Alex is coming home.”
My mind needed a few seconds to catch up. Alex… One glance at Taylor’s face filled in the blanks. “Worth?”
“The one and only,” Jewel said.
Piper, who sat between Jewel and Taylor, laced her hand with Taylor’s. Taylor’s creamy skin looked paler than usual, and she chewed on her lower lip.
“Are you…okay with that?” I asked Taylor.
Her gaze bounced up to mine. “Of course.”
Alex Worth was the same age as Jewel, the same age Taylor’s brother would be if he hadn’t been killed in combat several months ago.
Tragically, Alex had been piloting the army helicopter when it came under attack.
From what I’d heard, Alex had managed to heroically land it, but his best friend, Vance Elliott, had lost his life.
Hayden patted Taylor’s knee sympathetically, and we all sat there without saying anything.
“I’m going to get a glass of water,” Taylor said. She flashed us a smile that was forced, closer to a grimace, as she stood and rushed off to the kitchen.
Eyeing her sympathetically, Hayden said, “Me too. I’ll make sure she’s okay.” She went after Taylor, leaving the three of us there, stumbling for what to say.
“That’s going to bring everything back for her, right?” I asked.
Piper and Jewel exchanged a meaningful glance. “I suspect it’s a whole lot messier than that,” Jewel said.
Piper leaned forward. “Years ago, Taylor admitted she had a crush on him.” Her voice was barely audible with the party going on around us.
“On Alex?” I tried to wrap my head around that when both of my friends nodded.
Alex Worth was a jock, outgoing, good-looking, popular. Taylor’s brother’s best friend. Taylor was a certified genius, shy, and quiet. She seemed like the type who’d choose brains over looks every day. Not to say Alex wasn’t smart, but no one was smart on Taylor’s level.
“Do you think she’s still crushing?” I asked.
“No idea,” Piper said. “I mean, Alex is a hero—that’s absolutely not in question—but her brother… How do you even process something like that? I’m still trying to accept that Vance is gone and he’s only my cousin.”
Jewel was leaning forward too as we all tried to imagine how Alex’s return would affect their cousin.
“You guys can stop talking about me now.” Taylor leaned her head between Piper and Jewel from behind the sectional, startling all three of us.
“We’re just worried about you,” Piper said.
“I’ll be fine.” Taylor flashed another attempt at a smile. “But I’m going to go home now. This has been fun. Thank you for inviting me, Quincy.”
“Of course. I’m so glad you made it.” I stood to hug her and held on a couple of extra seconds, knowing she must be going through so much. “Merry Christmas.”
“Merry Christmas.”
Jewel and Piper both hugged her as well and made sure she didn’t want company. She assured them she didn’t.
We’d barely sat down again when a familiar voice rang out from the door.
“Hey, Seth,” my brother Ryan said as he came inside. “Cash.”
I stood again, grinning.
“I’m going out for some fresh air,” Jewel said. Something about her tone caught my attention. It wasn’t friendly.
I glanced at Piper, who shrugged. “Too many people?”