Epilogue
RIDGE
EIGHTEEN MONTHS LATER
The late June sun beats down on my shoulders as I adjust my tie for the third time in as many minutes. My hands won't stop shaking, which is ridiculous considering I've faced down charging bears with more composure.
"You look like you're about to pass out," Jax observes, leaning against the cabin wall with his arms crossed. Riley stands beside him, radiant in her bridesmaid dress, amusement dancing in her eyes.
"I'm fine," I mutter, tugging at the collar of my white dress shirt.
"You're sweating through your jacket," Colt adds helpfully, adjusting his own tie with the ease of someone who got married six months ago. "Want me to get you some water?"
"I want all of you to shut up." I pace across the porch, taking in the transformation of our property. White chairs arranged in neat rows facing the lake. An arch woven with wildflowers at the water's edge. Strings of lights waiting to illuminate the reception as evening falls.
Our wedding. Finally.
"She's not going to leave you at the altar," Riley says gently, reading my mind. "That woman looks at you like you hung the moon."
"And the stars," Jax adds. "And possibly invented gravity."
Despite my nerves, a smile tugs at my lips.
Stella does look at me like that. Has every day for the past eighteen months.
Through custody hearings and legal battles.
Through Chellie's third birthday party and her first day of preschool.
Through the expansion we added to the cabin, creating a proper master suite and turning my old bedroom into Chellie's princess palace.
Through morning sickness that turned out to be more like all-day sickness.
My hand instinctively moves to my jacket pocket, fingers brushing the ultrasound photo tucked inside. We haven't told anyone yet. Wanted to wait until after the wedding, make today about us becoming a legal family before announcing we're expanding it.
"Five minutes," Darlene bustles past, clipboard in hand, orchestrating this production with military precision. "Ridge, stop fidgeting. Stella's almost ready."
Almost ready. My bride is almost ready.
The guests have started arriving, filling the chairs we spent yesterday setting up.
Half the town turned out, it seems. The sheriff and his wife.
Peggie from the pet store, who apologized profusely for accidentally giving Rick my address and has been trying to make it up to us ever since.
Marcus Sullivan, who's become a regular client and surprisingly good friend.
Teachers from Chellie's preschool. Riley's social work colleagues. Colt's metalworking clients.
Our community. Our family.
Music starts, an acoustic guitar playing the processional we chose. My heart kicks into overdrive.
Riley walks down the aisle first, beaming at Jax as she passes. Then comes Chellie, a vision in pale pink, carrying her basket of flower petals with intense concentration. She scatters them precisely, tongue poking out the corner of her mouth the way it does when she's focused.
When she reaches the front, she looks up at me and mouths, "You okay, Daddy?"
The word still gets me, even after eighteen months of hearing it daily. I nod, throat too tight for words.
Then the music shifts, and everyone stands.
Stella appears at the end of the aisle, and the world narrows to just her.
She's wearing a simple white dress that hugs her curves before flowing to the ground, wildflowers woven through her dark hair. Her smile is radiant, eyes locked on mine as she walks toward me with measured steps.
No father to give her away. She's giving herself to me, as I'm giving myself to her. A choice we're both making freely.
When she reaches me, I take her hands, noting they're shaking as badly as mine.
"Hi," she whispers.
"Hi yourself." I squeeze her fingers gently. "You're beautiful."
"You're not so bad yourself." Her smile turns mischievous. "Think we can get through this without me crying?"
"Not a chance," I murmur as the officiant begins speaking.
The ceremony passes in a blur of words and promises. I hear myself saying vows we wrote together, pledging forever to this woman who came back to me broken and let me help put her back together. Who put me back together in ways I didn't realize I needed.
"I love you," I say, slipping the ring onto her finger. "I've loved you since we were seventeen. I'll love you when we're ninety. You and Chellie are my entire world."
Her tears start then, as predicted. "I love you too. You're my home, Ridge. My safe place. My everything." She slides my ring on with slightly trembling hands. "Thank you for waiting for me. For loving me. For loving our daughter."
"Our daughter," I repeat, the possessive pronoun filling me with fierce joy.
"I now pronounce you husband and wife," the officiant declares. "You may kiss your bride."
I don't need to be told twice. I pull Stella into my arms, capturing her mouth in a kiss that's probably too heated for a public ceremony. She melts against me, hands fisting in my jacket, kissing me back with equal enthusiasm.
Someone wolf whistles. Probably Colt.
When we finally break apart, Stella's lipstick is smudged, her eyes dazed. "Wow."
"That's Mrs. Reeves to you," I tease, pressing my forehead to hers.
"Mrs. Reeves," she repeats, testing it out. "I like the sound of that."
Chellie appears beside us, tugging on Stella's dress. "My turn!"
Laughing, I scoop her up, the three of us wrapped in an embrace as cheers erupt from our guests. This moment, this perfect crystalline moment, is everything I've dreamed of since I was seventeen and realized Stella Brooks was the only woman I'd ever love.
The reception flows with food and laughter and dancing. Chellie insists on a dance with me, standing on my feet as I waltz her around the makeshift dance floor. Then another with Stella, the three of us swaying together as the sun sets and the string lights come alive.
"Can we tell them now?" Stella whispers against my ear during our official first dance. "I'm dying to share."
"Let's wait until we cut the cake," I suggest. "Build the suspense."
She laughs, the sound warming me from the inside out. "You're terrible."
"You married me anyway."
"Best decision I ever made." She rises on her toes despite her heels, pressing a kiss to my jaw. "Well, second best. Coming back to Whisper Vale was the first."
When the cake appears, a three-tiered masterpiece from the bakery in Carson City, I take the microphone from Darlene.
"Before we cut this, Stella and I have an announcement."
The crowd quiets, curiosity evident on every face. Beside me, Stella's hand finds mine, squeezing tight.
"As of this morning," I continue, unable to keep the grin off my face, "we're not just a family of three."
Confused murmurs ripple through the guests.
Stella steps forward, her own smile radiant. "We're having a baby."
The announcement is met with stunned silence for exactly two seconds before chaos erupts. Riley squeals, launching herself at Stella. Jax claps me on the back hard enough to make me stumble. Colt whoops, sweeping Chellie into his arms.
"I'm gonna be a big sister!" Chellie announces to anyone who will listen. "With a brother or sister to boss around!"
"How far along?" Riley demands, examining Stella with professional interest.
"Twelve weeks," Stella confirms. "We found out two months ago but wanted to wait until after the first trimester."
"Due in December," I add, sliding my arm around my wife's waist. My wife. The words still feel surreal. "Another Christmas miracle."
Darlene appears with champagne, quickly swapping Stella's glass for sparkling cider. "To the happy couple! And their growing family!"
"To family!" The toast echoes across the lake, voices raised in celebration.
Later, much later, after the last guest has left and Chellie is fast asleep in her bed, I find Stella on our porch, still in her wedding dress, staring up at the stars.
"Hey Mrs. Reeves." I wrap my arms around her from behind, resting my chin on her shoulder. "Shouldn't you be in bed? Growing a human is exhausting work."
"Couldn't sleep." She leans back against my chest. "Too happy. Too excited. Too everything."
"Same." I press a kiss to her temple. "Best day of my life."
"Mine too." She turns in my arms, eyes shining in the moonlight. "Though I have a feeling we're going to have a lot of best days."
"Count on it." I capture her mouth in a slow, thorough kiss. "Starting with tonight."
Her laugh is breathless when we break apart. "You're insatiable."
"Only for you." I sweep her into my arms, carrying her toward the door. "And I've got eighteen months of calling you my girlfriend to make up for. Mrs. Reeves needs some proper celebrating."
"Ridge!" She laughs, arms winding around my neck. "What about Chellie?"
"Sound asleep. And our room is on the opposite side of the cabin now, remember?" I kick the door shut behind us. "Perks of the expansion."
In our bedroom, I set her gently on the bed, taking a moment to just look at her. My wife. The mother of my children. The woman I've loved for more than half my life.
"What?" she asks, self-conscious under my gaze.
"Just memorizing this moment." I join her on the bed, fingers finding the zipper of her dress. "You, in this dress, in our room, on our wedding night. Pregnant with our baby."
"Our baby," she echoes, wonder in her voice. "I still can't believe it's real."
"Believe it." I press a kiss to her shoulder as the dress falls away. "This is our life now. This beautiful, chaotic, perfect life."
"I love our life." She reaches for my tie, loosening it with practiced ease. "I love you."
"I love you too." I capture her mouth again, kiss deepening as we sink into the mattress together. "Forever, Stella. You and me and whatever chaos our kids bring."
"Forever," she agrees, pulling me closer. "I wouldn't have it any other way."
And as we come together, husband and wife, partners and parents, I send up a silent prayer of thanks for blizzards and second chances and the woman who came home to stay.
Want To Check In With Ridge, Stella and Chellie to see how they are doing in the future? Click here for an exclusive bonus epilogue.
Thank you so much for reading Snowed-In With The Mountain Man.