Epilogue
FUR, FIASCOS, AND FOREVER
Ollie
M y brother and I pull into the parking lot of the wedding venue at the same time as Daisy and her sister pull in. We both get out, holding our garment bags with our tux and dress inside and make our way to each other. I’m so happy to see her—well, every single day, but especially today—that I can’t stop smiling.
She’s smiling, too, and as I wrap the arm around her that isn’t holding the bag and pull her in for a kiss, she smiles into the kiss pretty quickly, and says, “ Isn’t this supposed to be bad luck?”
Her sister, Laurel , says, “ Only if he sees you in your dress,” at the same time that I say, “ Any time I get to see you is always good luck.”
We go inside the building and take a peek in the grand hall where all the chairs are set up for the guests and the florists are setting up the arch we’ll be getting married under in a few hours. Everything is looking amazing.
“ I’ll take this to the bride’s room,” Laurel says as she adds Daisy’s bag to her load of bags.
“ And I’ll take yours,” my brother Ethan says.
Then it’s just me and Daisy , and I sneak another kiss. “ Mmm ,” I say. “ This day is working out pretty perfectly already.”
Everyone is in town and coming to the wedding. Laurel and her husband Gavin have been here from Charlottesville all week. Ethan and the woman he’s dating came in from Boston . My parents already live close by. Daisy’s parents just got to town from Montpelier , Vermont , where they’ve been running a maple syrup spa retreat. Friends . Coworkers . Family . Even Jace and Mackenzie are coming.
Daisy rests her head against my chest and I wrap my arms around her. “ Can you believe we got everything done?”
I let out a soft chuckle. “ It was nothing short of a miracle. You , my bride, are a superhero.”
I can feel her smile against my chest. I can also feel the relief. Daisy is incredibly creative, and once she gave her creativity permission to roam free, she has made some jewelry and accessories that are so unique that people have been going crazy for them. She started selling them online and posting videos about them on social media. That’s when things really picked up.
Daisy started making coffee mug earrings. She crafts them herself and paints the mugs for each pair uniquely. Some are filled with coffee, but she even makes latte ones with a heart in the foam. A celebrity bought a couple of pairs, and I guess she became “obsessed” with them. She reached out to Daisy and said she’s going to post a video about them but wanted to let her know ahead of time because it’ll send a lot of customers her way, and she’ll need to be prepared.
So it’s been a flurry of activity for both of us as we, along with any friends who can, have been helping with all the parts that don’t have to be done by Daisy herself. All while at the end stages of planning a wedding. And all while working at our day jobs and not taking any time off because we need our vacation time for our honeymoon.
Tomorrow morning, we’ll head off to relax and enjoy being Mr . and Mrs . in Hawaii , since it’s one of the remarkably few states that Daisy hasn’t been to yet but always wanted to visit. The morning after we get back, the celebrity will post her video. Everything is ready to go, but getting to this point has been exhausting. Fun , yes. We’ve had a blast doing it together. But exhausting .
I give Daisy a nudge because her breathing against my chest is sounding a little too relaxed. “ Remember , no falling asleep during the ceremony.”
She gives me a playful swat. “ Hey . I only did that one time. And it was at the end of a very long day making coffee mugs for earrings, not during me pledging to love you forever.”
“ True . But it was while I was telling you how perfect you are.”
She pulls back a bit so she can look up at me. “ In my defense, we were on the couch, your thigh makes a great pillow, you were skimming your fingers along my hairline and jaw, and you were using a soothing voice. I can’t be held liable for falling asleep under those conditions.”
“ It’s a reasonable defense, and I’m sure no judge would hold you accountable.” She grins at me, and I add, “ Oh , guess what? I got a call from work on my way here.”
“ Please don’t tell me they need you to come in today.”
I chuckle. “ No . They were telling me that they aren’t going to make me the team leader over my old team.”
After the spy mission Daisy did with me where we copied the contracts and got them to Jace , the CSA worked with the SEC on a joint operation. For months, they worked to gather all the information they could on everyone involved. Which meant that Tad kept his job for a long time. It helped, though, that I got the job in Risk Management instead of him.
Jace came to me for help several more times, too. Some missions I had to do on my own, and some I did with Daisy . All were collecting more information so they could build a very solid case. And what they found was that it wasn’t only that one client. There were several. They found that my old boss, Rickard —the one who endorsed Tad for Risk Management —was in on it, too. He was funneling the sketchy clients to Tad , knowing he could trust him when it came to shady accounting practices. Tad and Rickard weren’t arrested until just over a week ago.
Once they arrested Rickard , my boss in Risk Management told me the position of team leader in my old team was vacant and he thought I should apply for it. I was stunned. He said that he was impressed not only with my knowledge and skill, but how I backed up my opinions with facts, and how much he could trust that things were in good hands whenever he was gone and asked me to be in charge.
Never in my life did I think someone would say how impressed they are at my ability to be in a leadership position. It’s safe to say that my entire life has been better with Daisy in it.
I loved my Risk Management team and hated the thought of leaving them, but couldn’t pass up applying for the team lead position over my old team .
“ Oh , Ollie , I’m so sorry.”
A smile spreads across my face. “ They’re going to make me the team leader over Risk Management .”
Daisy practically jumps in excitement, then wraps me in a hug before pulling back and saying, “ What ? How ?”
“ Well ,” I say, “it seems that my boss’s boss was in on it as well.”
Daisy pulls her head back, eyes wide. I’m pretty sure that was exactly what I did when I got the call. “ So , wow. Huge shake-ups at your firm.”
I nod. “ It sounds like no one even saw the director’s arrest coming before it happened. They immediately asked my team leader in Risk Management to take over as director.”
“ Which left Risk Management without a team leader.”
I nod. “ And my boss said they need me in Risk Management more. So they told me that if I want the job, it’s mine. I don’t even think they finished that sentence before I said ‘ I want it.’ Possibly too enthusiastically, because it made him laugh. He says I start as soon as we get back from our honeymoon.”
“ I am so happy for you!” Daisy says and gives me a kiss.
“ I am so happy for me, too,” I tell her as I give her a smile that I feel with my whole body. “ But I would be even if I didn’t get the job. Today , I get to marry you. And everyone we love is here to celebrate with us.”
She smiles back, and I know she’s feeling it down to her toes, too. “ Do you think we forgot anything?”
I nod. “ Probably so. It wouldn’t be a wedding otherwise. Do you think the animals are ready?” A couple of our friends are supposed to go pick up Roi and Prince Charming and get them here right before the wedding. They have important parts to play.
“ As ready as they’ll ever be.” Daisy shrugs. “ I mean, they’ve done it right in practice a good six out of ten times.”
“ I’m pretty sure sixty percent is still failing.”
“ Now , see?” Daisy says. “ This is where math fails. At this point, you’ve got to have hope and faith that it’s going to be perfect.”
That , I do have.
I thought I’d be nervous. Here I am, standing under the floral arch in my tux, my groomsmen at one side of me and the bridesmaids at the other, facing a room full of people, about to give the vows I memorized, and I’m not nervous at all.
The music starts playing, everyone stands, and the double doors at the opposite end of the aisle open, and Roi and Prince Charming come in. Prince Charming is wearing a little dog tux, and he looks pretty dapper. He’s got a basket of flower petals in his mouth. Roi is wearing a bow on her head that matches the bridesmaids’ dresses, and she has our rings tied in a little pouch around her neck. Yes , Prince Charming is the flower boy and my cute little Roi is the ring bearer, but no matter what we tried, Roi did not want to be the flower girl. All of our guests are loving our pets coming down the aisle.
Just as we practiced with them so many times, my cat and Daisy’s dog walk down the aisle at the perfect speed. Prince Charming is shaking his head back and forth, making the flower petals fall on the aisle, and it might be the cutest thing I’ve ever seen. He’s pretty proud of himself, too.
The music changes to Bridal Chorus , and everyone’s attention goes to the double doors again as they open for Daisy and her dad, and my breath catches in my throat. She is so beautiful. Her curls are up in a chaotic bun on top of her head, like I love, but today, they’re… fancy chaotic. I don’t know how else to describe it. All I know is that it is so very Daisy and I love it. Her face is full of so much happiness that I want to save this image in my head for all time.
We lock eyes, and I know that everything is right. Marrying her is the most right thing I could ever do. My life has changed infinitely for the better because of her, and I can’t wait to see what life ahead has in store for us .
Daisy and her dad, who is dressed in a tux and looking pretty happy himself, make it about five steps down the aisle toward me when Prince Charming’s basket runs out of flower petals. Apparently , he’s no longer interested in being a flower boy when there are no petals and no crowd attention. So he drops the basket, then he sneaks up behind Roi before barking loudly.
Roi , who has been trying to be all proper and fancy, gets all the way freaked out and bolts off. Since the room is full of so many people she doesn’t know, a hiding place isn’t immediately evident, so she does what she does best. Climbs . She scales up the sides of the floral arch in an instant and perches at the top of it, nice and safe.
Prince Charming is barking and all the guests are exclaiming and throwing their arms out like they’re trying to help contain the chaos, and Daisy and I are both chasing after Prince Charming and Roi . It is pure pandemonium.
One of my groomsmen, Aziz , has a four-year-old. He lifts him in the air, and the little boy tries to grab Roi from the top of the arch. Then , the officiant tries coaxing him down by making some kind of tsk ing sound that causes Roi’s ears to twitch but doesn’t get her to budge. Someone comes with a long pole, and I’m betting a broom in some janitor closet is missing its handle. That makes Roi hunker down even more .
Eventually , everyone heads back to their seats, and Daisy and I get under the arch, looking a bit more disheveled than we were moments ago but ready to get things started. And , of course, that’s when Roi decides to jump down, landing right in my arms. Everyone laughs and cheers. Daisy and I are laughing so much that we are breathless.
I give Roi’s head a rub before I untie the little pouch at her neck, and I let out a relieved breath that we’ll have rings for this ceremony instead of just a cat watching over us like a feline guardian of matrimony.
“ Well ,” I say. “ It was Prince Charming and Roi who first brought us together, so this—” I gesture to the chaos that has surrounded us—“feels right.”
Daisy grins. “ I told you it would be perfect.”
Want more spy romance? You can read the story of Jace falling in love with Mackenzie right now in Spies Don't Fall for Their Asset . It's the first book in the Romancing the Spy series , where you'll get a book for each of the six Lancaster siblings and revisit Cipher Springs every time.
Spies Don’t Fall for Their Asset
He’s an international spy. She accidentally becomes his asset.
Every Tuesday , my best friend and I get together to watch spy movies, and I dream of a secret agent sweeping me off my feet.
Imagine my surprise when a) one actually does, b) I don’t realize he’s a spy (even though “secret” is in the job title, so I should’ve seen that coming), and c) his mission is to protect me.
For the record: I don’t need protecting. But if I did, Jace would be my top pick. I have more fun and feel more connected during the 10 minutes when he’s rescuing me from a blind date than I’ve had in the past several years of dating combined. Add a helicopter, a black-tie gala, and a motorcycle chase, and even though I’m reluctant to date anyone, I’m ready to let him protect me anytime.
Yet , my (considerable) reluctance to date is nothing compared to Jace’s . He has a rule not to date anyone until he is no longer a covert intelligence operative. Something about it being a bad idea to mix love and espionage.
But am I falling anyway? Yeah , I might be falling.
Send help.
“ Spies Don’t Fall for Their Asset ” is a closed-door romantic comedy brimming with chemistry, sizzling tension, and witty banter. In a world where the family business is the spy business, prepare to laugh, swoon, and fall head over heels in love.
Get Spies Don’t Fall for Their Asset