Epilogue-Juniper
“Are you nervous?” My dad looks over at me, my arm looped through his as my mom straightens out my veil.
“Not one single bit,” I say confidently.
My parents’ backyard has been transformed into a garden fairyland. My mother’s roses, which have grown around a large white trestle over the last several years, serve as the backdrop of our wedding. Bouquets of wildflowers are tied to the chairs that line the aisle.
I’ve enjoyed every second of wedding planning—something I hadn’t really thought twice about previously, if I’m honest. But maybe the excitement comes with who you’re marrying. Knowing that Decker and I were going to stand before all of our family and friends, and pledge our love and devotion to one another at the end of all of it, was a fairytale ending I never imagined would happen.
“You look so beautiful.” My mom kisses my cheek, giving my hands one last squeeze.
“Thank you, Mom. Now please go sit down before you start crying again, because it’s going to make me cry.”
After my mom scurries to her seat, my dad looks at me one last time. “I know he’s going to take care of you,” his chin quivers and he clears his throat, “and love you, but you’re still my little girl, so don’t ever hesitate to still ask your dad for advice now and then.”
I pull him into a hug, not needing to say anything for him to know exactly what I’m feeling. It’s a mix of excitement as I’m starting a new life with the man I love, but walking away from my parents, who have been by my side for the last 24 years now. I know marriage won’t be easy just because Deck and I are made for each other. I also know that our love will probably be put to the test . . . but there’s no one else I’d rather face all of life’s adventures and obstacles with.
“Are you ready to marry your soulmate, sweetheart?”
I straighten my shoulders and clutch my bouquet as the back door of the house opens and we start down the stairs toward the aisle.
“I’m ready.”
“How was the honeymoon?Did you end up parasailing like you said you wanted to?” Brooklyn takes a bite of her donut.
“No, I didn’t.”
“Chicken out?” Ranger teases.
“Just didn’t get around to it.” Decker’s hand slides over my leg beneath the table, coming to rest on my knee.
“What about water skiing? Did you end up just belly-flopping repeatedly? Because that’s what happened to me.” Dolly frowns at Ranger. “Thanks to someone taking off too fast in the boat.”
“I, um, no, I didn’t end up trying it, actually, but I’m sure if I had, I would have belly-flopped.”
“Damn, what did you guys actually do then?” Tyler asks, pouring himself a glass of orange juice before offering some to Brook.
“Oh, oh, God, no.” Brooklyn waves a hand in front of her face then covers her mouth. “I’ll be right back.” Her chair shoots backward and she runs toward the bathroom, all of us watching her take off.
“The morning sickness from this pregnancy is really kicking her ass,” Tyler says, standing up to go check on her.
“Ugh, poor thing. I hope it doesn’t last her entire second trimester,” Amelia adds. “Mine finally went away by around week 20, but this time,” she looks down at her protruding belly and places her hand on it, “I barely even had it during the first trimester.”
“I can’t believe you’re both pregnant at the same time.” Dahlia smiles. “Almost makes me want to join the club.” She bumps Ranger’s shoulder.
“You’re not gonna hear me say no to that.” He nibbles her ear, making her fall into a fit of giggles.
Decker leans over, his hand now beneath the hem of my dress, resting on my bare knee. “You sure you don’t want to tell them what we did our entire honeymoon?” His whisper is gruff.
I turn my face slightly to look at him, reaching my hand up to clutch his chin gently. “Don’t you dare.”
“Mmm, is that a threat?”
“Okay, okay, you two,” Tyler interrupts us when he and Brook come back to the table. “So, now that you’re in love and all that—married, settled in the house,” he looks over at his brother Trent, and then at Ranger, “who the hell are we going to tease about getting their head out of their ass anymore?”
The table bursts into laughter just as Milly and Kent arrive and take a seat. “What’d we miss?” She glances around the table.
“I was just asking ‘Who are we going to razz now that these two finally got their shit together and fell in love?’ I kind of liked teasing them.”
We all glance around the table at each other when the bell to the restaurant chimes and Adrienne comes bouncing through the door, her always-bright and cheery demeanor a welcome surprise.
“Hey!” She runs over to Deck and me, enveloping us both in a warm hug. “How was the honeymoon? I want to see pictures!”
“Hey, it was great! So warm and beautiful. I didn’t think you were gonna make it today. Milly said your flight got canceled last night.”
“It did, but then they ended up getting me on the last flight out of Chicago, which was super-late, and was to Cheyenne and not Denver, but thankfully, Scotty was actually up there, so he was able to give me a ride home.”
She smiles at the waitress who appears by her side, and she puts in her order. I look over at Brooklyn and Tyler, who both have inquisitive looks on their faces.
“Scotty?” Brook mouths at me. Dahlia’s smiling from ear to ear.
“Well, looks like you guys might have just found your newest victim,” Decker says just as the waitress walks away from our table.
“Don’t encourage them,” I whisper to him, but it’s too late. I can already see the wheels turning in our friends’ heads.
“Scotty is such a sweetheart.” Brooklyn smiles at Adrienne. “What a gentleman.”
“Mm-hmm.” Adrienne reaches for a glass of water and takes a sip. “So anyway, about the honeymoon . . .”
As much as I’ve tried avoiding the topic, they’re not going to let it go, so I just spell it out for them. “It was great. Two weeks on a tropical island with nothing but sand, waves, and fruity cocktails. What do you guys think we did the entire time? No, I didn’t parasail or snorkel or water ski.”
“Now that’s a honeymoon.” Trent lifts his mimosa, all of us following suit with our own glasses. “To you guys, seriously. For all the teasing and dumb shit we put you through, I speak for all of us when I say we couldn’t be happier for you both.”
I smile at Decker, leaning against his shoulder as he wraps his free arm around me and pulls me closer to him. His other hand remains on my thigh. Our friends talk among themselves, Amelia and Brooklyn telling us about their pregnancies and the names they’ve picked out.
“How soon before you think that will be us?” Decker asks.
“Well,” I smile, “depends on when you want it to be us.”
He flashes me that devilish grin—the one that’s always brought me to my knees. “How about we start trying now?” He slides his hand further up my thigh, making me bite my bottom lip. “How far would you let me go?”
“You’re a bad influence, you know that?”
He leans in further. “I do know that, baby. Why do you think I kissed you that night? I warned you I wasn’t a very good gentleman. I knew all of my attempts to hold back from you were over. You were my affliction—a sickness that consumed me so thoroughly, there was only one thing that was ever going to cure me. Only one thing that was ever going to breathe life into my once-broken soul again and give me hope.”
“Oh yeah?” I’m lost in him, the talking and laughter of our friends slowly fading as I stare back at my husband. “What was the cure? What gave you hope?”
His eyes drop down and he leans forward, tickling my lips with his.
“That kiss, baby . . . that kiss.”
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