Epilogue
“She’s here,Daddy, she’s here.” Delilah was bouncing up and down as she stared out of the window, watching as Cassie parked her car in the driveway. As Cassie climbed out of the car, her long legs stretching out as her feet hit the blacktop, Delilah turned to look at Pres.
“I can see that.” He winked at her as she started racing for the door. “Hey,” he called out. “This isn’t your house, you’re not supposed to be the one welcoming people.”
It was Thanksgiving morning and the whole family was spending it at his parents’ house. Mostly because it was the biggest, but also because his mom and dad loved to entertain.
The whole place smelled of the turkey that his mom had gotten up to put in the oven at some stupid time in the morning. Cranberries were cooking in a pan on the stovetop, their ruby red skins splitting as they bubbled away. His mom had already put a Christmas playlist on — following a long discussion with his dad about when exactly it was acceptable to have Mariah”s voice blasting out of the speakers.
His dad lost that argument. But he got a kiss out of it, so he looked happy enough.
Delilah opened the door, completely ignoring Pres” warning and Cassie walked inside, hugging her tightly.
“Look at you,” Cassie said.” What a pretty dress.”
“I”m Belle,” Delilah told her, doing a twirl in her golden dress, the metallic threads catching the light as she turned. “From Beauty and the Beast.”
“I can see that,” Cassie said, indulging her even though she’d seen Delilah’s outfit before. At Halloween, and then pretty much every day since, because he could barely prise his daughter out of it.
She”d insisted on wearing it for Thanksgiving, and Pres couldn”t see any reason why that was a problem. He hadn”t been able to give her ringlets the way she wanted, but she was beaming anyway.
Stepping back, Cassie”s hands rested on her shoulders as she smiled at his little girl. And when she looked up, her eyes caught Pres”.
His eyes searched her face. Damn, she was beautiful.
“Everything okay with Gemma?” he asked. Cassie had called to say she’d be a little late, because Gemma was having contractions.
“Yep. Just a false alarm.”
“Another one?”
Cassie smiled. “I think she’s going for the trifecta.”
Gemma was pregnant with her third — and according to her last — baby. She was almost nine months now, and hating every moment of her last trimester. Cassie had stopped by to help her with some Thanksgiving preparations before coming to meet him here.
“You look good,” she murmured, walking over to hug him. He”d put on a pair of dress pants and a pale blue shirt. “Ooh, you smell good too.”
”So do you.” His eyes glanced down at the knit brown dress she was wearing. It clung to her every curve, making his mouth dry and his body ache. She’d teamed it with some brown leather boots and was wearing her hair down, the way he loved it.
“Come with me,” Delilah urged impatiently, pulling at Cassie”s hand. “I want to show you something.”
Cassie laughed, allowing Delilah to lead her away. Pres watched as they disappeared around the corner, their laughter echoing back to him.
Taking a deep breath, he walked over to the kitchen where his mom was stirring a pot of gravy.
“Hey, sweetheart,” she said, looking up at him. “Cassie get here okay?”
“Yeah. She”ll be in in a minute to say hi. Delilah just dragged her off. I think she wants to show Cassie her Beauty and the Beast dance.”
“She has a dance already?”
“She has a dance for everything,” Pres said. “You know that.” She never walked when she could dance. Right now her dream job was to be a ballerina when she grew up. Or it was, until he’d told her she may have to move to a big city to work.
“Can’t I be a ballerina in Hartson’s Creek?” she’d asked frowning.
“Probably.” That conversation was for another day. The kid was only seven, after all.
Pres walked around the breakfast bar to where his mom was standing, the wooden spoon she was using to stir the gravy still in her hand. Her hips were swaying softly, as Elvis crooned that he was having a blue Christmas.
“Can I do something to help?” Pres asked for the third time that morning.
And once again his mom shook her head. “No. We”ve got this. Your dad is just sharpening his knives.”
Another Thanksgiving tradition. His dad”s carving knives were his babies. If anybody else touched them he”d have a fit. And Pres knew better than to try.
“So, how”s work? You started on a new job, didn’t you?” his mom asked, stirring the gravy again.
“Yep. A commercial building. It”s good. Busy, but good.” He paused, taking a deep breath. “Actually, Mom, there”s something I want to talk to you about. While nobody else is around.”
His mom turned off the burner, sensing the seriousness in his voice. “What is it?”
”I”m planning to propose to Cassie today.”
His mom”s eyes widened, a smile spreading across her face. “Oh, Pres. That”s wonderful news!”
He grinned because it really was. He and Cassie had talked about this. About marriage and family and babies. And they’d agreed they’d know when the time was right.
Last week they’d gone shopping for some outfits for Gemma’s new baby – a boy – and it felt like something had changed. They probably weren’t ready for children yet, but they would be.
And if they wanted that someday, he was going to be married to the woman.
“Thanks,” he said softly. “I just wanted to ask your advice on something.”
“What is it?” She tipped her head to the side. “If it”s my blessing you want, you know you”ve got it. Not that you need it, you”re both grown adults.” She gave him a soft smile. “You’ve done everything right, honey. You’ve taken it slow. Made sure Delilah is happy. But you deserve this for yourself.”
Yeah, they’d taken it slow over the past year and a bit. Cassie was still living in her house, and he in his. But it was getting harder and harder to say goodnight to her without having her in his bed.
He was ready for the next step. He hoped she was too.
But that wasn’t what was bothering him.
“I’m wondering about Delilah. Should I talk to her before I propose? After?” He lifted a brow. “I googled it and there was no consensus.” Damn the internet. Where was it when you needed some black and white advice?
His mom thought for a moment, her soft gaze on him. Her brows pulled together as she finally responded. “You know what? I think you should talk to her first. She”s a smart girl. She”ll understand what”s going on. And if there”s something she hates, it”s not being included in things.”
Wasn”t that the truth? She”d gotten used to him and Cassie disappearing on date night, but she preferred it when he and Cassie spent time with her.
And they did it a lot.
Cassie hadn”t been lying when she said she loved his daughter. Watching the two of them bond over the past year had been one of the most beautiful experiences of his life.
It was like they both needed each other. Cassie needed to be a better mom than her own, and Delilah needed somebody to love her like a mom.
“And you know,” his mom continued. “If Cassie says no, then she”ll be able to help you explain it to Delilah. She loves that little girl so much.”
He blinked, shocked by her words. “You think she”ll say no?” His stomach tightened.
Something about his expression made his mom laugh.
“No, I don”t. But I can imagine you”re thinking the worst. So I thought I”d add that in there.” She walked over to check on the turkey.
“By the way, Cassie told me her mom called last week,” his mom said when she’d checked the temperature of the turkey and put it back in the oven. Her eyes were soft. She knew how difficult Cassie’s relationship with her mom was. He was proud of his mom for stepping in there and being supportive. Being the mom Cassie never had.
Pres got the distinct impression that his mom was as supportive of Cassie as she was of her own kids. And he liked that a lot.
He let out a long breath. “Yeah, she called asking if she could come down for Thanksgiving. Apparently she found out who Dad was. And suddenly wanted to come and visit.”
His mom winced. “Ouch. I’m guessing she said no.”
“She did.” And he was damn proud of that, too. “She told her she wasn’t interested in having a relationship with somebody who wasn’t there for her at her lowest. And then she hung up.”
His mom caught his gaze. “That was brave of her.”
“It was.” He nodded. She’d cried afterward though. But it had been a good kind of cry. The type that cleansed, not hurt.
It felt like another step forward. They were making them together, every day. Making their lives better with every stride.
The timer on the stove started ringing, letting his mom know that the potatoes were ready.
“Good. I’m glad she stood up for herself.” His mom checked the potatoes. “Now I need to get everything ready for dinner. Go spend some time with your girls. And don’t forget, you, Marley, and Hendrix will be cleaning up later.”
“They’re like animals,” Maddie said to Cassie as she watched her boys fight over who had to clean the pots. “I tried to bring them up to be polite. I swear I did. But…” she trailed off as Hendrix threw a handful of water at Marley. “Boys! No water fights.”
“Can I join in the water fight?” Delilah asked hopefully.
“No.” Maddie shook her head firmly. “Water fights are for the summer.”
Hendrix sniggered as Marley shook his now-wet hair at him. “You look like a dog,” he said. “But uglier.”
“Shut up.” Marley rolled his eyes.
Delilah walked over to Cassie and sat on her lap. “I know a secret,” she told her, turning her head to look at Cassie. She was beaming. “But I can’t tell you what it is.”
Maddie clucked her tongue. “You”re not supposed to tell people that you know secrets.”
Delilah looked at her, wide eyed, as though Maddie was telling her the sky was green. “Why not?”
“Because then they”re going to try to guess what it is. And spoil the surprise.”
“Do you know what the surprise is, Granny?” Delilah whispered loudly. “Did Daddy tell you too?”
“No.” Maddie shook her head, but there was a smile on her face. One that made Cassie suspect she was lying.
“I do, I know.” Delilah sang, looking extremely happy about that. “It”s such a good secret, too.” She turned to Cassie, a huge smile on her face. “You’re going to love it.”
Maddie glanced at Delilah, then looked over her shoulder at Pres. “Why don”t you go talk to Daddy about the secret?” she suggested.
“Because we already talked about it.” Delilah rolled her eyes. “Silly.”
Cassie was trying not to laugh. She had a little inkling of what was going on. And it made her heart beat way too fast. “Maybe we should talk about something else,” she suggested, mostly because Delilah looked like she was about to burst.
“Like what?” the little girl asked, tipping her head to the side as though she was trying to think of anything that was more exciting than her secret.
“I don”t know. How about you show me your dance again?” Cassie pointed at the rug in front of the sofa where the three of them were sitting.
Delilah shook her head. “But I don”t want to dance. I want Daddy to...”
“Honey, hush,” Maddie said quickly. Then she quickly got up and strode over to the kitchen were Pres and Marley were talking softly. She whispered something in his ear.
Pres rolled his eyes and nodded. For a moment he looked so much like Delilah that Cassie”s heart clenched.
With a determined expression on his face, he put the dishcloth down in the sink and strode over to the living area, picking Delilah up. “Are you trying to spoil my surprise?” he asked her, tickling her sides until she started to giggle.
“When are you going to ask her, Daddy?” Delilah squealed.
“I guess right now.” He put her down, sliding his hand into his pocket to bring out a velvet box.
Before Delilah could say anything else, Pres knelt down in front of Cassie, taking her hands in his.
“You”re the best thing that”s ever happened to me,” he said, his voice soft but full of emotion. “From the first moment I saw you, something inside of me knew you were the one. And every moment we”ve spent together since, I”ve become more certain. You”re the most beautiful, funny, kind person I”ve met.”
Delilah was jumping up and down. “Ask her! Show her the ring.”
Pres” shoulders started to shake with laughter. ”I”m trying, kid. Give me a break here.”
“It”s green,” Delilah told Cassie, clearly getting impatient with Presley’s proposal.
“Honey...” Pres lifted a brow at her.
Delilah frowned, then leaned forward, whispering loudly, “And it has diamonds,” she told Cassie. “Big sparkly ones. And there are carrots. But I don’t know where because I didn’t see them.”
Cassie started to laugh, because this was just too perfect. Delilah looked at her strangely. “Why are you laughing?”
“I don’t know,” she told her. “I’m just emotional.”
Delilah ignored her. “But you only get to wear it if you say yes. That”s what Daddy said.”
Cassie”s eyes met Presley”s. He was laughing too now.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “This was all planned out.”
“And he told me,” Delilah said proudly. “It was our secret.” She looked at Presley. On his knees, his face was at the same height as hers. “Give her the ring, Dad.”
He blew out a mouthful of air. “Cassie Simons, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?” He said it quickly, as though afraid Delilah would interrupt again.
Cassie was still laughing. And Nodding. “Yes,” she told him, tears filling her eyes. “Yes, I will.”
“She said yes!” Delilah did a fist bump. “And now you just won a ring.”
“She didn’t win it,” Maddie whispered. “It’s a gift.”
“Is it? I thought it was a prize.”
“You know what?” Maddie said to Delilah. “There’s something in my bedroom I want to show you. Shall we leave Daddy and Cassie to it?”
“Is it a secret?” Delilah asked, clearly on a roll.
“Yes. A big one.”
“Hoo boy!” Delilah clapped her hands together. “Then let’s go.”
Marley and Hendrix had conveniently escaped, too. No doubt they’d gone down to join their dad in the den, to watch the pregame warm up.
She knew they’d congratulate them in a bit. But right now it was just her and Presley.
And the ring he was holding out.
“I’m sorry,” he said again. “It was going to be more romantic.”
She shook her head. “It was perfect. Exactly what I wanted.” Presley and their daughter asking her together. Because Delilah really felt like hers.
They’d talked about her adopting Delilah one day. When the time was right. With their engagement, they were getting a step closer.
Pres stood and pulled her into his arms, the velvet box still in his hand. Cassie felt the cool metal of the ring as he slipped it on her finger.
“I love you,” he whispered in her ear.
“I love you too,” she replied, feeling the weight of the ring on her finger. She lifted it up, turned her hand left and right, watching as the light caught the stones.
It was beautiful. Like him. Like the life he was giving her.
“Thank you for my prize,” she whispered. And he started to laugh again.
“I feel like I’m the winner here.” He brushed his lips against hers, sending a shiver down her spine. “Thank you for being mine.”
“I always was.” Her eyes caught his and her chest felt full. She was finally home. And there was no place else she wanted to be.