Epilogue
Three Months Later
Berk
I sit in the audience and watch the two most important people in my life perform together.
When Stevie announced that she wanted to participate in the spring talent show at school, Astrid and I were on board from day one.
They worked on an original song whenever they got the chance.
Sometimes that was at home in front of the fireplace. Other times, Astrid took Stevie to the store with her for a weekend afternoon.
Stevie met Eloise, who moved into the apartment above Vinyl Crush when Astrid moved out. She still helps out at the store when she can, but Castle has taken on a full-time role so Astrid can concentrate on her debut album.
One song, Forevermore, hit every streaming service last month and shot to the top of the charts.
We celebrated with a family dinner at Axel Tribeca.
It was there that Astrid gave Stevie a gift that made all three of us cry.
It was a delicate gold bracelet with two charms. One is of a lion in honor of Layna, the other a bird in flight to remember Becky.
Stevie loves it.
It hasn’t left her wrist since then, and she’s told me three times since she got it that when she’s eighteen, she’s planning on replacing the bracelet with a tattoo of the bird and the lion next to each other.
She understands Astrid’s loss in a way that I can’t.
That shared experience has cemented their bond even more.
I close my eyes as Stevie launches into the chorus of her song.
It’s titled My Heart’s Secrets.
“Locked in my diary,” she sings. “All of my heart’s secrets are safe.”
Astrid is sitting on a stool next to her, strumming her guitar, as Stevie does the same.
As soon as the last note of the song ends, Keats is on his feet next to me, clapping and whistling.
Maren joins him, as does Sinclair.
I do the same and share in the joy on my little girl’s face as she has her moment in the spotlight next to the woman I love.
“Do it,” Stevie coaxes me as Astrid settles on the couch in our living room.
We had an early dinner at Keats and Maren’s house before we walked home and changed our clothes.
That was at Stevie’s urging.
She wanted to swap out one fancy dress for another.
Right now, she’s wearing her favorite. It’s the pink and white polka dot dress my sister bought her.
Astrid and I both decided on jeans and T-shirts. I love the fact that since she moved in, Astrid has been wearing my T-shirts. Her small frame drowns in them, but it’s a look I crave.
“Get on one knee,” Stevie whisper shouts.
That lures Astrid’s gaze in my direction. Her eyes widen. “What’s happening?”
I move to where she’s sitting and drop to one knee. I look up at her breathtaking face. “I love you, Astrid.”
“Say, yes,” Stevie says from next to me. “He wants to ask you to marry us, so please, pretty please, say yes.”
I reach into the front pocket of my jeans to yank out the ring box that I’ve had hidden in a drawer in my desk in my home office for the past month.
Stevie found it one day while hunting for a piece of licorice.
I’ve somehow managed to convince her to keep the secret until now.
I pop open the lid to reveal a diamond shouldered on either side by two smaller diamonds. “You are a shining star to us, Astrid. You’ve lit up our world.”
“It’s so bright.” Stevie’s arms reach out into the air. “It’s brighter than the moon and all the stars.”
“Will you marry me?” I ask with a tremor in my voice as my emotions rush to the surface. “Will you make me the happiest man on earth?”
“Yes,” she answers without any hesitation. “I want to marry you.”
I slide the ring on her finger and stand to take her in my arms.
Stevie’s arms wrap around both of our waists from the side. “I’m so happy.”
“Me too,” Astrid whispers before I lower my mouth to hers for a kiss.
“I think I want to call you From for now,” Stevie announces. “You’re my best friend, and it feels like you’re my mom, so that makes you From. My angel mommy would want that. My heart tells me she would.”
Astrid looks into my eyes for guidance, but all she finds is tears. I’m so goddamn happy.
“You can call me whatever you want to,” she says to our daughter. “I just want you to know that I’ll always take the very best care of you.”
“Thanks, From.” Stevie laughs. “When I get a baby brother or sister, I’ll call you Mom like they will. Deal?”
“Deal,” Astrid replies before leaning down to kiss the top of Stevie’s head.
The chime of the doorbell cuts into the moment.
“Who the hell is that?” I mutter.
“You owe a hundred to the fund,” Astrid and Stevie say in unison before they both laugh.
I start in that direction, but Stevie grabs hold of my hand to stop me. “It’s Keats. I’m going to sleep at their house tonight so you can have privacy.”
My daughter never ceases to amaze me.
As she disappears around the corner en route to the front door, I turn back to my fiancée. “You’re sure you’re okay with the From thing?”
“I love it,” she whispers. “It’s so Stevie, isn’t it?”
“It is,” I agree.
Her hand runs over my chin. “She’s the one who brought us together. If she hadn’t lost that diary key, we never would have met.”
I kiss her softly. “You’re right.”
“Seeing as how we have the entire house to ourselves tonight, what do you want to do?”
I laugh. “What do you think I want to do?”
“You handle getting Stevie set with Keats.” She motions toward the foyer. “I’ll handle warming up the bed with my nude body.”
“Go.” I reach around to tap her ass. “I want to fuck my future wife all night long.”
She lets out a slight laugh. “I like the sound of that.”
“You better get used to it.” I smile because I can’t control the joy that’s overwhelming me. “You’re going to be my wife forever. Tomorrow we start planning the wedding. I can’t wait to be married to you, Astrid. I can’t wait for our future.”
I can’t wait for all of it. Every moment is a gift that I’ve been given to show this incredible woman how much I love her, and I’ll never take a second of our time together for granted.
“I love you, Berk,” she says quietly. “Forevermore.”
I stare into her eyes. “I love you too. Always and forevermore.”