EPILOGUE
Reid
The marquee tent rustles against the wind on the late September night.
Heat lamps are set up in multiple places, whilst outside has a small fire burning for the marshmallows and those who want to sit in the frigid air.
The music system with disco lights has been set up at the end of the marquee.
Food tables run along both sides, whilst whatever food is still inside.
There’s no fucking way we are going to put it all out with the Carters hovering around it like flies on shit.
We aren’t celebrating a birthday or an engagement tonight.
We are celebrating life, our family, and what could have been.
A new beginning. What was meant to be small is now at full capacity, which is why the marquee got brought out instead of a standard size gazebo.
I didn’t even know they did marquees this big until Jaxon was ordering us all to put one up.
He wanted the best because today, he and Lily planted a tree for their baby, who they decided to name Avery.
Lily seems happier than I’ve seen her in weeks.
She is still seeing a therapist, according to Jaxon, but is no longer plagued with grief.
Today has helped a lot too. Looking at her and Jaxon dancing on the makeshift dance floor, you can see the difference in the both of them.
I don’t think they’ve had this sense of peace before.
First it was her family, and then the fear of what Black would do.
They’ve never really had the chance to just be free to love one another. It looks good on them. Really good.
I glance at Mum, who still wears the reminders of that night weeks ago.
Yet even her resilience to her attack is astounding to me.
She’s the reason men should never call women the weaker sex.
I think it’s taken me longer to push back those horrifying memories than it has for her.
Still, seeing her move from guest to guest, smiling, I am glad she’s moved on.
Evie is doing a lot better. Summer asked once if I thought Evie was maybe hiding her grief.
I didn’t even hesitate before I said no.
There would need to be love for her to grieve and there wasn’t any.
They were monsters to her. Her smile lights up when she stares at the ring Wyatt put on her wedding finger last week.
Rebecca seems to think it will be a long engagement, but personally, I think it’s wishful thinking. Both Evie and Wyatt don’t want to wait.
Isaac is back on his feet and will be going back to work this week. His mood is yet to improve. We’ve asked him to talk to us, but he refuses, still going with the comment of ‘nothing is wrong’.
Nothing my arse.
The hay bales I’m sitting on jerk as Hayden throws herself down. I arch an eyebrow. “I’m in a committed relationship.”
She snorts. “Still not going to get used to that.”
“You should because she’s not going anywhere.”
“I like relationship Reid,” she remarks.
“I can’t tell if you’re being serious or not,” I reply. “Also, if you are looking for the key to the room we locked the food in, I don’t have it.”
She scoffs. “Please, you’ll be lucky if there’s any food left in there.”
“It’s locked,” I remind her.
She points her finger into the crowd and I follow her line of sight to Malia. Who isn’t even concealing the brownies she has stacked up on a paper plate. The same brownies that I hid in the locked room as a contingency. I hid them in a secret compartment in my father’s desk.
“How?” I splutter.
“Seems like the Carters really do have competition. I’m pretty sure Dad is still goading her into an eating contest.”
“She’ll win,” I boast.
“If you say so.”
I watch Hayden again. “Doesn’t explain why you are here instead of dry humping your guy.”
She grins. “I came over to thank you for what you did for Lily.”
My brows scrunch up. “I didn’t do anything.”
“Dude, I know you came up with today. Lily felt lost until Jaxon approached her about this. When he told her what you said, light shined back inside her. So thank you.”
“I really didn’t do anything,” I lie.
Summer falls into my lap. “Is he lying about not coming up with this entire day?”
Hayden laughs. “Yep,” she says, then glances from Summer to me. “I like this version of you. So much hotter than playboy Reid.”
She leaves without listening to my retort. Summer runs her finger over the new tattoo on my neck. I did it myself a few days ago. “I still can’t believe you got this.”
“Shouldn’t you be telling her to back off?” I remark, my voice light.
“I’m secure in our relationship,” she teases.
I squeeze her arse as I pull her in close to straddle me. My entire chest flutters at her declaration. Fuck, she makes me happy.
“I love you.”
“I love you too,” she replies. “And this tattoo.”
I grin against her mouth. The half sun is a representation of new beginnings.
Bringing light into the darkness. It’s how I feel about Summer.
It being a sun just made it more perfect.
“I never want to let go of who I was because it was what got me you. But you gave me hope to be a better man. You showed me I could be a better man. You brought light into my life when it was clouded by darkness and pain. You believed in me when I didn’t believe in myself.
I’ve not told you this, but when you said what you did after finding out about the sexual harassment claim, it meant a lot.
You tolerated me, but still saw the good in me.
You believed me. I think it was that moment I fell in love with you. ”
“Reid,” she whispers against my lips, stroking the side of my face.
I swallow, gazing into her gorgeous eyes. “I want forever with you. I want to be chained to you. I want tomorrow. Next week. Next year. I want the burial plots together.”
“Okay, I followed until the burial plots,” she interrupts. “Do you want me dead?”
“I want forever with you.”
“You have me. Always.”
I stand with her in my arms, my hands still on her arse. “I need inside you now.”
“But the party,” she rasps, grinding against me, making me groan.
I pepper kisses along her jaw as I move toward the house. “We’ll be quick.”
“Liar.”
“Nope. We have tomorrow to take our time.”
She pulls back and squints at me. “It turns midnight in less than an hour, doesn’t it?”
I grin because she knows me better than anyone. “Yep. So not lying.”
She grips my hair. “I love you.”
“I love you too, Sunshine.”
And thank fuck I am here to love her. I get to love her without the fear of her being taken from me or being hurt.
Now we all get to enjoy life after Andrew Black.
We get to decide what our future is.
And I can’t wait to see what is next.