Epilogue—Lake
“I think we ran out of dip.” Oh my god, we ran out of dip. Who does that? Dip is a staple of any good party. “I think we’re officially the worst hosts in the world.”
Grady raises an eyebrow at me from where he’s pouring some of his Koshi-No Shinobu into a bunch of fancy glasses.
He’s been holding court with Sebastian, Big-Riley, and Avery for the past half an hour.
I personally think they’re all avoiding having to socialise with anyone else. Strange little group they’ve made.
Hades has been sitting with them, occasionally trotting over to see where I am and then going back. He won’t need to be fed for the entire new year based on how much people have been feeding him tonight.
“We’re the world's worst hosts because we ran out of dip?” Grady asks.
“It’s the main ingredient.”
“For what?”
“A New Year’s Eve party. Keep up.”
“Ah. And here I thought that was fairy bread,” he teases.
Oh my god. “We don’t have any fairy bread!” Why didn’t I think of fairy bread? That would be fucking amazing after a few hard drinks. I’m salivating just thinking about it.
Grady crowds me against the fridge and massages my shoulder. “Lake, relax.” He swoops down and kisses me, effectively turning my brain off.
With a moan, I slide my arms around his neck and arch my back, deepening the kiss.
He tastes like Doritos and his favourite alcohol.
An interesting combination. Sweet, salty, and then a dash of a pleasant kind of bitterness.
He squeezes my ass and lifts me a little.
Fuck, yes. “Think anyone would notice if we disappeared for a bit?” I gasp.
“Then we really would be the world's worst hosts.” He’s laughing at me, I just know it.
He pulls back and then bends for one more kiss before putting distance between us. Good call, or we might give some of the drunks here a show. I haven’t quite had enough to drink for that but get a few more shots in me, and I can’t guarantee anything.
“Everything is fine, Lake.”
He’s right, I don’t know why I’m so nervous.
I’ve hosted parties before. Not with Grady if I don’t count our wedding, which I don’t, because someone else made sure that everything went smoothly that day.
But I’ve hosted before. Okay, so those times, everyone brought enough that I didn’t even have to do anything.
Still. I got this. I should got this. I don’t got this.
“We have dip,” Grady says, kissing the corner of my mouth. “It’s on the bottom shelf of the fridge, with the carrots.”
“Why are they fraternising with the carrots?”
“I think Felix was hoping it would encourage people to have some with their dip. A healthy alternative.”
I snicker. “So passive-aggressive. Should I cut up some carrots?”
“If you want.”
He helps by peeling the carrots so I can cut them into long strips.
“Hmm.” I consider the tray, tilting my head while I think.
“I should write words.” I carefully arrange them into the words “Eat me.” Not easy given the medium, but I manage it, artfully placing all the pieces.
There’s one left over, so I munch on it.
Grady holds out an opened dip, and I turn the carrot bit around to scoop up some with the not-bitten end.
I’m not a neanderthal; I’m not going to double-dip.
When I’ve swallowed, he pulls me to him, kissing me softly, sharing the taste of the French onion. “Tastes good,” he murmurs.
“You taste good.” He always does, like he’s my own personal drug. I close my eyes and lean into him, burying my head against his warm chest. He wraps me up, hugging me tight.
“You’re my favourite person, GradyDonehue,” I murmur. In the whole world.
He kisses the top of my head, breathing me in. “I’d never do this with anyone but you, Lake Donehue.”
Damn, that sounds nice. “Not with Sebastian?” I ask, waggling my eyebrows. “After that dance at the wedding…”
“The one you both bullied me into?”
“Yeah, that one. It was hot.”
“I think I just threw up in my mouth.”
I laugh, and he captures it, sliding his tongue against mine, effectively shutting me up. It’s his favourite tactic. Mine too.
“I should have known you were in here making out like horny teenagers instead of getting us dip,” Felix says, shaking his head like we’ve disappointed his entire lineage. He stops at my carrot display. “Cute. Did you come up with that all by yourself?”
I tap my temple. “All right here in my noggin’.”
“God help us all.” He slides the tray off the bench. “I’ll make sure they’re eaten.”
I have no doubt he will. He’s persuasive if staring until someone does what they’re told is considered persuasive. It’s a form of persuasion.
Riley slinks into the room with a large empty red bowl that was a leftover from Christmas. It’s great for holding a large snack, like an entire family-packet of Cheetos. Mmm, Cheetos.
He was out during the start of the party, talking to everyone and slowly coming out of his shell, but eventually retreated to his bedroom to play Nintendo.
I’m pretty sure that Will, Zach, and Lucas are in there playing Mario Kart with him.
Better them than me; I’ve discovered that Riley is an absolute shark at Mario Kart.
He uses paths that I didn’t even know existed and is lethal with that Blue Turtle.
I need to start playing in secret to get my skills up.
“What are you after, kid?”
“How ’bout a beer?”
Grady snorts. “Nice try. There’s a sectioned snack plate over there if you want to take that and run. I recommend keeping Will away from the cheese, or you won’t get any.”
“Should I get him his own plate?”
I put my arm around his shoulders and squeeze. I just bet he’s gonna be taller than me when he stops growing. “That is a great idea, especially if you also want snacks. Will loves snacks.”
Riley nods seriously. “I get it. I love snacks too.”
“There’s a Fanta in the fridge,” Grady grunts. “Just take the whole thing and some of the Grinch cups from the pantry.”
“Cool.” He pauses at the doorway of the kitchen, precariously balancing everything, and looks back at us. “I like living here.”
“We like having you,” I reply, smiling wide.
I’ve never regretted opening our home to him, and he’s brightened our lives just as much as we have his.
He’s switched schools to one closer, has made new—noncriminal—friends, started playing soccer, and is thriving.
He’s volunteering at a nearby animal shelter and has even picked up some part-time work after school.
A completely different kid than the one that Grady met almost a year ago now.
He smiles, almost shyly, and then he’s gone, back to feed the small party he has going in his room.
Doubt we’ll see any of them for a while.
Will is friendly and cuddly—according to his boyfriends—but he’s also competitive and can shit talk with the best of them. He’ll be a good influence on the kid.
“I better get these back before they go warm.” Grady kisses my cheek. “Love you.”
I’m alone before I can reply, and I do a little jig of happiness. He doesn’t need to hear me say the words, because he trusts in them completely and wholly. He isn’t waiting for me to leave him or change my mind. He’s in this one hundred percent, and he knows I am too.
The next hour goes by in a blur, trying to get around to talk to everyone and sneak as many spare moments with Grady as I can.
And then suddenly, it’s a few minutes until midnight, and for the first time all night, I’ve lost track of Grady. Panic hits me right in the chest, and I rush through the living room, looking for him. Where did he go? I swear he was here a minute ago.
I can’t miss this.
I can’t.
“One minute!”
Fuck, fuck, fuck. “Grady?” Not in the kitchen. Not in the hallway—why did I look in the hallway? A quick peek into Riley’s room reveals no one but Riley, already asleep; everyone else has found their person.
Where is my person? There’s no way I can miss this. Not when it’s so important.
“Ten!”
Finally, I spot him, standing in the doorway of the kitchen, watching me with an intense look in his eyes that causes a delighted shiver to run down my spine.
Relief floods me at the same time.
“Nine!”
He closes the gap between us and stops right in front of me. Not touching. The heat radiating from him sinks deep into my very soul.
“Eight!”
I fiddle with his tie, twisting it around my fingers. “I thought I’d miss you.”
“Seven!”
“You’ll always find me,” he says quietly.
“Six!”
“And I’ll always find you.”
“Five!”
The things he says; I doubt he has any idea just what it does to me.
“Four!”
“It’s tradition,” I say, breaking the silence. “You have to participate.”
“Three!”
He bites his lip. “Participate in what?” he asks, playing along.
The fact he remembers the exact words from the day we met is like a direct hit to my gut, a pleasant tingle spreading.
“Two!”
Fisting his collar, I drag him down into a kiss, heart bursting.
He wraps an arm around my waist, playing with me.
His fingers trail over my pants where my tattoo is and I moan, running my hands through his hair, a little longer than it was a year ago.
Perfect for holding onto while he drives me wild in bed.
Hell, when he drives me wild just from a single kiss.
“One!”
I had no idea just how far I would come in a single year. That a year ago I would share a first kiss that would change everything for me.
Exactly a year ago, I found my soulmate, the one I’ll spend the rest of my life with.
The one I share a life with, a home, a family.
All the things that I’d dreamed of and had begun to think that I would never get.
The universe had known, had waited for that perfect moment when I would find the one person that completes me. It couldn’t have ever been anyone else.
Even when I didn’t know him, it was always him.
“Happy New Year!”
*****
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