Epilogue
Damn, my woman was something else. Six months ago, we dealt with the hellish arson investigation, and here we were at the grand opening of the community center. Despite everything Councilman Whitaker and his nephew had tried, Gisselle came out on top. We both had.
I adjusted my tie again, watching Gisselle across the lawn as she spoke with the mayor.
"You're gonna strangle yourself with your tie if you keep fiddling with it," Kiara warned beside me, followed by a sharp elbow to my ribs.
"Leave that man alone. He's nervous," my mother chided, though she smiled. She enjoyed Kiara's teasing as much as I did.
"Proud, not nervous," I protested.
"Mm-hmm. Yeah, that's why you're staring at Gisselle like she hung the moon and the stars instead of designing a building."
Truth was, Kiara wasn't wrong. Gisselle was in her element. She looked sexy as hell in a sleek, black dress that hugged every curve, hair pulled up into an updo, gesturing confidently as she explained something to the mayor. She made my chest tight with a feeling I couldn't explain.
"She did hang the moon," I responded, not even trying to deny it.
My mother patted my arm, her brown eyes warm. All my life, I heard that I had inherited her eyes.
"Your father would have loved her. You picked a good one, Liam."
The mention of my father hit me with the usual bittersweet pang. "Yeah, he would've."
Across the line, I spotted Gisselle's parents arriving.
Her father was tall and distinguished in a charcoal suit.
He immediately documented everything with the camera hanging around his neck.
Her mother was even more gorgeous in person and clearly passed on her confidence and style to her daughter.
She waved enthusiastically as she spotted us.
"Justine, Leonard, over here!" my mother called, waving them over.
In the past six months, since Gisselle and I moved in permanently together, our families have meshed with ease. Our mothers texted daily about everything from recipes to celebrity gossip. And my sister had quickly fallen under Gisselle's spell, too.
"Can you believe this place? My baby girl's design," Leonard boasted as he joined us, gesturing with his camera toward the building.
The pride in her father's voice matched what I felt in my chest.
"It's magnificent, although I'm not surprised. Gisselle always saw the vision where others couldn't," Justine agreed, giving me a quick hug before turning to admire the building.
A horn blared, interrupting our conversation. Engine 791 pulled up to the curb, my crew piling out in their dress uniforms, grinning like fools.
"Look at who decided the class up the joint." Kiara giggled.
The guys approached us with the swagger of men who knew they looked good in uniform, clapping me on the shoulder and greeting our family members.
"Blaze, we came to see if Gisselle managed to design a building you couldn't burn down," Jaxon joked.
"Very funny. You guys clean up nice," I dryly commented, though I couldn't help cracking a smile.
"Special occasion calls for special effort," Jaxon responded.
"Still full of shit, I see." Kiara rolled her eyes and elbowed Jaxon. I was glad her elbow aimed for someone else this time.
"Let's move closer. I want to hear everything," Mama suggested.
We navigated through the crowd, finding spots near the front as the mayor approached the microphone. She tapped it to ensure the feedback was on.
"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for joining us on this momentous occasion. Today marks the reopening of the community center and a new chapter in Goodwin Grove's story."
The mayor went on about the community and the historical preservation, but I watched Gisselle behind the podium. Her eyes caught mine, and she smiled.
Six months ago, she fought for her professional reputation while some asshole tried to burn down her project. Now look at her, poised, respected, and triumphant. The mayor's voice pulled my attention back.
"None of this would've been possible without the vision of our architect, Gisselle Daniels, who not only created this beautiful space, but did so in the face of extraordinary challenges."
The crowd applauded as Gisselle stood to join the mayor at the podium.
"Thank you, Mayor Thompson. When I first came to Goodwin Grove, I had a vision for what this building could be. Not just a community center, but a place where history and the future could coexist, where tradition and innovation would complement each other."
As Gisselle spoke, I fell even deeper in love with her. This was the Gisselle I glimpsed all those months ago — passionate, articulate, and unwavering.
"I want to thank someone who stood by me through every challenge, who believed in this project as much as I did. Lieutenant Liam Crawford not only protected this building from those who could've destroyed it, but he also protected my faith and what we created here. Thank you."
Heat spread through my chest as several heads turned in my direction, including my sister, who jabbed me with her damn elbow again. "Look at you getting a shout-out and shit."
The ceremony concluded with the mayor handing Gisselle an oversized pair of scissors. Together, they cut the ribbon, and the crowd applauded.
I hung back as people congratulated Gisselle. Employees stood by to take people on tours.
"Proud of her?" Dane asked beside me.
"More than I can say," I admitted.
"You know, when you first brought her to your house that night after we found the accelerant at the site, I doubted how this would all turn out."
I glanced at him, surprised by his admission.
"Not about her. About whether you'd allow yourself to be happy. You've been alone so long but look at you now. Look at both of you."
"I appreciate you, man." I clapped him on the back.
Dane nodded toward Gisselle, who laughed at something Jaxon said. When I looked at Gisselle, her face lit up. She must've sensed my eyes on her because she looked my way. The look she gave me made everything else fade away.
After we finished touring the building, we decided to take the family to dinner. Everyone followed us to Vencino's, an Italian restaurant. Inside the dining room, soft lighting flickered with candles and white tablecloths.
It was going to be expensive, but worth it to see both of our families laughing and talking as if they'd known each other forever instead of six months.
I grabbed Gisselle's hand and kissed it. I then caught my mother saying to Gisselle's mom. "Girl, then Liam ran into the kitchen, bucket naked except for his firefighter helmet, yelling emergency, emergency at the top of his lungs."
"Mama. Really? That's how we're starting this dinner?" I groaned as all the women dissolved into laughter.
Gisselle leaned into my side and whispered. "I'm definitely gonna need photographic evidence of baby Lieutenant Crawford in his helmet."
"Don't encourage them," I muttered, slipping my arm around her chair.
"Oh, honey, we're just getting warmed up. Denise, did I tell you about the recital where Gisselle decided the costume wasn't architecturally sound? She tried to redesign it with scissors right before going on stage," Justine revealed with a smirk.
Gisselle dropped her head onto my shoulder with a groan. "I was seven, and that tutu was defective." Gisselle laughed.
Across the table, Kiara cornered Gisselle's father. "You're telling me the '67 Corvette actually has a better engine than the '65? Because I always heard the opposite."
Leonard lit up, clearly delighted to find someone who appreciated his passion for classic cars. "The '67 had improved suspension and a V8, making all the difference."
"See? I told you." Kiara turned to me triumphantly.
"Don't drag me into your car obsession. I drive a pickup for a reason," I replied, reaching for my water glass.
"A practical man, though that truck of yours needs some rust restoration work on the undercarriage. I noticed it before we came inside," Leonard pointed out.
"Daddy, why were you inspecting Liam's undercarriage?" Gisselle asked.
Everyone at the table laughed, though something felt off about Gisselle, a nervous energy I couldn't place. She should've felt better now that the community center renovation was complete.
The waiter appeared with wine and took our orders. The conversation shifted to praise of the community center's opening. Gisselle's face lit up as her mother described her favorite feature of the design.
It was a long time before the waiters arrived with the salads and bread, momentarily pausing conversation as plates were passed around the table.
"Gisselle tells us you two have talked about renovations on your house, Liam," Justine commented during dinner.
I nodded, grateful for the shift in conversation. "Nothing major yet. We're in the planning stages. The kitchen needs to be updated, and I've been thinking about converting the spare room into a better home office for Gisselle."
"Planning stages, but what he means is, I've been sketching designs, and he's been nodding along," Gisselle interjected, returning to her usual sass.
"I contributed ideas," I mildly protested.
"Saying 'bigger counters' is not contributing very much to the design concept, babe," Gisselle clarified.
Soon, the waiters passed out pasta dishes and collected the salad plates.
"It is a valid request. Not all of us have your vision for how the space should look," I countered, enjoying our banter.
"That's true, but I love that you trust me," she conceded.
"Gisselle designed her first treehouse when she was nine. She drew up an actual blueprint and everything. Had her daddy out there for weeks, building it to her exact specifications," Justine told my mother.
"Oh, it was structurally sound and could've withstood a hurricane," Leonard confirmed with a chuckle.
"Speaking of withstanding things. I'd like to propose a toast to Gisselle and Liam," Kiara jumped in, raising her wineglass.