Epilogue
STOLEN MOMENTS
JULIANA
It’s late afternoon, and I’m sprawled across Camden’s chest, our legs tangled under the sheets in the apartment above The Kitty-Corner. His heartbeat is galloping under my cheek, and mine is still racing from what we’ve been doing the past hour.
If we’ve had any spare moments these past few weeks, we’ve stolen them for ourselves—against the kitchen counter, in his office at Elm & Echo, and all over this apartment we now share more often than not.
We spend every night together, but the location still changes between the yellow Victorian and Camden’s basement.
We’re busy, pulled in a hundred directions by work and family and the resort, and dreaming about the home we’re going to build together, but I’ve never been more certain of anything.
We’re making this work, and life is more beautiful than I ever thought it could be.
My phone buzzes on the nightstand. Camden’s fingers on my back pause when I stretch for it.
Goldie
You and Camden should come to Windhaven. Meet me and Ava at the rooftop bar. The weather’s dreamy and it’s really cozy up here.
I grin and show Camden. “She’s summoning us.”
He peeks at the screen, eyes still heavy-lidded. “Do we want to leave this bed?”
“No, but we probably should get some air.”
He chuckles. “Okay, if you say so.”
I sit up and look back at Camden, tempted to cuddle back up to him. “We won’t stay long.”
He grins and rolls out of bed.
I wash up quickly and throw on some clothes. He puts on jeans and a black tee, which nearly weakens my resolve, but once I’ve put on a soft black dress and touched up my makeup, I’m ready.
We drive over to Windhaven, Camden’s hand on my thigh, and are quiet when we pull up to the resort. Neither one of us has gotten much sleep, but we’re still glowing. When I look in the mirror these days, I can’t believe how happy I look.
Camden threads our fingers together, and we walk inside, saying hello to the few people we pass. It takes a few minutes to get to the rooftop, and the second we step out the door, I think our hearts stop.
“Surprise!” rings out.
I clutch my hand to my chest. The rooftop is packed. Family, friends, employees, and nearly all the residents of Windy Harbor. Everyone’s grinning, holding drinks, and wearing looks of conspiratorial glee.
Camden lets out a sharp, startled laugh.
Goldie bursts out of the crowd with Erin and Ava beside her, the three of them beaming.
“Did you really think we were going to let your engagement slip by without celebrating?” Goldie asks.
My eyes sting immediately. I whirl on Camden. “Did you know about this?”
He shakes his head, looking stunned. “Not a clue.”
Papa Hector appears, pressing a glass of champagne into our hands. “For my sweetheart and her man.”
His eyes are shiny too, and he hugs me tight. My parents follow close behind, and my eyes keep leaking.
The rooftop buzzes with music and laughter. Candles flicker on every high-top table, with trays of hors d’oeuvres from Elm & Echo floating through the crowd.
“This is amazing,” I say. “I can’t believe you managed to fit this in with everything else going on.”
“I had lots of help.” Goldie grins. She holds out her hands when her grandmas walk up. “These two did a ton.”
Grandma Donna hugs me first. “Oh, fer goodness’ sake. It was the least we could do.”
“You two are going to make such beautiful great-grandkids,” Grandma Nancy says.
I giggle when Camden shoots me an apologetic look.
“I think so,” I say, lifting a shoulder.
His eyes start smoldering, and I lift my hand, shaking my head slightly. “Not that look. Not here,” I say.
The grandmas titter.
“Ohhh, we can close this party down if it means babies sooner,” Grandma Nancy says.
“I can’t take these two anywhere,” Everett says, overhearing the conversation.
I fan my face and shoot Camden another look, which just makes him gaze at me with that sexy smirk.
The night rolls out like a fun movie montage.
People keep grabbing us, hugging us, pressing glasses into our hands.
Erin twirls me around on the dance floor, her combat boots flashing in the glow of the string lights.
Milo and Goldie clink glasses with us, Goldie squeezing me so tight I can barely breathe.
“We were destined to be sisters,” she whispers.
I squeeze her hand, my throat tight for the hundredth time.
Jackson starts out the toasts, sharing how he’s just remembered how clumsy I used to always get whenever Camden was around.
I fan my face when I laugh too hard. The Whitman siblings gather for a toast, and of course, I shed many more tears. Everyone’s said such amazing things that my heart is about to burst. And then, Goldie looks around to give the mic to Dylan.
“Where is he?” She frowns.
Everyone looks around.
“He was just here,” Camden says.
Uncle Hal takes over when Dylan can’t be found and has us all laughing. But when Dylan’s spotted sneaking back onto the rooftop, hair mussed, shirt askew, Uncle Hal calls him out on it.
“Someone’s trying to blend into their surroundings, but methinks we might be hearing about more romances in the Whitman family any day now!” Uncle Hal says, and the crowd erupts.
Dylan smooths his hand over his hair and shakes his head.
“How are we unable to get to the bottom of this?” Tully asks Camden.
“I even tried following him the other day after work,” Noah says. “And normally, grilling him would’ve had him spilling in seconds. Our little guy has grown up.”
Goldie crosses her arms. “I don’t like it. It was bad enough when Camden and Juju were sneaking around. Dylan doing it is going too far.”
“Hey,” I say, laughing and nudging her with my elbow. “You make me sound like a robber in a heist. And you knew what was going on!”
“Yeah,” she says with a grin, “but they didn’t.” She points at her brothers.
Noah and Tully side-eye Camden and me.
“The truth’s out now—let’s focus on Dylan,” Camden says, laughing.
But Dylan makes the best choice. He grabs a glass and lifts it. “To my brother Camden and the beautiful Juliana Fair. You make love look easy and fun and inspiring. May we all find a love like yours.”
“Hear, hear,” everyone says.
I cry again. I can’t stop crying tonight.
The night doesn’t go late—everyone knows tomorrow is going to be madness with the grand opening. But it’s later than my usual evening. It’s worth it, though. For these few hours, we dance and laugh and hug. The town feels knitted together tighter than ever.
When the party finally winds down and Camden and I head home, we’re exhausted but giddy. We undress and fall into bed, breathing each other in. His arm wraps around me, my hand rests over his chest, and in the quiet I whisper, “I love our life.”
“It’s perfect,” he murmurs back. “And we get to live so much more of it just like this…with new adventures every day. You think you can handle all this goodness?”
“With you by my side, I can handle anything. We’ve got what it takes to face whatever comes our way.”