Epilogue
November in Vermont means frost on the windows and bare tree branches scraping against the cabin roof. Outside, the first snow of the season is threatening, heavy gray clouds hanging low over the mountains. But inside Luke’s cabin—our cabin now, I suppose—it’s nothing but warmth and golden light.
I curl deeper into Luke’s side, pulling our shared blanket up to my chin. The fire crackles in front of us, casting dancing shadows across the living room walls. Max and Scout are snoring softly in the bedroom, exhausted from their afternoon hike through the woods before the weather turned.
This is perfect. This quiet moment, just the two of us, feels like something I never dared hope for again.
Luke’s fingers trace lazy circles on my shoulder through my sweater. “So,” he says, his voice low and content, “how was LA?”
I turn to look at him, studying his profile in the firelight. In the past three weeks, the swelling from Sam’s punch has gone down, leaving just a faint yellow bruise along his jaw. “I missed you every second of the trip.”
His hand stills on my shoulder and his voice takes on a teasing edge. “Every second?”
“Maybe not every single one.” I pinch his cheek, pulling it. “But some. I wished you could have come with me.”
Luke catches my hand, pressing a soft kiss to my palm. “I wanted to, but Jenny’s flu is still pretty bad. It’s some viral thing. And without the Captain, the Chief can’t leave the fire station.”
“I know.”
I settle back against his chest as he asks, “How did the meetings go? Did they grovel appropriately?”
I laugh at his choice of word, the sound vibrating through my chest. “They offered me shares if I agreed to stay on as a consultant at least. The thing is that I was doing the job of an entire team. It’s not like I’m not replaceable, but it’s going to take a couple of people to do what I used to do.
Even with the guides I wrote up for them, since I created the systems, whoever comes in to work on them or manage them is not going to be as familiar with them as I was.
It’s a huge loss for them, and they know it. ”
“Good.” He sounds satisfied. “They let you be mistreated like that. HR or somebody should have stepped in when Derek fired you. They must have known the hours you logged in.”
I shrug. “I told them that. Turns out Derek is good at kissing ass. While he may be shit at his job, he’s definitely good at rubbing elbows and scheming. He’d been crapping on me to HR for weeks, part of his plan to have me demoted.”
Luke’s arm tightens around my shoulders. “Was the person in HR fired?”
“No. I don’t care though. Not anymore.” I smile up at him. “I got everything I wanted.”
The fire pops behind us, sending sparks up the chimney. I lean into his touch, my heart so full it feels like it might burst.
“What about the condo?” Luke asks, his lips pressing against my temple, his hand creeping under my sweater to splay across my stomach.
“Didn’t your lawyer tell you?” I glance at him. “I got it back. Once Derek found out he could go to jail, he suddenly became very cooperative about transferring ownership. We didn’t even have to go to court. Amazing how quickly someone’s attitude changes when they realize fraud is a felony.”
Luke chuckles but his eyes are dark with anger. “I wish you’d let me handle it. I told you I’d take care of it.”
“I know.” I press a kiss against his jaw. “But after he showed up here, I just really wanted to be the one to twist the knife myself. He stole from me. I’m selling the condo though. Your lawyer wanted to buy it. Funny how it worked out.”
My eyes linger on the flames as I murmur, “I saw Brittany at the airport when I was coming back. Is she leaving town?”
Luke’s voice is nonchalant. “Yeah. She doesn’t take defeat well. I told her father about it all, and since I’m an investor in his company, he suggested she take a long vacation.”
“I didn’t know you invested in her father’s company.” I sit up, surprised.
Luke shrugs once again as I turn in his arms to face him. “I’ve invested in a lot of local businesses. And her father’s a decent sort. Brittany has always wanted to go abroad to study,and I think he took this opportunity to send her.”
“And she went willingly?” I ask, incredulously.
“Who knows?” Luke says carelessly. “She’s gone, and that’s all that matters to me. Besides,” a wicked grin forms on his lips, “I’ve got better things to focus on.”
He pounces on me, his mouth seizing mine in a fierce kiss.
I press my hand against his chest, stopping him. “Not so fast, mister.”
Luke raises an eyebrow. “Oh?”
I try to keep my expression serious, but I can feel a smile tugging at the corners of my mouth. “I heard you’ve been making some plans of your own.”
His face goes carefully neutral. “Plans?”
“Something about work on the main house?” I watch his expression shift from confusion to resignation. “Ring any bells?”
Luke sighs heavily. “Sam can’t keep his damn mouth shut.”
“No, he can’t!” I throw my brother under the bus without so much as a hint of guilt. “I thought the house was already renovated. What are you doing with that?”
Luke pulls me back up, wrapping his arms around my waist and settling his chin on my shoulder as we both face the fireplace. “I was going to tell you myself. I just... I was waiting for the right moment.”
“Tell me what?”
He takes his sweet time to answer. “You know I didn’t want to live there but I realized this cabin is too small.”
“It’s spacious enough,” I begin. “And then there’s the mountain resort.”
“Yeah, but it’s a distance and we won’t be close to your family. Over here you can just go walking to their house. And this place is good for the two of us and the dogs but not for children.”
“C-children?” I stammer, pulling his hands away and turning around to face him. “Whose children?”
“Ours.” Luke gives me a steady look.
My lips flap like a fish before I press them into a thin line. “We don’t— I mean we’re just— Aren’t you thinking too far ahead in the future?”
Instead of answering with words, Luke reaches into his pocket and pulls out a small black velvet box. My breath catches in my throat.
“Luke, what are you—”
“I know we said we were going to take things slow,” he says, his voice rough with emotion. “I know we said we needed time to get to know each other again. But Hazel, I can’t wait anymore.”
My hands are shaking as I stare at the box. “Luke...”
“This is the ring I saved up for, all those years ago.” His voice is unsteady. “The ring I bought when I was twenty-one and thought I had my whole life figured out. I never got to ask you then, but I want to ask you now.”
He gets on one knee in front of me, and I can’t breathe. I can’t think. All I can do is stare at this man I love more than my own life, kneeling in front of our fireplace. “Hazel Brennen,” he says, opening the box to reveal a simple solitaire diamond on a delicate gold band, “will you marry me?”
The ring is beautiful in its simplicity, nothing flashy or ostentatious. Just a classic, timeless symbol of love that he worked extra shifts to buy when we were barely adults.
“Luke,” I whisper, and then the tears come. Happy tears, overwhelmed tears, eight years of longing and heartbreak and hope all spilling over at once.
“Is that a yes?” he asks, his own voice thick with emotion.
Instead of answering, I launch myself off the couch and into his arms, nearly knocking him backwards. “Yes,” I sob into his neck. “Yes, yes! A thousand times yes.”
He holds me so tight I can barely breathe, his face buried in my hair. “Thank God,” he murmurs. “Thank God.”
We stay like that for I don’t know how long, just holding each other and crying and laughing all at once. When we finally pull apart, Luke’s hands are shaking as he takes the ring from the box.
“May I?” he asks, and I nod, holding out my left hand.
The ring slides on perfectly, like it was always meant to be there. I stare at it through my tears, this symbol of a love that survived eight years and misunderstandings and heartbreak.
“I promise I’ll buy you a better ring tomorrow,” Luke says, his thumb stroking over the diamond. “Something bigger, something—”
“No.” I press my fingers to his lips, silencing him. “This ring is perfect. You saved up for this one, worked so hard for it. No ring in the world could be worth more than what you put into this one.”
Luke’s eyes fill with emotion. “I love you so much, Hazel. I never stopped loving you.”
“I love you too,” I whisper, then pull his face to mine for a kiss that tastes like tears and promises and forever.
The kiss deepens, becomes something desperate and hungry, eight years of separation and longing pouring into this moment. Luke’s hands tangle in my hair, and I press closer to him, trying to memorize every sensation.
A sudden gust of wind brushes against us, carrying the scent of autumn leaves and crisp air. I pull away from Luke, startled, looking around the cabin in confusion.
“Where did that come from?” I ask, watching as several fall leaves flutter past us toward the fire, their red and gold edges catching the light before they spiral away into nothing.
Luke follows my gaze, then looks back at me with a puzzled expression. “All the windows are closed.”
There’s no logical explanation for the sudden breeze, for the leaves that seemed to dance around us like a blessing.
But then Luke’s thumb brushes over my engagement ring, bringing my attention back to what matters most, and I decide I don’t care where the wind came from.
“Must be the old cabin settling,” I murmur, then kiss my fiancé again.
This time, when he deepens the kiss, I don’t pull away. I lose myself in the taste of him, in the feeling of his hands on my skin, in the promise of all our tomorrows stretching out ahead of us.
The fire crackles and pops, casting warm light over our intertwined bodies as we sink back onto the rug in front of the fireplace. Outside, the wind picks up again, rattling the windows gently, but all I can focus on is Luke’s whispered words of love and the weight of his ring on my finger.
I press my face into Luke’s neck, breathing in the scent of him, and smile against his skin.
I’m home. Finally, truly home.
The fire settles into glowing embers, the wind calms to a gentle whisper, and in the peace of our cabin, surrounded by the quiet contentment of our sleeping dogs and the promise of forever, we begin the next chapter of our love story.