Epilogue
“You’re what now?” King’s eyebrows are low on his forehead, but his wife, Georgie has a smile stretched across her face, and I just know she is going to make me pay for this with a lot of “I told ya so’s” and “In your face, Cooper Heyes” before the day is done.
“I said,” I take Molly’s hand in mine and raise it up so he can see the little plastic ring on her finger, “we’re getting married, and I want you to be my best man.” The confusion on his face doesn’t dissipate, and he grabs his wife’s hand and pulls her to him, shutting the door in our faces before it pops back open, revealing an apologetic Georgie.
“Sorry about that, you two. Give us just a minute.” The door shuts again, and Molly and I turn to one another, and I wrap my arms around her waist, pulling her to my body. If we have to wait, might as well do it with my new favorite person in my new favorite place.
“What do you think that was all about?” Molly asks, her fingers playing with the base of my neck, giving me chills.
“Not sure. But he looked so confused. It was hilarious. Also, maybe we should just get married today? I’m not sure how much longer I can behave mysel–.” The door opens, and Georgie ushers us inside the house and into the living room, where King is sitting on the couch like a misbehaving child.
“Molly, why don’t you come with me for a little bit? I think these two need a moment. King, remember what I said.” King crosses his arms over his chest and starts to say something before Georgie raises her finger, cutting off his words. “Or else.”
Or else what I wonder? But I suddenly don’t want to know. Molly blows me a kiss as she walks from the room, and I catch it before slapping it on my cheek. I look over at King, and his jaw is slack, and he looks like an unhinged puppet.
“Uh… King, you alright there, man?” I wave my hand in front of his face, and just for good measure, I give it a good slap.
“Ouch, Coop. What did you go and do that for?” He rubs the side of his face with his hand before dropping it, the scowl from before in place.
“Sorry. I needed you to snap out of it. So I just kind of decided to slap you. Seemed to do the trick, so…,” I shrug my shoulders and chuckle at him.
“So what is this, Coop, some kind of joke? Are you trying to pull a fast one on me and get me back for marrying Georgie? And with that stupid turtle ring of all things. How did you even get that thing off? Never mind. Answer the first question.” King sits back and props his feet up on the table, crossing them at the ankles, mirroring the motion with his arms while he waits for me to respond.
“Nope. No joke. I love her, Kingston. The turtle ring just happened to be there at the right time, so I used it. I will get her a different one. You can come shopping with me to find the perfect one. Like I did when you got the ring for Georgie.” King starts to smile, and I relax back into my seat.
“Yeah, only I won’t get a ring stuck on my finger like an idiot.” He laughs at me just as Georgie and Molly enter the room.
“So, you two are getting married next week?” Georgie settles on the couch next to King, and he wraps his arm around her shoulders, bringing her closer to his side. Molly sits down next to me, and I thread my fingers with hers, resting our hands on my lap.
“Yup. Judge Delgado agreed to marry us on my boat on Tuesday. Other than him, my dad, and you two, no one else knows yet. Molly has to call a few people when we get back to the boathouse. Hopefully they can fly in before the wedding.” I squeeze Molly’s hand, and she taps her lips, so I bend down so she can give me a kiss on my cheek.
“Well, aren’t you two just adorable? King, don’t you think they are adorable?” Georgie waits for his answer.
“Yeah, King, don’t you think we are adorable?” I flutter my eyelashes at King, and he grabs the pillow from the couch, chucking it at my head.
“Oh, shut it, Coop. Yeah, they are… uh… great.” King responds, smiling at Georgie, a she smiles back at him in return.
“So… what time on Tuesday is the ceremony? Oh! Oh, Oh, Oh… Coop? Molly? Can I make the wedding cake? Pretty please?” Georgie asks the both of us and Molly is literally bouncing with excitement at the possibility of having a wedding cake made by Georgie.
“Uh… sure.” How can I say no to Molly’s cute face? Molly turns toward me and plants one on me, and I can hear the groan from King as she continues to thank me.
“I could kiss you, Georgie. But I won’t. Can I hug you instead?” Molly pushes herself from the couch as Georgie stands, and she wraps her in a big hug. And without warning, the both of them start crying. I look over at King, and he looks at me, eyes wide as saucers, the both of us at a loss as to what to do. The girls finish crying and fussing over one another, and they make plans to look at dresses when Molly’s friend arrives. We head for the door, and before we leave, I turn around and pull King into a big hug. “Thanks, King, for being the best friend a guy could ever have.” I pull away, and he quickly swipes at his eyes and nods at me in return.
“Okay, Sunshine. Are you ready to make some phone calls?” She nods her head, and we drive back to the boat.