Epilogue
. . .
The oversized Sir Erwyn shirt I slept in the night before was my only covering as I precariously carried coffees back to our bedroom. Evan had bought it for me as a joke on our first anniversary. Unfortunately for him, it was the most comfortable thing I owned and my sleep shirt of choice.
“That damn shirt is the quickest turn off I can think of,” he laughed as he took his coffee from me, jokingly averting his eyes.
“You should have thought of that before you bought it for me years ago, you created this monster.” I pulled at the hem a bit and did a little twirl.
“Besides, if you don’t want to look at the shirt you can always take it off me.
That option has always been on the table.
” I set my coffee on the nightstand and climbed over towards Evan across our bed.
The early morning sun cast our room in a golden glow, the windows of the skyscrapers reflected the sunlight like towering mirrors. New York had been our shared home for nearly four years. As much as Evan and I pretended we could manage the medium distance between us, it got old quickly.
After one too many train delays, Evan let the question burst out of him. Did I want to move in with him? We’d been together a little over a year, and neither of us saw any sign of things coming to an end. I was certain he was ready to propose then but had to restrain himself a little longer.
The time had long been overdue for me to move on from Boston. There was so much I’d miss, namely Andrea and Caroline, but they’d been tossing around the idea of moving across the state to start a family in the Berkshires.
I agreed to move in on one condition, I had to be able to decorate our shared apartment however I wanted.
He happily accepted, and I loaded my car up with my clothes and favorite vintage decor before I made the drive from my apartment in Cambridge to his building one last time. We didn’t leave his apartment for three days after.
Evan set down his own coffee and tugged at the collar of the t-shirt. “I’m never going to be opposed to that.”
I slid the shirt over my head and he wrapped his hands around my waist. We fit together absurdly well. His palms brushed over my curves, he reveled in my body like it was something holy and new. I would never, ever be over it.
The taste of coffee lingered on his lips as I kissed him. He dragged his hands down and cupped my ass, gripping at the flesh.
Bzzzz Bzzzzz Bzzzzz
My phone was on “Do Not Disturb" except for four people, Evan, Andrea, Caroline, and Sue. Andrea and Caroline were far too busy with their baby to be casually calling on a Sunday morning. I pried myself off of Evan and saw Sue’s name flash across my screen.
“Shit,” I muttered. “I’m sorry.” I picked up the phone and walked out into the hallway, snagging one of Evan’s cast-off button down shirts on my way out.
“Hey, Sue, what’s up?” I asked as I pulled the shirt on. My heart was wildly pounding. “Is it Randy?”
Randy’s health had been declining. Evan and I had seen it firsthand when we spent a week at camp early in the summer.
For years, Randy was fiercely independent, only relying on help if it was absolutely necessary.
During the week we were with him he asked for Evan’s help multiple times to get a few simple tasks done.
Evan did them without a single hesitation.
Over and over I tried to talk to Sue about the reality of their situation but she’d dismissed it every time, insisting things were just fine.
The entire drive home I cried about it, convinced that it was the last time I’d see Randy. Waiting for Sue’s answer made my throat tighten.
What if I was right?
“We’re selling the camp, I’m sorry lovebug, I gotta rip off the bandaid,” Sue said curtly.
“Selling it?” I asked. I’d heard her correctly, but I was dumbfounded. The pit in my stomach didn’t dissipate.
“I don’t want to, trust me. We don’t have another option. You know how long it took Randy and I to close up camp this year? A whole week. We can’t do this anymore, kiddo. Next summer is going to be our last.”
A cry exploded out of me. Heavy choking sobs accompanied by hot tears.
“Oh, lovebug,” Sue said quietly. “This is what I was worried about.”
“I-I’m sorry,” I attempted to say. “It’s selfish of me to think about myself when Randy needs to do this.”
At the sound of my crying Evan materialized in the hallway. “Is it Randy?” he mouthed.
I shook my head. “They’re selling the camp,” I barely got the words out.
There was a montage playing in my mind of the time I’d spent there. Splashing in the shallow parts of the lake as a little kid, kayaking to my secret cove when I was a teenager, solo sunrise hikes in my young adulthood. My week with Evan.
Losing camp was losing a part of myself, and losing the setting for the greatest love story I could ever imagine.
Evan proposed at camp. I don’t think he meant to do it the first time. We were laying on the dock and he sleepily said, “marry me, Dani.”
I didn’t hesitate. I didn’t run. I said “yes.”
We woke up the next morning, neither of us sure if that counted as a proposal. So, on the front porch of our cabin he got down on one knee and gave me the ring he’d been carrying around for over a year.
It was decided before we drove home that we’d be getting married at camp in September, the week after it officially closed for the season. We tried paying Sue and Randy a hefty sum to keep it open for us and host but they refused to take a single dollar.
The ceremony happened at sunset, right on the red dock. The stars served as the backdrop to our first dance, appropriately, that one cheesy love song from Twilight.
“Let’s buy it,” Evan said after I ended the call.
“You know that would mean we’d have to run it,” I countered.
“Okay, and you know exactly how to from working there. I can figure things out handyman wise by watching some YouTube videos. We could even hire one or two employees to help us out or fill in for us if we’re gone.
I’m totally serious. I don’t see any reason we can’t do this.
Just say the world and we’ll make it happen. ”
“You’re serious?” I said. I thought I’d experienced enough shock in my lifetime having dated a celebrity, but this was new.
“Dead serious, call her back and tell her we’ll buy it, double whatever they’re going to ask for. I want to make sure you get your happily ever after.”