Epilogue
EPILOGUE
TEN MONTHS (MANY BOOKS) LATER
“ ’til this moment I never knew myself.”
~Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice
T hey were the picture of Jane Austen fan girls as Clayton, in his navy Pemberley and Elle, in her purple Obstinate Headstrong Girl T-shirts walked through a row of Georgian houses in the city of Bath, England. Hands clasped they trotted along the cobblestone sidewalk approaching the Jane Austen Center.
At the Georgian-style house a man dressed like Mr. Bennet from Pride and Prejudice greeted them. “Good day, Sir and Madam.” Mr. Bennet tipped his hat to them. “I believe Mrs. Bennet is expecting you inside.”
“Thank you, sir.” Elle curtsied, elbowing Clayton to bow.
They wandered through the Jane Austen Center looking at family portraits and artifacts and attended a lecture from Captain Wentworth about the Austen family history, which made Elle think of her mom. Captain Wentworth was her mom’s dreamboat. Over the last ten months, they had made slow but healthy progress. In March, after several months of solo therapy, they started joint sessions with a therapist that Elle’s had recommended. It wasn’t a mother/daughter relationship, but it was something. They had joint sessions every two weeks, and on the off weeks they would have a lunch date. Much of the conversation was shallow at first but had started to deepen. Elle had even had Daniel and her mom to the farmhouse for dinner at the end of June.
After Captain Wentworth’s lecture, they found themselves in a room in the bottom floor of the house with quill pens, ink, and paper sat atop Regency-era style writing desks. Visitors were encouraged to write notes, just as Jane Austen had. Elle pursed her lips dipping her quill in the black ink trying to write a note to Carmen on the slip of paper.
“This is really hard.” Elle’s brows wrinkled.
“That’s what she said,” Clayton chuckled.
“Ha!” She rolled her eyes. Clearly, he’d been hanging with Uncle Pete too much. “Seriously, how did she write so many novels with this?” She waved the quill over her head.
“Just takes practice,” Clayton said, his voice steady and patient.
“That’s what she said,” she smirked, listening to his soft laugh. Ok, they’d both been spending too much time with Pete. “Look at this.” She turned to face him holding up her chicken scratch that should read Hi, Carmen! but looked more like dueling zig-zag lines.
“You’ll get it, baby.” He turned his back toward her, facing his work on the desk.
Shrugging, she twisted and grabbed another piece of paper to try again.
“Ugh…maybe I’ll scratch the framed letter idea. Thank god for computers, I could never write with these quills. I don’t even like pens.” She crumbled the paper and placed the quill back in the holder.
“Look at mine.” Clayton said, slipping his piece of paper in front of her.
“Oh, I bet yours is…” Her mouth hung open in disbelief as her eyes locked on the smooth letters in black ink dancing across the slip of paper reading Marry me.
Grasping the paper Elle spun in her seat, almost falling off the wooden chair. Grabbing the back of the chair to steady herself, she straightened to see Clayton bent on one knee holding a purple velvet box.
She blinked. “Clayton?”
Marriage hadn’t been discussed. Neither had not getting married. They had been together for almost a year, although, there was a bit of debate on that. Elle said it was since the day after the wedding when they had their first kiss, and Clayton said in his heart it was the day she lost that game of tug-of-war with the goat. They decided to claim both August 11 and August 19 as their days.
“Eleanor ‘Elle’ Davidson, I love you so much…” Clayton took her hand with his left hand keeping the box in his right. The tiny paw print tattoo on his forearm seemed to walk toward the ring-box and her. “…and I want to spend the rest of my life showing you how much I love you. Will you marry me?”
“Yes!” Elle squeaked, fat joyful tears rolling down her cheeks.
“Yes!” Clayton shouted as he jumped up, lifting her into his arms to the clapping and hoots of other patrons. “How did I get so lucky?” he asked, drinking her in before kissing her to even louder cheers from people in the room.
“I was just wondering that myself,” Elle sighed as they broke their kiss.
“See girls, a man with a good fortune is always in want of a wife.” The Mrs. Bennet look-a-like chimed in with a high-pitched British accent. The older woman stood observing Clayton and Elle from a corner of the room with two women dressed in period outfits.
Elle glanced at them smiling from Clayton’s arms. The entire room was watching them with happy faces, clicking cameras, and even an iPad videoing the scene.
“Do you want to see the ring.” He set Elle back on her feet.
“Yes, please.”
There was a tiny click as the box opened revealing a silver ring with an emerald cut purple ruby framed in tiny intricate clear sapphires in the shape of starfish. Elle didn’t like diamonds, she never had. She loved that Clayton remembered that. The ring was gorgeous. It was unique. It was special.
“I had it designed for you. I’m not going to lie; Viet and Willa helped.” He took the ring out of the box slipping it on to her finger. It fit perfectly. The stones glittered as the overhead light hit it.
“I love it.” She kissed him. “And I love you.”
“Let’s see it!” Mrs. Bennett demanded as she approached Elle and Clayton, her younger companions in tow.
The famed overbearing mother was joined by look-a-likes of her sweet daughter Jane and the original romance heroine, Lizzie Bennet. The Bennet ladies stood around Elle cooing about the ring and her strapping young man, as they called him. After several congratulations from the staff and fellow Jane Austen enthusiasts, they walked up the narrow wooden stairs toward the tearoom, Elle jokingly grumbled that she couldn’t believe Viet and Willa had kept this from her. Clayton followed behind with a chuckle.
“I’m going to have to give them a piece of?—”
“ Surprise !”
The boisterous greeting startled Elle as she walked into the rose-wallpapered tearoom with its maze of white linen tables adorned with full tea service sets.
“Oh my god!” She cried, for the second time in twenty minutes, covering her face in shock.
The room was filled with her people, all her people, lifting cups of tea, ready to toast. Everyone in shades of purple. Viet and Noah beamed from the center of the room. Aunt Janet blew her nose loudly into a tissue. Standing next to her was Pete, his blue eyes glistening with happy tears. Ryan, Viet’s husband, snapped pictures of Elle and Clayton as they took in the sight of all their loved ones in the room. Willa rocked her lilac earrings and a matching sundress as she leaned against Tobey and Jerome in matching dark purple polos.
An iPad in Jerome’s hands with several familiar faces dialed in virtually for this moment including Summer and Liam, who were staying at the farmhouse watching Fitz and Lizzie while they were gone. Both dogs were licking a giggling Liam’s face.
Todd flipped them thumbs up from the screen as he sipped a cup of coffee. Carmen and Mathew were center square, baby Fischer sleeping on his daddy’s shoulder.
Braedon held a Congrats Boss Lady sign in their hands from the lower left corner of the screen.
Nat wore a bedazzled shirt that read Elle + Clayton 4EVER as she blew them kisses from the Little Red Barn, where she was now living since she’d returned home in May to join her father’s practice.
Elle’s mom mouthed I love you . Elle mouthed it back and meant it. They’d come so far.
The entire tearoom was just them and their people. Clayton’s parents stood by one another. Chris rocked a lavender bow tie along with a giant grin as he looked at his son and future daughter-in-law. Heidi sniffled next to him, dabbing her eyes with a cloth napkin.
“I can’t believe you’re here,” Elle gaped.
“Oh, honey we love you two so much.” Heidi gushed, tugging Elle close. “Thank you for choosing my son. He needs a strong woman like you.”
“Oh, Heidi.”
“Ok. Now I’m going to blubber to my son.” She laughed before kissing Elle’s forehead and letting go.
“I’m happy to get another daughter.” Chris enveloped Elle, his bow tie brushing against her head as they embraced.
“Dad, you should get mom; she’s a mess.” Clayton warned placing a hand on his dad’s shoulder. They turned to a sobbing and cackling Heidi who was being soothed by Noah.
“Oh dear.” Chris’ jaw went slack.
“I don’t know if I should ask this, but was she like this the last time you got engaged?” Elle tipped her head and considered Heidi.
“Nope.” The father and son said in unison.
“She liked Marianne. She was a nice girl. We both did, but she wasn’t you. She wasn’t our daughter.” Chris said, his blue eyes warm with affection before he shuffled to his wife.
“He’s right, you know? I know I’ve been married before, but this is different. With you it all feels like the first time.” Clayton placed a hand on her cheek. “I think it’s because it was always meant to be you.”
“It’s always meant to be us,” she said, their eyes tethering as the voices in the room faded away leaving just them in their bubble. The twists and turns of her life leading her here to this moment with this man and these people.
"I always knew we’d end up here,” Noah said, sauntering up with a gold rim teacup in hand.
Elle pressed a thankful peck to Noah’s cheek. “Thank you.” Long before they’d known there was the possibility of an “Elle and Clayton,” Noah had championed them.
Clayton hugged Noah in that trademark masculine back slapping hug. “You know this means your mom is going to harass you more about finding someone,” Clayton chuckled.
Noah winced.
Elle and Clayton laughed.
“I am so happy.” Janet barreled into Elle like a tiny bullet train, her vise-like arms pulling Elle in.
“Me too.” Elle sighed, hugging her aunt back.
“Mom, let her go. It’s our turn. Go hug Clayton,” Tobey prodded. After one last squeeze, Janet let go and Tobey and Jerome swooped in to hug Elle.
“You know they’re going to do a choreographed dance at your wedding, right?” Tobey rolled his eyes before kissing Elle’s damp cheek.
Her laugh was watery. “I’m glad I’ll have you to help me wrangle them.” She ruffled his hair.
“Group hug!” Jerome boomed wrapping his arms around his husband and Elle.
“Bear, you’re smothering us,” Tobey grumbled, half-annoyed but a hundred percent enamored with his husband.
Escaping Jerome’s embrace, she ran over to Viet and Willa nearly knocking them down to hug them giddily. Despite moving back home, Elle hadn’t lost her closeness with them. The one week each month she was in town she’d stay with Viet and, sometimes, with Willa. They’d have happy hour, Thai Tuesday dinners, and brunch on the weekend.
Elle walked through the room of happy people toward Uncle Pete.
“Hey kiddo.” His voice cracked.
“Hey.” She stood in front of him. “So, I’m getting married.”
“That you are.” He nodded at her and then looked across the room where Clayton with a bemused look on his face stood talking to Noah, Willa, and Janet.
“Will you walk me down the aisle when I do?” Elle gazed hopefully at her uncle.
The tears in his glossy eyes overflowed as he looked at her. “Of course.” He held her tight, and she held him back even tighter. “If I have to be replaced as the number one man in your life, I can’t imagine a better man to be replaced by.”
“There’s no replacing you, you’re my favorite uncle.”
“I’m your only uncle.” he said, his voice hoarse with emotion.
“My one and only.” she inhaled him, taking in the love at this moment. “I love you, Pete.”
“I love you, kiddo.”
From the first day she was in this world, he had been there. In all the big and little moments of her life, he was there in some shape or form. He was hers and she was his. That’s how it had always been and would always be. He wouldn’t be Uncle Pete without Elle, and she wouldn’t be Elle without her Uncle Pete.
“Ok, enough of this mushy stuff. I’m going to eat a scone.” He cleared his throat and kissed her temple. “You got our girl.”
Elle turned, following the flick of Pete’s eyes toward an approaching Clayton.
“Always.” Clayton assured as he reached her side.
“I know you do.” Pete placed a hand on Clayton and then yanked him close for a tight hug. “You’ve been family, but now it’s official. Although, if you break her heart, I will get Lt. Scout to help me bury you in the backyard.”
“Noted.” Clayton chuckled under his breath.
“Elle…” Pete pivoted looking over his shoulder at Elle. “…same goes for you. Don’t break his heart.”
“I won’t.” She loved that Pete felt as protective of Clayton as he did of her. The two men had gotten close since Elle moved home. So often she’d find them playing cards at the dining room table of the farmhouse or working on home improvement projects together.
“How are you doing?” Clayton asked, coiling his arms around her waist.
“Blissfully happy.” She leaned her head back against his upper chest looking up at him.
“We’re getting married.” he said almost in shock. “You’re going to be my wife.”
“You’re going to be my husband.”
“We’re going to have to change the sign I made for your office.” When she moved in, he had a sign made for the door to his former study, now her office, that read Elle Davidson, Sloan-Whitney East Office . He’d had the words engraved on a smooth oak plaque then hung the sign over the center of the door.
“Changed to what?” she asked, a quizzical smile dancing on her lips.
“Elle Owens.”
“I don’t think I want to change my name. I love Elle Davidson,” she said letting her words wash over her like the first refreshing burst of hot water. With the help of therapy, she’d come to love who she was. Elle Davidson was still and would always be a work in progress, but she could love who she had been, who she was and who she was becoming on her journey. She loved herself. She was worth the risk, after all.
“I get it. Elle Davidson is kind of fantastic.” He nuzzled her neck. “As long as you’re my Elle Davidson.” He spun her around to face him.
“Always.” She raised to her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around his nape.
“I love you, Mrs. Darcy.” He leaned in close, his lips inches from hers.
“I love you, Mr. Darcy.” She closed the inches between them.
It wasn’t the end. It was the beginning…
Want to spend more time in Perry with Nat and Noah as their romance blossoms? Turn the page for a sneak peek of their story, Coming Home coming in January 2025…