Epilogue
Kiera
One Year Later....
Watching the hottest babe on the beach surf the waves is a spiritual thing.
With the sun still slowly climbing in the shadowed skies, I lie on the warm sand, watching Killian kill it on his board. This is our morning ritual. We come to the beach for him to grab a few waves before he goes to open the new shop.
Brody is out there too, but I don’t bother watching him. I have eyes just for my surfer boy. His hair is golden, his tan already darkening from the sun just a few days into summer. Standing on his board, he shouts something at Brody, both men laughing as they cut through a barrel.
Their shop opened just a few months after my first Christmas here in Sunset Springs. I was able to do some budgeting, a little number crunching, to get them to their goal a lot sooner than they expected. Their shop has been a hit in the beachside town with the boards, the cute surfing tchotchkes, and now a new clothing line designed by Maribell.
It took me a little while to decide what I wanted to do for myself here in Sunset Springs. Besides doing the books for my boyfriend and his best friend, I wanted something that was mine. It was Maribell that gave me the idea to start something I truly love doing.
“Lists. You made the coolest list for yourself when you came to Sunset Spring. Some tourists come to hang out, get drunk, get some sun, whatever. A lot of them do not even see all the cool things in town. Make lists for tourists to do things. Here at the hotel, we can offer them as part of their stay package.”
It sounded simple enough, and to be honest, it was. That list I made on my plane ride here had not just given me the best summer of my life, it had given me a purpose while I was here. Besides, falling in love with my savior, of course. I might have laid on the beach drinking matais while missing all the things Sunset Springs has to offer.
Glancing down at the list I am working on now, I smile. This one is just for me. I create templates for Maribell to give the guests and they use them almost like a treasure map while they’re here, checking things off as they go. I also meet with vacationers to create their own personalized lists. Still, I am adding to my own list almost every single day.
“Get my boyfriend out of the water,” I read the silly one I just wrong next a dozen other crossed off items. “Sex on the beach. Go out for tacos.”
Grinning, I jump to my feet, tossing the precious notebook I’ve kept since that first list aside. Heading for the water in my brand-new pink two-piece, I soak up the warmth of the sun as I watch my surfer boy land an immense wave. Wading into the water, I wait for him to glide down the barrel to get to me.
“There she is,” he hums as he coasts towards me on his board. “My beautiful sunshine girl. You miss me?”
“I did. Decided to come join you for a wave or two,” I tell him as he helps me climb on the board.
With the brightest, most beautiful grin on his face, he drags me close on the board. Gripping my thighs, he drops them over his, so we are skin to skin, his hands sliding down to cup my backside. Giving one cheek a playful swat, he lowers his head, and I meet him halfway.
I could kiss this man for hours. Sometimes I do. There is something so sweet, so intimate about the slide of his lips over mine. The soft sounds he draws out of me, the deep rumbles he makes when he licks my mouth, or I play with his tongue. It’s not better than sex, not better than him filling me and pinning me beneath him, but it is pretty damn good.
“I love you,” he hums the words I never tire of hearing. “I want to spend the entire day with you, baby. On the water, on the beach, in bed, whatever you want. I am so fucking lucky you came to Sunset Springs. Lucky I was there that day when I had no idea, I was even looking for you.”
“I love you,” I breathe back, hanging off his broad shoulders, letting the sunshine warm my face as his big body warms the rest of me. “I am the lucky girl. I got my hot surfer boy, a dream life in paradise, I think I am the luckiest girl in Sunset Springs.”
“Surfer man,” he corrects me playfully, kissing my nose. Sobering, he stares down at me with those ocean blue eyes.
Killian often looks at me this way. With this look of...well, of awe. As if he is truly the lucky one to have found me. He is wrong. I am the lucky one. I was living a half-life before him. Working, existing, barely getting by. Now I eat good food, I have great friends; I do fun things; we make love in the ocean, on the sand, our need for each other is still as hot as the burning sun.
But when he looks at me this way, I let myself feel the weight of it. He is not shy about showing affection. Not just kisses on the surfboard or cuddling on the beach with Brody or Maribell and our friends. He writes me notes on my ever-growing lists, he leaves little presents on my pillow in the morning or brings me something cute from the shop.
The truth is, I am the lucky one, but he seems to feel pretty lucky too.
“Stop thinking so loud,” he teases me with my own words from last summer.
“Shut me up then, surfer boy,” I tease, grinning up at him.
“Surfer man ,” he shoots back, swatting my backside again. Again, he seems to sober, his eyes going dark. I wait for him to speak, sensing he has something big to say. “I love you, Kiera. I never thought I was going to get to have what we have together. It’s the best thing to ever happen to me. You are the best thing to ever happen to me. You said once that I made you better, stronger, but that was all you, Kiera. You made me better. You gave me something to give a damn about, something to aspire to. I love you so much.”
Staring up at him in the sunshine, the warmth of the ocean splashing us, the press of his hard body delicious against mine, I nod. It is all I can do. He is truly the best man I have ever met, the most patient, the kindest, the sweetest man on the planet, and somehow, he is mine.
“Marry me, Kiera. Be my wife, baby,” he hums, his eyes softening as he produces a ring, clasping it between thumb and forefinger.
I gasp because it is the most perfect thing I have ever seen. It is a freshwater pearl, circled by tiny diamonds in a beautiful rose gold band. Reaching out with a trembling hand, I touch it gingerly. Grinning, he takes my hand and slips it on as I nod my head. Because I cannot form words. I slide as close to him as I can on the board, holding my hand up to the sun.
“Yes. Yes, yes, I want to marry you. I love you. I love you so much. You’ve given me a brand-new life and I am so excited to live it with you, to get forever with you. I love you, Killian.”
“Yeah, forever,” he smiles so big, so bright, as we cling to one another as wave crests. “Forever and ever. Might want to make some new lists, babe. We’ve got forever to cross it all off.”
“Speaking of that,” I husk, mouth against his ear. “I have something to cross off today, surfer man. Sex on the beach.”
Chuckling, he paddles towards the shore, even as I claim his mouth in a hungry kiss. I know we will cross that one off the list today. And I have no doubt anything I add to the list, he will be sure we do.
We have forever and ever, after all.