Epilogue
—Post from Lucy Macauley in the Wayward Harbor Online Community Group
“Whose boat is this?” Lucy yelled, trying to be heard over the ancient-sounding motor. “Are you sure it’s safe to be on the actual ocean in it? This feels more like a boat for a pond.”
Nick laughed and then glanced around before he cut the engine. The sudden silence was a relief, but Lucy wasn’t sure how she felt about the small craft just bobbing aimlessly.
“We’re not going any further out in it, but it’s sound,” he told her. “And it belongs to Cory Weston, a friend of Gray’s.”
“I’ve met Brooke a few times. So this is her ex-husband’s boat?” She frowned, shoving at the hair the wind had torn from her attempt at restraining it in a braid. “Word at the Scuttlebutt is that it wasn’t a very amicable divorce. You’re sure she didn’t drill any holes in it, right?”
“You know, you can just say, ‘Scuttlebutt says it wasn’t amicable.’”
“But I heard it at the Scuttlebutt, thank you very much, and it sounds more fun.” She grinned when exasperation got the better of him and he scowled at her.
“Wait, are there sides? Gray is Cory’s best friend.
You’re Gray’s brother. I live with you. Does that mean I can’t be friends with Brooke?
I hope not, because I actually like her a lot. ”
“You can be friends with Brooke,” he assured her. “It’s tough on Gray, though. Not you being friends with her, but the relationships in general.”
“Oh, he can’t really be friends with Brooke anymore, I guess.”
“It’s messy. He’s been friends with both of them since they were kids. He and Brooke were actually a thing in high school, but they split and she ended up with Cory.”
“Oh no.”
“Gray got over it. But I don’t think he’s ever gotten over her, to be honest.”
“That is messy. Because marrying your best friend’s ex-girlfriend is kinda bad. But hooking up with your best friend’s ex-wife is way worse.”
Nick gave her a stern look. “That is not scuttlebutt for the Scuttlebutt, by the way.”
“Of course not.” Lucy sighed and glanced around the vast amount of water they were drifting aimlessly in. “Are you sure this is safe?”
“It’s safe,” he said patiently. “Especially since you’re making both of us wear our life vests instead of just having them at hand if we need them.”
“If a whale decides to come up under the boat and toss us in the air, you’ll be glad you listened to me.”
“At least it’s a whale now,” he grumbled. “When you were running this scenario by me very loudly at the dock, it was a sea monster.”
Her cheeks heated. “Yeah, but I saw all the guys laughing at me—okay, at us—and I know some of them are already at the Keel, laughing about the city girl being afraid of sea monsters.”
“I already got a text from Theo.”
“Of course you did.” She sighed, wrapping her arms tighter around the bulky life vest. “It’s just a very small boat.”
“But now you’ve been out in a boat,” he said, opening the waterproof bag at their feet. He pulled out a plastic baggie that had a piece of paper and a Sharpie inside. “Now you can cross it off our list of shenanigans.”
Lucy laughed, taking the list and the Sharpie from him. “I can’t believe you brought this out here with us.”
After drawing a thick black line through Go out on a boat, she handed the list to him. “That’s it. That’s all of them.”
Everything under the heading of Our Shenanigans was crossed out. He held out his hand for the Sharpie, and she put the cap back on before handing it to him.
“We got up to all the shenanigans,” he said, giving her a little shrug.
“I’m sad about it, though. I’ll miss that list.”
“You know, we can always add to the list.” He pulled the cap off the Sharpie and turned away so she couldn’t see what he was writing.
“That better not involve eating anything adventurous,” she warned. “Or hiking. Or fishing. I am very willing to be the only resident of Wayward Harbor who doesn’t know how to bait a hook.”
He chuckled and recapped the Sharpie. When he handed her the paper, she noticed his hand was trembling slightly, but she assumed it was cold. Not that he would admit it, but it had been warm in town. It was not warm out on the water, and it was only September.
Then she looked at the list.
Our Shenanigans:
Sunrise on Cadillac Mountain
Go out on a boat
Visit Dinghy Doodads
Play football on the beach
Lucy: try a bologna and tomato sandwich
Get married? Y/N
Lucy’s breath caught, and she held tight to the paper as she looked into Nick’s eyes. “Really?”
“Really. I love you, Lucy Macauley, and I want to spend the rest of my life getting up to shenanigans with you.”
It was hard to see the list with tears welling up in her eyes, but she yelled out a yes across the water as she carefully circled the Y.
Then, after showing it to him, she delicately sealed the paper and Sharpie back in the plastic bag.
It seemed to take forever for Nick to put it back in the big bag, but she didn’t ever want to lose that list.
Finally, he was done, and she launched herself into his arms. The boat rocked wildly, but she didn’t care because Nick was holding her. Awkwardly, because they were both wearing life vests, but she was in his arms and that was all that mattered.
“I love you so much,” she said against his ear before pulling back so she could kiss him, until a swell shifted the boat too much and she squealed against his lips.
“We’re fine,” he said. “But I’ll fire up the motor so we can start heading back. Now that you’re going to be my wife, you should probably know I actually don’t love being on the ocean all that much.”
“Your wife,” Lucy said, and she grinned before she kissed him—just a quick one because she didn’t think she liked being on the ocean all that much, either.
“I have a ring for you, but I left it on dry land,” he said. “I was so afraid I’d be one of those guys who dropped the ring in the water, and I would never have lived that one down.”
She laughed as he fired up the motor and yelled over the noise. “Let’s go get it, then. We’ve got a lifetime of shenanigans to get up to.”
* * * * *
Keep reading for an excerpt from The Cowboy’s Surprise Baby by Melissa Senate.