Epilogue
Maggie
Six months later
Icouldn’t lie. I did love a good party.
And I wasn’t ashamed to admit, I especially loved a party where I was the center of attention.
I loved the reception hall. (The Newbury Boston)
I loved the dress. (Silk A-line gown with a V-neck)
I loved the cake. (Earl Gray cake with vanilla buttercream frosting)
And most of all, I loved the man waiting for me at the end of the aisle. (Brody Andrew Callahan, goalie for the Harbor Wolves and keeper of my heart.)
Yes, Brody had decided to renew his contract. For now, at least. He said the idea of being a hot trophy husband wasn’t exactly his cup of tea, and despite my pleas, he signed on for one more season.
He and Liam had already been making plans for future endeavors they might get into after Brody joins him in retirement. Namely, co-coaching a youth hockey team.
I was glad for them, not only because Brody was like a golden retriever that needed to be occupied at all times to get his energy out, but also because I sort of liked the idea of any kids we might have in the future learning to play hockey with their dad and uncle.
Brody had already agreed, or rather, begged to be a stay-at-home dad. And while I agreed, I was also thinking about cutting my hours back at the office when that day came. We weren’t in a rush, but the idea of a little family all our own was sounding better and better each day.
It had only been six months since that night at the rink when we officially committed to each other for the rest of our lives, but the time had flown faster than I would’ve hoped.
It was by the grace of God we planned this whole wedding in that amount of time, though it didn’t hurt to name-drop Boston’s two favorite Harbor Wolves stars when trying to book wedding-related things. I wasn’t above playing a little dirty to get the job done.
Brody made fun of me, saying I was rushing the wedding because I was scared of getting cold feet and backing out.
In reality, I was just so excited to marry him I couldn’t imagine waiting any longer.
If I didn’t like parties centered around myself so much, I would’ve considered eloping, but somehow I didn’t think it would be as special without our families around us.
Plus, my wedding dress deserved to be seen by the masses.
Lily was our flower girl—a role in which she went above and beyond.
Cassie cried the whole time, and it was hard to tell if it was pregnancy hormones or just simply Cassie. Probably both.
And Liam, who apparently had absorbed some of his wife’s pregnancy hormones, definitely got emotional during his best man speech. I mean, if you count alternating between a few different facial expressions emotional. And considering it was Liam, I definitely did.
It might not have been visible to anyone who didn’t know him super well, but I knew that the hint of emotion on his face was reserved for really special moments like this.
He had walked me down the aisle—a job I wouldn’t trust with any other man on Earth. For my whole life, he’d looked out for me, taken care of me in a way most brothers never had to. But Liam had never backed down from the hard parts of life. And I wouldn’t either. I learned that from him.
My mom cried through the whole ceremony, and for the first time, I admired how beautiful it was to feel everything so deeply. Wasn’t that the point of being alive?
All of our friends were there—even Brody’s group from back home.
I smiled at Abbey, who was cozied up against one of their friends.
She looked radiant and happy. Apparently, Brody had gifted her her dream condo in Michigan.
It was easier than trying to sell it, he’d said, but really I knew it was just him being his generous self to an old friend.
The whole day passed in such a blur that I barely got to soak in the present moment with Brody—and that was what I wanted most of all, for the rest of our lives. To appreciate every moment together.
It wasn’t until our first dance, when I had him in my arms, that it felt real. This man was mine. My husband. My soulmate. My best friend.
I knew with a bone-deep certainty that we could face whatever life threw our way, as long as we stuck together.
“See?” he said, twirling me around the dance floor while I Won’t Give Up floated from the speakers. “It’s not so scary, right?”
“No,” I stared into his eyes, more certain of anything in the world that they were the ones I’d look into every night for the rest of my life, “it’s not so scary at all.”