Bonus Epilogue
Axel
When Maddie’s grip slides away from my arm, I start to lower my hands. “Can I open them?”
“Not yet!”
Her voice has moved several feet away, and even though the wait is starting to kill me, I put my hands back in place over my eyes.
The unmistakable sound of a lighter clicking to life has me lifting an eyebrow. “Baby Doll, you aren’t trying to burn our house down, are you?”
She scoffs, as I hear the lighter click again.
Our house .
It’s amazing that this place ever felt like home before Maddie moved in. It’s only been a few weeks since she switched residences with my son, but it already feels as natural as breathing. Just like the thought of her not living with me makes my chest constrict painfully.
“One second! One second!” Maddie’s voice is moving around the room. “Almost ready!”
I smile, but my hands are covering the expression.
She’s obviously hurrying around lighting candles, which she could have done before getting me, but my cautious girl would never leave flames unattended .
“Okay,” her voice has softened and I hear the nerves she’s trying to hide even as she presses her palm against my side.
Ever since Brian moved out, Maddie has told me to stay out of his old room.
I know she’s been down here transforming it into some sort of man cave for me.
And I’m sure it’s because she feels guilty that I turned my spare room upstairs into a coffee room for her, rather than the lounge I’d originally intended.
And even though I’ve told her a million times that I don’t need my own space, she’d already made up her mind.
And if I’ve learned anything, it’s that she can be just as stubborn as me.
“You sure?” I tease and I feel her exhale on my forearm.
“I’m sure.”
I lower my hands, blinking to adjust my eyes to the dim lighting, and my smile freezes. My brain is too busy taking it all in to keep my facial features in check.
The room has been repainted. Each wall a different shade of dark gray, and the ceiling has gone from a smooth white to an almost black. And instead of the one main light that used to be in here, there’s now several recessed lights peppered across the ceiling, and they’re all glowing a soft blue.
In the center of the room is one giant chair. Giant, as in wide enough for both of us to sit side-by-side, but proportioned like an overstuffed armchair rather than a loveseat. And there’s a matching ottoman all upholstered in sapphire blue velvet.
“Baby Doll,” I breathe the endearment, my eyes bouncing around, taking in the different sized candles on the industrial-looking side tables.
But it’s the biggest fire that pulls me forward, because facing the chair is a small fireplace. The flames dance around behind the glass, and I know, I’m sure it must be electric but it’s sending waves of light and heat through the room, filling the space with a warmness that reminds me of Maddie.
I reach out and pull my girl into a hug. “I love it.” I kiss the top of her head and repeat myself, “I love it.”
Her shoulders rise and fall with a deep breath.
“I’m glad,” she mumbles against me.
Pressing another kiss to her hair, I lift my gaze to take in the rest of the details and focus on the walls. Specifically the dozen black frames encasing black and white photos.
At first glance, I thought they were random car photos. But now…
“Is that?” I start to move forward, almost forgetting Maddie’s plastered to my chest and nearly knock her over.
She makes a squeak and goes to step away but I don’t let her. Bending enough to grab ahold of her ass with both hands, I lift her.
Not needing instruction, Maddie wraps her legs around my waist and her arms around my neck, holding me tight.
With my heart clinging to my front, I walk us closer to the photos and feel my throat tighten.
The first photo, the one that I thought was taken from a website, is my car. The first car I ever restored. A red and black GTO turned shades of gray through the photography.
“How…” I trail off, feeling more emotion hit me as I realize every one of these photos represents something from my life I’m proud of.
Brian as a baby. Brian and me at his first baseball game. The sign in front of my shop. A photo of the mailbox at the end of my driveway. A picture of the framed dollar that hangs in my office, the first dollar I ever made.
And us.
Holding tight to Maddie with one hand, I let go with the other and lightly touch one of the frames. “I forgot you took this.”
Maddie shifts so she’s looking at the same photo.
“Our first date,” she whispers.
“I remember,” I whisper back.
The photo is a little bit grainy, since it was taken in a dark parking lot. But the poor lighting only enhances Maddie’s big beautiful eyes as she smiles at the camera. And there’s me, behind her, looking like a big brooding bodyguard with lust in his eyes and longing in his soul.
“Some part of me knew,” her words slide right between my ribs, straight into my heart. “Some part of me knew that moment was the beginning of the rest of my life. ”
My finger traces the image of her lips through the glass, careful not to leave a smudge, before my eyes lower to the woman in my arms, “Have I told you how perfect you are?”
Her smile back is soft, her eyes glassy. “Not today.”