Epilogue - Tyson - One Year Later
My heart hammers against my chest. I don’t think I’ve ever been so nervous as I stand in my backyard, my gaze roaming the space as I try to pass the time before Josie walks out the back doors.
The sun is just beginning to set, casting a soft golden light across the pond.
Candles line the path from the back doors to where I stand.
I’ve tried to make the moment as intimate and romantic as possible, putting candles and flowers all around the space.
I stand in front of the two chairs that sit side by side on my property, overlooking the water, the same chairs that Josie and I love to sit in every night that we’re here.
Above them, there’s a giant arch of flowers that creates a backdrop for what I’m about to do.
I hear the back door open, making my pulse skyrocket.
There’s a pause. For a moment, there’s silence. “Tyson?” Josie finally says, her voice carrying across the yard.
She steps into view, and I’m reminded all over again how madly in love with her I am. She stands on the back deck, her eyes already scanning the area. She takes in the candles, the path, the way everything leads to me.
It reminds me of the moment a year ago, when she stood out here and we met for the very first time.
How things have changed in the last year. It’s been the most incredible year of my life, and I cannot wait for many more to come with her by my side.
“What is all of this?” she asks, her voice quiet as she steps forward.
I don’t answer right away. I just watch her, taking her in. She wears a pale yellow sundress with flowers on it. The fabric blows in the wind as she makes her way in my direction. She takes her time coming down the path, her gaze drifting over everything before landing back on me.
She gives me a soft smile, and something in her face tells me that she already knows this isn’t going to be an ordinary night.
When she reaches me, she lets out a shaky breath. “Out here is where we met,” she points out, her words quiet.
“It is,” I respond. Her eyes flick briefly to the chairs behind me, then back to me. I take a moment to look at her up close, soaking it in. Even after a year together, she still takes my breath away.
She still makes the rest of the world fade away until it’s just her.
“What is all this?” she asks as I take her hand in mine. I tighten my grip, my thumb brushing slowly over her skin as I try to steady myself.
I take a deep breath. It feels like I’ve practiced what I’m going to say a thousand times, but now that she’s here in front of me, it all disappears.
“There are so many things I want to say right now,” I begin. “I’ve thought about this—practiced it even—what feels like countless times.”
Her lips twitch with the hint of a smile, but she doesn’t interrupt. She just keeps her gaze trained on me, waiting for me to continue.
“I’m going to try to find the right words here,” I continue. “But forgive me if they don’t come out as perfect as I hoped now that you’re standing in front of me.”
Her fingers curl tighter in mine, a silent sign that she’s right here with me. “I’m sure they’ll be perfect,” she whispers.
“I love you,” I begin, needing to say those words before saying anything else. “This past year with you has been the best year of my life. I didn’t know happiness like this even existed until you came into my life.”
Josie nods, tears beginning to well in her eyes. “You make me so happy, Ty,” she responds.
“I promise you I had all these visions, these poetic things I was going to say here that were romantic, but you look so damn beautiful tonight, and I just love you so much that it’s all disappeared.”
“Yes,” she gets out. “Whatever you’re about to say…yes.”
I can’t help but laugh, even with the nerves running through my veins. “You don’t even know what I’m about to ask.”
“Yes I do. And it’s yes. Forever and always a yes.”
Her words calm something deep inside me. They give me enough courage to keep going.
“Well, I’m going to ask anyway,” I tell her, reaching into my pocket.
My fingers close around a velvet ring box as I lower to one knee.
Josie lets out a small sob as I look up at her. The love I have for her overtakes me as I feel this overwhelming amount of happiness that I get to ask her this question—a question she’s already said yes to.
“Josephine Russell,” I begin, trying to keep my voice steady. “You’ve captivated me from the moment you trespassed on my lawn a year ago.”
We both laugh at the memory. I’ve never been so damn grateful for Mouse and his tendency to wander.
“From the first day we met, something about you was incredibly special. It’s like something deep inside me was telling me that you were going to mean a lot to me.
From the very beginning, you stole my attention in a way no one has before.
I think I might’ve fallen in love with you that first day.
I just didn’t even realize what that feeling was. ”
I hold the ring box up between us, trying to hide the way my hands shake from the nerves and excitement. “I’ve had the best year with you. I want all my years with you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. So…” I open the ring box at the same moment she lets out a loud gasp.
“Josephine Russell, will you marry me?” I ask, fully aware that my words shake, but not caring how they sound. They’re out in the world between us, and that’s all that matters.
Josie drops to her knees in front of me, her arms immediately wrapping around my neck. “Yes,” she gets out, pulling her arms back so she can hold my face in her hands. “Yes, always yes,” she continues before leaning forward and pressing her lips to mine.
I smile against her mouth. The hand not holding the ring box cups the back of her head as I deepen the kiss between us. I know I still need to get the ring on her finger, but for the moment, I get lost in the kiss, pure joy running through my body.
She’s going to be my wife.
I get to spend the rest of my life with her.
I’m the luckiest man in the world.
Eventually, I pull away. “You barely even looked at the ring,” I say with a laugh. “I think I’m supposed to put it on your finger, and then we kiss.”
Josie shrugs, her hazel eyes looking into mine with so much love that it makes my chest tighten. “We’ve always worked on our own timeline anyway.”
I laugh before holding the box between us, wanting her to see the ring.
When she finally looks at it, she gasps as her hand covers her mouth. “Is this…?” She can’t get the words out as tears pool in her beautiful hazel eyes.
“Your grandmother’s,” I confirm. “When I asked Pop for your hand, he insisted I propose with her ring.”
A happy sob escapes her as she looks from the ring to me. “You…you asked Pop?” Her words come out shaky and full of disbelief.
“Of course I did. It was important to me that I got his blessing, and I figured it’d be important to you too.”
She nods, tears streaming down her face. “God, I love you so much.”
“I love you too.”
I grab her hand as we both rise to stand up. I don’t know which one of us is shaking, but I slide the ring onto her finger. We both take a moment to admire it.
I’m busy staring at her hand when Josie’s mouth crashes into mine.
It takes me by surprise. Her legs wrap around my middle as she deepens the kiss.
We might be outside, but the only other house close to us is hers, and it’s empty until tomorrow, when Pop flies in with the rest of our close friends and family to celebrate the release of her book.
The one she dedicated to me.
The one that started this all.
My tongue slips into Josie’s mouth at the same moment my hands slide under her dress. I can’t help it. I’m so turned on by her, and I need her right now, under the setting sun and surrounded by the candles, celebrating our engagement.
“Everything off but the ring,” I tell her, my fingers bunching around the fabric and lifting it up off her body.
She obliges. Our clothes end up in a pile next to us as we make love at the spot we first met. Where we got engaged. A place that’ll be special to both of us forever.
We’re a tangle of tongues and limbs under the stars as we celebrate our forever. Meeting Josie here was an unexpected chapter, but one I’ll forever be grateful for.
Everything in my life was worth it because it all led to her. The love of my life. My future wife. The mother of my future children. My entire world.
“I love you, Josie,” I tell her as I push into her under the stars.
“I love you too, Tyson.”
“Good. Keep feeling that way for the rest of your life.”
She smiles as her eyelids flutter shut as she gets closer to an orgasm. “Oh, I plan on it,” she whispers.
I smile because I plan on doing the same thing.
I’m going to love her for the rest of my life, making sure every day she knows just how loved she is.
She never has to take on this world alone again.
I’ll forever be there for her, incredibly grateful for all the things that happened in both of our lives to lead us to meeting each other—to falling in love.
Tonight is the beginning of a new chapter in our story.
I don’t know everything the future holds, but I know it’ll be worth it with her by my side through it all.