Epilogue
Three months later
Leon
Looking around at the finished house, I can’t believe we’re finally here. It’s winter, so we haven’t been able to start on the outside yet, but the house looks better than I could have ever dreamed up.
Auggie has an eye for detail.
He’s definitely the reason the place looks so good.
The last few months have been busy as we finished up some smaller jobs and got set up for the Port Welling build, but the way Auggie took over and organized it made it clear he was the right person for the job.
And while his dad still isn’t thrilled about our relationship, it’s clear he’s happy to see Auggie thriving. He’s been an invaluable source of information for this contract and picked up on a few steps we’ve missed along the way.
I love seeing him and Auggie starting to rebuild their relationship, and hopefully one day, Kieran and I can work on ours too.
My front door opens, letting through a huge gust of cold air, and Auggie hurries in, thumping the door closed behind him.
He’s bundled up in a hat and scarf, the collar of his coat popped up to protect his neck, and even after all these months, he warms me from the inside out.
Auggie stumbles when he sees me. “What?”
“Just … thinking.”
“About?”
I chew the inside of my cheek, wondering how much to say. The place never feels as alive as the times he’s here. He injects personality and warmth, and the days he spends at his apartment leave this buzzing, unsettled feeling in my chest.
There hasn’t been a day since we’ve started dating that I haven’t wanted him close by.
“What’s that?” I ask, pointing at the wrapped gift in his hands.
His frozen pink cheeks get redder. “Your Christmas present. And no, you don’t get it early. I’m putting it under the tree.”
The tree. That we picked out. Together.
Auggie shrugs out of his winter gear and walks by me into the living room. He pulls up short. “Oh.”
Yes, oh.
I walk up behind him and wrap my arms around his waist. “Yep. I think we got a bit excited.”
His head drops back against my shoulder as he looks up at the top of the tree, bent concerningly against the ceiling. “You’d think since we put these ceilings in that we would have known the correct height.”
“I’m a builder—you can’t expect me to measure things.”
His bony elbow finds my ribs. “What do we do with it?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, it’s too big.”
“And? It’s ours now. Let’s face it, something not going to plan seems pretty spot-on for us.”
He turns his head, and I drop a quick kiss on his nose. The orange glow from the fireplace I’m glad he suggested casts the whole room in a light that brings out the copper tones in Auggie’s hair.
I let go of him and grab the star I’d discarded on one of the couches. “Thought I’d let you do the honors.”
The flat look he gives me is adorable. “You’re a whole foot taller than me and you want me to put the star on that monster?”
“After everything you’ve done around here, you deserve to do the final touch.”
If there’s one thing Auggie loves, it’s flattery. As he places his present with the others, I push the couch closer to the tree, and he climbs up, managing to get the star to attach to the bent-over top. It sits there, half-hanging, half-crushed against the ceiling.
“Perfection.”
Auggie rolls his eyes at the ridiculous statement, but he’ll never know how true the word is. It’s impossible to hate anything with Auggie around, I’m so damn smitten it scares me sometimes.
Before he can climb down, I wrap my arms around him and press my face to his chest. He cradles my head, and we stand there in happy silence for a moment.
“I’ve got something for you,” I say. “It was supposed to be for Christmas, but I don’t think I can wait any longer.”
Auggie hums, absently stroking my hair. “That’s against the rules.”
“Clearly something we care so much about.” My voice drips with sarcasm as I duck under the tree and pull out the little box. “Before you get excited, it’s not a ring.”
He gives me an innocent smile. “Didn’t think that for a second.”
Of course he did. Auggie’s made it clear he wants to get married and have that whole white-picket-fence life one day, and it’s definitely on the cards for us.
I love him so much that I’d do anything to make him happy, but getting engaged is something that’ll happen down the line.
I’m a big fan of going with my gut, and right now, my gut is telling me this is the perfect next step.
Auggie drops his butt on the couch, and I sit next to him, allowing him to quickly snuggle into my side. I rest the little box on his knee, rather than hand it to him, and I can sense his impatience in holding back.
“Feel free to say no, of course, or maybe later. There’s no rush, but whatever you decide, I want you to have this anyway.”
His eyes dart to the box and back to me. I nod.
There’s no hesitation as he grabs it and lifts open the lid, revealing a key.
“I want you to move in with me,” I whisper.
Auggie’s head shoots up, large eyes going wide. “You … you want me …”
“Yes. Yes, I want you. In any capacity you’ll give me. And after how much work you’ve put into this place, it’s as much your home as mine.” I reach over and stroke his cheek. “It doesn’t feel right without you here.”
Key forgotten, Auggie scrambles onto my lap and starts to drop kisses over my face. “Yes. Yes, yes. Yes, yes, yes. Yes.”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t catch that …”
He thumps my shoulder. “Too late now. It’s official. No refunds.”
“You love that rule.”
“Only when it’s something I want.”
“And you want this?”
“I want you.” He nuzzles into my neck. “And I want us to be happy. Always.”
“Me too, killer. Always.”