Epilogue
Four Months Later
‘I think it needs to go down on the left.’
The man wearing a glorified onesie and a hard hat grunted. ‘I really don’t think it does.’
I took a few more steps back, my heels crunching on the gravel, and surveyed it once more. ‘It definitely needs to go down on the left.’
Steve sidled up to me, holding a cup of tea between his weathered hands. He leaned closer and dropped his voice to a whisper. ‘Rosie, darling, you are aware your head’s tilted?’
‘No, it’s not,' I argued, lifting my head from its definitely tilted position. Narrowing my eyes on the sign and the two men who were currently no doubt praying for my impending doom, I cleared my throat. ‘Okay, carry on,' I called, waving my hand for them to continue.
‘Jesus Christ.’ One of the workmen blew out an exasperated breath and started to hang the brand new sign above George’s recently refurbished store.
This was the last puzzle piece to fit into place before they had a grand reopening.
Something George had been planning for weeks.
He’d managed to get the local newspaper to come down and hopefully write some positive things about Cora’s.
Thanks to Oliver’s help, the place had finally been getting some of the TLC it deserved.
He completely renovated the inside. Fixing up all the patched jobs he’d done himself over the years.
And there were many. I loved that man, but he had questionable DIY abilities.
Based on the way the plasterer had eyed his attempt to spackle, I could see I wasn’t the only one holding that opinion.
But now, after nearly a month of work and several late nights, Cora’s was finally ready to open for business. There was only one thing left.
‘Goodness me, that looks better than what was there before,’ Steve whistled.
I grinned. ‘Better be, it cost a small fortune.’
Steve chuckled. ‘The boss’ll be pleased.’
I knew he would. Rather, I hoped he would.
I’d taken a risk in keeping this a secret from him.
And whilst I knew he’d love the result, I didn’t relish the times I had to go behind his back in order to execute this surprise.
George had wanted the sign to be the last thing he got, and he kept wavering on the type he wanted.
It needed to be perfect. For him. For his mum.
Every time he settled on a design, he’d wake up the next morning and change his mind, finding something about it he didn’t like.
Quite often, his excuses were ridiculous. How could a sign be too signy?
Ugh, that had been a long night. And it ended like most of our arguments tended to these days. Him dropping to his knees because he didn’t want to talk any longer and burying his face in my pussy. It’s an effective way to end a heated conversation, I’ll admit.
I hated how much this decision was tearing him up inside. He wanted perfection, but he was paralysed with indecision. So, I decided to take the decision out of his hands.
Two weeks ago, I had a custom sign made, a collection of all the parts of discarded designs George actually liked. Against my better judgement, I’d told Oliver about my plan, wanting to double check that the design I’d chosen would be something he loved.
Surprisingly, Oliver had said it was incredible.
The design and the fact that I wanted to surprise George with it.
Being retired was making Oliver soft, and it was incredibly unsettling.
I’d have to talk to Fallon about getting him a hobby.
Arrogant, obnoxious Oliver was the only one I could deal with.
Kind and supportive Oliver was like watching little kids wearing makeup. Unsettling.
As if my thoughts had summoned him, my phone started ringing.
‘How’s it going over there?’
‘He left,’ Oliver said quickly.
I whirled around, turning my back to the men finishing fastening the sign.
‘Are you fucking kidding me? You had one job.’
Oliver sighed. ‘What did you want me to do, Rosie, duct tape him to a chair?’
I pinched my eyes shut. Steve took a loud slurp of his tea, obviously enjoying himself. ‘Did you try anything?’
‘He wanted to go to work. I already kept him busy with breakfast for the past hour. The guy eats way too fast.’
‘I knew I should have asked Fallon.’
Oliver scoffed. ‘Yeah right, she’s the light of my existence, but that woman can’t keep a secret for shit. Your only option was me.’
I let out a frustrated grumble and hung up.
I had a plan. This morning, George left mine early to grab breakfast with his brother and dad, a weekly tradition they’d started doing since Peter’s heart attack.
It was sweet and something I knew George looked forward to every week.
Only this time, Oliver was supposed to keep him a bit longer.
Giving me enough time to wrangle the delivery men and get them to install it for me.
It wasn’t technically their job. But I’d offered them a wad of cash to get them to change their mind. Unsurprisingly, it worked like a treat.
‘Um, Rosie, we’ve got company.’ Steve cleared his throat and jutted his head towards the entrance of the car park.
‘Oh, fuck.’ I looked to where the guys were fixing the last screw into place, balancing rather precariously on ladders. George’s truck rounded the corner.
I pushed Steve towards the truck, grabbing his half drunk tea out of his hand.
‘Stall him.’
‘I think it’s a little late for that.’ Steve grunted, stumbling slightly over the gravel.
This was supposed to be perfect. Everything would be tidy, there wouldn’t be a giant tarp covering the floor, and I’d have time to decorate the entrance with the brand new plants I’d ordered to line the walkway—making people feel like they were walking into the secret garden.
‘Rosie?’ A deep masculine voice called across the way. George turned off his engine and hopped out. His heavy boots crunching on the ground as he strode over to where we were standing.
Pressing Steve’s tea to his chest, I did the only thing I could think of to distract him.
His eyes were laser focused on me, no doubt confused why I was even here.
I saw the second he was about to look in the direction of the store and I lunged.
I threw my arms around his neck and vaulted into his arms. Catching me easily, his mouth parted, about to put voice to those questions, but I slammed my lips down onto his, silencing them.
His grip on my hips tightened, keeping me pressed to his chest. He eagerly met my display, opening his mouth and letting his tongue sweep into mine.
Tasting me. God, everything this man did set me on fire.
I’d woken up this morning to his hard-on pressed against my butt—as I did most mornings—and him trailing kisses down the length of my neck.
It took little time at all for him to slide inside me, waking me up slowly with his gentle thrusts.
Not stopping until I came twice on his cock.
And yet, this kiss felt like our first one.
Filled with the same heat we always had.
‘Sweetheart,’ George breathed against my lips. ‘You gonna tell me why there are men in my store?’ He slanted his mouth over mine, cupping the back of my head in a firm grip, keeping me pressed to him.
‘Huh?’
He chuckled softly, stamping one final kiss on my lips before he pulled away. More than a little dazed, I blinked several times, clearing the fog from my brain. Uh, what was I doing?
A loud crash sounded behind us and George immediately started to turn with a frown.
‘Wait! Stop!’ I clapped my hands over his eyes. Still clutching my hips, he spun around.
Steve had disappeared and when I looked over my shoulder, I saw the delivery men had gone. The ladders were nowhere to be seen and Steve was currently putting the tall plants in the entrance way. He grinned, shooting me a thumbs up.
That man needed a raise.
‘Rosie Grange, what the fuck are you doing and why are you here this early in the morning?’ Despite having his eyes closed, he was walking towards the entrance.
Panicking slightly, I blurted, ‘I was, uh, sleepwalking?’
A muted laugh punched from his chest. ‘You don’t sleepwalk. Sleep-talk, yes.’
I frowned. ‘I don’t sleep-talk.’
Clearly having enough of my avoidance, George came to a stop only a few feet away from the entrance and gave my bottom a hard squeeze. ‘Care to explain why you are covering my eyes?’
I glanced over my shoulder.
Moving the last of the rubbish out of the way, Steve shuffled inside and shut the brand new oak front door—completing the whole secret garden theme—shooting me a wink.
‘Rosie,’ George growled, his impatience getting the better of him.
Taking a deep breath, I let my hands drop from his eyes, a soft smile curling at my lips. ‘Surprise.’
He blinked at the sudden change in lighting, eyes scanning my face for a split second before he glanced over my shoulder. It might not have been the perfect way I’d planned everything out, but seeing the look on his face made everything worth it.
His grip on me loosened, and I slid down his hard body, plopping down next to him. Nerves skittered through my veins.
‘Rosie—’ he said my name in a broken whisper. Tears filled his eyes as he gazed at his mother’s name standing proudly above the door. Gold lettering swirled in a bold font against the backdrop of distressed wood.
He ran a hand through his hair, gripping the strands and giving him the sexy, dishevelled look.
‘You did this?’ he asked, shaking his head in disbelief.
I wrapped my arms around his waist, so we were chest to chest and gazed up at him.
‘I’m kind of in love with you, you big lug, and when I love something, I love it hard.
’ He cupped both my cheeks, staring at me like he couldn’t quite figure out how I came to be.
‘And that’s not limited to buying you a big-arse sign for your store because I’m so unbelievably proud of you. ’
The tears he’d worked hard to keep at bay slid free. ‘Fuck, what did I do to deserve you?’ Bending down, he slanted his mouth over mine, stealing the air from my lungs.
With his palms holding my face like I was delicate glass, tears spilling down his cheeks, I’m not sure I’d ever been more in love with this man. Before I let him entirely sweep me away, I pulled back from the kiss with a smirk.
‘You started reading dark romance. I think that’s what did it.’
He let out a watery laugh. ‘That’s when you fell in love with me, huh?’
I tilted my head as if genuinely considering. ‘Eh, I actually think it’s when I tasted your homemade lasagne.’
He shook his head with a smile. ‘You’re something else, Rosie Grange.’
I placed another kiss on his lips and turned around, tucking myself under his arm. Letting his body heat and forest scent warm me from the inside out.
Staring up at the sign, his tone filled with awe, he said, ‘It’s perfect. It’s everything I wanted.’ After a pause, I felt his gaze shift to me, his stare prickling the skin of my cheek.
‘You’re everything I’ve ever wanted.’
Half-heartedly, I rolled my eyes. ‘You’re going to make me vomit if you say anything else sweet.’
He tagged me around the waist and lifted me into his arms once more, letting out a soft growl, burying his face into my hair. ‘Deal with it.’
I squealed as he spun me around in a circle.
If I got to see this version of him every day; happy and free, full of so much life, it made my chest nearly crack in two, then I’d gladly deal with it for the rest of my life.