Chapter 25 Harper
HARPER
One second, Clover & Mint is loud and alive and overflowing with voices, music, clinking glasses, the kind of joyful chaos I’ve spent months dreaming about.
The next, everything narrows until all I can see is him on the floor of my rebuilt bar, the place that almost didn’t exist anymore, the place that now feels sacred in a way I never anticipated.
Aiden is steady, even kneeling there, even with every eye in the room on him. Even with his heart on his sleeve.
His voice doesn’t shake when he speaks, but it’s threaded with emotion so raw it makes my chest ache.
“Six years ago, I met you at a cabin in the woods,” he says, and the words hit me so hard my breath stutters.
“I fell for you in one night—your laugh, your kindness, the way you saw past all my walls like they weren’t even there. ”
The room is silent now. Completely. My heart beats in my ears.
“And then,” he continues, eyes never leaving mine, “I made the worst decision of my life. I called it a mistake and let you walk away.”
Tears spill before I can stop them, hot and blinding, my hands trembling uselessly at my sides. I don’t wipe them away. I don’t care who sees. I’ve lost too much already to pretend I’m composed in front of strangers, and there aren’t that many strangers here tonight, anyway.
These people are my family. All of them.
Aiden sighs. “I’ve regretted that every single day since.” His voice thickens just enough to make it clear how much that regret has lived inside him. “When you walked back into my life, it felt like the universe was giving me a second chance. And this time, I’m not screwing it up.”
My knees threaten to buckle. I grab the edge of the bar for balance, the solid wood grounding me in the moment.
“You are the strongest, bravest, most beautiful person I’ve ever known,” he says. “You rebuilt your life from ashes—literally. You are an incredible mother, an amazing businesswoman, and the only woman I’ve ever loved.”
A soft sound escapes me, somewhere between a sob and a laugh.
That’s when I notice Mason again.
He’s bouncing beside Aiden, barely containing himself, holding the small velvet ring box with both hands like it’s precious cargo.
His grin is enormous, proud, electric. The sight of him there—part of this, included without hesitation—cracks something open in me so completely I can barely see through the tears.
Aiden takes a breath, still looking only at me. “Harper Lane,” he says, and my entire world tilts. “I don’t want to waste another second. Will you marry me?”
I try to answer. But nothing comes out. My throat closes, my vision blurs, and all I can do is nod—fast, desperate—my hands flying to clutch at his jacket like it’s the only thing keeping me upright. “Yes,” I finally choke out, voice breaking completely. “Yes. God, yes.”
The bar explodes around us.
But all I feel is him rising to his feet, pulling me into his arms, and the undeniable certainty that everything I lost was leading me right here.
The sound comes back in a rush, like someone turned the world back on all at once.
Cheers slam into me from every direction, loud and unrestrained, hands clapping, voices shouting, someone whistling so sharply it makes me laugh through my tears.
The air feels charged, electric, and for a moment I just cling to Aiden, my forehead pressed against his chest, letting the reality of what just happened settle into my bones.
He pulls back just enough to look at me, his eyes bright and stunned and impossibly tender. Then he slides the ring onto my finger.
It’s perfect. Simple, elegant, warm from his hands, and so unmistakably real that another sob breaks free before I can stop it. The band catches the light from the string lights overhead, and I stare at it like it might vanish if I blink too long.
He cups my face and kisses me deeply, decisively, like this isn’t a question anymore but a declaration. The bar erupts again, louder this time, applause and laughter crashing around us as if the building itself is celebrating.
And then Mason is there.
He barrels into us with all the momentum of a five-year-old who has been holding onto a secret for far too long. He grabs onto Aiden’s leg first, then twists around to look up at me, eyes wide and shining. “Does this mean Aiden’s gonna be my stepdad?”
Aiden laughs, a sound so full it makes my chest ache, and scoops Mason up effortlessly. “If that’s okay with you, buddy.”
Mason doesn’t hesitate. “Yeah!” Then his face scrunches, the way it does when he’s thinking hard. “But I still have my regular daddy, too, right?”
My heart squeezes painfully, but before I can answer, Aiden looks at me, then back at Mason, his tone steady and calm. “Always,” I say, stepping closer, my hand resting over Mason’s back. “You get to have both, sweetheart.”
Mason considers that for exactly one second before nodding decisively. “Cool. Can we get a dog too?”
The bar explodes into laughter all over again.
Aiden grins at him. “We’ll talk.”
“That means yes,” Mason announces confidently.
Around us, the celebration surges forward again, people crowding in with congratulations, hugs, claps on Aiden’s back, hands reaching for mine to admire the ring.
Roz hugs me so fiercely I nearly lose my balance, laughing and crying at the same time.
Carlie pulls both of us into an embrace that’s tight and unapologetic, muttering, “It’s about damn time,” like she’s been waiting six years to say it.
Through it all, Aiden stays close, one hand always finding mine. Every time I glance down at the ring, a new wave of disbelief and joy crashes through me.
People drift back to their tables, glasses raised, laughter warming into something steadier and more affectionate.
The music lowers just enough to make room for voices again, and I realize my cheeks hurt from smiling so hard for so long.
I keep glancing down at my hand, at the ring catching the light, half-expecting it to disappear the moment I stop looking at it.
The first toast is inevitable.
Garrett somehow ends up with a microphone, which makes a collective groan ripple through the room before he even opens his mouth.
He grins, clearly enjoying himself far too much, and clears his throat with exaggerated seriousness.
“I’d like to thank everyone for finally getting these two idiots together. ”
The bar erupts again, and I laugh despite myself, shaking my head as Aiden mutters something under his breath that sounds suspiciously like a threat.
“It only took six years,” Garrett continues, gesturing broadly, “a cabin, a fire, an arsonist, an entire community rebuild, and one extremely patient kid.”
Mason shouts, “That’s me!”, and the room laughs harder.
“But seriously,” Garrett adds, his voice softening just enough to land, “I’ve worked with Sloan a long time. I’ve never seen him like this. And I’ve never seen someone fight harder for a dream than Harper fought for this place. So here’s to love, stubbornness, and showing up when it matters.”
Glasses lift. Cheers follow. I blink rapidly, emotion pressing hard behind my eyes.
Carlie takes the microphone next. “To my brother,” she says, voice catching slightly, “and my best friend.”
The room quiets instinctively.
“I thought I was protecting you both once,” she continues. “I thought distance would keep you safe. I was wrong. I’m sorry I kept you apart.” She smiles through tears. “You are perfect together. And watching you find your way back to each other has been one of the greatest privileges of my life.”
I don’t even try to stop the tears this time. Aiden squeezes my hand tightly, his jaw set, eyes bright.
Chief Morales follows, taking the microphone with the kind of authority that doesn’t need volume. “To second chances. And to fighting for what matters.”
When the microphone is finally set aside, the music swells again, but something has shifted.
The celebration feels deeper now, more intimate, like everyone here understands they’ve witnessed something real.
People dance. People toast again at their tables.
Mason shows off what he proudly declares is his “best move,” which involves spinning and nearly falling over until Aiden steadies him.
The night eventually exhales.
It doesn’t end so much as it softens, the way good nights do when they’ve given everything they can.
The music lowers another notch, conversations drift into quieter pockets, and people begin to trickle out in pairs and small groups, still buzzing, still smiling, still stopping to hug me one more time before they leave.
Staff start clearing empty glasses and wiping down tables with easy efficiency, the practiced movements of people who know this place intimately, who understand that closing time doesn’t mean the magic disappears—it just goes dormant until tomorrow.
Aiden stays close without crowding me, his hand finding mine whenever the noise or emotion threatens to tip me over again. Eventually, without either of us saying it out loud, we drift toward the back patio.
The door closes behind us, muting some of the bar noise, and the air outside is cool against my flushed skin.
The city stretches out beyond the fence, lights scattered across the skyline like constellations, steady and distant.
For a moment, we just stand there together, breathing, letting the quiet settle after everything the night has held.
I lift my hand slowly, turning it so the ring catches the light from the patio fixtures. I study it like I’m trying to memorize every detail—the way it sits perfectly against my finger, the way it feels like it’s always belonged there. My chest tightens with a sudden, unexpected rush of emotion.
I look up at Aiden. “So,” I say, my voice soft but steady, “when do you want to get married?”
He blinks, then breaks into a grin so wide it makes me laugh despite myself. “Bold of you to assume I’m ready for that conversation tonight.”
I nudge his side gently. “I’m serious.”
He slips an arm around my waist and pulls me closer, his thumb brushing slow, reassuring circles at my hip. “How about we start with moving in together officially? Mason’s already picked out his room in my place.”
“Our place,” I correct automatically. “It’s our place now.”
His smile softens at that. “Yeah,” he says quietly. “It is.”
I rise up onto my toes and kiss him, slow and lingering. Then the sky lights up.
For a split second, I think it’s my imagination, my emotions running away with me again. But then there’s a sharp crack, followed by a burst of color above the city, brilliant and sudden. Another follows, and another, fireworks blooming over Columbus in cascading reds and golds.
I pull back, staring. “Are you kidding me?”
Aiden laughs softly, the sound warm against my ear. “Garrett insisted. He said if we were doing this, we were doing it all the way.”
I shake my head, laughing through fresh tears as the sky continues to explode in light above us. I lean into Aiden, his arm firm and steady around me, Mason’s laughter echoing faintly from inside the bar where Carlie is undoubtedly letting him have way too much sugar this late at night.
As the fireworks fade and smoke drifts lazily across the skyline, I rest my forehead against Aiden’s chest and let myself believe, fully and without reservation, that this life—this family, this love, this second chance—is not waiting to be taken away.
It’s here.
And it’s ours.