Epilogue
EPILOGUE
Sweet Hailey’s opened on Valentine’s Day, a fitting date indeed, Hailey thought, as she looked up at the brown and white striped awning that flapped in the wind. Hauling the old wrought iron sign inside the shop, she carried it past the line of people who were waiting for hot chocolate—no longer just Christmas hot chocolate—and went into the kitchen.
Pete snatched his hand back from a mixing bowl when he saw her. “Want me to carry that out to the alley for you?”
Hailey bit back a smile. “I think I’ll hold onto it for a while. It’s good to remember your dreams,” she said, even if she knew that sometimes you had to take the long route to make them come true. She carried the sign over to the storage closet and only once she was a fair distance away did she remark, “And don’t go stealing any more of that brownie batter. There are raw eggs in there, you know. ”
“What? It was just the empty bowl and I hated to let any of that delicious chocolate go to waste.” Pete looked the picture of innocence when Hailey marched back into the room, hands on her hips.
“Fine. But give me a taste, too.” She nudged him with her hip as she came to stand beside him. The entire room smelled of chocolate, and she felt a ripple of butterflies in her stomach when she realized they would reopen their doors in exactly thirty-five minutes.
“You nervous?” Pete asked, but he already knew the answer, of course. She’d been pacing all morning.
“It’s been a whirlwind,” she admitted with a sigh, thinking of how much had changed since that first week in December. “But it’s exciting.”
“This is going to be a big success,” Pete said, pushing aside the brownie batter to look her squarely in the eye.
“How can you sound so certain?” she asked, wishing she had his confidence.
“Do you realize the first time we met was because of this very hot chocolate? If that isn’t a good omen, I don’t know what is.”
Hailey grinned. “How about a cup now? For good luck?”
“I’ll toast to that,” Pete said, as she walked to the stove to ladle them each a small mug. Pete took a long sip, dramatically rolling his eyes back as he swallowed. “What do I have to do for you to share this secret ingredient with me?”
Hailey shrugged and joked, “I don’t know. Marry me? ”
Pete gave her a slow smile as he set his mug down on the counter. “Is that a question?”
“What?” Hailey’s cheeks flamed. “No. I mean, no, of course not.” Embarrassed, she awkwardly took a swig of her hot chocolate, nearly burning her mouth.
“Relax, honey,” Pete laughed as he came over to take the mug from her. He set it next to his, his smile turning knowing. “You know I could never accept your marriage proposal.”
Hailey’s brows shot together. “You…couldn’t?”
“Of course not.” He took her hands, squeezing them tight. “Not when I still have the ring I tried to give you eight years ago.”
Hailey gave a nervous laugh. She didn’t like thinking about that night—now, for different reasons. It was no longer the end of their story, just a pause, and she wanted to focus on the present.
And the future.
“Who knows if it would have even fit,” Hailey said, brushing away the topic.
“Why don’t you try it on and see?” Pete said casually.
Hailey’s breath stopped as she stared at Pete, but he was already dropping to one knee, and in his hand was the most beautiful ring she’d ever seen since the night that he’d broken her heart—and her, his.
It wasn’t just a beautiful ring. It was the ring. The very ring he’d presented her with that cold winter night. The ring she’d never tried on, and always wished that she had.
“Just so you know, this is the last time I’m asking,” he said before his expression sobered and the glimmer in his eyes turned steady. “Hailey Wells, I loved you then, I loved you always, and I love you now. And I promise, I will love you forever. Will you be mine?”
“Yes!” she said, her eyes welling with happy tears this time, ones that she didn’t bother to wipe away but instead let fall, sloppily and steadily down her cheeks as she looked down at the man who filled the space in her heart that only he could. “It was always yes in my heart, Pete. It was always you. Then. Now. Forever. You. Us.”
He slid the ring onto her finger—a perfect fit. But it wasn’t the sparkling diamond that she was focused on. It was his hand, holding hers, warm and tender, and just firm enough so she knew that this time, he was never letting go.