Epilogue 2 Noah
Three weeks later and my house in Consequence looks like a bloody circus.
Boxes everywhere.
Furniture being dragged across floors.
Someone blasting music in the kitchen.
Tank and Koa arguing about how to carry a couch through a doorway that was clearly not designed for rugby players.
“Mate, tilt it!”
“I am tilting it!”
“That’s not tilting, that’s wedging!”
“Oi, Walker!” Tank shouts. “Your couch is stuck!”
I lean against the kitchen counter and grin.
“Sounds like a you problem.”
He flips me off.
The ladies are doing their own version of organizing chaos in the living room.
Finley’s directing traffic like a general, Dani’s unpacking kitchen stuff, and Annabeth is trying to keep Carolina from reorganizing every single shelf.
And right in the middle of it all—Chiara.
My Chiara.
Standing there in leggings and one of my old T-shirts, her curly brown hair piled on top of her head while she opens another box labeled BOOKS.
She catches me watching her and rolls her eyes.
“What?”
“Nothing,” I say.
Which is a lie.
Because everything about this moment feels unreal.
A few weeks ago we were sneaking around.
Now she’s moving into my house.
Our house.
And the whole team has shown up like it’s a national holiday.
Carolina suddenly claps her hands loudly.
“Alright! Everyone stop!”
That gets attention.
Even Koa and Tank pause mid-argument with the couch.
Carolina walks over to Chiara, holding a bouquet of flowers.
Baby blue carnations.
Chiara blinks in surprise.
“Uh… what’s this?”
Carolina smiles warmly.
“Well,” she says, “you can’t live with a Rover without becoming one.”
Chiara laughs softly.
“And since you’re clearly one of us now—”
She presses the bouquet into her hands.
“Welcome to the Lady Rovers.”
The room erupts into cheers.
Chiara’s cheeks turn pink, but she looks so happy it makes my chest ache.
And right then—right in that perfect moment—I know it’s time.
I push away from the counter.
“Hey. Wait.”
The room quiets.
Chiara turns toward me, carnations still in her arms.
“What?”
I walk toward her slowly, my heart pounding harder than it ever did before a match.
The lads notice the shift immediately.
Tank nudges Koa.
Finley gasps.
Chiara’s eyes narrow slightly.
“Noah, what are you doing?”
I stop in front of her.
Then I drop to one knee.
The room explodes.
“No way!”
“About bloody time!”
“Shut up, let him talk!”
Chiara’s mouth falls open.
“Noah—”
I pull the ring box from my pocket and flip it open.
Inside sits a sleek diamond ring—elegant and bright.
But beside it is a second band.
Baby blue silicone—for when she’s at work.
“Chiara Giardino,” I say, trying not to laugh at the stunned look on her face.
“I knew I loved you the moment you rolled your eyes at me in that training room.”
A few chuckles ripple through the room.
“You make me better. You make me braver. And you’re the only person I’ve ever met who could make me think life after rugby might actually be better than the game.”
Her eyes are already shining.
I lift the ring slightly.
“The diamond is for forever.”
Then I tap the second band.
“And this one’s so you can still threaten idiot rugby players while you’re fixing them up.”
The room laughs again.
But I’m only looking at her.
“Marry me, Chiara.”
Her hands fly to her mouth.
For one terrifying second she just stares at me.
Then she nods so hard the carnations shake.
“Yes.”
Her voice cracks.
“Yes, Noah. I’ll marry you.”
The room explodes again.
Cheers.
Whistles.
Someone pops a bottle of champagne way too early—hell, I’m not even sure where they got it from.
I slide the diamond ring onto her finger and then the silicone band beside it.
She throws her arms around my neck as I stand.
“You’re insane,” she laughs into my shoulder.
“Probably.”
“But you’re mine.”
She pulls back, smiling through tears.
“Always.”
And when I kiss her—right there in the middle of our chaotic house full of friends and teammates—I know two things for certain.
I found my future.
And the Lady Rover in my arms?
She was worth every bloody second it took to get here.
“Are you ready, Love?”
“For life with you? Always.”
The End.