Epilogue
O ne Year Later
Miles let himself into the house with his key and shut the door quietly behind him.
The place smelled of whatever Tanner had burned.
A pair of small trainers sat kicked off by the mat.
A child’s coat hung from the low hook by the door, half twisted because Savannah still missed it on the first try when she was in a hurry.
Drawings were spread across the fridge with magnets that didn’t match.
One was all pink circles and a sun in the corner.
Another had three figures holding hands, one of them taller than the other two.
It was quiet in the good way. Just the sounds of a house being used by people who knew where they belonged in it, including Miles. He’d sold his house and moved in with Tanner and Savannah. There was no point having the house when he was never there.
He carried the groceries through to the kitchen and stopped in the doorway before saying anything.
Tanner was at the table with a GED prep book open in front of him, practice sheets spread out to one side, pencil working across the page with the same focused expression he wore when he had to take something seriously. Miles knew Tanner had plans to go to college and he fully supported him.
Savannah sat beside him with a workbook of her own open the wrong way round and a green crayon in her hand. Every few seconds she looked up at Tanner, then back down at her page, whispering letters to herself under her breath.
Miles put the grocery bags on the counter without banging anything, took a bottle of water from one bag, and slid it across the table toward Tanner.
“Give me two minutes,” he said.
Miles nodded. “Take your time.”
Savannah looked up then and spotted him. Her whole face lit. “Miles!”
She scrambled off the chair so fast it rocked on two legs before dropping back down. Miles caught her easily when she launched herself at him and lifted her onto his hip without thinking about it. He returned her hug and smiled.
“Hey, trouble.”
“I got a sticker today,” she informed him straight away. “And Ava said my rabbit is for babies, but I said no because he sleeps in my bed and that’s legal.”
Legal. A word she’d learned from Miles. He managed to keep the smile of his face. “That’s a strong argument.”
“I know.”
She patted his cheek, then twisted to point at the table. “Tanner doing math.”
Tanner muttered, still writing, “I’m aware.”
Miles stood with Savannah in his arms and watched Tanner finish the page. He worked right to the end of the line, put the pencil down, then rubbed a hand over his face once before reaching for the water.
“How’d it go?” Miles asked.
Tanner took a drink first. “Better than last week.” He tapped the page with one finger. “I keep messing up the same kind of questions.”
“You’re getting there.”
Tanner gave him a look over the top of the bottle. “Math’s still a dick.”
Miles huffed a quiet laugh. “Now that’s true.”
Savannah wriggled to be put down and the second her feet hit the floor, she ran back to the table and climbed into her chair again. Her workbook was still upside down and Tanner slid the crayon box closer.
“We’re going to the park before dinner,” Savannah announced.
“That’s if I finish this section and your bag’s packed,” Tanner said.
He opened the drawer beside him to pull out her things, and Miles caught a quick glimpse inside before Tanner pushed it shut again.
Snack pouch. Wipes. A plastic folder with official papers tucked into it and a label across the front with Savannah’s name and permanent guardianship written in block capitals.
The last hearing had been two months earlier.
Permanent guardianship had been granted without drama, and Tanner still sometimes looked at the paperwork like he expected the words to change.
The diner apron was there as well, clean and ready for his next shift.
Tanner had picked up more shifts and now knew more people than he ever thought he would.
For Miles, it was nice to see his deepening friendship with Cody and Orsen.
Especially more so once Cody and TJ had married a couple of months earlier.
Tanner went back to the practice sheet. Miles crossed behind him and put a hand on his shoulder.
Tanner leaned back into it without thinking.
Miles said, “I love you.”
Tanner tipped his head back just enough to look up at him and Miles bent down to kiss him.
“Love you too,” he said.
Savannah looked up from her workbook at once. “I love you both. Can I have snacks?”
Tanner snorted as Miles reached for the cupboard. “You’re having dinner in an hour.”
“One snack.”
“You said that yesterday and it turned into four.”
“That was different.”
Miles took the water bottle cap from where Savannah had started chewing on it and put it on properly. “No one knows what you mean by different.”
“I do.”
After the math sheet was finished and Tanner had grudgingly admitted he’d done better than he expected, the three of them put their shoes on and went to the park before dinner.
Savannah ran to the front door, dragging one sneaker half off her heel and her jacket only zipped to the middle.
Tanner crouched to fix both before she could escape outside.
“Hold still,” he said.
“I am holding still.”
“You’re hopping.”
“No, I’m not!”
Miles opened the door and stood back while Tanner got her sorted out. Savannah shot through the doorway the second she was released, then spun on the path to grin at them both.
“Home!” she yelled.
Tanner stopped with one hand on the doorframe and looked at her for a second. The old fear was still there if you knew him well enough to spot it, but it wasn’t like it used to be. Miles met his eyes, and Tanner held the look without needing anything to be said.
Savannah waved both arms. “Come on. Doggies at the park!”
Miles smiled at her then at Tanner. He reached a hand out and Tanner took it. Squeezing his hand, they walked down the path, following Savannah as she ran along the sidewalk to the park.