Epilogue
ONE YEAR LATER
TY
Avery’s silky bridesmaids’ dress gleams beneath the disco ball Maggie swore she needed for her all-white tiled dance floor.
The two of them prance along to the beat together, Avery’s curls spilling left and right like ink down a page.
In every version of my story, I never saw myself here.
Clapping along as Avery bops around to some new Lena Lux tune that allegedly was written about Decker, regardless of how much he denies it.
The fabric of the tennis bracelet I got her last Christmas catches the light with every small twist. I enjoy the show but stay put in my chair at my assigned table on the edge of the dance floor, more than happy to let my girlfriend have all the fun.
Nothing beats a happy Avery, and I’ll do everything within my power to keep her that way.
My part of the wedding is done for the day.
I walked Maggie down the aisle and even used all those dance lessons to step in for the father-daughter dance.
When she asked me earlier this year, I wasn’t too keen on “giving her away” to someone who I’d witnessed be so careless with her once upon a time.
But I have to admit, Maggie was right. Anthony’s really shaped up.
All the red flags from their past relationships have dissipated, and I’m finally okay with him officially becoming my brother-in-law.
It’s a relief that she and I have both found the stability we’d been craving deep down.
Maggie grabs Avery’s hand, and the two of them do some awkward little champagne-soaked gallop together.
I can’t help but wonder if their frolic would be more coordinated if they’d had a few less glasses or if Maggie’s dress had fewer layers.
Regardless, I love how close they’ve become since Avery and I made it official last year.
I love that Avery and I don’t have to hide anymore, and I love how well she fits in with my family.
I just love Avery.
And I want to remember this moment, the moment before everything changes.
For the better, I hope. My hand lifts involuntarily, grazing the inside pocket of my jacket.
I take a deep breath then finish my drink in an attempt to steady my nerves.
As I pull my phone from my pocket and snap a candid of my two favorite girls, my screen lights up with a new message.
Rami
Maleko finally sent me his pick for book club this month
Me
And what has the behemoth chosen?
Rami
A Love Letter’s Promise
Me
Honestly not surprised. Always knew he was a softie
Rami
Same
Aren’t you supposed to be in a wedding right now?
Me
At the reception
Rami
Taking notes for your own?
Darkening my screen, I shake my head and shove my phone back in my pocket.
As one of my best friends, Ramiel knows too much.
Pries too much. Pushes too much. But if he were wired any other way, I suppose we wouldn’t be so close now.
He wouldn’t have been able to talk me into starting a team book club.
Which has been a major hit, by the way. Because of him, I finally feel like I’m in good standing with my teammates.
Even after the whole Avery getting fired because of me thing last fall, I no longer fear that my spot on the team could be ripped from me at any second.
It’s nice to feel secure both in my career and my love life. I think this is a first for me.
The song shifts, and the tempo slows. Maggie backs away from Avery, pointing her in my direction with a wink before heading off toward her new husband.
Avery starts my way, but Mom intercepts her on her path to the dance floor with Johnny.
She whispers something in Avery’s ear, and the two of them lean back in a cackle as Johnny lifts a shoulder in my direction.
Mom waves her arm to grab my attention like I haven’t been admiring Avery’s every move all night.
She points to Avery in an exaggerated fashion before lifting her arm over her head in a cheesy thumbs-up.
It warms me to know my family is just as happy to have Avery in their lives as I am.
Avery high-fives my mom before turning and practically skipping to my side.
She slows down as she approaches, both hands extended.
I grip them as she attempts to hoist me to my feet.
An ornery grin scrunches her nose in that adorable way that still unravels me as she lowers her voice to a growl. “May I have this dance?”
“What? Don’t say it like that.”
“Like what? This is my normal voice,” she grits out again.
We both laugh, and I kiss the top of her head before lacing my fingers through hers. “I’m kind of ready to take a break. Aren’t you?”
“Ty, you haven’t danced since you were out there with your sister—you guys looked great by the way—and you’re already ready to sit one out?”
“Hey, I danced with you after I danced with her. Was it really that forgettable?”
She stands on her tiptoes, bouncing up to kiss my cheek. “Why don’t you remind me of how good it was?”
My heart stutters. As much as I want to dance with her again, I want to be alone with her more, but I can’t say no to her.
Gripping both her hands in mine, I pop her out in some fancy, unnecessary flourish of a spin, immediately pulling her to my chest when she faces me once again.
Our bodies press flush together as we sway and step to the song.
Her full pout smooths into a content line, and we move together for a few counts until I can’t take it any longer.
Leaning down, I breathe in every sugared note of her perfume and lower my voice. “Let’s just get some fresh air. Then I promise, I’m yours for the rest of the night.”
The rest of my life is more like it, if she’ll have me.
The little box hidden in my breast pocket feels like it weighs a thousand pounds as she relents, letting me guide her out onto the terrace of the historic space—one of the oldest hotels in Vista City.
She laughs as she recounts her evening, how much she loved the wedding cake, and how she’s glad my sister opted to have her nuptials in Vista City rather than back home in Texas.
“Nothing against Texas, but you can’t beat a California autumn.
And I’m glad she didn’t listen to you and went with the poofy dress.
She looks gorgeous. Totally fits the whole fairy-tale-romantic vibe she was going for.
” She lets out a dreamy sigh. “I’ve already gotten so much inspo for my future wedding. Except I’ll have orchids, not roses.”
“Orchids, huh?”
She comes to a stop, gazing out into the darkened shoreline of the Pacific. “Of course! Because they’re your favorite, duh.”
I attempt a laugh, but it’s strangled. My hands shake as I reach into my breast pocket.
If I don’t seize the opportunity, it may pass me by.
Playing at the Super Bowl—and winning—earlier this year was less nerve-racking than this moment.
With her back still turned, I fall to my knee. “You’re my favorite.”
“You’re so cheesy sometimes, you know that?” She squawks a laugh and whips to face me. Except I’m not there. Her gaze drops, her brow crinkling, as the realization lags behind. And then she gasps.
AVERY
My hands fly over my mouth when Ty brandishes a tiny red velvet box, opens it, and the most beautiful yellow diamond gleams up at me.
The sunny stone melts into the golden band in one seamless, gilded hoop.
It’s like Ty’s inside my mind. How does he know me so well?
Our time together flashes before my eyes like a near-death experience.
Except this isn’t dying, this is living.
Because what do you mean the love of my life wants to spend the rest of his with me?
This is more than I could have ever dreamed of—Ty is more than I could have ever dreamed of.
Beyond my dance aspirations, and my plant business—that’s taken a turn for the better now that I’ve officially attached it to our homebase of McMurphy’s, might I add—those things don’t matter.
“Avery Joy Hinkley, I know that maybe we haven’t had the most conventional start, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.
From the day we met, you’ve filled my world with a beauty and a chaos I didn’t know could coexist. I didn’t think people like you existed.
For the rest of my life, I want you to be the one who yells at me to say what’s on my mind, who burns my favorite pan to a crisp, who doesn’t get mad when I accidentally stomp on her toes while we’re dancing.
My life is better because you’re in it. I’m better because you’re mine.
But more than anything, I want to be there for you, Avery.
Every single step, spin, twirl—whatever.
I want to be your comforter, your safe place.
Avery, I want to be your husband. Will you marry me? ”
I stare at him, jaw as unhinged as I feel. A fit of tears and laughter storms out, but still no words form. Silence stretches between us as I try to pin down exactly what to say.
Ty ducks his head, staring down at the ring and clearing his throat.
“I know it might be rude to propose at someone else’s wedding, but we’re alone for the first time all week…
and we don’t have to tell anyone. If you say yes, you don’t even have to put this on until later.
I’m sorry, I just couldn’t wait any longer, and—” His eyes go wide, like some animal caught on the highway.
“It’s too fast, isn’t it? I know we’ve only been official for a year, but—”
I capture his face in my hands, too excited to be gentle. Yanking his lips to mine, I lock him into one long, frantic kiss. My tears soak both our cheeks as I try to catch my breath. “Don’t apologize. Yes, of course. Yes, Ty, I’ll marry you.”
My body moves on its own accord, my head nodding as tears stream down, and I fall to my knees in front of him.
Dreams change, as Ty and I have both discovered.
And it’s okay if a dream is a person or some idea of home.
Though it’s something I thought I’d never crave, I love that we can share this in secret.
Who would have thought that would be a thing with the guy I wanted nothing more than to be public with?
But now we are. And I’ve never been happier.
I throw my arms over his shoulders, pulling him in so tight he lets out a little cough as the ring box squishes between us.
“I’m sorry.” I pull away, staring down at the shimmering rock. “I just love you.”
“I love you too.” A smile splits his face.
If someone told me a year and a half ago that Ty Brewster could grin this big, I wouldn’t have believed it.
A squeal shatters my ears, and I realize it’s coming from me.
Ty fumbles to pluck the ring from the box, and I watch as the velvet case falls from his trembling hands.
It’s so cute how flustered he is. He threads it onto my finger, and I catch his hand as it drops from mine, kissing his palm.
“Why are you shaking?” I ask.
He shrugs. “Nervous.”
“Why?”
“This is, like, the most important thing I’ve ever done. And I was afraid you might, I don’t know… That maybe you weren’t feeling the same way as me. Or maybe you’d think it was too fast.”
“You thought I was going to say no?”
He nods.
“Of all the things I’ve changed my mind about over the course of my life, you will never be one of them. I love you more than anything—don’t tell Dollyboy.” I let out a contented sigh as he pulls us to our feet, a grin settling on his face. “Your heart is safe with me.”
He presses his forehead to mine, his eyes heavy.
Is he about to cry? They weren’t lying when they said love changes people.
Ty Brewster’s heart of stone is no more—if it ever was that.
It’s now a heart of squishy, sentimental flesh.
I may have loved a lot of things in my life, but the type of love where you choose someone and they choose you back, not out of obligation or tolerance or because they’re bound by a bloodline, but because they want to. Nothing else compares to that.
Staring down at my hand, I’m in complete disbelief at the sizable rock that is now permanently stuck on my finger.
Because I’m never taking it off. Larissa and Mary are going to scream when they see it.
Larissa from excitement, Mary from annoyance at my excitement, most likely.
Regardless, I’m happy that they’ve both stuck around.
Next to Ty, they’re my two best friends.
“Does this mean I’m moving back in?” I ask, staring up at him from under my lashes.
“You’re the one who decided to get a place with Larissa. I’ll gladly take you back whenever you want.”
When we started officially dating last fall, Ty offered for me to move back into his place.
After everything that happened—losing my spot with the Kings, disappointing my family, getting dragged across the internet due to the “scandal”—as much as I wanted him, I wanted some normalcy more.
So Larissa subletted her tiny apartment and found a new one with me and Dollyboy.
I was shocked she stuck around after I was fired, but even more so that she was willing to rearrange her living situation for me.
I would go through the embarrassment a hundred more times if every outcome ended with a friend like her and a fiancé like Ty.
“Eh. Maybe when the lease is up, I guess,” I say to push his buttons.
It works because he steps forward, narrowing his eyes. He grips my hips playfully, pulling me closer.
“You guess?"
“It's a joke, duh.” I lift my left hand for emphasis, and his gaze fixes on the ring. “You’re stuck with me, Ty Brewster. We’re forever-roommates now. You’ve locked it in. We’re getting married. Eventually.”
This time when he kisses me, it’s slower, softer, overflowing with every single emotion I spent a third of last year trying to stuff down, to convince myself I wasn’t feeling too.
When I pull away, he kisses my forehead, his lips a whisper against my skin. “The sooner the better.”