Epilogue
Hannah was excited to host everyone for a holiday gathering a few weeks before Christmas. She had the Michael Bublé holiday station playing on Pandora radio and her small house was completely decorated for Christmas. She had a thick balsam fir tree in the corner of the living room, fully decked out with her favorite ornaments and lots of tiny white lights. Stockings hung on heavy polished reindeer that lined the fireplace mantel, which had silver tinsel garlands draped across it and pine-scented green pillar candles anchoring it in place.
And Hannah was completely settled into the new place now. She’d hung pictures on her walls and over the past few months had found a few more from local artists at the galleries on Main Street in downtown Chatham. She’d set up the spare bedroom as her office. The room faced the lake and had a nice big window with a view of the water. She’d found a glass-topped desk she loved at Pier 1. It was wrought iron in a seafoam-green shade and the combination with the clear glass was really pretty. It came with a matching chair with a white padded cushion. She also got a deal in the clearance section of Jordan’s Furniture: a creamy white sofa covered in a crisp cotton fabric. It looked very beachy and it opened into a queen-size mattress.
Her whole family was there—Aunt Maddie and Uncle Richie were home from Manhattan for a long weekend, Sara and Tom and the kids. Joy and Ben, Natalie and Adam, and, of course, Spencer. And Lady and Tramp. They were sprawled out near the fireplace, preening as people kept giving them attention, and they loved every minute of it.
Aunt Maddie and Uncle Richie had surprised her the weekend she moved in with an awesome housewarming gift—a gas grill. She’d never had room for one in Brooklyn. They actually weren’t allowed anyway as they were considered safety hazards in her building. It sat on her deck, and she’d used it constantly since it arrived. She had burgers and hot dogs on it now and some chicken and grilled vegetables. She also made sausage-stuffed mushrooms from a recipe that Joy had given her.
Sara had brought potato salad and Natalie had brought chips and soda. Aunt Maddie had brought a platter of shrimp cocktail and Joy had brought brownies. Spencer had brought cheese and crackers and a new IPA beer he’d been wanting to try, from a local brewery. The others had also brought wine and Hannah had some chilling as well. The weekend was beautiful, cold, but sunny and clear. Hannah opened a bottle of her favorite wine, Bread Butter chardonnay, and poured glasses for everyone who wanted some.
“How’s everything going with Spencer?” Natalie asked later after they’d all eaten and when it was just the girls gathered around. The guys and boys were outside, all bundled up and playing cornhole in the backyard. Joy looked especially interested in her answer.
Hannah smiled. “It’s going really well.” Better than well, actually. They’d seen each other almost every day and they lived so close that they were always at one house or the other.
Joy smiled. “You don’t miss Brooklyn, then?”
“I expected that I would. But I haven’t missed it at all.” That had surprised her the most. From the first night she slept in her new home, she hadn’t thought of Brooklyn at all, except for when Lucy called. And it wasn’t Brooklyn Hannah missed, just Lucy. But as it turned out, on her last call, Lucy shared some big news.
Things had gotten more serious with the guy she’d been dating off and on for over a year, and they were moving in together on Long Island, which was a good hour and a half from Brooklyn. It just reinforced that Hannah had made the right decision. She would have been lonely in Brooklyn without Lucy around.
Later that evening, once everyone said their goodbyes and Hannah and Spencer cleaned up the deck and kitchen, they took the trash outside and paused for a moment to enjoy the night air. It was colder now and the air felt like it wanted to snow. Hannah had read that flurries were possible at some point.
They stood by the railing and Hannah leaned against Spencer’s chest. He put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. The sky was still clear and they stared up at the stars and found the Big Dipper and the Little Dipper easily. Spencer pulled her toward him and wrapped his arms around her waist. She turned to face him and her arms automatically found the back of his neck and settled there.
“Have I mentioned how happy I am that you decided to come back?” he asked softly, and she smiled.
“Maybe once or twice.”
“No regrets?”
“None. I love it here, Spencer.” She took a deep breath as they hadn’t yet said the words, but it felt like the right time. “I love you, Spencer.”
His face lit up. “I love you, too, Hannah. So much.” He kissed her then, to show her how he felt, and she definitely felt her toes tingle. They stopped for a moment when the dogs started barking. Someone at a nearby house had set off fireworks. They watched for a moment as streaks of color filled the sky. It was a perfect, festive way to end the evening.
They went inside and made sure the dogs were okay. They settled down once Spencer and Hannah went inside and curled up at their feet as they sat on the sofa. Spencer reached into his pocket and then got off the sofa and down on one knee. The dogs looked at him in confusion and Hannah was equally confused. Until he held up a small velvet box.
“Hannah, I know it hasn’t been that long, but when you know, you know. And I know that you’re it for me. And I hope you feel the same. Will you marry me?”
Hannah was speechless for a moment. She hadn’t thought this far ahead, since like Spencer said, it hadn’t been that long. But unlike Jeremy where she spent two years with him and knew she’d never want to take it further, it was different with Spencer. She knew it was fast, but it also felt right. She couldn’t imagine her life without him in it.
“Of course I will.”
He slipped the ring on her finger and kissed her. Hannah was so glad she’d waited for someone who made her toes tingle. And she agreed with Spencer—she didn’t see a reason to wait any longer now that she’d found her person.
They talked for hours and made plans. They were both happy to be engaged for almost a year or so, until Hannah’s lease was up. It took at least that long to properly plan a wedding anyway. Tomorrow she would call everyone and tell them the happy news. But tonight, she wanted to celebrate with the person who mattered most, in her new home. She glanced at her ring. She couldn’t stop looking at it since Spencer had put it on her finger.
It was custom-made, a square-cut diamond on a gold band with more small diamonds and a hammered pattern on the gold that looked like waves. It was a piece of art, and Alison’s daughter, Julia, had made it.
“I went to see her the day after you moved back,” Spencer said. “You took a big leap, a risk moving back here, and so I took a leap, too.”
Hannah leaned over and kissed him. “I’m so glad you did. And I’m so happy that I decided to move home. You are my home.” Her heart felt even fuller as she glanced out the window and saw the first snowflakes of the season dancing in the light.
Spencer leaned in to kiss her again, and just before his lips met hers, he said, “And you’re mine.”