Epilogue
LENA
SIX MONTHS LATER
“E!”
“Yeah?” Elias stuck his head through the half-open door and craned his neck until he found me. “What’s up?”
“It’s almost eight. Is everything ready out there?”
He stepped up and leaned easy, resting his forearm on the door frame. His t-shirt crept up, and my eyes locked on the ridge of his abs. I opened my mouth to say something, but nothing came out.
“Lena.”
I tore my eyes away from my boyfriend’s sexy midriff and found a wicked grin on his face. He winked, and I rolled my eyes.
“Sorry.”
“You don’t have to apologize to me, gorgeous.”
He crossed the foyer and joined me behind the counter. He slid his hands around my waist and rested his forehead against mine. Coconut and sandalwood assaulted my senses, and an ache of need rushed through me. I placed my hands on his chest, stared into his ocean eyes, and shoved down my desire.
“We could call off the whole thing, you know,” he said with his siren’s allure. He pressed his hips into mine, and I felt his hardness. “Lock the doors and do some... partner yoga.” He waggled his eyebrows.
A bark of laughter escaped me, and I swatted him on the chest. “Stop it! I’m serious.”
He ground his hips against me. “So am I.”
“Elias!’ I wiggled my way out of his arms, took his hands in mine, and stepped back. “Are we ready?”
He leaned forward and kissed my forehead. “We’re ready.”
“Good.”
We’d been preparing for the grand opening of Yoga Star Hilton Head for weeks, and I wanted everything perfect for the big event.
We had a small setup in the parking lot of the strip mall including a bar with beer and wine.
Elias and Niko rented mics and hired a bongo drummer to accompany Elias’s guitar. Island music for the win.
Candace and a few of my teachers from the Charleston studio drove down earlier in the week to double check the office organization and help prepare for the free classes we planned on offering to incentivize new clientele.
But tonight, Candy was bartending, and my teachers would perform acrobatic partner yoga to demonstrate some of the new formats we’d bring to the island.
Hopefully, the event would draw attention to the studio’s rebranding and help establish my presence in the Hilton Head yoga community.
I patted his chest. “Everything in here is ready, too.”
I stepped back and surveyed the inside of the empty studio—my studio—and nodded. Yeah, I was definitely ready.
“Hey.” He grabbed my hips and pulled me back to him. “While we have a minute…”
I circled his waist with my arms. “What’s up?”
“I have something for you.” A pale blush of pink touched his tanned features. I’d never seen Elias blush before, and it made my heart ache with affection.
He shoved his hand into his pocket and pulled out a small, velvet box. My heart leapt into my throat, and my pulse pounded in my ears. I released his waist, and my hand shook as it rose to cover my open mouth. My other hand landed on my chest, covering my heart.
He stared down at the box, and his face heated to a brighter shade of red. Despite his siren’s empathy, Elias had never been in tune with his own emotions, but right now, he was letting them lead, and I could tell how difficult it was for him.
“I’m so proud of you, Lena. What you’ve accomplished these last few months with the new studio.
How you’ve handled everything life has thrown at you and come out stronger.
You inspire me.” His throat worked through a swallow, and he took a deep breath, held it, and then slowly let it out, his blue eyes glistening. “I love you, Lena.”
Time stopped. Blood rushed to my face and tears welled.
His mouth opened and closed, his eyes searching mine for validation.
My Elias. My confident charismatic man so vulnerable and filled with hope. An evil grin took over my face—I couldn’t help myself. “Took you long enough,” I said playfully.
He let go of the tremendous breath, and his shoulders descended back down to earth, shuddering through a nervous chuckle.
“I’m sorry. I should have said it sooner.
It’s just, I honestly didn’t know what it was.
” He swallowed again, his lip quavering with the toll of baring himself so openly. “I’ve never been in love before.”
“Oh, Elias.” I threw my arms around his neck. He wrapped his around my waist and nuzzled his face into my neck. “I love you, too.”
And I did love him. I’d loved him since our first night together at the beach house. I knew he loved me too but didn’t have the words. Not until now.
He’d asked me to live with him three months ago, and I didn’t hesitate to agree.
My new life on the island had started, and it was hectic.
Busy with renovations and preparations for the new studio, I wanted to spend as much of my free time with him as I could.
But giving up my grandma’s house wasn’t an option.
So, Elias moved in with me, and Niko kept the beach house bachelor-pad.
My grandma’s spirit was an ever-present and steadying force in my life, alive and well in my memories, in our house, and in the warm ocean breeze, comforting, supporting, and encouraging me every step of the way.
Elias pulled back and, with shaking fingers, opened the velvet box to reveal a single pearl set in a circle of aquamarine stones atop a silver ring. He was gifting me the ocean, and I gasped at its simple beauty.
“We both started to transform that first day we met on the beach.” He lowered his eyes, blushing again. “Just like a pearl grows out of sand. And—” He cleared his throat and looked back up, eyes glistening with tears. “And I think now we’re both fully formed.”
He got down on one knee, and his hands shook as he took mine and held up the ring. Tears spilled down my face, and I let out a sob overflowing with happiness and love.
“Lena Sommer, you unlocked a hidden place in my heart that I can’t wait to explore. Will you go on the adventure of a lifetime with me?”
“Yes! Oh, Elias, yes!”
He leapt to his feet and kissed me while I cried tears of joy, then slipped the little piece of ocean onto my finger.
The door slammed open, and both our heads snapped to attention. Candy stood frozen in the doorway and let out a high-pitched shriek that echoed through the studio.
“What’s going on? What happened?” Niko stepped up behind her. “Holy shit!”
Elias and I devolved into nervous laughter, and Candy and Niko rushed us with hugs and congratulations. I looked around my studio and at my friends—at my family—and knew I was home.
THE END
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