Epilogue
L ate afternoon sun spread dappled light across Bluewhistle Meadow. Charlotte stood and leaned against a tree, pressing her lips together in amusement as she watched Gregory taking way too much time to straighten a blanket on the ground. He stepped back to assess his wrinkle-free blanket placement and a grin spread across his face when he saw her. Charlotte’s knees fully felt it.
“Hey there, handsome.” She walked toward him. “I didn’t know this is what you had in mind for date night, but I’m here for it.”
He opened his arms to hug her close. “I’ve owed you a picnic in this meadow for a while. And I know it can be hard to leave the house once we get back from work, so this seemed like the smartest idea. Just this once. I need to grab one more thing. I’ll be back in five minutes, okay?”
“Anything I can do to help set up?” she asked.
“Absolutely not. Sit down, grab a pillow. As someone once told me, close your eyes and listen to the park,” Gregory instructed.
Charlotte settled onto a plush pillow and smiled at the memory of showing him around the park last year. He’d come a long way since then—she’d noticed him wearing a short-sleeved Henley in the office last week. Short sleeves! At work! He did have a button-down, collared shirt at the ready by his office door, but he didn’t go formal all day every day.
She’d come a long way too, she reflected. Her life was more balanced, especially since she and Gregory, with Madmartigan, had moved in together in a cozy old farmhouse not far from the park, on the edge of a forest. They camped on their own property sometimes.
Yes, Charlotte still loved her work. Especially since she’d proved to her family she wanted to stay for the long haul and run the park with Gregory, who’d formally left Ever Fund not long after the Under the Waves opening and realized that yes, co-running a theme park had become his thing. He’d incorporated his passion for the outdoors and the environment too; the vibrant pollinator garden on the edge of Bluewhistle Meadow, humming with bustling insects, was only one small way he’d put himself into Lands. Gregory and her dad were constantly planning landscape additions emphasizing natural elements; they even wanted to turn the now-annual Faery Festival into a Faery Flower and Garden Festival. Finally retired, Aunt Marianne and Uncle Frank kept going on road trips around the States. And Emily, free from her self-imposed familial obligation, was happier, lighter, and about to return to New York for grad school
So yeah, Charlotte still gave a not-small part of her heart to Lands of Legend—and it showed in the park’s increased attendance—but her work was no longer the whole focus of her life. She created boundaries, learned how to delegate, took days off. Not like at DreamUs when she’d amass so much PTO that her boss would have to force her to take time away, and then she’d be online working anyway. But no longer. She and Gregory had even gone on a vacation to Los Angeles, partly to close up his sad and empty apartment but mostly to play tourists in the town they’d both lived in for years, but only lived to work in. A concert at the Hollywood Bowl, ice cream on the Santa Monica Pier, rambling the wild paths at Descanso Gardens—L.A. had more to offer than office walls, as it turned out.
The healthier stance toward work post–Under the Waves opening had helped her relationships. She connected on a deeper level with Gregory, Melanie, Emily, and her whole family by being more present. Madmartigan benefited from her more chill state of mind too, coming to expect and demand snuggle time with her every evening as she relaxed on the couch.
Charlotte closed her eyes and breathed. Life felt just right.
“Charlotte, did you fall asleep?” Gregory stage whispered.
She opened her eyes and saw him leaning over her, eyes shining with warmth, picnic basket in hand.
“I wouldn’t dare. Who am I, you?” she teased, thinking back to the night they’d realized they wanted to be together. “But I bet I could. It’s quite peaceful out here with the park closing for the day.”
She sat straight up, her mind racing and already forming a list. “In fact, this reminds me. I had a thought about Bluewhistle Meadow picnic packages ages ago and forgot. It could be a great offering for passholders or even a special event on its own. We could set up picnics across the meadow—I know Melanie would have amazing suggestions for the menu—and do shows for them, like Shakespeare in the Park, but our version, and we could—”
Gregory, who had sat next to her, folding his long legs behind him, pressed a finger to her lips and gave her a look. He raised an eyebrow, as if asking if he could remove his finger, and she nodded.
“It’s an excellent idea,” Gregory said, “And I see potential there.”
“Right?” Charlotte gushed as she reached toward her bag to grab the notebook she kept in it for this reason. “I’m going to write it down so I don’t forget and then maybe we can discuss it more tomorrow?”
“I’d love to.” Gregory smiled.
Charlotte quickly scribbled enough words to jog her memory tomorrow, and gasped when she looked up. Gregory had spread out an elaborate cheese plate in front of them in record time and now he was placing lanterns with small battery-operated flickering candles at the blanket’s corners.
She gazed at him and once he was settled on the blanket again, she leaned over, put her hand on his neck, and pulled him in for a gentle kiss, his soft lips yielding against hers.
Charlotte pulled away and looked into his eyes, the green soft in the lingering golden hour. “This is beautiful. Thank you for doing all of this. You even got Brie for me. I know how you feel about Brie.”
He leaned forward and kissed her on the tip of her nose. “It was my pleasure. You deserve Brie and so much more.”
They both giggled and Charlotte plucked a blueberry from the edge of the spread and threw it at him.
“Before we dig in,” Gregory said, “I’d like to, uh, ask you something.”
Hearing Gregory sound anything less than one thousand percent confident put Charlotte on edge; she was still working on not jumping to the worst possible conclusion first.
She straightened. “Anything.”
Gregory twisted his arm behind him, picked something up, and opened his palm to reveal a small, carved wooden box.
Charlotte’s jaw dropped.
Gregory cleared his throat. “I, um, was wondering—as long as I always include Brie in our cheese plates, have Sir Cinna-Swirls and also pizza with you once a week, and love you for always—if you would do me the honor of marrying me?”
Charlotte’s eyes started watering when he started speaking and a tear slipped down her cheek. “Yes! Gregory! There is no other answer. Only yes.”
He opened the box to reveal a vintage ring with hexagon-cut labradorite surrounded by small diamonds.
“AHHHH! It’s perfect ! Gregory!”
He plucked the ring out and slid it onto Charlotte’s finger. A perfect fit.
She scooted closer and wrapped her arms around him, in disbelief that this thoughtful man who smelled of evergreen trees and comfort was hers.
“I love you, Gregory,” Charlotte whispered into his ear.
“And I love you right back, Charlotte,” he replied and then kissed her thoroughly.
They pulled apart and Charlotte laughed. “You know this means going on roller coasters for the rest of your life, right?”
Without hesitation, he replied, “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”