Epilogue
EPILOGUE
Reagan
Nine months later
The softest whispers of kisses were being peppered along the bare skin on top of my shoulder and toward the side of my neck.
My eyes remained closed, but I was awake.
I was awake, alive, and happier than I ever thought possible. Because he was mine. And I was his.
While it truly had been that way from the moment we decided to take a leap of faith and put our hearts into loving one another completely, it was different now. Because it was official as of yesterday afternoon.
A slow smile spread across my face, and I dropped my shoulder back against Hart’s chest as I hummed with delight. My husband kissed a few additional spots he’d missed.
“Good morning, my beautiful wife.”
My eyes shot open, and the grin on my face grew. “I’m your wife.”
Hart’s eyes danced with delight. “You are.”
“And you’re my husband.”
His laughter filled the air. “I am.”
I studied him, my eyes roaming over every handsome feature on his face. “I thought yesterday was the single best day of my life. I was convinced there wasn’t anything that could top it.”
That wasn’t an exaggeration, either.
We’d had the most beautiful day together. It was better than I could have ever hoped for it to be.
I would have married Hart on the front steps of the courthouse if it came down to it. I didn’t need the frills. I didn’t want them. But since he had people in his life who mattered to him, I agreed to a small ceremony.
And at that ceremony, we had Gram and our friends.
Our friends—Mallory, Nixon, the rest of the men and women from Harper Security Ops, and Erin. She and I had finally gotten together, and over the last couple of months, we’d fostered a friendship. There was no doubt in my mind that we’d be in each other’s lives forever.
Even though there had been others there to celebrate with us, Hart had been enough for me. More than enough, and all I could have ever dreamed of having in my life. But I got him and them. It wasn’t the kind of family I ever envisioned for my life, but it was just what I needed.
I’d met them all over the last nine months, and they’d welcomed me into the fold in a way that made me feel like I’d been there all along.
It was all thanks to the man warming the bed beside me. The man who was beaming at me with such adoration in his gaze.
“You say that like there’s something that has suddenly topped our wedding day.”
I lifted my hand to the side of his face and stroked my thumb over his cheekbone. “For as long as I live, I’ll never forget our wedding day. It was perfect. But this is better. Waking up beside you, having you kiss my shoulder and my neck like I’m the most precious thing in the world to you, and knowing I’ll have you for the rest of my life like this is arguably better. And I think it’s even better today, considering it’s our first morning in our new bed in our new home.”
Hart and I had decided that we wanted a fresh start in a new place that had only ever been ours. So, we purchased this house a month ago and spent our spare time getting the very basics done—stocking the fridge a few days ago and choosing a brand-new bed—so we’d be able to spend our wedding night here.
Hart pressed a soft kiss to my lips. “I won’t deny how great our wedding day was, but I think I enjoyed the wedding night even more.”
I turned my body completely to my left side and curled into him. As I draped my arm over his side, I nuzzled my face against his chest and inhaled. I’d never get enough of smelling him. “Last night was rather spectacular.”
His fingers swept into my hair and tugged gently, urging my head back so I could look at him. With a smile playing at his lips and a twinkle in his eyes, he said, “I especially enjoyed the part where I got to make love to my wife.”
My belly flipped. I was his wife. Me! A wife to a man who adored her.
“You’re my husband.” My voice was barely a touch over a whisper, and tears filled my eyes. “I don’t think I’m ever going to get used to saying that.”
“Well, I don’t think I’ll ever get used to looking at you and knowing you’re mine forever, so I think we’re even.”
My heart warmed with such love for this wonderful man. My mystery man. “We get to do this every day, Hart. We get to wake up and do life together.”
“You missed a step.”
“What?”
He stroked his thumb along my jaw. “We get to wake up, make love , and do life together.”
A shiver ran along my spine at my husband’s darkened gaze. “So, what are you waiting for?”
“My apologies.”
Hart didn’t allow me to say another word, because he used the strength in his arms to roll me on top of him. And as soon as I was there, he captured my mouth in a bruising, possessive kiss. A kiss from a husband meant for his new wife before he made sweet love to her the morning after they got married.
It was quite some time later—Hart and I had a difficult time separating ourselves from one another and getting out of bed—but we finally made it downstairs to have some breakfast.
“I’m so glad we decided to stock up the refrigerator so we could have this time together in our new house this morning and over the next couple of days before our honeymoon. What would you like to have for your first breakfast as a married man?”
I peeked over the open refrigerator door where I’d been standing and saw Hart looking at me with nothing but contentment and love in his expression. He tipped his head slightly to one side and smiled brightly at me. “I’ll eat whatever you decide to make, shortcake. But before you do that, I have something for you.”
I stood up straight and closed the door. “What?”
“I got you a gift.”
My eyes rounded. “But… I didn’t get you anything. I didn’t know we were buying gifts.”
“It’s nothing crazy,” he assured me. “Just something I wanted you to have today.”
I loved him.
God, I loved him.
“Okay. What is it?”
It was at that moment I noticed Hart had his hands behind his back. He pulled them out and held up the gift he’d gotten me.
“A birdhouse?” It was easily the most beautiful birdhouse I’d ever seen.
He nodded. “I know how much you love them, and I couldn’t think of a better first gift for my wife in our new home than a birdhouse I built for her.”
My lips parted, and I stared at him in disbelief. “You made this?”
Hart shrugged. “I wanted to be sure I knew how, so I could teach you whenever you’re ready to learn.”
I became unstuck as my hand flew to my chest, and I walked toward him. “This is… this is so special.” I lifted my gaze to meet his. “Thank you.”
He smiled and wrapped his free arm around my waist to pull me close. I tipped my head back, curled my fingers around the back of his neck, and urged his mouth toward mine.
Then I kissed him.
And when I pulled back, beaming, I said, “You’re about to have the best breakfast ever known to man.”
Hart kissed me again, giving me a squeeze in return. “I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
After giving him another kiss, I got to work on breakfast.
* * *
Hart
Eleven Months Later
Vanished.
Gone.
In a matter of a few years, every wrong assumption I had about myself and the man I could become had disappeared.
It had all started with her. It had been years now, but it was in those first couple of months that Reagan got me to see the truth. For the right woman, I couldn’t be anything but a good man and a devoted husband.
I could be strong and protective and loving and tender.
My grandmother had said it best—my parents hadn’t been the best role models of what love was supposed to look like, but they did teach me what it wasn’t supposed to be.
And once I met Reagan, that had been enough. It was all I needed to be able to give her—and myself—the life we both deserved.
That life now included a new title for me—father. Dad.
It had been months since we learned Reagan was pregnant with our first child, and I still hadn’t managed to wrap my head around it.
Now that she’d just given birth, I could barely see through the tears pooling in my eyes. As I looked down at my wife and newborn son, a new wave of protective instincts washed over me.
There was nothing I wouldn’t do to protect them. I’d sooner die than see harm come to either of them.
Because they were my whole world. Without them, my life meant nothing. And I realized that was just how love was. Love made it all possible.
Standing beside her, I placed my hand on Reagan’s forehead. She looked up and smiled at me. “Isn’t he perfect?”
My other hand went to cradle the back of my son’s head. “He is. You’ve made me the happiest man in the world, Reagan. I knew I was lucky when I found you, but I never expected I’d be this fortunate.”
I leaned down and kissed her before I pressed a kiss to the top of my little boy’s head. Then I stroked my thumb along his tiny head, the skin so soft.
When I turned my attention to my wife again, she didn’t hesitate to share what was on her mind. “Thank you, Hart. Thank you for loving me and giving me the family and the home that I never had. It means everything to me.”
Reagan had never hidden her appreciation for me and what I’d brought into her life. I’d been the same with her. We’d been two broken people before we met one another, but I’d endure every ounce of heartbreak and sadness and fear again if it meant I’d have her in the end. If it meant we’d be able to build our own family and do differently for our children than was done for us.
Having that thought, it hit me.
All the things I believed I could never be—a lover, a husband, and a father—wound up being the very things I excelled at. And it was only because I’d allowed love into my life.