Chapter 42 Epilogue Boone
Six months later...
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“Are you nervous?” Rhiannon teases as she breezes into the room, her wavy hair wild and her newly pregnant belly beginning to show.
Cain trails behind her, along with Rhiannon's older brother Gabriel, who flashes me an easy nod and smile.
“Why would I be nervous? I’m already married to her,” I reply with a smirk.
She rolls her eyes, planting her hands on her hips. “Nervous because you know she’s way out of your league and this is basically the best day of your life!”
“Don’t I know it,” I shoot back, earning a chuckle from Cain.
Cain claps me on the shoulder and squeezes. “Welcome to the family, officially,” he says, before heading downstairs toward our backyard where everything’s set up.
Even Rosie’s dad’s here.
That still feels like something worth noting. A man I once assumed would never fully warm up to me now stands in our backyard by choice. Ready to walk his daughter down a makeshift aisle and into my arms.
Somewhere along the way, we reached this strange, fragile truce. I give him a hard time. He turns red and looks to Cain to mediate. And without fail, every time, the three of us end up laughing.
I didn’t expect that. I didn’t expect him to become someone I genuinely enjoy, but here we are. It’s not perfect, but it’s progress. And the cherry on top is that last week, he told me he’s glad Rosie and I found each other, even if I'm not the man he would have picked for her.
If that’s not a win, I don’t know what is.
The ceremony itself is small, exactly the way we wanted it. Rosie didn’t want a wedding at all, but she softened when I told her I wanted the chance to stand in front of the people she and I love and tell her, openly and without a script, what she means to me.
To promise her forever with no obligations, no pretending, no acting. Just us. And because she’s Rosie, kind and thoughtful and far too good to me, she agreed.
Only the people who matter most are here. Her dad. Cain. The extended Carpenter family, cousins and siblings filling the space with familiar warmth. My older brother Levi even made it down from Boston.
Unfortunately, my mom couldn’t make it, and Seth is tied up in California with his daughter and his contract with the San Diego Suns, but somehow it still feels complete.
We’re doing this at the house in Brookhaven. The one she bought on impulse. The one Gabriel and Eden and I have been slowly fixing up. I can’t imagine a better place to remarry her.
This is the house where we first fell in love, where we made love, where we stopped pretending and started choosing each other for real. No scripts. No roles. Just a life we built, and keep choosing, every single day.
“So, you officially signed the contract, huh?” Gabriel asks, stepping forward.
Over the last few months, I’ve gotten to know the oldest sibling of the Carpenter family better and we’ve grown close while working on Rosie’s home.
He’s solid, a rock for his sisters, and the closest thing to a father they’ve had since their parents tragically passed away.
You can feel it in the way he carries himself, like he’s always thinking about their wellbeing, working too hard, and probably stressing too much over finances and their futures.
But it makes sense now why Eden and Rhiannon are the way they are. Safe to be themselves, and secure in who they are. I think that’s all owed to Gabriel.
“Yeah, I signed,” I say, nodding. “But just for one year. Told them three was too much. I’ll give them one more good season, hopefully another win like we pulled off this summer, and then I’m retiring here with Rosie and hopefully a couple kids.”
“Good for you, man. I’m happy for you guys.”
“Thanks,” I say, shaking his hand. “What about you? Rosie said you and Eden decided to sell the thrift store?”
He nods. “Yeah, things are really coming together. The business will officially be sold in two months at the close of November.”
“Damn, hard to believe it’s shutting down.”
“I think it’s what our parents would have wanted.”
“What’s next for you then?”
“I convinced my cousin Roman to move back to the area permanently. He and I are going to start a joint venture flipping apartments and businesses in New York City.”
“He has experience doing that?”
Gabriel nods. “Lots. Mostly on the business and finance side of things. His dad taught him before they had a falling out and Roman broke off to start his own company. He’s been in Miami for the last decade now and built up an impressive portfolio.
I think he was recently recognized as the wealthiest man under forty in real estate for the year. ”
“Well fuck.”
He smiles. “Yeah, he’s a big deal. I’ll be doing all the construction work. Finally working for myself, the way I’ve always wanted to. Figured it was time now that Eden’s in her senior year of college and nearly ready to stand on her own.”
“Good for you, man. You deserve to do something for yourself.”
There’s a knock on the door and my older brother Levi’s head peeks in. He’s grinning hard. “It’s time. She’s ready.”
“Alright.” I rub my palms together and feel just how nervous I am.
Gabriel leaves the room and Levi steps inside, closing the door behind him.
“I’m proud of you.” He squeezes my shoulder affectionately as he adjusts my tie.
They’re words I’ve spent my whole life hoping to hear from my family.
They carry even more weight coming from my older brother, the person I’ve always looked up to.
He was the first Tremblay to sign a professional hockey contract, the one who never tarnished our name, who carved a clean path for me and Seth to follow.
“Thank you. I’m glad you could make it down for the wedding.”
“Wouldn’t miss it.”
I blow out a steady breath before he throws his arm around my shoulders. “Let’s do this.”
We make my way downstairs. Across the lawn, the setup is simple but beautiful.
The dock leading down to the lake is framed by a trellis covered in woven roses, soft purples and whites standing out against the blue water beyond.
Rows of white plastic chairs are set up, filled with the small circle of people we call family.
I walk to the end of the dock and take my place, my palms brushing against my thighs as I fight the urge to fidget. Rhiannon presses play on her phone, and a sweet, simple love song fills the air. The melody steadies me, but it all fades away when I finally see Rosie.
Her dress is soft cream silk, the fabric moving around her like it was made to follow her. The lavender lace bodice fits her perfectly, tracing the shape of her breasts and drawing me eyes there.
Her dark blonde hair is pinned back at the sides, loose waves brushing her shoulders, just undone enough to feel intimate and wholly romantic.
There’s a warmth to her smile that has nothing to do with the day or the light. Golden shadow catches on her lids when she blinks. Her cheeks are flushed, her smile bright and unguarded, like she’s exactly where she’s meant to be.
She’s beautiful. She’s real. And she’s mine.
When she reaches me, I take her hands in mine, her touch grounding me in the moment as Cain steps forward to officiate.
“Welcome friends and family. Today, we’re here to join my sister, Rosie Anne Prescott, and Boone Andrew Tremblay in marriage. And though these two are already married, this is their first ceremony together.”
The group chuckles lightly, but I hardly hear it. My focus is on Rosie. On us. On the life we’ve built and the one that we’re going to keep building.
The home we’ve made, the plans we’ve shared, the family that we’ll raise someday here by the water.
I squeeze her hands, mouthing, I love you as Cain continues. She smiles and says it back.
And when it’s time for our vows, I pour everything I have into the words, telling her exactly what she means to me, how she’s changed my life, and how I’ll spend the rest of it loving her.
She does the same, her voice steady and clear, her words wrapping around me like a promise.
By the time we both say, “I do,” for the first time it feels like a new beginning. A vow that will never be broken. A love that will last forever.
An unconventional beginning to our unconventional start.
The End.