Epilogue - Veronica
Carter and I went to Lacie and Maddox’s wedding the following Monday, and they had their fair share of excitement, but I’ll let her tell her own story. Suffice it to say that I was over the moon for Lacie and for Morgan… and for myself and my new relationship.
Carter’s divorce went through without any issues, and I even ended up meeting his ex-wife at a social function a few months later. She was gracious and polite with a sad smile. When she excused herself, Carter kissed my temple and wrapped his arms around me.
“I love you,” he said, and my heart did a backflip.
Seth stayed true to his word, and he left me alone. A couple nights, my phone rang with a blocked number, but those stopped after a few months. I don’t know what happened to him, or if he ended up finding anyone else. Frankly, I didn’t care.
We moved out of the mansion he’d lived in with Maddox and got our own place just down the road. Lacie, Morgan and I went on tour with the band for three months. It was their biggest tour ever, and their most successful album so far. We got a whirlwind tour of so many cities that by the time we got back home, my head was spinning and I couldn’t remember which monument belonged to which city.
When we moved into our new house, Carter took me by the hand and led me to a huge room in the basement. My eyes widened as I saw the computers and screens, the lighting and photography equipment filling the space. I looked at him and he shrugged.
“Figured you’d need a studio.”
I threw my arms around his neck and he twirled me around before setting me down and kissing me.
“Carter,” I breathed. “How could I ever thank you?”
Carter just laughed and touched his nose to mine. “When are you going to realize that you don’t need to thank me? You’ve changed my life, Vee. You fixed my divorce. You made me love music again. You and Lacie and Morgan saved our lives.”
“That’s a little dramatic,” I laughed.
“It’s not. If you hadn’t shown up…”
I pressed my lips against his and wrapped my arms around his neck. He kissed me harder, pulling my body against his.
We made love on the floor in my new photography studio. I screamed his name as I came, digging my fingers into his muscular body as he gave me the hundredth, or maybe the thousandth orgasm of our time together.
When it was over, I laid on his chest and looked around the room, grinning.
“Well, this room is christened. Now we just have like thirty more rooms to go.”
“I should have bought a bigger house. I like this christening thing,” he laughed, turning to lay a soft kiss on my lips.
“Maybe they’ll need to be re-christened,” I laughed. He slipped his arm around me and pulled me on top of him, and we re-christened my studio.
I knew I’d marry him, but we didn’t rush into anything. I knew Carter probably needed time after his divorce, and it felt like we had all the time in the world. When he proposed to me, it was a year and a half later, after their next album had been released to even bigger sales and more devoted fans.
I looked at the gleaming diamond ring and immediately started crying.
“We’d better get married quick, because I don’t want to look like a whale in my wedding photos,” I said, grinning. Carter frowned.
“You won’t look like—” His eyes widened as I put a hand to my stomach, and it was his turn to tear up. He dropped to his knees and kissed my stomach, putting his wide palms over it and pressing his ear to it.
I rubbed my fingers through his hair as the ring on my finger sparkled, and the happiness I felt was absolute. I didn’t know it was possible for my heart to feel so full, but here I was, feeling like my chest would explode at any minute.
The tabloid would have lots to talk about, but this time it wasn’t bad press. It was weddings and babies and the happy glow of a young, healthy, happy family.
Carter got to his feet and brushed his lips against mine. I wiped the tears off his cheeks and smiled. I was his, now and forever.