EPILOGUE
~Luke~
IT ONLY SEEMED right to be back in Austin. The city has rolled out the red carpet and I watch as Jane walks ahead talking to the small press line, posing for photos, and beaming with pride.
She deserves this. All of it.
Early reviewers agree—the movie is a masterfully woven film with beautiful scenery and touching scenes. Jessica has become the darling of the indie film circuit and Ryan got offered the next superhero series. His fascination with Danny remains a secret, except to Danny, because yeah, I couldn’t not tease Danny about the phone incident. Danny laughed. Nothing really fazes him anymore when it comes to people who like to ogle him.
With Ian, there was a forced greeting for the cameras when we arrived, but now he stands a few feet away from me. Sour grapes over Jane? Douche. He has four projects lined up. He should be happy. This film is getting great recognition and so is he. So I don’t know why he seems to be holding a grudge, but he’s keeping his distance. That’s fine. The film is done and we both can move on. Luckily for me, I get to move on with Jane. I pop my imaginary collar.
Danny steps back from the carpet, and tucks his hands into his pockets. “You should be proud.”
I don’t know if he’s referring to the movie or the woman at the center of attention, but I answer for the latter, “I am.” Turning, I shake his hand. Jane looks back at us, and smiles. We owe Danny a lot. I don’t know what he told Jane, but his words worked magic for both of us. I’m sure he told her something similar to what he told me—stop being an ass and fight for love—though I’m sure he didn’t call her an ass like he did me. The best part of my best friend is he never judges, at least not harshly. I laugh. He just calls it like he sees it. “Thanks for being here.”
“I didn’t get invited to the wedding,” he ribs. “So I figured this was the next best thing.” He chuckles.
“No one was invited, except that beautiful woman right there.”
While watching Jane, he says, “Remember that time you came over all crazy crying about the woman who got away?”
“I was not crying and did you fly out here just to tease me?”
“Fine. You were whining, and teasing you is always fun, but no.”
“Whatever. What’s your point?” I ask smiling.
“Look at you guys now.” When I look at him, his smile is genuine, not joking at all on his face. He adds, “I had to come see how the story ends.”
“You see us in LA all the time.”
“Not you guys. I always knew you guys would make it.” Nodding toward the theater, he says, “The movie.”
“Spoiler alert: the good guy wins.”
“As he should, my friend. As he should.” He pats me on the back. “Are you going inside?”
“In a minute.”
“You’ve always managed to avoid the red carpet.” He says, “I don’t think that’s going to be possible anymore.”
Jane waves me over, but before I go, I reply, “No, I don’t think it will be.” I join my wife, wrapping my arm around her waist. Leaning down, I kiss her on top of the head. “You’re stunning, Mrs. Anders.”
“You’re charming, Mr. Lewis.”
Watching the press call her name, vying for her attention, I say, “I believe it’s you who’s charming.”
When we finally make it inside the theater, she pulls me off to the side. Embracing me wholeheartedly, she whispers, “We did it.”
“We did. We make a good team.”
“We make the best team.”
“Speaking of, how do you feel about working on your next movie together?”
“Are we speaking hypothetically or it’s a done deal already?”
Smiling, I look around the room before returning my gaze to her. “It’s kind of a done deal already.”
She returns a smile. “When do we start?”
“Right after we find a place to live.”
“Your friend Robert is a real asshole for cashing in on the house as collateral. The movie was only one week late.”
Cupping her jaw gently, I tilt her face to mine. “I never cared about that house anyway. It was only a place to sleep until I found my home again.”
“And have you found it?”
“It wasn’t lost. My home was right here all along.” I kiss her, first with everyone else around us in mind. Then I kiss her how I want to, not caring one bit about an audience or public displays of affection offending anyone. “Now that I found you again, I’m never letting you go.”
“Promise?”
“Promise. Things are settling down with the movie so we can start looking for the house you always dreamed about.”
“I’m rethinking things.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Now I’m leaning toward a gated property to keep the girls out. I’ve seen the Instagram comments on your posts. You’ve developed quite the fan base in the last year.”
“Ha! Rest assured, my dear Janie, I only have eyes for you.”
“Only eyes? A few other things come to mind that you have.”
“You know the way to my heart.”
“It’s not your heart I was referring to.”
“How about skipping this premiere and heading back to the hotel early?”
“Come on. Let’s go make our appearance so we can get back to fu… back to make love.”
Jane still has trouble using the dirty words out of bed, but in bed, she’s become quite the dirty talker.
But she did learn from the master. I squeeze her ass, and tease, “I can’t wait to… make love to you.”
My lips capture hers and I kiss the sweet taste of the words away, swallowing them and each breath she gives me.
We met when we were kids. I fell in love with her when we were only sixteen. The woman in my arms is still that same girl, but so much more—she’s my guiding compass and the other half of my forever. The two years we spent apart have become just blips in the scheme of eternity. As much as I wish I could erase them, we needed them to get to this point, to live our great story.
When we part, I open my eyes and look right into hers. A sweet smile, my favorite sight in the world appears, and she says, “Thank you for giving me A forever.”
Following my heart paid off professionally and personally. This movie brought us back together physically and cemented us together forever emotionally. We made a hit movie and I got the girl. “Best move I ever made.”
THE END.
Keep reading for an excerpt from The Resistance by S. L. Scott.