Epilogue

The construction was almost complete on my new greenhouse. I walked around, checking on my plants while the workers hammered away around me. Business was booming, especially since taking my products online. I already had several orders to fill for a large retail group, and Silas had been looking for a manufacturer to handle my larger packaging orders.

I loved the free time my new success had given me. I was able to travel to Texas and stay with Silas at times he couldn’t make it home. The ability to work online had changed the entire dynamic of our relationship, but I still yearned for a normal, day-to-day relationship.

I pinched off a piece of mint and held it to my nose. The scent always made me think of Silas, and how sweet he was to help with the men’s line of products. It had been two years since we’d met, two years since I launched the men’s line with his favorite scents. Both things were booming: our relationship, and the men’s line.

Damn, I missed him.

I’d just gotten back from Texas a few days ago, but it felt like an eternity. I knew there was too much to handle here for me to leave again anytime soon, and Silas wasn’t promised another leave for at least two months. There were still moments, ones just like this one, where I wondered if I could continue this, if I could handle this.

“When you feel like you’re slipping, call me, gorgeous,” is what Silas always said to me.

Sometimes, he couldn’t pick up his phone, but hearing his voice on the voicemail was usually enough to hold me together. I needed that now. I pulled my phone from my pocket and dialed his number.

I heard it ring, but then echo. I pulled the phone from my ear, listening to the distinct ringtone of Silas’s phone coming from outside my greenhouse.

My heart raced as I rushed through the doors. Silas stood there, smiling, with his phone in hand.

“You really know how to ruin a guy’s surprise,” he teased.

I jumped into his arms. My mouth pressed against his, my tongue exploring the taste I’d so desperately missed. “What are you doing here?” I asked.

He gripped my wrists and gently pried my arms from around his neck. “Funny you should ask,” he said with an awkward grin.

He backed away from me, lowering to one knee. My hands covered my mouth to stop the rush of explosions that tried to escape my throat. My eyes welled up with tears as he pulled out a black velvet ring box. “Lucy Eppes, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?” he asked with a shaky voice.

I loved that he was nervous. I loved that a strong, powerful man like Silas was still nervous around little ole me.

I wanted to scream out YES! But my mind began reeling with worry. I was struggling enough having a long distance boyfriend. I didn’t want a long distance husband. We’d talked about marriage, but it was always thought to happen after he left the military, or at least settled somewhere closer to home.

He smiled nervously up at me. I knew my hesitance was driving him insane.

“How will this work?” I asked softly, not wanting to spoil the mood, but searching for the answers I needed.

“I’ve just transferred to St. Paul Joint Air Reserve Station. I’ll have a steady position, and unless called upon by emergency or necessity, I’ll be home,” he said proudly.

Tears fell down my cheeks, burning my flesh and blurring my vision.

“It’s only a short drive. So, I can be home every night,” he grinned.

“YES!” I blurted out.

My hands gripped his arms, pulling him up from the ground. I jumped into his arms, kissing him fast and furiously on the cheeks, the neck, and the lips. I couldn’t imagine being any happier than I was in that very moment.

“I didn’t want to tell you until I was sure,” he said.

“How long has it been since you asked for the transfer?” I asked.

He looked at me with a curious look. His lips curled into a smile, a crooked one like he gets when he’s being mischievous or sneaky.

“I requested the transfer the day I arrived back in Texas. After our first two weeks together.”

“Before the Turkey deployment?” I asked surprised.

He nodded.

“Why didn’t you say anything?” I asked.

“I didn’t want to disappoint you if they said no. It’s never a guarantee,” he said.

“You missed me as badly as I missed you,” I teased.

“Of course I did!” he exclaimed, pulling me into his warm chest.

“I never wanted you to feel that pain again. That look in your eyes the day I left early, it was more than I could bear,” he said.

“I put on a brave face,” I insisted.

I remembered that day. I cried outside the airport, but I stayed calm for his sake. I knew it was just as hard, if not harder, for him to leave. I still got to stay at home, knowing everything there would be the same every day. He was the one who had to leave home, wondering if it was still there to come home to when he got back.

He pushed his finger into my chest, circling the area of my heart.

“I appreciated that so much,” he said softly. “But I could feel your heart breaking,” he added.

“Can you feel my heart now?” I asked smiling up at him.

He pressed his palm against my chest, tightened his lips, and acted as though he was trying to listen for something.

“I hear it,” he said softly.

“What does it say?” I asked with a giggle.

“It wants to go to bed,” he said, tilting his head to the side.

I laughed. “Yes. That’s exactly what it’s saying.”

Silas took the ring from the velvet box and carefully slid it onto my finger. My entire body was consumed with goosebumps as he leaned in and gave me our first kiss as an engaged couple. “I love you, Lucy,” he whispered.

“I love you,” I replied, kissing his cheek gently.

His strong arms quickly scooped me up, lifting me from my feet. I let out a squeal with excitement as my hands wrapped around his thick neck. He carried me into the loft, tossing me onto the bed.

“Now, to consummating this engagement,” he laughed, stripping out of his tight shirt.

My entire body quivered as I took in his amazing form. Not only was he perfect on the outside, but he was perfect on the inside as well. This was going to be my husband. Mrs. Lucy Myers. I love the sound of that.

 

MR FIREFIGHTER

By Ivy Jordan

 

This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer's imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.

 

Copyright © 2017 Ivy Jordan