Epilogue: Macey
It’s been seven long, tortuous months since Finn kissed me. Yes, it’s the kiss I’m counting and not the fact that he declared his love for me. It was the kiss that meant everything, the moment that our fate was sealed and we became one. The declarations of love that followed were icing on the cake.
Morgan and I waited until she was done with school before we moved to Las Vegas with Finn. Mostly because I needed him to be sure that this was what he wanted, that Morgan and I were what he wanted. He proved himself by relentlessly working in Vegas for three days a week and taking long weekends to come home to us. Not that it was much of a home in my dinky apartment, but it was paid for and I wasn’t willing to give it up quite yet. And when he couldn’t leave Vegas, we came to him, although our trips were much shorter due to school.
I also felt like Morgan had been through enough in the year that I didn’t want to disrupt her schooling. Finn agreed. But that also left my schooling in limbo. I started taking classes, only to find myself skipping them when Finn came to town. It seemed pointless to continue to waste the time and money when I was only going the three days a week he was back in Vegas, so I quit. Much to his and Steph’s displeasure, but I promised them both that once I got settled in Vegas, I’d start up again.
After my return trip to Vegas with Morgan, I finally confided in Steph about Finn being Morgan’s dad. She was angry that I let him get away with being absent for so long and actually stopped speaking to me for a while. I get it, my life could’ve been different, but that doesn’t mean I would’ve ended up with Finn. He could’ve been married to someone else, had a family, and I would’ve meant nothing to him. I like the way things are now. I like how he loves me and how he wants to be with me, how he worships Morgan. He’s protective, authoritative, but at the same time he tucks her in every night that he’s here and takes her to school in the mornings. One minute he’s a dad and the next he’s my lover. I have the best of both worlds at my fingertips.
Right now we’re living in a suite in Allure while renovations are being done on the apartment. Finn asked if we wanted to buy a house, but after we ran the list of pros and cons, namely security and him not being an elevator ride away, we decided the hotel is where we wanted to live. We can have everything here that a house can, minus a yard, but it’s Vegas and grass doesn’t grow, so Morgan isn’t missing anything there.
With Finn’s third hotel open, he finally has time to take a vacation. He asked Morgan where she wanted to go and, of course, Disney is what she said. He took it one step further and booked us for ten days in Disney World. The thought of park hopping doesn’t appeal to me, but I’ve been promised lots of beach time and Finn time which, let’s be honest, is worth any vacation.
As we move through the airport, Morgan walks alongside Finn while he holds my hand. She’s turned into exactly what I didn’t want, a spoiled child, but I can’t blame Finn. She’s still very well mannered, respectful and gets good grades. However, she’s now a technology kid and constantly looking at her phone.
Finn taps her on the shoulder and points. The airport walls have the Disney characters everywhere, making her face light up.
“Let’s put this away while we’re on vacation, okay?” He takes her phone from her without any protest on her part and slips it into my purse for safekeeping. After we claim our bags we spot the driver holding a sign with our name and head toward him. “I’m Finn McCormick,” he says, shaking the driver’s hand.
“Welcome to Orlando,” he says, motioning for my bag. We follow him out to the waiting car and climb in.
“How come we couldn’t take the bus? Stacy’s family took the Disney bus.”
“I thought you’d want to get to the hotel faster,” Finn answers Morgan’s question. “Getting there quicker means we can go to a park tonight or go sit on the beach. At night the hotels play movies.”
Morgan doesn’t say anything as we pull away from the airport. It takes us about thirty minutes before we’re pulling into the hotel and the valet is immediately at the door helping us out.
“Whoa,” Morgan says when she sees a giraffe off in the distance. Finn went all out and booked us at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, securing the presidential suite. I told him it would be too much and that we didn’t need a lot and he blew me off, saying he was treating his girls to the experience of a lifetime. He doesn’t get it, though, because for Morgan and me, waking up to him every day is what makes us whole. He’s all we need for the experience of our lifetimes.
We’re escorted to our suite and once the door is open, Morgan is off exploring. I walk around slowly, taking in the massive space that could sleep eight. Looking out one of the many windows, we have a direct view overlooking the Arusha Savanna, where more giraffes are grazing.
Finn comes behind me, locking his arms around my waist. He kisses my neck, from my shoulder to my ear, showing me what will come later.
“This is beautiful, Finn, but it’s too much. You don’t need to lavish us with expensive gifts all the time, you’re enough.”
“Not nearly as beautiful as you,” he says against my skin. I melt into him and wrap my arms around his. Only once has he said something mean to me and it was the night he came over to ask about Morgan. I let him get away with it because I deserved it. I kept her from him when I could’ve easily told him that day in the casino. He’s apologized repeatedly and promises to never say anything harsh again, and I trust him.
“Besides, while you’ve been admiring the view I checked my email one last time before I shut my phone off and something caught my attention.”
“What’s that?” I ask, even though I know he’s going to share his news. That is one thing he’s done since we’ve been together, tell me everything about his business, hiding nothing from me, including the money he makes.
“I added three zeros.”
“Huh?” I question.
“As of this morning the numbers are in on MaMo.” The gleam in his eyes tells me he’s up to something. Much like when he named his third hotel the ridiculous name of MaMo, after Morgan and me.
“Spill, Mr. McCormick. I don’t like waiting.”
He laughs and shakes his head before getting serious again. “You’re looking at Finn McCormick, billionaire.”
My mouth drops open and his eyes widen with excitement. I squeal and jump into his arms. “I’m so proud of you.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re still cocky, though,” I point out. Only a man like Finn would be excited about reaching billionaire status.
“You have no idea how cocky,” he says, waggling his eyebrows. “Come on, I have something to show you.” He sets me down and takes my hand, leading me down the hall, pausing at what I assume is our bedroom door. He kisses me quickly before opening the door and stepping aside. The bed is covered with rose petals, along with a thick trail leading out to the balcony. I follow them out, catching sight of the giraffes as they eat from the trees outside our room.
The roses stop at a small table where a bottle of champagne rests on ice, with two flutes.
“What’s this?” I turn to ask, immediately covering my mouth. Finn is down on one knee with a black velvet box in his hand.
“Macey, we may have started out on the wrong foot so many years ago, but these past eight, almost nine months have been the best of my life and that is because of you. You’ve shown me what unconditional love is and how fucking good it feels to kiss you.”
I half laugh and half cry, causing him to stop.
“I love you, our life that we’re building and our daughter, and I honestly can’t think of another way that I want to spend the rest of my life except as your husband. Will you marry me?”
I nod, letting the tears flow. “Yes,” I whisper, falling to my knees and kissing him.
“You didn’t even see the ring,” he mumbles against my lips.
“I don’t need to see it. I already know it’s gorgeous because you chose it for me.”
“Did she say yes?” I hear Morgan yelling from the other room.
“She said yes,” Finn yells back.
“Woohoo.” Morgan comes out of her room with a huge smile on her face.
“You knew?” I ask her and she nods. “For how long?”
“Well, Dad asked if I had his permission to marry you before we even moved to Vegas, so a month or so.” She beams. Her smile is infectious.
“You asked Morgan?”
“Of course I did. It’s important that I have her permission.”
“Finn,” I say, covering my mouth.
He pulls me into his arms. “I love you, Macey, and I want to do this the right way.”
“I love you, Finn, more than I have words for. Now let me see that ring.”
Both he and Morgan laugh as she comes and stands next to him. Together they open the box and show me the most beautiful diamond ring I have ever laid eyes on. He takes it out of the box and asks for my hand; he effortlessly slides the ring onto my finger, sealing it with a kiss.
“Forever,” he says.
“Forever,” Morgan and I repeat.