EPILOGUE
GABRIEL
ONE YEAR LATER
Christmas music played cheerfully from the living room when I stepped inside the condo after a long day at the office. The dim, festive lights, coupled with the smell of sugar cookies, washed over me pleasantly as I set my briefcase down. I hung up my coat up next to the door while I listened to the conversation in the living room. A smile graced my lips as the stress from the day finally fell away from my shoulders.
It seemed to do that every single day now when I stepped through the front door. Seven months ago, I had stood in the crowd with Nikki, proudly cheering Penny on as she received her diploma from the Dean of her college. Four years of education were behind her, and I’d never felt prouder of her. It was also that same month that I had insisted on Penny coming to live in the condo with me while she took a few art and literature classes here in Chicago. Those few months we had spent apart were physically painful for the both of us. Neither one of us wanted to go through it again, so Penny had enrolled in a few classes at my encouragement, to keep herself busy while I worked at the office throughout the week.
Seven blissful months of having Penny in my daily life. Nothing about our life together now was dull and boring; unlike the way I had felt before Penny, whenever I tried to get close to another woman.
It hadn’t been easy to weather. Once my ex-wife caught wind of my relationship with Penny Marshall, there had been hell to slog through. My ex had been determined to use the relationship to stir a public outcry, after word reached me that my company would be used to help the government predict consumer spending. None of it had worked in the long run like she had hoped it would. The general public didn’t seem to care about my love life, and that was fine by me. It wasn’t any of their damn business in the first place.
I stepped into the living room to find the Penny, Alyssa, and Nikki seated on the couch as they talked over coffee. My eyes landed on Penny, where she sat next to her mother. Today, she had put on bright maroon leggings with a baggy Christmas sweater that reached the middle of her thighs. Her long blonde hair was pulled back in a loose braid that rested over her shoulder.
The smile that spread across her ruby red lips sent a stab of fire through me. I reached up to touch the inside of my blazer pocket, where a small box was wrapped with a diamond ring in it. That was how much my feelings had developed for Penny Marshall over the past year.
“How was work?” Alyssa asked when she realized I was standing in the living room. “I didn’t even hear you come in.”
“Busy as usual,” I said, and poured myself a cup before walking over to press a kiss against Penny’s head. “We just finished up a contract, just in time for the holiday break.”
“Thank goodness for that,” Nikki said, cradling her cup with a smile. “Penny was just telling us how hard you’ve been trying to get this new contract out.”
“I wanted to spend some time with everyone over Christmas without it hovering over my head,” I replied, and sat down in the chair next to Penny who smiled sweetly at me. “Where is Scott? I figured he would be here tonight.”
Alyssa sipped at her coffee with a smile. “He’ll be by later. He had to drop his parents off at the airport. They are flying out to Hawaii for their Christmas present this year.”
“That must be nice at this time of the year,” Nikki said, sighing. “I would love to sit on a warm sandy beach right now without a care in the world.”
“You were just in France,” Penny exclaimed, shaking her head. “The most romantic place to be on earth, Mom.”
Nikki sniffed indelicately at that. “I was inside a majority of the time, watching models prance around in my new fashion line. I didn’t get to sight see like I wanted to.”
The conversation slid over to Alyssa’s winter semester. Next year, she and Scott both planned to travel abroad with one another. A year ago, I would’ve never been comfortable letting my daughter travel in a foreign country with some guy that I barely even knew, but Scott had merged himself seamlessly into Alyssa’s life. The two of them were closer than ever, from what Penny confided in me. They were head over heels in love, too, but they were both determined to finish out their schooling before progressing to the next step, something I greatly approved of with Scott. He didn’t want to rush things while they were still experiencing life together.
I let my gaze settle on Penny who was chatting amicably with her mother, who had also made some changes in her life over the past year. A French man named Lawrence had become a constant fixture in Nikki and Penny’s life. He was a few years older than Nikki, and he owned a couple of international banks throughout the world. Tonight was the last night that Nikki would be with us before flying out to New York City to meet with Lawrence for a private Christmas vacation. She had made it a priority to come out to spend an early Christmas with Penny and me before leaving, but it worked out for my plans in the long run. I wanted Nikki and Alyssa both here for what I wanted to ask Penny tonight.
It was an early Christmas gift that I knew everyone in the room would be ecstatic over. Neil had graciously kept the ring I picked out a month ago hidden at his house so Penny wouldn’t stumble upon it.
I waited for the catching up conversation to taper off before I decided it was time. I had dinner reservations for all of us to celebrate afterward. Placing my mug of coffee down on the table, I reached out to grab ahold of Penny’s soft, warm hand. She turned to smile at me, but a question lingered in her eyes when I swallowed the nerves in my throat. I couldn’t remember feeling scared shitless when I had proposed to my ex-wife several years ago. It hadn’t been right back then.
It was much different this time. I wanted to spend the rest of my life with Penny because I couldn’t imagine my life without her in it.
“I’ve been walking around for the past month, waiting for the right time,” I said, finding the strength to speak. The entire living room went quiet at that. “I think this is it.”
Penny’s chest rose rapidly when I reached into the front pocket of my suit jacket. She clapped a hand over her mouth in surprise when I sank down to one knee in front of her.
“Oh my god!” Alyssa cried, shaking her head. “I can’t believe it, Dad. You’ve kept this secret from me?”
I smiled over in her direction. “Because I knew you would spoil the surprise. You can’t keep a secret worth anything.” I redirected my attention to Penny, who had tears in her eyes as she smiled around her fingers. “Penny Marshall, will you do me the honor of being my wife?”
I opened the small box to reveal the diamond ring that I had spent hours inspecting before settling on it with satisfaction.
“Yes,” Penny whispered, her hands trembling in mine. “Yes! Absolutely, yes!”
My heart swelled with love and relief as I slid the ring onto her finger. She wrapped her arms around me tightly to hug me fiercely. I pulled back to place a kiss on her lips while happy tears glittered in her eyes.
“I can’t wait spend forever with you,” she whispered, her arms tight about my shoulders. “I love you, Gabriel. More than anything in this world.”
“No more than me,” I replied, joy surging through me as she glanced at the ring with a happy smile. “Nothing but smooth sailing from here, baby.”
Penny glanced up at me as Nikki and Alyssa immediately flanked her side to take in the ring. She smiled tenderly at me.
“Absolutely,” she said. “Smooth sailing.”
The End