Epilogue – Happily F’ing Ever After
Blake
Today is a big day. I’ve been out of the hospital a little over two weeks now, crashing with Carly at her apartment. She couldn’t get rid of me if she tried, and falling asleep with her every night sure beats the hell out of alone in my brother’s guest room. Carly had nursed me back to health as much as she could those first few days, even when all I wanted to do was sleep. It took me just over a week to convince her that I was well enough to submit to the nurse and patient fantasy that I had. And with her playing the part of nursemaid, she fulfilled every aspect of the fantasy to perfection.
Carly is driving to our appointment with the realtor. When we got back to her place after being discharged, I told her that I was buying us a house. I want the sandy backyard and plenty of rooms to fill with a growing family. I want roots and a home. I want that for Carly and Natalia.
Together, we scoured through dozens of listings online. This place, we both fell in love with instantly. I didn’t make any other appointments. I don’t need to. I can feel it in my bones. This is the place for us.
I haven’t brought up getting married anymore since leaving the hospital, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have a plan up my sleeve. I want to catch her completely off-guard when I get down on one knee and ask her to marry me. I’ve been in cahoots with Luke this past week. Carly stayed home that first week to care for me, and even though I didn’t really need it, I enjoyed the hell out of her being there and doting on my every need, so I didn’t bitch.
Luke took a week’s vacation following his mandatory sabbatical from the agency. Whenever a big case comes to an end, we’re required to take downtime to recharge and relax. Luke spent his with me mostly, and helped me plot out this weekend, driving my wounded ass all over Vegas to make all of the necessary preparations. Of course, in true Luke fashion, he hasn’t let me forget all that he’s done for me these past few days. I’m sure I’ll be hearing about it for years to come. I just hope that someday, someone knocks him on his ass like Carly did to me. I can’t wait to return all the shit he’s been dishing out lately.
Carly is driving my Camaro for the time being. She drove one of her boss’s cars for a while after hers was stolen, but hated being a burden to Reid, even if he has more cars than a small town. We intend to car shop to replace hers, but figure for the time being, since I’m not able to drive mine, she can use it to get around. Plus, seeing her drive my old muscle car is fucking hot. Every time she’s behind the wheel, I can picture her climbing over and straddling me like she did that night we never made it up to the apartment.
I adjust my too-tight pants as we get closer to our destination. The subdivision we’re looking at is not too far from her work, and while I’d love for Carly just to quit and stay home with our impending family, I know she’s a worker and wants to contribute to our income anyway she can. My salary as an eight-year veteran of the FBI is enough that we could get by on a single income, if necessary, but I know that’s not what she wants. And I’m not going to fight her on it. For now.
I’ve been on sabbatical from work since I was shot. I started therapy this past week to keep my muscles loose and to aid in the healing process. Those first few days were fucking hell. I ached at night in ways I didn’t know were possible. It took some serious painkillers to get me relaxed enough to fall asleep, but I’m slowly weaning myself off them. The last thing I want is to become dependent on drugs.
Waking up next to Carly and holding my daughter all morning has been unbelievable. I never thought I could be so damn happy and content. Georgia has been coming over and helping with Natalia during the day as she usually does. With my limited mobility on my right arm and the fact that I have therapy every day, she’s been watching and writing from our place. And man does she have an interesting concept for her next crime novel…
We pull up in front of the large tri-level home featuring blond brick on the bottom half and white vinyl siding on the top. The first thing I notice is the concrete patio with white pillars. The double front door is a light oak with ornate, beveled glass.
“Wow, this is prettier than in the pictures,” Carly says almost absently from the driver’s seat. I glance over at her beautiful face to gauge her reaction to seeing this house for the first time in person.
“You ready?” I ask as she removes the keys from the ignition.
“To see this house?” she asks, still staring at the place in front of us. Then she turns towards me, her face lighting up with a bright smile as she says, “Absolutely.”
Natalia starts to holler from the backseat as if sensing that it’s time to get out. Slipping out of the car, I opted to leave the sling at home today so I could use both arms. Carly gets a very excited Natalia out of the backseat and hands her to me. I prefer to carry her everywhere we go, even if it’s with my less comfortable left arm. There’s something about carrying her. I’m sure it has something to do with the fact that I know it won’t be long and she’ll want to walk and run everywhere she goes. So for now, I’ll soak up all this time with her that I can get.
I take in the house as we walk up the stamped concrete pathway. There’s an attached two car garage with a large master bedroom over the top. A large picture window is just to the upper right of the front door, which should be the smaller living room. The entire front is landscaped with well-manicured bushes and shrubs. This is exactly the type of place I want to raise my family in.
Our realtor, Charles, steps out onto the front porch as we approach. “Good morning,” he says with a big smile. The man I’ve spoken to in great lengths this past week is an older gentleman with gray hair. He’s wearing a plain white button down shirt and a blue and green tie with khakis.
“Good morning,” I state, suddenly nervous as hell. I just pray Carly can’t detect the hint of nervousness in my voice.
“Hi,” Carly says as she shakes Charles’s proffered hand, her nerves very evident in her voice.
“Well, come on in and let’s take a look around, shall we?” Charles motions for us to follow him inside the front door.
The first thing I notice is the beautiful tile. It’s a terracotta color and partners well with the beige walls. It’s warm and inviting, and I can plainly see coming home and walking through this front door every night. Straight ahead and to the right are stairs ascending while the stairs just to the left descend downward. We head that way first.
At the bottom of the small staircase is a large great room with warm beige plush carpeting. A large stone fireplace adorns the far wall with sliding glass doors on the back wall. I feel like I can’t look everywhere fast enough.
“Here is the family room. There’s obviously a large stone fireplace on this wall that was handcrafted by the best masonry in town. Over here, there’s a half bath,” he says while leading us to the small room just off the large open space. I link my fingers with Carly’s as we follow Charles from room to room. I can feel the slight tremble in her hand as we make our way through the lower level. Together, we walk over to the sliding glass doors and peek out. The doors are directly below the covered porch off the kitchen, so this area is shaded and comfortable. From what we can see, the backyard is spacious and beautiful. I can’t wait to get out there and check it all out.
“Here is the mud and laundry room. There’s a large storage closet here that already has a clothing rod on one side and shelves on the other. The washer and dryer both stay as well as the other appliances. All are about three years old. The previous owner purchased all new ones with their new house,” he adds casually.
“This way leads you to a smaller room that would make a perfect office, as well as the attached two car garage,” he says opening the door and granting us access. This is my kind of garage with plenty of space for two vehicles, plus extra room in the back for a small shop area. I’ve always enjoyed tinkering with cars when I was a teenager, which is what helped me prepare for the undercover job.
“If you’re ready, we’ll head upstairs and get a look at the rest of the property,” Charles says as we make our way over to the stairs. Carly has yet to say anything, and Natalia is being surprisingly docile. For a fifteen month old, I’m surprised as shit at how well behaved she’s being right now.
We make our way up the two sets of stairs and we’re in the upper level. A small sitting area is directly to the right. A large picture window overlooking the front takes up much of the front wall. There’s just enough space here for a couch, chair, and television, or maybe a kids play area.
“The previous owner used this for a seating room. You could make it into whatever you wanted. Over here is the kitchen and dining room. Custom oak cabinets and granite countertops were installed when it was built seven years ago. The stainless steel appliances are top of the line, and as I mentioned, everything stays with the house.” Carly checks out the entire room thoroughly. She walks around and opens just about every cabinet, including one that stores bottles of wine and wine glasses. I can practically feel the excitement radiating from her body. She even opens up the fridge and dishwasher.
She makes eye contact with me just then and her eyes are sparkling like diamonds, and the smile spread across her beautiful face matches. I’m a lucky son of a bitch.
Heading over to the sliding glass doors in the dining room, Carly reaches for the venetian blinds that are closed. “Oh, let’s hold off on seeing the backyard and deck for last, shall we?” Charles states, directing our attention towards the rest of the house. My heart is beating double-time as I will my breathing to slow. I sound like an out of shape football player trying to run my first fifty of the season.
“This way to the bedrooms,” Charles says, leading us out of the kitchen. Rich hardwood flooring extends from the small living area all the way down the hallway.
The first door is a large bathroom. This room decorated with a splash of color in a deep blue and light green. The shower and tub unit is tile and the vanity clearly a custom design with matching backsplash.
“Over here is the first of three bedrooms. Both of the smaller rooms are still twelve by thirteen and have decent sized walk-in closets.”
After Carly and I both check over the first room, Natalia decides that now is the time to get down. She wiggles enough that I go ahead and oblige her. She stands up instantly and walks towards the closet. Giving the door a tug, she walks inside and plops down on the floor of the empty space. The smile she awards us is breathtaking. “I think she’s already picked her room,” Carly says with a laugh.
Carly scoops up Nat as we head towards the master bedroom. As we step inside, I link my fingers with hers again. I want to feel the excitement through her as she sees this space.
We step inside the master bedroom. The room is large with its own en suite bathroom complete with custom everything. There’s a garden tub as well as a shower stall with rich hues of brown and cream. The carpeting is plush, the walls are a rich copper color, and the master bathroom rivals the size of my kitchen and living room combined in my old apartment.
What gets my attention now is her audible gasp when she looks out the sliding glass doors. This master bedroom comes with its own private balcony. The sun is bright in the sky, which enables us to get our first real glimpse at the backyard. There’s an ornate pond in one corner along with plenty of open space between that and a gated in-ground pool. I can already picture where I’ll put the swing set that I’ll insist on building myself.
Charles releases the latch to open the sliding glass doors, granting us access to our personal deck overlooking the backyard. It’s not big by any means, but there’s enough room for a couple of chairs. I can picture her and I lounging around after the kids go to bed at night. Kids, yes, because there will be more. As soon as humanly possible.
From our vantage point on the little deck, we can see the large screened-in room off the back of the kitchen. This is the part that I can’t wait to show her. This is where I take over.
“If you guys don’t have any questions for me, I’m going to step out front and let you both look around. If you need me, just holler,” Charles says as he extends his hand to both of us. After polite handshakes, he exits the master bedroom and disappears.
Suddenly, I’m a sweaty mess. My palms are clammy and my pits are suddenly so moist, I’m afraid I forgot to put deodorant on this morning. The nerves that I’m feeling when I share my big news isn’t about wondering how she’s going to take it, but about wanting to make sure it goes seamlessly. Perfectly. A lot of different factors played into today’s surprise.
“Shall we go check out that back deck?” I ask, extending my hand towards her. Carly takes it without hesitation.
I lead her down the hall and towards the closed blinds. Taking a big deep breath, I slowly pull them along the track, opening them for the first time since our arrival. There on the patio is the scene I planned with Luke. He’s standing off to the side, but will only be here for a few more minutes.
“What’s this?” Carly asks, her beautiful face alive as she takes in the room. Even though it’s daylight, the room is filled with candles. A table for two sits in the middle, complete with covered dishes.
“This is for you,” I tell her as I pull open the sliding door with my good arm.
“For me?” she asks, stunned as she slowly steps into the room. You can clearly see the backyard now. The pool with water as blue and clear as the ocean is directly in front of us. Another door at the far end of the screened room opens to a staircase descending downward towards the ground.
I reach over and take Natalia from her arms. “Give Mommy a kiss, sweet pea,” I instruct our daughter. The surprise on Carly’s face is priceless as we both kiss our daughter. Walking over to Luke who has remained quiet the entire time, I hand over his niece.
“What’s going on?” Carly asks behind me.
“Luke is going to take her to the apartment for a bit. We’ll join them there shortly.” Her look is skeptical as I kiss the top of Nat’s head goodbye. Of course, this was all part of my master plan for today. The extra car seat is already in the backseat of Luke’s Tahoe.
“You two behave,” he says as he takes Natalia and heads towards the doorway leading to the vacant house. “Don’t worry about us. We’ll be just fine,” Luke says before disappearing completely, though I can hear him talking to his niece the entire way.
“Why did your brother just take our daughter back to the apartment, and why is this place set up like this? I’m sure Charles will be back any minute looking for us,” Carly says.
Taking her in my arms–okay arm since my right arm still has limited mobility–I gaze adoringly into her eyes. “Charles isn’t coming back,” I confess. “He’s already gone.”
“Gone? But what about this house? He just left us here?” Her eyes are filled with concern as I raise my arm, smoothing out the little wrinkle between her brows.
“Yes, sweetheart, he’s gone. He’s gone because I told him to. Because I wanted this moment to be special and having my realtor walking around doesn’t constitute as special in my book,” I say with a little grin.
“I don’t understand,” she whispers while wrapping her arms around my waist.
Pulling her flush against me, I say, “Well, let me explain. Charles is gone because the new owners are already home.” I wait several moments while my words sink in. When it finally hits her, I think I could push her over with a feather. “Yes, you heard me. New owners. This is our home.”
Her deep brown eyes instantly fill with tears. “You bought this house?”
“Yes. I knew when we were looking at it last week that this was the place we’d raise our family. This is where I want to teach Natalia to ride her bike, teach her to swim, and give her brothers and sisters. But most importantly, this is the place I want to come home to every night and kiss the lips of the woman I love more than anything in this world. I want to fall asleep with her in my arms every night after I’ve made love to her repeatedly. I want to wake up the next morning and do it all over again. I want all of that…with you. I want the life I never even knew I wanted before you were in the picture. I want everything…with you.”
I swipe stray tears from her eyes, but as soon as I do, more leak out, so instead, I use my lips and kiss them away. I can taste her salty tears, as I hold her close and let her absorb my words and my strength.
“So, this is our house?” Her voice shakes from the weight of her emotions.
“Yes, baby. This is our house. Our home. If you want it, that is. I made an offer and they accepted it yesterday. We close in a month if you want. If this isn’t the one, then we’ll keep looking.”
“But, how did you buy it?”
“I’ve made two salaries for two years. When I was undercover, I still collected my salary with the bureau. They were depositing it directly in a savings account for me. While I worked at First Class Auto, I also collected an income. That’s what I lived off of and rented my shitty apartment with.” She remains quiet and seems to calm down a little when I tell her how that whole thing came to be.
“The income I made while boosting cars was set aside. As soon as I became a civilian again, I donated it to a handful of local charities. It felt wrong to keep that money for myself, but there are plenty of worthwhile organizations that could benefit from a little blood money.”
“And just when I think you can’t get any more perfect,” she mumbles while sniffling.
“I couldn’t keep that money. When I worked at First Class, I really worked hard to keep everything I touched clean. The first thing I bought was the Camaro, followed by a few other bachelor necessities.”
“Like the big screen TV?” she asks with a laugh.
“You know it,” I mumble while drying her eyes with my thumbs. My arm is starting to throb from the constant movement, but there’s no way in hell that I’m letting it spoil this moment.
“And do you know what would make this day even more perfect?” I ask her.
“What?”
That’s my cue. I drop down to one knee in front of her. Taking a deep, shaky breath, I continue, “Let me tell you a story. This is one you may have heard, but it’s my favorite story of all time. You ready?”
With a handful of nods in quick succession, Carly stares at me wide-eyed for me to continue. “One night, this boy went to a bar. He went there with his pain in the ass little brother, but he didn’t leave with his brother. No, he met the girl of his dreams at that bar. They danced and drank and flirted shamelessly until the boy asked the girl to go home with him. That night, the boy fell in love for the first time, for the first real time. Anything and everything that came before that night was nothing in comparison.
“The boy had to leave the girl before she woke the next morning though. It killed him to walk away, but he had already committed to something major with his job. The boy thought about that girl every day. He dreamed about her every night. He even went as far as to get a tattoo that only he knew of the true meaning.
“One day, the boy went to work at his crazy job and the girl walked into the room. Time stood still. The earth suddenly stopped rotating. Everything ceased to exist. The girl of his dreams had walked back into his life.” I stroke the soft skin of her hands as I gaze into her eyes. Reliving the highlights of our story has caused more tears to fall.
“The girl invited the boy to her place. There, the boy learned he was a father to the most beautiful baby girl in the whole world. He fell instantly and hopelessly in love with his daughter before he even held her. Suddenly, the boy felt like his life was almost complete. Of course, things were very complicated for the boy with his job. He had a big secret that he was keeping from the girl, and even though he’d do it all the same all over again, it pained him greatly to keep such a huge part of himself a secret.
“The boy and the girl had a lot of crap to wade through. The girl’s father was into some heavy things, and the boy was right smack dab in the middle.
“One day, the girl was taken from the boy. He did everything he could–fought like hell to get her back. He even took a bullet, which he would gladly do all over again to ensure that the girl and their baby were safe. The boy knew right then and there that there was no delaying this any longer. The boy wanted to marry the girl more than anything in this world. So he planned an elaborate proposal complete with a brand new home and a built-in babysitter. When the moment was right, the boy got down on one knee and asked the girl to marry him.”
“What did the girl say?” she says with a smile.
“She said yes, of course. This is my story,” I tell her causing a hearty laugh.
“It’s a beautiful story,” Carly adds with another smile.
“But that’s the best part of this story, Carly. This is only the beginning. This story is going to go on and on for the rest of our lives. I want to build a home, build a family, build a life with you. One perfect night, I fell in love with you. It may have taken us a little bit to find each other again, but I honestly believe that destiny pulled us back together for a reason. You are my life. You are my love. You and Natalia are everything I am because without you, I’d be nothing. Carly, will you please put me out of my misery so I can get up off my knees? Will you marry me?”
I finally have the words out. I finally have said everything that’s written in my heart. I’ve asked her to spend the rest of her life with me.
“Yes,” she says with definitive purpose. “Yes, I’ll marry you. Today if we could,” she says moments before I jump up and pull her into my arms.
Kissing away her tears, I reach into my pocket and remove the platinum two-carat square diamond that I picked up this past week. Luke was with me and teased me mercifully about spending so much on a piece of jewelry. But to me, it’s not just a piece of jewelry. This ring represents our love and commitment to each other. This ring symbolizes the start of our future together. So I would have gladly paid twice as much for it because of its meaning.
I slide the ring onto her finger. The fit is perfect. Just like her.
We hug, kiss, and cry as we celebrate the start of our lives together. Two years ago, I never would have dreamed that I would be right here in this moment. Never did I think that our paths would cross in the most unusual way. Never did I foresee a wife and daughter before I turn thirty. But that’s the crazy thing about love. You never really see it until it’s too late.
Love is just a word until the right person comes along and shows you the true meaning. Carly showed me what it means. And now together, I’ll get to spend the rest of my life showing her how much I appreciate her taking a chance on me. Because without her love, I’d be a vessel lost at sea.
“I love you, future Mrs. Thomas,” I whisper.
“I love you, Mr. Thomas,” she whispers in return.
And now it’s time to see where our story goes. It’s time to eat and celebrate and maybe break in the new house. It’s time to write the next chapter in our fairytale.
I, for one, can’t fucking wait.
~ THE END ~
Stay tuned for the second book in the Bound Together series, Profited, coming spring 2016 and featuring Carly’s boss, Reid Hunter.