Epilogue
O’Shea
One year later
“Baby, come look at this,” Ashton called from the couch. I grabbed my sandwich from the counter and made my way into the living room, flopping down next to her and looking at the computer screen.
“What’s up? What are we looking at?” I asked, taking a bite from my sandwich.
“What do you think of this mock-up design?” she asked, showing me a 3-D model of a living room she’d designed.
“It looks nice. Going for a contemporary look?”
“You can tell?” she asked, her eyes lighting up. I chuckled.
“You’ve been talking design stuff for months now. It’s hard not to know this stuff,” I said. She breathed a sigh of relief.
“Well, yeah. I’m going for contemporary. I have light grey wallpaper and artwork in white frames to really make it pop against the color. Then here you have the dark grey sectional with white throw pillows, a dark stained wooden coffee table and end tables. Then the table lamps with white shades and a neutral colored rug here.”
I nodded. “It’s nice, baby. I like the little accents you put on the coffee table.”
“Yeah? I thought it looked a little too bare, so I kept it simple by just putting a tray on there and putting a small potted flower, candle, and a little vase with potpourri.”
“Have you showed it to your client yet?”
“Not yet. Kind of nervous.”
I kissed her forehead. “It looks good, babe. Besides, it’s just a mock. If they don’t like it, it’ll be easier to make changes to the design instead of after you’ve already changed the room in their house,” I said.
“You’re right. I’ll send it.”
“Good. Then you need to get dressed. We’re supposed to be going to your parents’ for dinner, remember?”
“Oh shit. I forgot about that,” she said, putting her computer on the coffee table and jumping off the couch. “I’m going to take a shower really quick. I won’t be long,” she said and rushed down the hall.
I pulled out my phone and saw a text message from Ashton’s dad.
Phil: Hey O! Just picked your mom and sisters up from the airport. Plane came a little late. Everything else is ready. See you soon, bud!
My heart quickened in my chest. As I thought of the events over the past year, it was hard to believe how far we’d come. She was just the woman that I’d stumbled upon at work, not even knowing I’d been talking to her on a phone sex line. We’d gone from enemies—at least on her end, to friends, to lovers, and now I was going to ask for her hand in marriage tonight.
Surprisingly I wasn’t nervous. I felt confident in my decision and confident that Ashton was my soul mate. She’d told me every single night how much she loved me ever since the night we finally told each other. I didn’t doubt that she’d say yes, but it didn’t stop memories of my last rejection to rise to the surface.
I took a deep breath and blinked the thoughts away. Ashton was so different from Kayla. The simplest things made her smile, she wasn’t high maintenance, and she appreciated the fact that I worked hard, despite my job title. A smile settled on my lips. Yeah, I was making the right decision.
Pulling the ring box from my pocket, I opened it and marveled at the rose and white gold diamond halo ring. Micro diamonds encircled the band, the large diamond glittering under the light.
“Okay, I’m ready,” Ashton said as she came down the hall. I snapped the box closed and quickly stuffed it back in my pocket as she entered the living room, fiddling with the clasp of a bracelet. She wore a flowing, thin pink dress that stopped above her knees and white sandals, her hair hanging in natural waves. Her makeup was light, but her dark, matte red lipstick was bold.
“That was fast,” I said, standing and moving over to meet her, kissing her gently. Her strawberry and creme body wash clouded my head as I held her close to me, nuzzling her neck.
“I told you I wouldn’t be long,” she murmured, hugging me. “Ready to go?”
“I don’t know. You look so beautiful I’d rather just take you back to the bedroom for a little while. Besides, I wonder how that dark lipstick will look on my cock later on tonight,” I said with a wicked smile.
She laughed and swatted me away. “Oh shut up. As nice as that sounds, my dad said he was grilling steaks tonight and I don’t want to miss that,” she said.
I nodded and ushered her toward the door. “I definitely agree with that. Let’s go then.”
∞∞∞
My heart raced in my chest as we got closer and closer to her parents’ house. It seemed like yesterday when she brought me to her parents’ house for the first time. It was also the day she completely opened up to me in the loft. It was then that she gave me the courage to not close myself off from love. I glanced over at her. The summer air whipped through her hair, the setting sun glowing off her beautiful face. She looked over at me and smiled when I took her hand in mine.
I brought her hand to my lips and placed a gentle kiss on it. “I love you,” I said.
“I love you too, babe,” she murmured.
When we arrived to her parents’ house, Ashton groaned at all the cars in the yard.
“So much for having all the steaks to myself,” she joked as she got out of the truck. I walked around the truck and put an arm around her waist.
“I’m sure there will be plenty of steaks,” I said. We followed the music into the backyard, which bustled with many people.
“I thought this was just a regular dinner. I didn’t know it was a cookout,” Ashton whispered to me.
“Eh, I can dig it,” I said as Phillip approached us.
“Well, if it isn’t my man and my beautiful daughter!” he bellowed as he pulled us into a hug. “I already set two steaks aside for you, honey. And I even got a secret one stashed away if you brought your appetite.”
Ashton laughed. “Thanks, Dad. I definitely did.”
“Good, good. You’re mom’s in the kitchen. You should go say hi while I talk to O’Shea here.”
Ashton shook her head. “Haven’t even been here for five minutes and you’re already riled up to start your car talk,” she teased. She kissed me and let go of my hand, making her way into the house.
“I know this is probably earlier than you’d want to do this, but the sun is setting a little quicker than I’d anticipated. If you want the effect you mentioned with the sunset, we may want to go ahead and do it,” he murmured, keeping his voice low.
“Is everyone here? Her friends?”
“Everyone’s accounted for. Your family’s over there,” he said, pointing to a picnic table that my sisters, mom, and a couple of Ashton’s family members sat.
I nodded, blowing out a shaky breath. My heart raced in my chest. It was now or never.
“Let’s do it,” I finally said.
Phillip clapped me on the shoulder, a small smile on his face. “You’re a good man, O’Shea. I wouldn’t want anyone else for my daughter.”
“Thank you, sir.”
He nodded. “Well, I’m going to gather Savannah and her friends to get the horses.”
“Sounds good. I’m going to go speak to my family really fast,” I said. He gave me a thumbs up and walked away. I strolled across the yard and sat down next to my mother.
“Shea! I didn’t know you were here!” she exclaimed, hugging me.
“Just got here. Hopefully the flight wasn’t too bad.”
She waved me off. “Boy, it was literally a forty-minute flight. We really could’ve drove.”
“All that matters is that you’re here,” I said.
“Are you nervous?” Olivia asked.
I shrugged. “Kind of.”
“Well, don’t be. Ashton’s a good girl and I know she’ll say yes. You two are crazy about each other.”
“I know, but…insecurities, you know?”
Olivia nodded. “Yeah, I get it.”
Paris smiled. “So when are you popping the question?”
“We’re—”
“O’Shea! Good to go!” Phillip damn near shouted across the pool. I gave him a thumbs up.
“I guess I’m doing it now. Come on.”
Janice stood on a chair with a megaphone. “Hello, everyone! I need everyone to go line up at the fence for a little presentation with the horses!”
Ashton put down a tray of meatballs, looking around in confusion. “What’s going on?” she asked when she approached me. I locked my fingers with hers and shrugged.
“I don’t know. Something about the horses,” I said, trying to keep the nerves out of my voice.
We followed everyone across the grass. Everyone spread out along the fence, allowing Ashton and I the center spot. The beautiful colors of the sunset provided a perfect background for the romantic occasion. I looked over to Phillip and nodded.
“We’re ready for you, Savannah,” he said into a walkie talkie. I put my arm around Ashton’s waist, kissing her cheek gently. Everyone watched as Savannah and four of her friends came riding onto the field on horses, each of them holding a flagpole. They ran around the field a couple of times before lining the horses up side by side. I reached into my pocket, taking the ring box into my hand. The girls released their flags and rode closer to us, holding the flags up to wave in the wind.
Ashton squinted, reading the words out loud as the girls passed. “Ashton….will….you….marry…m—AH!” she screamed and looked me as I got down on one knee in front of her. “O’Shea! Oh my God!”
I took her hand into mine as I smiled at her. “Last year you brought me here for the first time. It was in the barn loft that I knew for a fact that I was in love with you and knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you. This has been the best year of my entire life and having you as my partner in life would make me the happiest man in the world. Thank you for trusting me with your love and your heart. I’ve never been so grateful to find the perfect piece for my life puzzle, so…” I opened the ring box. “Will you complete my puzzle by becoming my wife? Will you marry me?”
Her body shook with sobs, unable to speak. She nodded and smiled through her tears.
“Yes,” she finally managed to get out. I kissed the back of her hand and slid the ring on her finger. She hugged me tight as everyone around us clapped for us. “I love you so much.”
“I love you too, baby.”
Everyone came over to congratulate us. Janice hugged me tight, tears streaming down her face.
“Oh, I’m just so happy!” she exclaimed, hugging me again before turning to Ashton. “And that ring is gorgeous!”
Alex and Ava came over and jumped on me, damn near knocking me on the ground. “Now you’re officially stuck with us!” Alex exclaimed as she hugged me. I chuckled.
“I kind of figured that when Ashton and I started dating,” I teased.
“Let’s see that ring, girl,” Ava said, bouncing up and down. They marveled over the ring, giggling and gushing amongst themselves. Phillip came over and put an arm around my shoulders.
“Welcome to the family, son,” he said.
I smiled. “Thanks, Phil. And thanks for your help with putting this together.”
“Anytime, anytime. Anything to make my little girl happy,” he said, his gaze moving to Ashton.
“Congrats, baby!” my mom said, hugging me. My sisters also hugged me.
“This proposal was a shit ton better than your proposal to Kayla,” Paris said.
“Yeah, because he wasn’t proposing to Kayla,” Olivia joked.
“That’s very true,” Paris said and they both laughed and moved over to Ashton, where she’d gained a group of people to look at her ring.
Phillip let out a wild whistle to get everyone’s attention. “Now that the good news is out, let’s eat!”
∞∞∞
Ashton laid her head on my lap, her legs hanging over the side of the porch swing as we lazily swung back and forth. The crowd started to disperse as it became late. Those that remained were inside the house watching TV, playing games, or just having good conversation. I ran my fingers through my fiancée’s hair.
“Today doesn’t even feel real,” she finally murmured.
I looked down at her, meeting her gaze. “Was it everything you thought it would be?”
“It was better than anything I could’ve dreamed of,” she said and smiled.
“I’m glad.” I released a satisfied smile. “Crazy how things change in a year, right?”
“Yeah. When Steve and I broke up, I spent so much time thinking I was broken and that maybe I wasn’t wife material. But then you came into my life and prove all of that wrong.” She sat up and moved closer to me. “Sometimes I wonder how I got so lucky.”
“I wonder the same thing. But I’ll admit that I think I first fell in love with the alien egg you had growing on your head when we first met. It was the cutest little thing ever. It was love at first egg,” I joked. She laughed and pushed me.
“You’re such a dick.”
I smiled and wrapped my arms around her. “Yet you love this dick.”
She bit her lip and kissed me. “Depends on which one you’re talking about.”
“You love me and my cock. No need to be ashamed about it,” I teased, kissing her.
“Something tells me you’re going to drive me up the wall with your nonsense,” she said with a smirk.
I entwined our fingers and kissed the back of her hand. “I guess we have forever to find out, huh?”