Epilogue
DAVIS
Five months later
“Oh, there’s Callie!” Brandon said, sliding to the far side of the booth in anticipation.
Callie stomped the snow off her new boots and shook out her scarf as she entered Shep’s Place. My fiery girlfriend looked just as beautiful dusted with post-Christmas snow as she did with sun-kissed skin. I hadn’t seen her since I’d picked Brandon up from the airport last night, but walking toward her now reminded me just how long twenty-four hours could be.
“Hey, you,” she said with a smile that brightened her entire face. “Did you two have a nice reunion?”
“Yes, although it’s even better now.” I moved to help her with her coat and scarf and stole a kiss that did little to keep my desire in check. With a conspiring wink that said, There’ll be more of that later, she plopped down beside Brandon and ruffled his hair—a greeting Brandon pretended to hate but secretly loved, given the side smile he was currently trying to hide.
“Okay, so tell me everything you did, only don’t tell me how warm it was because I’m having a serious case of sun envy right now. Somebody”—she shot me look—“failed to mention how cold it got here in winter.”
“Your sister lives here, too, you know.”
“True.”
“And I did buy you those extra-warm snow boots for Christmas.”
“True again,” she fake-grumbled. “But seriously, I may need to get a happy light to put in my studio if the sun doesn’t show up soon.”
“You don’t need a light. You’re always happy,” Brandon said matter-of-factly.
Callie smiled at him and swung her gaze back to me. “I do have quite a lot to be happy about.”
“Oh, and Oma said to tell you thanks for the painting of the bleeding heart. She wants to order more for the foundation.”
Callie raised her eyebrows at me.
“Look who’s just been knighted into the Lockwood sacred circle,” I said. “It’s like a true Christmas miracle.”
She laughed. “I told you art was the ultimate connector.”
“That you did,” I mused.
She shook her head once as if to focus her mind and then turned back to Brandon. “Anyway, I want to hear all about the museums you visited and the pottery class you took at the Art Institute. Did you enjoy it? Your pictures looked awesome. And that vase that you made . . .”
I sat back against the cushy vinyl and sipped my coffee, studying the two people I loved most in this world connect on a level I never dreamed possible. Between Callie’s animated hand gestures and Brandon’s consecutive head bobbing, I settled in for a good ten minutes of conversational entertainment.
And I couldn’t be happier.
“How did my favorite ginger sneak in here without me noticing?”
Callie swiveled in her seat to face Shep. “I thought maybe the color of my hair had toned down due to winter.”
Shep wiped his hands on his apron. “Nope. Definitely not. Your hair is still as bright as the flame on my gas stovetop.”
“How ever do your lady friends handle such poetic compliments?” Callie asked with a laugh.
Shep flexed. “Who needs poetry when you got these?”
Brandon and I groaned in unison.
“Did you see I got the Pac-Man arcade in while you were gone, B? It’s there in the back room. I have a roll of quarters on my desk if you want to snag it before somebody else does.”
Brandon planted his palms flat on the table. “Seriously? Yes! I thought it was coming after the New Year.”
Callie scooted out for Brandon to pass by her and then called out to him, “Hey, okay, but I still want to hear about your new brush set from the Lockwoods.” She turned to me, her eyes rounding. “Do you have any idea how much money they must have spent on those, Davis? Those brushes are custom. I couldn’t believe it when he texted me that picture after he unwrapped them.”
“Oh, I have an idea, all right. They don’t ever go cheap. On anything,” I said.
Shep chuckled at that. “The bright side is you two will probably get a monthlong stay at an exclusive Hawaiian resort as a wedding gift from them someday,” he teased. “Having a connection to the Lockwoods can’t be all bad, right, Callie?”
I studied her face, watching for that telltale shudder that at one time accompanied any mention of weddings, marriage, or the like. But this time, she simply smiled politely at the comment and asked Shep for his soup special.
Her eyes twinkled as Shep stepped away to relay her order to the kitchen.
“I’m impressed. Not even one twitch or double blink this time,” I said teasingly.
“You know very well that I haven’t twitched for going on two months.”
She tossed one of Brandon’s fries at my head. I caught it and dropped it onto my empty plate.
This topic had become one of my favorites lately—Callie’s not-so-subtle hints that she was ready to pick up the pace in our relationship. Apparently, she hadn’t realized just how patient I could be when I wanted something badly enough. And I couldn’t remember wanting anything—or anyone—more than I wanted Callie Quinn.
She angled her head and narrowed her eyes. “Is there a reason why you’re smirking at me right now?”
“None at all.” I raised my hand. “It’s like I’ve told you, I’m just content to go at your pace, sweetheart.”
“Um, actually, I feel like my pace has lapped yours by a few miles recently. And I’m the one wearing clunky winter boots.”
I had to work to fight against the laugh moving up my esophagus. She definitely hadn’t lapped me. But she could go right on believing that she had. At least, for another two days.
“What’s the latest word on the planning committee tonight?” I asked, purposely changing the subject. After completing the mural at the bakery, the Children’s Corner, and Shep’s Place, Callie had become a highly-sought-after commodity among local businesses, just like I knew she would. And now the city planning committee was knocking on her studio door. Tonight was her third meeting with them since Thanksgiving.
Her entire countenance lifted as she bounced on her seat. “You’ll never, ever guess.”
“Guess what?” Shep set Callie’s bowl of chowder down. She bit her lip and then waved him closer. Naturally, he shoved her down the bench seat toward the window and sat beside her.
“Well, technically, I’m not supposed to say anything yet since there are more meetings scheduled . . .” She looked ready to combust. “But they’ve asked me to help give downtown Lenox a pretty major face-lift to help boost tourism.”
“How major?” I asked through a smile, pride swelling in my chest.
“At least ten buildings so far. That’s over a year’s worth of contracts.”
Shep smacked the tabletop, causing Callie’s soup to splash over the side. “Well, of course they want you! I mean, just look at that!” He pointed at her handiwork on his dividing wall. “Not a day goes by that somebody isn’t asking about it or snapping a pic of it.”
Callie rubbed her lips together, and I wanted nothing more than to take her in my arms and kiss her senseless. “I’m so proud of you.” Not only for the career she was building in Lenox but for the life she was building, too. “It’s going to be a great year.”
“It sure is.” Shep gave me a knowing look before slipping out of the booth to attend to his customers.
From across the table, I reached for her left hand and gently rubbed my thumb across her knuckles the way I’d done nearly every day since I’d tucked her engagement ring into my top dresser drawer.
She sipped the steaming soup off her spoon. “Oh, I should probably let Clem know if we’re planning to do New Year’s Eve with them or not. I mean, I know we had Christmas dinner with them, so if you’d rather just hang out at your house, that’s totally fine. Did you ask Brandon about that yet?”
Truth was, I’d asked him about a lot more than that on our drive home from the airport. The midnight proposal on December 31 was his idea, and a good one at that. Brandon’s continued involvement in our relationship was as vital to the health and future of our family as the wedding vows would be. “I’m pretty sure Brandon would never turn down a night hanging out with your nephew—especially when snacks and video games are involved. The question is what do you want to do?”
“I already told you.”
“I don’t remember.” Only, I did. Her words on the subject had been as impactful as when she’d opened my eyes to color for the first time at the Japanese Gardens.
The earnestness that graced her face made me want to get on bended knee right here in the middle of Shep’s restaurant.
“I want to be where you and Brandon are—whether that’s playing games at my sister’s house or watching Brandon teach Kosher new tricks while lying on your couch. The only thing that matters to me is starting off a new year with you.”
I smiled indulgently. “Ah, I remember now.”
She slid her bowl of soup aside and elbowed up on the table, her lips crooked with that cheeky grin I adored. “You didn’t actually forget—you just wanted to hear me say it again.”
“I could hear you say that every day of my life and never grow tired of it.”
“Then maybe you should do something about that.”
Oh, I would. And soon.
Covering the other half of the distance, I placed my hand at the back of her neck and pressed a firm kiss to her lips, feeling the curve of her smile against my mouth.
It took only one summer for me to fall in love with Calla Lilly Quinn, but I had no doubt she would hold my heart for all the summers that came after.