Epilogue
Three Months Later
Finn
As soon as I heard the front door of my apartment open, I dropped my chopping knife, sprinted out of the kitchen and flung my arms around Aaron’s neck before he even had a chance to drop his bag. He chuckled, but let his bag fall to the floor as he wrapped me in his arms.
“God, I missed you,” he breathed out into my hair.
“Me too,” I whispered, trying to breathe him in too.
He’d been driving home every Saturday after work and staying until Monday night—except the one weekend a month that I went to him—but he’d missed last weekend. He’d had to work over the weekend when a huge multi-vehicle accident happened in his town with several young children in critical condition, and they’d needed all hands on deck. We’d barely spoken all week because he’d been working constantly, mostly catching a few hours’ sleep at the hospital, and calling me for short chats whenever he could. I’d thought about driving to him for a few days, but he hadn’t even been at his apartment much, so there’d have been no point.
But, fuck, did I miss him.
He kissed me hard on the lips, then grinned at me. “Guess what?”
“What?” I ran a hand through his hair.
“They gave me a couple days off since I worked so much overtime this week. I don’t have to go back until Wednesday night.”
“Are you serious?”
He nodded and kissed my neck, then my cheek, then my forehead. “Yep.” He rubbed his nose along my neckline. “Maybe I can take you rock climbing? We could see if Griff wants to come, too.”
I smiled and pulled him into a tight hug. He tucked his head against my neck. “That would be nice.” I saw Griff and Layla every day, but Aar and I hadn’t hung out with them in a long time because we barely left the apartment when he visited. The time we had together was precious, so we tried to take advantage of it. “We can do that, and afterward we can swing by to pick up Layla so I can cook dinner for everyone.”
“Perfect.” He smiled, then held my hand and pulled me into the kitchen, obviously knowing I needed to keep an eye on the food. He leaned against the counter and pulled me between his legs. “What can I do to help?”
I shook my head. “Nothing.”
“Come on, it was one time!”
“You almost set the apartment on fire,” I said loudly.
“One time!”
I laughed a little and kissed the tip of his nose. “You set a pot holder right next to the lit burner. You cannot be trusted in the kitchen.”
He gasped in mock outrage. “I cook for myself all the time.”
“By all the time, you mean like once a month, right?” He made a face and I laughed at him, then kissed his nose again. “I love when you pout… so cute.”
He sighed, knowing it was a moot point to argue with me about that. He knew my obsession with the cuteness of his pouting. I leaned in and nibbled on his bottom lip, then whispered, “I just like it because it gives me an excuse to do this.” I nibbled on it again.
He cracked a smile. “You don’t need an excuse.”
“I know.” The stove made a sound, so I walked over to check it.
“Seriously, what can I do to help?”
I pointed to the fridge. “You can put the salad together. And there’s cheese and crackers to snack on while this is cooking, since you’re always starving after the drive. The stove is off limits.”
He sighed and went to the fridge, saying, “Oh, I forgot to tell you. You know that little girl I told you about? The one with the broken femur?”
“Yeah.” He told me stories about his patients, but never said any names or details about their personal lives. He just gave the basics of interesting cases, or patients he grew to care about. It was a way for him to vent when he needed to.
“She was released yesterday. She’ll be in a wheelchair for a while because she’s so young and still in a cast, but she’s going to be fine.”
“That’s great, Aar.” I kissed his cheek. “I know you were worried about her.”
He smiled at me. “So how did that wedding last night turn out? Any problems?”
“Surprisingly, no. I thought for sure after what pains in the ass they were, they’d make me change something once we delivered the cake, but they actually loved it.”
“That’s great. The pictures you sent me were beautiful.”
I leaned in for a kiss. When I pulled away he held up a little piece of cheese for me, so I opened my mouth and took it from him with a smile. He placed a piece in his mouth and moaned a little. Once he swallowed it, he said, “You’re trying to make me fat.”
“I am not.”
“You always have my favorite snacks and you send me home with meals all the time.” He sounded like he was complaining, but he was smiling brightly at me, so I knew he was just messing with me.
“Would you rather I not freeze stuff so you have to order food all the time?” I nudged him with my shoulder. “I only send food with you because I’m afraid for your safety. Lord only knows how dangerous you are in the kitchen at your house when you’re by yourself.”
“I am never going to live that down, am I?”
I grinned. “Nope.” He chuckled and leaned in for another kiss, then fed me another bite of cheese. After I ate it, I said, “Oh yeah. I made lasagna the other day and froze some for you. You remembered the cooler, right?”
“Mmhmm.” He came up behind me, wrapped his arms around my waist and kissed my neck. “You know you really don’t have to keep cooking for me.”
I leaned back into him. “I know. But I love to cook and if I’m already making myself dinner, I may as well make extra to freeze for you. It’s no big deal.” I shrugged.
“It’s a huge deal.” He trailed kisses along the back of my neck. “And I’m so grateful to you for it. I just want to make sure you know it’s okay if you don’t.”
I put the spoon down and turned in his arms. “I like cooking for you. And I know you don’t expect it. Stop worrying so much.”
“Well, thank you.” He kissed me and held me tight.
Unfortunately, I had to nudge him away after a few minutes so I could finish dinner. We ate cuddled up on the couch, talking and laughing about anything and everything, just like we did every time he came here. Once we finished eating, Aaron insisted on doing the dishes since I cooked, just like he always did. And I hugged him from behind while he did them, just like I always did.
We’d fallen into a routine of sorts. We texted throughout the day—when our jobs weren’t super busy—we spoke on the phone during our lunch breaks, Skyped every night, and saw each other in person every weekend—and we were basically attached at the hip whenever we were together. Of course it was lonely when he wasn’t here, and it was hard watching him drive away when it was time for him to leave. There were nights when I cried, there were nights when he cried too. But no matter how I was feeling, I knew I could count on him to be there for me. Even if he couldn’t be there in person, he was only a phone call away, only a few hours’ drive away when I needed him. It wasn’t perfect, but we were making it work, and that was enough… at least for now.
I didn’t know what was in store for us next. How we were going to make it work in the long run. I knew that Aaron was still hiding something from me, but I hadn’t pushed… not yet. After all, there were still some things I hadn’t told him, either. No matter what his baggage was or what I finally shared with him, we’d handle it because we belonged with one another. What I did know was that we were going to figure it out together. Fate had brought us back together for a reason. And I was guessing that the reason was love.
Aaron dried his hands and turned around, so I went up on my toes and nibbled on his lip again. I whispered, “I love you, Aaron.”
He smiled and kissed me passionately before whispering against my lips, “I love you too.” He leaned back and smirked at me as he added, “Muffin.”
I snorted at that and flipped him off before kissing his laughing lips. Then the bastard scooped me up and threw me over his shoulder like some kind of Neanderthal. I was laughing and yelling, but all he did was chuckle and smack my ass as he carried me to the bedroom.
It was good to have him home.
***
The End
of the Fate of Love Book 1
I hope you enjoyed reading the beginning of Finn and Aaron’s story as much as I enjoyed writing it! These two were a joy to write and I’m excited to continue their journey.
Finn and Aaron’s story will continue in Choosing You: The Fate of Love Book 2.
If you would like updates on my new books or to be notified when a new book is released, please join my mailing list:
You can find me on Facebook here:
I also have a reader’s group on Facebook to talk about my books and others’ as well. I share teasers, exclusive excerpts, a first look at cover reveals and more. If you’re interested, feel free to join Notaro’s Haven:
Feel free to contact me on Facebook. I’d love to hear from you.
If you enjoyed this book, please think about leaving a review. Every bit of encouragement is a huge help to authors, especially indie authors, so every review helps. Thank you!