Epilogue

Six Months Later

Jude

Sunlight glinted off the snowy slopes of Aspen, Colorado. It was an endless valley of rugged, snow-covered mountains. The fresh pine air filled my lungs as snow crunched beneath my boots. I walked along the various booths in the direction of my tent.

The X-Games was easily the most intense sport during the winter months. I had spent the past few weeks watching skiers and snowboarders do their stunts down the slick slopes of the mountains. They reminded me of myself a few months ago, when I had officially announced my retirement from motocross with Ava at my side.

I spotted my tent out of the sea of tents, where the media camped out with hot coffee to fend off the cold. Extreme Sports with JJ. I smiled up at the banner taped to the sunshade. ESPN had been quick to offer a time slot with a three-year contract of six million dollars per year. It meant having to travel around the world to report about all the dangerous and extreme sports out there. Wherever ESPN told me to go, I went without batting an eyelash. I got to travel around the entire world, chasing the extreme sports that captured the nation’s attention. That was a job I felt proud of because I understood the athletes behind it. I had done it for a long time, too.

It was a nice break from the physical aspects of being an athlete. I kept in shape, though, by going to the gym, but I also thrived on the fact that I could eat a cheeseburger if I wanted to without worry. My thigh still didn’t feel right, though. It was a physical scar, and a reminder that extreme sports had a short shelf life for many athletes.

I spotted Ava standing next to a few cameramen from ESPN. They were all talking over their cups of coffee, taking a break from our recent interview. In a few hours, the games would retire for the night because of the frigid plunge of temperatures in the mountains.

Ava’s dark locks of hair were braided back. She wore a thick pair of black leggings that hugged her curves in all the right ways. She wore a plaid coat with flannel lining beneath it to fight off the cold. I wrapped my arms around her waist tightly as she leaned back up against me with a smile.

“Good interview,” she said. “I really liked it.”

“Thank you.” I pressed a kiss against the side of her head. “We should be wrapping up here soon. Let’s go back to the hotel for a long hot bath. What do you think?”

Everyone rolled their eyes around us in amusement. It didn’t even faze them even more. Our relationship was intense. Our sexual chemistry was explosive. They probably had heard more than they were wanting to hear, but it had been a condition of mine when ESPN hired me on as a commentator with my own time slot. Ava had to come with me.

“Sounds good to me,” Ava said. “I have to update our blog tonight. Let everyone know to check out the interview. There’s also a special announcement I want to make with you, too.”

I arched an eyebrow at the mischievous glint in her eye as she slipped away from me to help gather up the equipment when the announcer closed out the day. I had no idea what special announcement Ava had in mind, but I had my own special announcement as well. No one knew about either announcement, judging from the confused looks they gave us.

While Ava was downstairs in the hotel lobby ordering us both hot drinks, I made quick work of spreading out rose petals all over the floor and bed. I placed a bottle of champagne in an ice bucket, even though it was so cold outside that ice felt unnecessary. I gazed out the large windows of our private suite at the rugged mountains along with the bustling city of Aspen.

I would never get tired of coming here. It was quiet and peaceful. Much like back in Gypsum. I patted the small box in my front pocket with a smile. It had taken some time for Ava’s parents to adjust to us traveling around together but they had accepted me into the family slowly over the past few months. After my retirement from motocross, they had started to look at our relationship seriously. They had visited us both a few weeks ago for Christmas in Chicago when I had asked Ava’s father for permission to marry Ava.

“Take good care of her, JJ. That’s all I want for my little girl.”

I planned to. I had made damn sure of it over the past few months that Ava had everything she wanted and needed.

The door to our hotel suite opened. Ava stopped in surprise to see all the rose petals scattered about the floor and bed. She arched an eyebrow at me teasingly.

“You’re going romantic on me,” she said. “Rose petals?”

I rolled my eyes at the soft jest. I could see that she was touched by the gesture as she handed me a black coffee. The smell of green tea took me by surprise as I looked down at her cup.

“No coffee for you?”

Ava glanced down at her cup. “No. It’s part of my announcement, but you tell me what this is all about.”

“How about you tell me your announcement,” I suggested and set our cups down on the coffee table. “I have a feeling it might tie into my surprise.”

“Close your eyes, then.”

I obliged, even though I was confused as hell about what she was doing. Her soft hands grasped mine gently. Something cold and plastic brushed against my fingers. It felt like a glossy photograph in my fingertips.

“Okay,” Ava said softly. “Open your eyes.”

I took in the dark photograph in my hand with a confused frown. Realization washed over me when I looked at the pregnancy test. The positive pregnancy test. I looked up as tears filled my eyes. Ava smiled at me while tears filled her eyes, too.

“You’re pregnant?”

“Yes,” she said softly. “A few weeks along. I found out when we were back in Chicago for Christmas vacation.”

My heart leapt with joy as I swept Ava up into my arms. Fatherhood. A family. A few years ago, all of that would’ve struck fear into my head. Not now. Not after the past few months of having Ava at my side every day as we traveled the world together.

“It’s a good thing that I put money down on that piece of land in Gypsum,” I said, pulling back to press a kiss to her lips with a smile. “We’re going to have to settle down somewhere, huh?”

“What about your parents?” Ava asked. “Do you want to tell them or—”

“They can figure it out,” I said, not willing to let them taint the moment.

I reached into the pocket of my sweater. Nerves crashed over me, which seemed ridiculous, given that we were expecting a baby together. Still, sweat gathered in my palms. My heart raced as I pulled the box out to open it as I sank down to one knee. Ava gasped in surprise as she stared down at me with wide eyes, full of a fresh wave of tears again.

“Ava James,” I started, voice trembling. “Will you marry me?”

“Yes!” she exclaimed, hands shaking in mine. “Yes. Absolutely!”

I slid the ring on her finger with a relieved sigh. The ring glittered in the soft light from the fireplace. I pressed a kiss to Ava’s hand as I stood up to gather her into my arms.

We had spent the past few months traveling together around the world. Now, we were embarking on a new adventure that I couldn’t be more excited about.