CHAPTER 33

Amanda

I woke up the next morning with Lanie still in my arms. Brian wasn’t in bed, but I could tell he hadn’t been gone for long. His side of the bed was warm and crinkled, and I could smell the fragrance of sausage and eggs wafting down the hallway.

I was too excited to eat. Today was the day I was going to get married. I called up Sarah and told her everything that was going on, and she insisted that Brian and I stay away from each other until the courthouse ceremony. I rolled my eyes at her insistence, but Brian figured it would be fun.

So, I kissed Lanie on the cheek and hugged Brian tightly before I ventured back to my cabin.

Walking in hit me with a reality that brought tears to my eyes. My grandmother should’ve been here to see a day like this. The dress and shoes I had picked out earlier in the week for this ceremony were laid across the dusty couch. They were the only thing in the room that seemed to truly be clean, and that thought brought tears to my eyes. My grandmother should be here. She should be the one helping me get ready for something like this.

“Amanda?”

I whipped my head around to see Sarah coming into the cabin. It was the first time she saw it, and I could see the horror on her face. A tear trickled down my cheek as our eyes connected, and she ran to wrap her arms around me.

“Are you okay?” Sarah asked.

“She should be here, you know.”

“She is. She’s here with you in spirit.”

“Is that shit supposed to make me feel better? Because I can’t imagine that it would,” I said.

“Hey, hey, hey. Come on. Today’s supposed to be a day of celebration. You’re getting married to your hot ass neighbor. What could be better than that?” she asked.

“My grandmother being here to give me away.”

“I could give you away,” she said.

“You will?” I asked.

“Of course. I’d be offended if you asked anyone else to.”

Then, I remembered the note on my bed surrounded by all those things.

“Could you come with me?” I asked.

“Sure. Where are we going?” Sarah asked.

“Up the stairs.”

“You mean the stairs you fell through and almost killed yourself on? No, thanks.”

“Come on. Stop being a wimp.”

I pulled her up the stairs as we slowly made our way into my room. I opened the door and found everything as I remembered it to be.

“Is that a note?” Sarah asked.

“Yeah, and I can’t bring myself to open it. Would you read it to me?”

“Of course I will.”

I watched Sarah walk over to the note and take it between her fingers. She opened it up and let the envelope fall to the bed as she unfolded the piece of paper. My entire body was. trembling in its spot as her eyes scanned the note.

“Holy shit, Amanda,” Sarah said, her mouth open in shock.

“What? What does it say?”

I lunged at her and ripped the note from her hands. Sarah hovered over my shoulder as I read it, and I couldn’t believe what I was reading. Tears landed on the letter as I crumpled to my knees, my best friend’s arms around me to make sure I didn’t hurt myself.

“It’s okay. It’s all right. I’ve got you,” Sarah said.

My dear Mandy-Bear,

I’ve been sick for some time now. On and off with the flu and pneumonia. That’s what happens when you get old. I’ll make this short and sweet — I was never one for sentiment anyway. This cabin hasn’t been kept up. I didn’t have the money to do it after I was put in the nursing home. So when you come home and find it, don’t be alarmed. It withered away with its owner.

That brings me to the pile of things on the bed. One of them is your favorite doll from when you were younger. I found it cleaning out the attic. But there are some other things I want you to take and sell. The first is the jewelry box. It’s an antique, passed down in my family for generations. Inside the box is all of my jewelry, and the entire thing was priced around twenty thousand dollars.

The next is the vase. Be careful, though. It was a gift from a gentleman friend of mine. It’s laced with specks of gold and the silver lining on the inside is actually white gold. That alone is worth thirty thousand.

The rolled-up item within the vase is a hand-stitched silk table runner. Again, one of those things I am glad my family decided to pass down. I had it quoted at fifteen thousand dollars. Why on earth a table runner would be that much is beyond me.

The folder underneath everything has all of the official documentation on the items. Sell them, Amanda. Fix up the cabin. Buy your art gallery. Breathe life back into this place. You are the owner of it now, and a house should reflect the life of its owner. It’s the only thing I have to give you, but I hope it will push you into the life I know you deserve.

I love you, Mandy-Bear. You kept me young. And now, it’s time for you to claim the life you deserve.

Love You To The Moon And Back,

Grandma Scott

I held the note close to my chest as I sobbed into Sarah’s shoulder. I was shaking uncontrollably, trying to digest everything that was in the letter. I gripped tightly onto Sarah’s clothes and pulled her as close to me as I could get her, feeling her hands running through my tangled hair.

“We should get you ready for your wedding,” Sarah said. “We can deal with the rest of this later.”

“Oh, my gosh,” I said breathlessly.

“Come on,” Sarah said as she helped me up. “Let’s get you a shower.”

Sarah helped me to piece myself together enough to get me to the courthouse. I stood there with a small bouquet of flowers in my hand, ready to walk into the magistrate’s room. The ceremony was quick but perfect for everyone involved. Lanie was anxious to eat, Jack was there ready to treat us all to dinner, and I was itching to tell Brian about the note.

Deep down inside, I knew he was the man of my dreams. He was strong, secure, intelligent, caring, and sexy as hell. Just looking at him made me weak in the knees and being wrapped up in his arms made me feel protected. While we still needed to work on our communication, I never once doubted the sincerity of his words when he spoke to me. He spoke to me as an equal. As his partner. As someone he held in high regard.

I’d never had that before.

After the ceremony, Jack took us all out for lunch. Looking around the table at our new little family and our two best friends, I couldn’t contain my happiness any longer.

I leaned over to Brian beside me at the table, and I pressed my lips to his.

Once we all got back to the cabin, it was time for Jack and Sarah to leave. I wrapped my arms around my best friend before I hugged Jack close, then we all stood there as the two of them drove off to the airport. I was going to miss my best friend, and I knew Brian was going to miss Jack, but it gave me an idea for the cabin as we headed into the house.

The cabin on top of the mountain I was now going to call home.

“Brian, could I talk with you?” I asked.

“Sure. Let me just lay down Lanie for a nap first.”

I paced the room, trying to figure out how to start this conversation with Brian. I could hear him talking with Lanie, trying to reason with her as to why she couldn’t stay up longer. But my heart jumped to the back of my throat when I heard him padding back down the hallway.

“Amanda, are you all right? You seem anxious,” he said.

“It’s been a hell of a day,” I said breathlessly.

“All good, I hope?” he asked.

“Oh, yes. But I was thinking about my grandmother’s cabin.”

“You know I’ll help you fix that up,” he said as he came toward me. “Amanda, you’re shaking.”

“Sorry.”

“Come here. Sit down.”

Brian led me to the couch and pulled me into his lap. I curled into him, sinking into the strength of his muscles as he wrapped his arms around me. I drew deep breaths through my nose, trying to calm myself down as he repeatedly kissed the side of my head.

“Talk to me,” Brian said. “What’s going on?”

I told him about the note. I told him about the antiques and the family heirlooms and all the other gifts my grandmother left for me to sell. I told him about the money they were worth and how I could use it to completely fix up the cabin, and I told him about how she should’ve been here today. About how this day was so special, yet it had this cloud looming over all of us.

“I’m not saying that I would change anything about today. I got to marry the man I love, and become a true family with you and Lanie. I just wish my grandmother had been here to see it herself.”

Brian looked at me and pushed a strand of hair behind my ear. “I understand. I wish my sister could have been here too.”

We snuggled into one another and sat in silence for a few moments, reflecting on our life.

Then, he brought his lips down to mine, and I shivered at his warmth.

“What do you want to do?” he asked.

“Huh?”

“With the cabin,” he said, chuckling. “What would you like to do with it?”

“I don’t know if I’m ready to do anything with it right now. The idea of selling my grandmother’s things to pay for overhauling it hurts.”

“Then we don’t have to sell them. I can work on it,” he said.

“But, when we did get it up and running, we could rent it out maybe,” I said.

“If that’s what you want, I’ll support you in it.”

“It’ll be a decent side income. There are lots of people who would enjoy a mountain vacation getaway or something. And when someone isn’t renting it, Jack or Sarah could use it to come stay and see us.”

“Seeing our friends while still keeping our space. I like it,” he said.

“And when Lanie gets older, we could pass it on to her, if she wants it,” I said.

“I like the way you think, Mrs. Murphy.”

I grinned at that name as my lips sought out his again.

Things felt right for the first time in my life. The little girl I adored was snoring lightly in her bed, the man I loved was holding me in his arms, and we were talking about our future together as if it should’ve been this easy. We were making plans and cracking jokes. We were stifling our laughter and allowing our hands to explore one another. We were stealing kisses and talking about when we should move all my stuff in, and I quickly found a home within the rhythm I’d already carved out in their house.

In their home.

In our home.

I looked up into Brian’s eyes and saw the perfect man for me. I felt my soul being bound to his, for better or for worse. I sat up in his lap, allowing my legs to straddle him as my hands ran through his hair.

“You look pretty damn hot in this suit,” I said, grinning. “But you’d look even better out of it.”