Page 52 of About Yesterday (Foothills #5)

Epilogue: Come rain or shine

L ightning surrounded the beach house, arcing from cloud to cloud, sometimes shooting straight down into the ocean.

Record high tide. Waves crashed violently against the protective rock wall.

Wind screeched as it whipped around the house, knocking the outdoor table over, and flowerpots rolling across the yard with each heavy gust.

Trace stood in the main bedroom, looking out at the storm while the guests celebrated despite the change in plans.

Glasses clinked as wine was poured, appetizers coming out of the oven and shared before they even made it to the platter.

It was supposed to be a lovely ceremony on the Hawaiian beach, secluded and sandy and sunny.

Nothing ever quite goes according to plan.

Any minute, Trace would go join them. Right now… she needed the quiet. They probably should have waited longer.

But, she’d found the perfect dress. White because she wanted a little piece of tradition, strapless because it was elegant, and a slit up to her mid-thigh because it was daring.

She’d planned to go barefoot, but with the weather, she was glad she’d brought cute boots.

Still damp from her brief trek out to the rental car, the waves in her hair were wild.

The footsteps behind her were light with a sneaky tiptoe, but she knew who had come in the room.

From behind, arms wrapped around her middle, gentle kisses trailed up her bare shoulder.

“I love you,” Cole murmured against her skin as he worked his way up to her cheek, the bruise almost completely healed.

“Hi,” she answered, leaning into him.

“Think we should have waited until spring?” he said, smiling as he held her tight in his arms.

“Nah,” she said, a laugh under her breath. “This is much more us.”

“Shitty weather?”

“Better than perfect. It’s so gorgeous out there.”

“Yeah,” he murmured.

She turned to face him and traced her fingertips up his arms, pausing at the wound, still red but healing. She was getting way too adept at removing stitches, but at least there hadn’t been as many this time. “I know what car I want,” she said, tilting a teasing grin at him.

“Yeah?”

“Something with a big front, more horsepower, so, ya know, I can bash through garage doors. Maybe bulletproof.”

“We will never need any of that again.”

“Who knows? You may have other people after you, and if I’m going to be a decent sort of rescuer, I’m going to need the right equipment.”

He groaned and squeezed his hands at her hips. “You’ve rescued me enough. Maybe you’ll let me rescue you next time.”

She tipped her head back as a witchy laugh rose in her throat.

He leaned in and nuzzled, trailing soft kisses up her neck as her laugh erupted. He grinned and said, his lips on her skin, “I’m serious. Hostage rescue is not my specialty, but I get the job done, and you’re the first to self-rescue.”

Shifting, she took his mouth with hers. “I will never be bored with you.”

He nipped a kiss, but quickly sank in for a longer one, an ache in his touch. “I intend to be very boring for the rest of my life.”

Trace framed his jaw in her hands, thumbing his bottom lip as she studied him. “I love you. And I like you in one piece.”

“I was talking to Asher about teaching some self-defense classes. Something to stay active and feel useful.”

“You’d be a good teacher,” she said, nibbling her lip and absorbing as much of him as she could. Not because he was going to run, but because she couldn’t resist. “You could sell some of that furniture you’re making, too. After you finish my bookshelf, again.”

There were so many other things she couldn’t resist. Trace let her brow drop, her gaze wander away, and she took a long, mournful sigh. “We won’t have enough room for it all anyway. I, uh, heard back from the realtor a few minutes ago, and the house, we didn’t…”

“Fuck yeah,” he said, grinning wide.

“I can’t get anything past you,” she said, stealing his gaze and holding, teasing him with a look. “We got it.”

He leaned in and captured her mouth, sinking in for a kiss that stirred deep in her belly, spun her head in a whirlwind, and melted her to him. Between kisses, he murmured, “I think we should still do this outside.”

She laughed and kept kissing him. “I don’t think our guests will appreciate getting soaked.”

“Yeah, but it’ll be a hell of an adventure.”

The End