Page 27

Epilogue

Scott

Eighteen Months Later.

“Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.” I riffle through my gym bag, pushing clothes, and cleats, and gym towels out of the way. Why the hell do I keep so much shit in this bag?

Fuck.

If I’ve lost this ring, Billy is going to haunt me from the grave.

The sound of the front door opening and closing filters upstairs. I freeze, listening. Ivy’s voice drifts my way and I go back to furiously rifling through my bag. My fingers brush against the velvet box just as Ivy appears at the top of the stairs with the phone pressed between her shoulder and ear.

She spots me and smiles. It still flaws me even after a year and a half together.

I tuck the box into my pocket as Ivy pulls the phone from her ear and then puts her bag in her office. I take a seat on the end of our bed and kick my bag away from me.

“Hi,” she says. Ivy comes down the hallway into our room. She’s still smiling as she saunters over to stand between my legs. I part them, letting her settle between them easily. Her fingers brush over my shoulders and she leans down to kiss me.

“How was your day?” I ask her, placing my hands on her waist.

“Boring,” she sighs, leaning into me. “What did you do today? ”

“Started the deck outside,” I say as I dig my fingers into the fabric of her dress. I’ve slowly been working through the list I started when I moved in. A list that is never-ending. I finish one task, two more get tacked on. The back deck is the biggest project so far. I can’t do most of the building myself so the contractor will take care of it while we’re away.

It will be good to finally knock it off though. Just in time for Summer.

And when the weather turned so did Ivy’s outfits and I don’t hate it. She wears these summer dresses that show off her legs and I’ve enjoyed having the easy access.

“Mmm,” she hums. “How many barbecues can I expect to arrive or did you pick just one from the website?”

“I narrowed it down to two.” Ivy narrows her eyes at me and I smirk. “Okay, it’s three. But I want to make sure I get a good one. We’re going to be having all the guys over for the fourth.”

“Oh. I get it. You want to make sure you have the biggest and best toy to show off to your friends.”

“Stop it.” I know she’s teasing me. The tension that’s been building since I made my decision this morning eases a little. “It’s the off-season and you’re at school all day. I’m bored. Sue me.”

“Well, thankfully, I'll be done with school in a week.”

“You, me, a villa in Italy for three weeks.” I tug her closer to me.

“You, me, and … Katie.” She leans away and pouts at me. I stare at her blankly, processing what she’s just told me.

“Katie?”

“She was talking about Grant and being alone this summer, and that he had been messaging her again.” Ivy sits on my thigh, wrapping her arms around my neck and sinking in. Buttering me up. “He’s an ass to her. I don’t want her to go back to him just because she’s sad. So I invited her to come with us for the summer.”

“You think that will stop her getting back with him? ”

She shrugs in reply. “Maybe not, but it’ll be fun anyway. She’s my best friend. Please?”

I smile, shaking my head a little. She doesn’t need to say please. “Of course, Ives. You want her to come then she can come along.”

“Love you.” She presses her lips to mine again. Her fingers toy with the hair at the back of my neck. She kisses me once more before getting off my lap. I already miss her. “Oh, hey. You should invite Flynn. That might be fun!”

“Sure. I’ll ask him,” I agree. As much as Katie has become a staple around the house lately, bringing Flynn might keep her occupied while I spend some much-needed alone time with Ivy.

“I can’t wait to get on the plane. The kids this year are exhausting.” She moves around the room, chatting about her day as she changes out of her work dress and into her workout clothes. Our afternoon ritual is a run around the neighbourhood. We run together, and then we shower together.

That’s my favourite part.

She takes a pair of my shorts out of the drawer and throws them my way, silently asking me to change. The velvet box burns a hole in my pocket as I carefully change out of my pants, making sure it doesn’t fall onto the floor.

I’ve been a nervous wreck this past week, since I pulled the ring out of the safe. Every time Ivy goes near my gym bag my heartbeat becomes erratic and my stress levels skyrocket. I was planning on stashing it as soon as she pulled out the suitcases to start packing. I’ve been emailing with the villa owner in Italy for over a month trying to set up a proposal dinner.

The roses.

The candles.

The moonlight.

All of it .

But I woke up this morning and looked over at Ivy. Her hair was fanned out behind her. Her face adorably pressed into her pillow and an arm thrown over my stomach. The golden morning light was casting a warm glow over her and I just knew.

I glanced down at her left hand and was annoyed there wasn’t a ring on it.

So I’m going to change that.

I need to change it.

I need to not only remind her that this is forever, but let the world know she is all mine.

Tonight.

I will ask her tonight.

“Come on.” Ivy tugs on my hand to lead me out of the room. I glance back at my pants on the floor where I’ve left them, ring box still tucked safely in the pocket.

“What are we doing tonight? Do we have plans?” I ask her.

“I want to finish the new season of housewives.” She smiles at me over her shoulder. “The reunion episodes are the best.”

Tonight.

Ivy

I sink back into Scott’s chest, giggling. The housewives are so dramatic and I love them. I feel the gentle shake of Scott’s body against mine and I look up.

“You love it,” I accuse him. To be fair, I didn’t ever force him to watch them with me. He just got hooked one day and now he’s begging me not to watch without him.

“I blame you. You got me addicted to these silly reality shows.” He shakes his head, glancing down at me. His eyes soften instantly and it makes my heart jump.

I’m so in love with him.

The last eighteen months has been the happiest of my life. Losing Pops was devastating. Therapy was— is rough. I’m still working on myself and getting through my grief. But I sometimes find myself thinking back on the months that I’d kept Scott and I a secret and I mentally kick myself for it. I needed to heal, I needed to move on from the stubborn grudge I kept. And I have.

I’m even a football fan now.

But fucking hell, I was an idiot back then.

The thing I love most though is now, after a tough day mentally or physically at work, I get to come home and crawl into bed next to Scott.

The love of my life.

I couldn’t imagine keeping this a secret now. No way.

Scott shifts, moving from behind me to stand.

“Do you want some ice cream?” he asks, already halfway to the kitchen. He knows the answer.

“Of course.” I turn back to the TV, sinking into the couch cushions.I pay attention to the screaming match the housewives are having over yet another dinner table. I let out another genuine laugh. They are ridiculous.

“These people have everything yet they still find stuff to complain about. Fifteen seasons and they’re still having the same fights,” I tell Scott. He gives a noncommittal grunt in reply.

I turn my head in time to watch him round the corner of the couch with a food tray in hand. On the tray are two bowls filled with ice cream.

A single red rose.

And a box.

A small box.

A box only big enough for a ring.

“Oh my god.” I don’t mean to let the words slip from my mouth but they do anyway.

Scott sets the tray down on the ottoman in front of me. Then he gets on one knee .

Tears well in my eyes. Goosebumps spread over my skin. Nerves and excitement mix and mingle in my stomach, turning it over and over again. I shake my head, staring at the man in front of me in disbelief.

In the background, the housewives are still screaming at one another.

I can’t help but let out a laugh, leaning over to bury my face in my hands. Holy shit. Is he actually doing this?

“Ivy,” Scott begins but I look up and launch forward, nearly toppling off the couch. I reach for the remote and shut the television off.

“Okay, now go.” I sit back on the couch, but I’m at the very edge now with Scott kneeling in front of me.

“Ivy. I love you.”

“I love you too,” I interrupt, smiling like a fucking idiot.

“Baby, you have to let me get through this,” he chuckles. He picks up the small box from the tray and holds it in one hand. The other covers my knee.

I stay silent, nodding my head to urge him on.

“I love you. So much.” Scott’s thumb begins to trace a pattern on my skin. “I have been falling for you from the moment I saw you in that bar. Just catching a glimpse of you through the window had me walking in the door and taking a seat. It’s like my body knew what my heart didn’t yet. The last year and a half with you has been the happiest of my life. Watching you grow, and heal, and fall in love with what I love. I couldn’t ask for anything more. I know it wasn’t easy but I want you to know how proud I am of you. Of how far you’ve come. Pops, your mom and dad, they’d be so proud of you, too.”

He takes a deep breath, stares up at me and opens the box. I resist the urge to glance down at it, not wanting to take my eyes off him.

The deep green with the gold swirling flakes. The same eyes that captivated me that day in the bar and had me curious to know more. My anchor. My tether .

“Now that I know life with you, I don’t want to know a life without you,” he says. A sob crawls up my throat and I try to take a deep breath, holding in the tears that threaten to spill over in waves. I fail.

“Will you marry me?” Scott asks.

He lifts a hand, swiping at the steady stream of tears making their way down my cheeks. I blink as I try to clear my vision.

I glance down. My vision is blurry and I blink again, trying to clear them. The ring is simple. Timeless. Elegant. The smooth, white gold band glints in the light from the lamp beside us. At the center is a round, sparkling diamond, held in a simple setting that lets the stone catch the light from every angle.

“But this is …”

“Billy told me where to find it before he passed.” Scott takes the ring from the small cushion it sits on inside the box and reaches for my left hand. I let him pull the hand toward him, his thumb gently stroking over my trembling skin. “You already wear your dad’s every day, I thought you might like to wear your mom’s too.”

“I—” My throat feels like sandpaper. Tears are still falling freely over my cheeks. I watch myself shake as Scott holds my mother’s engagement ring out to me.

“You okay?” he whispers. Just the sound of his voice brings my eyes back up to meet him.

“I don’t remember the last time I pulled this out of the safe to look at it.” I glance back at the ring. I glance back at the ring. “I used to as a kid all the time. And then I just stopped.”

“So you don’t want to wear it? I can get you something else?”

“No, I …” I swallow, still staring at the ring. “I forgot how gorgeous it is.”

“Your dad had good taste.”

Where before I may have felt pain and longing, I only feel love. I miss them every day. My dad. My mom. Nan and Pops. The family I lost. But as I’ve dug through all of my resentment and grief over the last year to deal with them, the feelings have been replaced with ones of love. Hoping I make them proud every day. Hoping that Pops is looking down on me and sees how far I’ve come. Hoping that Mom and Dad approve of the choices I’ve made that led me here.

More and more, I believe they had a hand in bringing us together.

Like fate.

“Yes,” I whisper, covering the ring in his fingers with a hand and holding on. I lift the other to curl around his neck and I tug, pulling his lips to mine. “Of course I’ll marry you.”