Page 65 of The Night Ride
What can I say but I fucked up a lot in my life.Not just with the things I did but with the people in it.And I need you to know that I don’t hate you for kissing my sister.I never did.I feared for her because of the lives we live and wanted more for her.
But I also wouldn’t have gotten so fired up if I hadn’t witnessed the way Beth looked at you, like you were her hero, and the eyes of a woman in love.
It scared me.
I forgave you a long time ago for kissing her.And if this found you, then perhaps the two of you have reconnected without my interference this time.
If you have feelings for Beth, I give you my blessing.Not that you need it, but you have it anyway.
You’ve been one of my best friends, and I’m going to miss the hell out of you.
Your friend always,
Evan
P.S.
If you hurt her in any way, I will haunt your ass until you die and the moment you cross over, I will beat the shit out of you.
I laughed and spied tears in Aiden’s eyes that he swallowed down as he folded it up and laid it on the table.
“Well, now that I have your brother’s blessing, let’s pack you a bag, babe, because you’re coming home with me.”
I went into Aiden’s arms feeling lighter than I had in a long time.“Are you sure you want me to come stay with you?You don’t mind?”
“Beth, I’m thrilled.I want this time with you before I wind up deployed and halfway around the world.I’ve got almost two weeks before I have to report for duty.And if I must be honest, I want you in my bed.I love you, babe.What do you say?Wanna go for a ride?”
He smiled, his gaze full of love.And I couldn’t wait to start this new adventure with the man I’d been in love with since I was fifteen.
“That depends.”
“On?”
“What’s your kitchen like?”
Aiden chuckled as he bent his head and kissed me.I couldn’t wait to see where the road would take us.
Epilogue
2YearsLater
I was at the counter of Sweet Dreams Bakery when Aiden waltzed through the front door.
My jaw dropped.
“How are you here already?”I rounded the counter toward him.It’d been months since I’d seen him.He’d spent the last few months before his retirement overseas.
“I couldn’t wait to see you.”He scooped me up and held me in his arms, his mouth fused with mine.
I sighed into him.The last two years had been nothing short of a miracle.I thought I had loved Aiden before, but it was nothing compared to now.He had a few more lines around his eyes, but I thought they made him look distinguished.
“Is it done?”I asked as he set me on my feet.
“It is.”And in the middle of the bakery with customers milling around, he dropped to one knee.I gasped.
Aiden smiled up at me and said, “You waited for me, and I can’t tell you what it means to me.Marry me, Beth.What do you say, want to promise to love me forever?”
“In a hundred thousand lifetimes and in a hundred thousand ways, my answer will always be yes.”
He slipped a single diamond solitaire onto my finger.Then rose and cupped my nape.“I love you so damn much, Beth.Words can never express how much I love you, woman.And I’m humbled that you said yes.”
“Don’t you get it, Aiden, it’s always been you for me.And you were worth the wait.”
Aiden kissed me in broad daylight, in the middle of my bakery, with thunderous applause around us.He was a hero worth waiting for.
Because Aiden Miller was the love of my life, and I was his.