Total pages in book: 38
Estimated words: 35440 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 177(@200wpm)___ 142(@250wpm)___ 118(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 35440 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 177(@200wpm)___ 142(@250wpm)___ 118(@300wpm)
Epilogue
Rafe
A lot can happen in four weeks.
A man can die.
A son can grieve his father.
A team can lose a championship.
A man can realize he’ll love a woman for eternity.
James Carl Simmons was cremated, and his ashes now sit in my mom’s bedroom. We have yet to have a memorial service, and that was at my mother’s insistence. She wanted to get me through the rest of the playoffs, a matter she and my father decided behind my back and to which she stuck to her guns about. Within the next few weeks, we’ll have an intimate gathering of family and our closest friends, but for now, Mom is fine having him close.
The Cold Fury fought a valiant battle, but in the end, we lost the war on ice. The Arizona Vengeance beat us for the Cup in game seven, and it was a bittersweet moment for me. I’ve become a full-blooded member of this Cold Fury team, and I’d die for any of my teammates. I wanted to bring that championship home so badly that I could taste it. Playing hockey and working for a team I believe in helped to take my mind off my grief.
And yet...a part of me is happy for my former Vengeance teammates. They deserve the win. They wanted it more. They outplayed us. The Cup is where it belongs, at least for this season.
Next season is another matter.
But for now, I am on official vacation for the next few months until training camp starts, and while my season has ended, my life is really just beginning.
“Okay,” I warn Calliope playfully as I pull into the driveway. “No peeking.”
“I won’t,” she grumbles, pulling down the dark scarf I tied over her eyes. “But, seriously...I have to pee, so I hope wherever it is you’re taking me, we get there soon.”
“We’re here,” I tell her as I put the car in park. “Don’t move, though. I’ll be right around to you.”
Before she can reply, I turn off the engine and exit the vehicle, hustling around to the passenger door. I open it, take her by the hand, and gently help her out.
I carefully walk her toward the front of my car, making sure there’s nothing for her to trip over, but it’s only smooth concrete. I position her body and then place my hands on her shoulders from my place behind her.
“Okay...ready?”
Calliope nods, and I pull the blindfold from her face. I lean to the side so I can see her expression as she takes in the ginormous house in front of her. It’s white brick with a sweeping front porch, shuttered windows, and almost fifty-six-hundred square feet of space that sits on its own private pond.
“What do you think?” I ask her, unable to hide the tinge of pride in my voice.
“It’s gorgeous,” she replies in awe as she takes it in. “Who lives here?”
“We do,” I answer her simply, and it causes her to whip around and face me with disbelief. “I bought it. We can move in at any time.”
Calliope’s mouth drops open, and it’s the perfect opportunity to kiss her. I do so without hesitation or regret and get lost in the way she kisses me back.
But all good things come to an end, and she pulls away, shaking her head. “Wait a minute...you bought a house. A beautiful mansion, and you want me to move in with you? Don’t you think that’s moving really fast?”
Oh, dear Calliope. You have no idea how fast I can move.
Without hesitation, or a moment’s fear—and my mind flashing back to the beautiful girl I pushed on the tire swing and told boldly that I loved her—I pull the black velvet ring box out of my pocket.
Calliope’s eyes bug out of her head.
I open it slowly...with a flourish, and I know she’s not only dazzled by the moment but by the size of the diamond nestled inside. Four carats pack a whopping punch.
I sink to one knee, wincing slightly at the bite of concrete through my jeans. “Poppy...I love you so much, and there’s been a lot of bad in my life lately. But finding you again...loving you again...has made everything infinitely better. There’s no life without you in it, permanently by my side. So, please say you’ll marry me, and that you’ll move into this house with me, and that we’ll have kids one day.”