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“Happy birthday, Emily!” Shiloh says, wrapping her arms around her.
Emily smiles, but I know she’s feeling anxious. I take her in for a hug as well.
“So, your boyfriend is here,” I say, looking for him. Emily hasn’t dated anyone since Olive was born so we all are taking shots at her and teasing her for it. Burke seems nice enough. He came to one family dinner and stayed quiet for most of it.
I don’t blame him. It’s becoming more and more chaotic.
Reid and Whitney got engaged two weeks ago, and now they’re planning their wedding. Cameron’s wife Annie will be giving birth any day now. She’s forty weeks today and is doing everything in her power to get the baby out. Annie even joined Shiloh on a five-mile hike with Bubba, and still nothing. My brother and Annie got married just in time for their baby’s birth. My mother got bent out of shape they went to the courthouse. I mentioned she was there for my first one.
It won’t be my last.
Shiloh says that the rescue and adopting Bubba is more than enough to profess my commitment to her, but I want to marry her. I want her to have my last name. I want to fill our house full of dogs and children, including her desire to adopt through the foster care system.
These last two months, I got a glimpse of forever, and I’ve seen enough. I’ve loved Shiloh for less than a year, but I know I want to love her for the rest of the years that we’re alive.
I’m still going to therapy. Still working through my issues. With Shiloh by my side, we can conquer everything. We can save dogs. We can make the best kids. We can give kids the best home. Overall, we will have the best life.
That just leaves Emily.
I hope Burke can make her happy. She deserves it. Olive deserves it.
There’s a knock at the door, and we look back.
“Don’t they see the sign on the door?” Emily scoffs as she walks away and heads over to Burke in a white chef’s jacket, stirring something in a big bowl.
The knocking grows more and more insistent as I kiss Shiloh on the head and walk to the door of the barn. I look through the window to see a man with his head down.
When I open the door, he looks up.
He looks so damn familiar. He’s blond, with short hair and flat cheeks. His eyes are bright blue. He’s a little taller than I am, and it’s driving me mad I can’t place him.
“Can I help you?” I ask. “We’re closed for a private event.”
“Hi,” he says, smiling. “You’re one of the brothers, right?”
I’ve never seen this man before in my life.
“Yeah, but we’re closed…”
“Is Emily here?”
“Yes, but…” I peer at him closer, and my heart stops. It can’t be.
“I was wondering if I could see her,” he asks. “Just for a second.”
This can’t be him. I never met him, I only heard about him. So, I’m still trying to figure out what to say when I hear my sister’s voice behind me. She stops talking, and I know she’s seen him.
It’s all happening in slow motion as I turn to look at her. Emily’s face is pale white, her green eyes large while her lips part.
“Hey, Martini,” the man says. “It’s been a long time.”
THE END
