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Silas reaches a hand into his pocket and then opens the box in front of me. “I’ve been waiting until you graduated to give you this. I wanted to give it to you the day we met, but I figured I might scare you off.”
“If the blatant stalking didn’t…”
A deep laugh rumbles out of him. “Maybe you’re right. Will you marry me, Prudence?”
I grab the ring, slide it on, and then turn around and kiss my man.
“I’m yours,” I whisper against his lips. “And you’remine.”
epilogue
Silas
FIFTEEN YEARS AFTER THAT…
“But what if I fall, Daddy?”
I smile, brushing Callie’s cheek as she looks at me with worried eyes.
“Then we’ll fall together, sweetheart. I’ll be right there with you.”
Her eyes brighten as a smile flares across her lips. She looks so much like her mother, and it makes my heart swell every time I see my little girl. And now that my professional hockey career is coming to an end, I’ll be spending a lot more time with her and Evan. His grandpa’s showing him a few trick shots right now.
“And do you know what we’ll do after we fall?”
“What?” she asks, blinking up at me.
“We’ll get back up and do it all over again. That’s the only way you’ll learn how to ice skate like Elsa on ice. I can’t even count how many times I’ve fallen on skates.”
“Really?”
I laugh at her expression. Big eyes. Big smile.Bigpersonality. She’s giving her mother a run for her money on the number one girl in my life. Nah. I love them both the same. And as I glance at Prudence, on the phone a few yards away, my chest feels like it’s going to burst. I swear she’s more radiant by the day.
I’m so proud of her. Ph.D. Mother. Wife. And pretty soon, museum curator. She’s been in the running for a position for a while, missing out in the final round twice, but I have a good feeling about this one.
And as she turns around, visibly shaking with her phone in her hand as she smiles at me—I know she got the offer.
“Can we get ice cream after this?”
I muss her hair as she giggles. “Of course. Now go keep your grandma company while I talk with your mom. I’ll be right back to take you out on the ice.”
“Okay,” she squeals, wandering over to my mother.
She gives her a big hug before perching on the bench next to her. My mother points to the older figure skaters twirling around on the ice and Callie claps excitedly.
They’re great together. It was a process, but I was able to convince my mother that she needed help. The birth of Evan seemed to be the final catalyst. The day after we told her about the pregnancy was the day she went into a program. Almost a decade later, she hasn’t relapsed once.
I push myself to my feet, heading for Prudence, kissing her before she has a chance to speak. “Congratulations,” I say after breaking the kiss.
“How did you—” she shakes her head. “Of course, you’d know. You read me like I read romances on my Kindle.”
“I know my wife,” I say, brushing her hair.
She settles against my chest. “Yes, you do.”
“And tonight,” I rasp against her head, “I’d like to get to know every single inch of her with my tongue.”
Prudence moans, digging her fingers into my back. “This morning wasn’t enough of a refresher?”
