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And Carrie has become like our pseudo second child, spending lots of time with Kingston, Tucker, and I, going out to dinner, movies or just spending time at the house. I swear I’ve hugged her a million times to make up for all the times I wished I could have before. And I’m so proud of her, she graduated top of her class and is already preparing for college. She’s amazing and is going to change the world.
When Walker, who is standing by the blazing bonfire, says something to make Tucker laugh, the happiness that’s warmed my chest since the day I met the man behind me only grows. The two of them had a heart-to-heart the first night they met, and although I don’t know what was said, I know that since then, they have become two peas in a pod, sharing inside jokes and smiles between each other.
When Tucker fiddles with the ring on my finger, I tip my head back to look up him. Yesterday, standing on the dock with the sun setting and Kingston at my side, he asked me to marry him, and I said yes. The moment was perfect and more than I could’ve asked for it.
Life is fucked up. It causes pain, makes you second-guess your decisions, and sometimes it leaves you in tears, questioning your ability to keep going. Then one little thing happens, one little thing that means everything, and it’s in those moments you know all the pain and all of those tears were worth it, because you have something extraordinary. Something to be happy about. Something to look forward to. And something that—even though this world is fucked up—reminds you just how beautiful it really is.
I never would’ve guessed my sorrow would lead me to something even better than I could’ve ever imagined, that I could be this happy, this at peace, or feel this loved. I’m excited about the future, about building a life with Tucker, having babies with him, and watching them grow up.
Who knows where the next few years will take us, but I do know that no matter where the road leads us, at the end of the day, it will always be him and me together as partners, as friends, and as lovers.
“I love you,” I whisper, and I watch his face get soft before he drops a kiss to my lips in a sweet kiss that holds a million kept promises.
Thirteen years later
Tucker
Pulling into the driveway and hitting the remote for the garage, I notice Kingston’s car is not parked in its normal spot, meaning he’s out and probably on a date. And since that kid dates like he’s trying to make sure he personally knows every single girl at his high school, I’m not even surprised to see he’s out on a Friday night.
I park, grab my briefcase from the passenger seat, and get out.
“Hi, Dad,” Jenny and Anna call out in unison when I walk through the garage door into the kitchen. My two girls, thirteen and eleven, look so much like their mom that I know in just a few years I am fucked. Especially if they take up dating as a sport like their older brother has.
“Where is Mom?” I ask, stopping to kiss each one on the top of her head.
“I don’t know,” Jenny says as Anna shrugs.
“Where are your brothers?”
“They were in the game room earlier, but Mom sent them to their rooms because they were fighting,” Anna explains, rolling her eyes.
“Right,” I mutter, setting my briefcase down on the island. I walk past the living room and the dining, finding both empty before I head up the stairs.
Finding the media room empty, I knock on Finn’s door.
“Yeah,” he calls for me to come in, and I push it open. Never quite sure what I’m gonna find on the other side, I hold my breath.
“You and Liam were fighting?” I ask, and he hops off his bed, ready to plead his case.
“It wasn’t my fault. He wanted to play some stupid game I didn’t want to, and he got mad.”
“You told me that you would play it with me,” Liam argues, poking his head out his door.
Looking between both my boys, I shake my head. Telling the two of them to get along has been an everyday occurrence since they were tiny. And with Finn being almost two years older than Liam, it’s only gotten worse.
“Do you know where mom is?” I ask, and they look between each other and shake their heads.
“Go downstairs and ask Anna to order pizza for dinner,” I tell them. They grin at each other before the thunder of footsteps travels down the hallway and then down the stairs.
With one last place to look for Miranda, I head back down the stairs after them to our bedroom and close the door behind me. When I see light leaking out from under the bathroom door, I walk to it and push it open, finding my wife in the empty bathtub, with one of the podcasts she listens to playing from her phone.
