EPILOGUE
~ FREYA ~
A smile spreads across my face when I pull the envelope out of my mailbox.
It’s white with the faintest of peach hues noticeable only when I hold it up, letting the day’s sunshine reflect on paper that seems to almost shimmer. I slide my fingertip across it and enjoy the slight texture that sets it apart from the other mail I hold in my hand. It’s the kind of envelope that screams, “Open me first!”
I pick up my pace to head back inside.
“I think we got a wedding invitation from Dax and Millie!” I practically squeal, making Astrid squeal right along with me, even though she doesn’t really appreciate a wedding quite like I do.
Yet.
Mason’s still in his uniform, having just gotten home from the Pentagon. “Well, there goes my idea of going camping for a vacation. Are we headed to Savannah instead, I’m betting?”
I open the envelope carefully. One mustn’t destroy something that a great deal of care went into creating, I always feel.
I slide the card out and read it.
And my face falls.
“What?” I gasp, my face screwing up.
Mason walks toward me. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s a marriage announcement.”
“And?”
“A marriage announcement. For Dax and Millie. A marriage announcement,” I repeat, stressing that final word since clearly, he’s not understanding my meaning.
Mason looks bewildered for a moment and then, darn him, he chuckles as he takes the card from me and reads it. He looks at Astrid. “Mommy just got denied a wedding, Astrid.”
“How can you laugh at this? I set them up. I’ve been looking forward to their wedding for over a year.”
“Honey, they just got engaged last month.”
“Sure, but we all knew it was coming. I knew it from that moment she called asking for a reference on him, remember? I told you they’d get married.”
“And they did. You should be happy. You’re on a winning streak.”
“But I love weddings, Mason. I wanted to be there to witness them take their vows. How do you think I get the inspiration for my books?”
“Ouch.” Mason looks at our daughter. “Is that Mommy’s way of saying I’m not romantic enough?”
Astrid giggles at his tone. “You’re not romantic, Daddy,” she chirps.
He holds his hands to his chest. “Ugh. You’re all ganging up on me.”
I take the card he set down on the table in front of him and look at the date printed in formal, scrolling font. “They eloped. I wonder if Harris knew about this. Did he say anything?”
“Nope. But it makes sense. She’s busy with her restaurant and Dax is a Ranger. They have to take advantage of the time they have together. Not everyone is determined to have a big spectacle of a wedding.” He gives me a pointed look as though to remind me of how hard it was to plan our own wedding with him deploying so often back then.
My lips curve happily, grateful for a good memory to pull me out of my mood for a moment. “You loved our spectacle of a wedding, as I recall.”
He pulls me close and kisses me in that way that I always love.
“I loved that it was you at the end of the aisle, waiting for me. That’s all I needed.” Then, as though to punctuate his point, he presses another kiss to my lips.