“I’ve loved you for so long,” he murmurs. “Long before you ever loved me, and I’ll love you long after.”
I close my eyes in relief. My heart pounds against my chest, against his chest. There’s no happier place than this.
“There is no after,” I say adamantly. “Not for us. There’s only forever.”
Epilogue
Lovesong
Chase
Six Months Later
“That’s the last box,” Guy calls as he kicks the door shut behind him. “You are officially moved.”
I look at all the boxes lining my small living room wall and wonder where we’re going to fit everything.
“Screw it,” Annie says, answering my unspoken question. “I’ll unpack my clothes and the rest can stay in the boxes for now. Maybe we can get a bigger place later, but for now, this is perfect.”
“Perfect?”
“I’ve recently had an amazing realization—there is no such thing as perfect. There is only the perception of perfection. Ideals and notions, beliefs and concepts. It all depends on the person.
“I’ve found mine.”
I wrap my arms around her waist, drawing her against my chest. She tilts her head, resting it against my shoulder. I press my mouth to her neck, right over the pulse, and bite gently.
“You guys are disgusting,” Park states, one hand on his hip, the other clutching his bottle of water. “Are Lucy and I that bad?”
“Yes,” Guy and I say in unison.
“I appreciate you both helping to move Annie’s massive amount of shit,” I continue before Park can defend himself. “But now I’d like to do unspeakable things to her, so please get the hell out.”
“Dude,” Guy groans. “What have I told you about saying shit like that about my sister?”
Annie grins at him, no doubt because his use of “sister.” Little distinction, but meaningful.
“I’ll start spouting details if you don’t leave,” I threaten.
“Going,” Park says, holding up his hands in defense.
Guy opens the door and glances over his shoulder. “You knock my sister up, be prepared for an ass beating.”
I chuckle, rubbing my chin. “Do you want to discuss our birth control methods?”
“Not even a little.” He pries several envelopes from the mailbox and tosses them at me. “Be safe.”
The door closes and I scoop up the mail. As soon as I straighten, Annie attacks. She launches herself at me, causing us to fall onto the couch. The envelopes fall out of my hands, scattering across the seat. I push her back, laying her over them as I kiss her.
She grabs the hem of my shirt, lifting it quickly over my head. I nuzzle into her neck and she shivers.
“Cold?”
She shakes her head and I grin.
“Then you won’t mind if I remove this?” I tug on her shirt.
“Not at all.”
Without hesitation, I pull it off and drop it over the side of the couch. Annie’s eyes follow it to the floor, but she doesn’t comment even though I know she’s dying to tell me to pick it up. Undoubtedly, she’ll do that later.
The rest of our clothes follow quickly, falling to the floor, or being flung across the room. She pulls me back down and I sink into her.
There was a while when I wasn’t sure we’d get back here—to this relaxed and happy state. Loden moving across the country has helped tremendously, though. Faced with four eyewitness accounts and an attempted murder charge, he plea-bargained out, pleading guilty to a lesser assault charge. His lawyer was able to make a deal, exchanging his prison sentence with five years probation, enrollment in an anger management program, and treatment in a drug and alcohol recovery center in California. He’s not allowed within five hundred feet of Annie either.
It’s not what we had hoped for, but I’m just glad he’s gone. Maybe, just maybe, he can get the help he needs. I bought her a can of pepper spray to carry and we signed up to take self-defense classes together, just in case he doesn’t.
It’s always good to plan ahead. I think it’s time for me to be more responsible. What can I say? Annie’s rubbing off on me. No, literally, the girl is insatiable.
I roll us, sending us unceremoniously to the floor where we continue to make love. She grips me tightly, shuddering against my body and I kiss her forehead as I still. We stay this way until our breathing calms, wrapped around each other, arms and legs tangled.
“What do you want to do today?” I ask, my nose skimming her neck.
“Do you work today?”
I shake my head. My new job, which is full-time and holds a lot of responsibility, as well as fulfills a college requirement for my summer course, gave me the day off to get Annie settled. I actually love working at the small instrument store, helping people make music, but my favorite part is giving bass lessons. Who knew someone would pay me to do what I love and it’d open a door for my future?
“Well, then we’re doing it.”
“This is it?” I raise my head so I can read her expression. “No unpacking?”
She shrugs. “The boxes aren’t going anywhere.”
I grin, my fingers caressing her cheeks, and brushing her hair out of her face. “Can we eat?”
“We better,” she agrees. “Need to replenish our energy so we can do this again.”
“I love you living with me,” I say, my words serious, but my tone playful.
“I kind of like it, too.” She sits up and yanks the throw blanket off the back of the couch, dragging the forgotten mail with it.
She holds up an envelope so I can see it and I smile. “You’re first piece of mail,” I say. My eyes flick up to hers, gazing at me intently. “I like your name next to mine. It looks good.”
“It does,” she agrees.
She works her finger under a loose corner and rips the top, opening it quickly. And then grins as she flips it around.
It’s a Save the Date for Hope and Mason’s wedding.
“Hm,” I muse. “Theirs is before ours.” Shrugging, I tug her down to kiss her softly. “But ours is going to be better.”
“Of course it will,” she says, placating me, which makes me smile. “We’ll kick their wedding’s ass.”
“Damn straight. It’s going to be the best wedding ever.”
“What song will we dance to?”
“Get your iPod.” She complies, digging in her purse and coming back quickly. “Lovesong, by The Cure.”
“Oh, I love that song.”
“Think it’s a good one for our first dance?”
She presses her palm, warm and soft, to my cheek, running her thumb over my chin. “It’s perfect.”
The End
*Turn the page for bonus scene, The Proposal.
The Proposal
Annie
I wake up with the sun shining in my face. I always forget to shut the blinds when I stay here. I smile, remembering why I always forget. Chase is very distracting.
Like right now, his hand is resting on my hip, his thumb making small circles on my skin. I wonder how long he’s been awake. I shift, turning my head so I can look at him. I’m not wearing any make-up, but it doesn’t stop him from brushing the hair out of my face and smiling at me like there’s nothing else in the world he’d rather look at.
I blink slowly, relishing in the butterflies he still stirs inside. Only he can do this to me with just a look and a smile.
“Morning,” he rasps, his voice thick with sleep.
“Good morning.”
“Move in with me.”
I laugh because that came out of nowhere, but he continues before I can reply.
“You practically live here anyway. You’re here every night. You have clothes in my closet, drawers in my dresser, all your girly face crap in my bathroom. Move the rest of your shit in and make it official. Please.”
Wow. That seemed really thought out. Planned. He had his argument ready, just waiting for me to wake up to pounce. And he didn’t
need any of it. I’m more than willing to move in. Like he said, I practically live here anyway.
I stretch my arms over my head, elongating my legs, and drawing out my answer just to mess with him.
He isn’t having it. His fingers, still on my hip, squeeze before he begins tickling me relentlessly. I squeal and jerk out of his attack.
“Okay. Okay. I’ll move in with you. You’ve tortured me into compliance.”
He pulls me back, dragging me across the bed until I’m tucked into his side. He leans on his elbow, peering down at my face. “Really?”
“Yes,” I say breathlessly.
He kisses me, smiling against my lips. “I knew you couldn’t resist me.”
I don’t even argue. It’s true. I can’t resist him. But I do have to pee. I wiggle out of his arms and hurry to the bathroom before he can tickle me again.
As I’m washing my hands, I notice a post-it stuck to the mirror. One of mine. There’s one word written in Chase’s messy scrawl: Me.
I tip my head to the side as I stare at it. Then I look past it to my reflection. Weird. Plucking it off, I turn to the door and find another post-it at eye level. One word: You.
I tug that one down and open the door, letting both notes stick to my fingers.
Me. You.
Huh.
“What are these?” I ask, raising my hand to show Chase, still lying across the bed. He shrugs, rolling to face the wall as he yanks the blanket up to his chin.
“Come back to bed. It’s still early.”
I glance at the clock, my brows rising. “It’s almost eight.”
“Exactly. It’s Saturday. Anything before ten is early on the weekend.”
I sigh. I have nothing else I’d rather be doing than lying in bed with him. I drop the papers to the nightstand and climb under the blanket, tucking my feet in between his legs. He chuckles, twisting to wrap his body around mine. His nose presses into my neck, his breath caressing my skin. I shiver, but I’m not cold.
I’m getting ready to crawl on top of him when I notice another post-it fixed to the headboard. Again, just one word: Will.
I peel it off and add it to the others on the stand. Seeing all three of them side by side has me sitting straight up.
Will. You. Me.
I look over my shoulder at Chase, but his eyes are closed, his breathing heavy. I let my gaze move over the room, searching every surface. My eyes land on a bright pink post-it on the fridge and my stomach pulls tightly as I stand up. My legs are unsteady as I make my way past the couch.
This can’t be what I think it is.
Can it?
I flick my fingers nervously, the other post-it notes crinkling in my hand as I stop in front of the ancient refrigerator.
Tears blur the one word written there: Marry.
With shaking fingers, I tug the tiny square, and lay them all across the counter.
Will. You. Marry. Me.
The first time I told Chase I loved him was on a post-it just like these.
My hand covers my lips as I turn. Chase is behind me and the unsure expression on his face makes me smile and cry at the same time. He lifts his hand, opening his palm to reveal a small diamond engagement ring.
It’s perfect. The whole thing is absolutely perfect. I never would have thought scraps of paper could be so romantic, but he once again proves me wrong.
Lowering himself to kneel in front of me, Chase takes my left hand. He keeps it simple. Sweet. And completely Chase.
“I’ve loved you for so long, Annie. Will you marry me?”
I nod, unable to speak.
“You can answer in a post-it if it’s easier, but I’d really like to hear you say it out loud.”
I bark out a laugh and then tug him onto his feet. “Yes, Chase. Yes.”
I’m waiting for a smartass comment, but it never comes. Instead, his eyes fill with unshed tears as he angles my head and brings his lips to mine, kissing me.
Acknowledgements
This is always the hardest part of a book to write for me. There is always so many people that need to be thanked, who can’t be thanked enough, and who I don’t have enough words to thank properly. But I’m going to try.
First and foremost I need to thank my family. I have a very large, extended family. Some are blood, most are not. But I love you all and appreciate your love and support so much. I’m not going to list you all by name—you know who you are. Muah. I love you guys!
I say this in every book and I will continue to say it—thank you to my big sister, Dawn. You’re not only my noisiest cheerleader, but an amazing editor. I love you. You’re the best. I never could have (or would have) made this journey without you.
As always, a big thank you to my Wonder Woman agent, Rebecca Friedman. You’re still doing a lot of handholding, but I like to think I’m getting better at this whole writing thing—whether it’s true or not.
To all my favorite author besties. Beth Michele, Casey Ford, Sunniva Dee, and L.M. Augustine. Sometimes it’s a long drawn-out email or a quick tweet, but you guys are always there when I need you. Whether it’s advice, answering one of my many questions, or just saying a quick hello, I always love hearing from you. There’s no thank you big enough. You guys rock. XO
An acknowledgments page cannot be complete without a thank you to the bloggers. I have met so many great people and made some awesome friends visiting book blogs. I need to mention a few by name. I’m sorry, but it has to be done. Holly from Holly’s Hot Reads—my UK princess. Your support has meant the world to me. You taught me, amongst many other authors, about digital autographs. And your encouraging messages never fail to make me smile. Lisa from Three Chicks and Their Books. I’ll never forget that first message I received from you. You had read Sometimes Never and wanted to feature it on the blog. I was brand new to this world and didn’t even know what that meant, but you were so sweet and patient with me. You’ve been there ever since and I can’t thank you enough for all your help and kind words. Ashley from Smardy Pants Book Blog. You’ve been there from the very beginning and I love you for it. From blog tours, to ARCs, to amazing reviews—you’ve been there. Thank you so much for being so incredibly supportive. Holly from I Love Indie Books. I came to you like a week prior to Before Now releasing and you threw together one of the best blog tours I’ve had. You’re amazing! I always love to hear from you and was ecstatic when I saw you joined Romance Academy.
A special thank you goes out to Ellie from Love N Books. For those of you who don’t know the story… I happened upon a picture of a certain gorgeous model, Brandyn Farrell, and put him on the cover of Before Now. Brandyn happened to be friends with Ellie. And Ellie happened to be on my blog tour. We hit it off instantly. There’s this whole other side story about Vegas, books, Brandyn, and posters, and how Ellie brought all those things together, but I’ll save that story for another book. Anyway, Ellie and I were talking and I asked if she had any other hot model friends for my Long After cover. Blah, blah, blah, long story short, after reviewing several models (hey, it’s hard work, but somebody has to do it) Ellie came back with: “What about Richard Rocco?” Ellie, my dear, that was the best question ever! And so I thank you for not only being one of the coolest chicks in the world, but for all your help promoting my books and for finding my Chase. Get ready because I’ll be working on Kellin and Misty’s book next. ;)
I have one more thank you, and that’s to you, the readers. Thank you for taking a chance on me and picking up my books. You guys changed my life. You will never know just how much that means to me. I am so lucky because I get to do something I love every single day. I love you all! XOXO
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Long After Page 26
