“I think they’re doing pictures soon,” I tell Denver.
“Noa told me they were taking an hour to themselves. I’m not sure Lea knew. He’s having the bar open inside, though. I figured we could go grab Aya for the reception. He told me the waiters will be dressed for that part.”
“Thank God,” I tell him. “That sounds like a good plan.”
“Come here for a second, though. Did you see what was across the street? I hadn’t looked before last week, but I saw a weird reflection, and I needed to see what it was.”
“Isn’t it just water?” I ask him.
“No, it’s not.”
“Oh.” I guess I hadn’t looked past the grassy area. Denver takes my hand, and we scurry across the street to the other side. I’ve spent the last six months trying to show Denver every inch of Maui, but he’s determined to find places I don’t know about. He hasn’t managed to yet, but I’m not giving up hope in him.
We get to the other side and walk up to the cliff’s edge—a drop-off I didn’t know was here. I actually had no idea how high up we were.
“Look down there,” Denver points.
There’s a sandbar in between a mess of rocks, and there’s writing in the sand.
“Kai—” Denver says softly.
I’m still looking at the words.
The question mark.
The etched heart.
“I didn’t think I’d ever find someone who shared my interests, beliefs, desires, and sense of humor. I didn’t think I’d find you. I was ready to spend my life as a single parent, knowing it was my one job on earth ... kind of like you. We both love others more than we love ourselves, and I think that’s what made me realize we are meant for each other.”
I finally turn my head to face Denver, who’s on his knee, holding a small suede box open with a gorgeous diamond ring lying on top of a white hibiscus flower.
“Do you remember that day you were in Oahu, passing by a stand on the boardwalk, and a man in uniform asked you if you had an interest in joining the Marine Corps?”
“How did you know …” I ask, startled to be reminded of that day, and the fact that he somehow knows. “I do. I ... I said—”
“If I wanted to go dig holes in the sand, I’d go to the beach,” Denver repeats the rude response I offered the poor recruiter on a really crappy day I was having.
“How do you know that?”
“It was me. I took down your name and your fake phone number but kept it in my wallet to remind me of the day I heard the funniest damn response to the same question I had asked people four hundred times a day.”
Denver pulls a piece of paper out of his pocket. It’s torn and on notebook paper. It says:
Kai Lana / 222-222-8008.
Maybe another time …
Thanks for the chat.
“I gave you my boob number.” That was what I did when men asked for my number, no matter what the reason was.
“You did, and I think I spent the next few hours laughing after you left. I didn’t recognize you at first, but the day Noa introduced you, I couldn’t get your name out of my head. I couldn’t figure out why until the middle of that night when I woke up out of a dead sleep to go find that piece of paper I kept stuffed in my wallet for a good laugh when I needed it.”
“That was you?” I ask, forgetting all the rest.
“I think we were meant to be together. I’ve been thinking that since the night I found that paper.”
“I was supposed to visit a friend for a weekend in Oahu, and she never showed at the port, so I spent the day wandering around the island. I had no other reason to be there,” I tell him.
“Me. I was your reason.”
“I think so,” I agree.
“Will you marry me, Kai? Will you take Aya into your life and form a family with me? I love you. I love you so damn much it hurts to be away from you when we aren’t together. I love you so much that my heart pounds when I see you kiss Aya on the cheek and hug her after she’s been crying. I love you so much for filling a role in her life so seamlessly. I love you for filling the empty space in my heart.
“Normally, I wouldn’t think of stealing anyone else’s thunder on their wedding day, nor do I intend for us to announce anything today if you were to say yes, but I know how much it hurts for you to give up your self-made purpose in life of caring for another person, ensuring their safety and happiness, and I want you to know that we need you for that same exact reason. You’re wanted by us so badly, and we want to be that for you too.”
The tears, that have remained dormant for more than ten years before today, slip down my cheeks one by one, as I’m mesmerized by Denver’s understanding of my life’s desires to ensure the happiness of others. I don’t need to consider this answer. There is no question in my mind that this is what’s right for me.
“I want to marry you, and I want Aya in my life more than I’ve wanted anything else before.”
Denver takes my hand and kisses my ring finger. Tonight, after the reception, I’ll put the ring on your finger. I know you want today to be about Lea.”
His sentiment makes me tear up again, and his understanding of every little thing that matters to me means everything. “I love you so much, Denver. So much.”
Denver removes the flower from the ring box before closing it back up and slipping it into his pocket. His smile is for me. He’s beaming, and I feel the same way inside. “Here,” he says, tucking the white flower gently behind my ear as he has done so many times before today. “You know what this white flower means until that ring is on your finger tonight. After I put that ring on your finger, I can finally let the world know you belong to me.”
“You’re a dream—a beautiful, wonderful, perfect dream, especially after all the dreamless nights I’ve lived through.”
Denver cups my face within his hands and kisses me hard, stealing my breath, leaving me weightless in the soft breeze of warm air. “If this is a dream, then I can’t wait to see what happens when I go to sleep tonight,” he mutters against my lips.
“Let’s go get our girl,” I tell him. “Does she know?”
“No, I wanted you to tell her,” Denver says. “Her only wish has been for you to be a part of her life, and I want to watch her wish come true.”
“Thank you,” I tell him.
“I did ask Lea, by the way. She doesn’t know I couldn’t wait past today, but she knows it’s coming.”
“You asked her?” I choke out.
“You think you’ve been taking care of her all these years, but for some reason, I don’t think you realize how much you’ve needed her too. She worries about you more than you think. I’ve had many talks with her, and God, that girl just wants you to be happy, Kai. She told me she would pay me to take you.”
“What?” My heart stops for a brief moment.
“I’m kidding. Well, she was kidding. She screamed so loud, I thought my ear drum burst. She’s all for us, without a doubt.”
“She’s wanted me to find someone since I was eighteen.”
“I’m glad you waited,” he tells me.
“I knew there was a reason. I just never realized I was meant to be with Wonder Buns.”
“Hey now. Easy. I’m only formally known as Wonder Buns to you.”
“Sorry, Sergeant Wonder Beach Buns.”
Epilogue Part one
DENVER
I don’t know why I’m shaking as we walk into the house to relieve Aya’s babysitter, but my excitement is overwhelming, knowing not only have I gotten my wish, but she’s about to get hers too.
“We’re back. Are you ready to get your dance on, kiddo?” I shout from the front door.
Aya runs down the stairs a mile a minute, followed by Mary, our neighbor and babysitter.
“She’s just a little excited,” Mary says, shaking her head with laughter.
“You look beautiful,” Kai tells Aya.
“So do you,” she says.
“I have something
for you. I think it will go with your dress perfectly.” Hearing this surprises me because I didn’t know Kai had anything to give Aya today.
“You do?” Aya asks, jumping up and down.
“Come here.”
“I’ll see you kids later,” Mary says after I hand her a pre-written check.
“Thanks, Mary!” I say as she leaves.
My focus is drawn to the center of the room where I watch Kai slip down to her knees. She reaches around her neck and unclasps the necklace she’s wearing.
“This was my mom’s. These shells are curled into each other tightly to hold onto wishes. They can only take them in because they’re too tight to let them back out. So, when you make a wish, it stays put, resting against your heart until it comes true. The shells can hold as many wishes as you like, and they’ll be kept safe.”
“Really?” Aya says, enamored by Kai’s explanation.
“I want you to have this necklace, Aya.”
“But it’s your mom’s? I don’t want to take that from you,” Aya tells her.
Isla left Aya with nothing, yet somehow, she knows the importance of keepsakes. I don’t know how I managed to instill that type of understanding into such a fragile mind.
“What would you think if I told you your Dad and I are going to get married, and I’m going to become your stepmom?”
My throat swells with a knot I’m trying to keep down, but my heart is fucking hurting like hell right now while watching the look on Aya’s innocent face.
“You want to be my stepmom?” she asks through tears.
“I want to be everything I can be for you and more, Aya. I love you so much I can’t stand the thought of not being with you every day.” She stole my words, but I can hear how much she means them.
Aya covers her face, crying harder than I’ve heard her cry in so long, and it breaks me. It shatters me. It makes me well up because Aya is my life. Her pain and sadness have been almost unbearable throughout the last couple of years. Now, although these tears she’s shedding are happy tears, it’s overwhelming to see her experience this emotion too because it has been so infrequent. Despite how hard I’ve tried to shield her from the horror she’s faced at such a young age, there’s no way to undo the hole that was burned into her life. However, now I see a chance to give her more, fulfill her with something she’s yearned for—something no little girl should be without. I never thought there would be one person to fix both of our hearts, but I was wrong. She exists, and she loves us as much as we love her.
Kai places the necklace on Aya’s neck and holds her against her chest. “Shh, don’t cry.” She runs her fingers through Aya’s curls, smiling lovingly. “Aya, can I spend my life with you?”
“Can I call you Mom?”
Kai looks over her shoulder at me, unsure what to say. “She can,” Kai mouths to me. “It’s up to you.”
I nod in agreement, thinking it’s more than okay.
“Yes, you can,” Kai tells Aya. “If that’s what makes you comfortable, I would be honored to fill the role in your life.”
I can’t hold myself back any longer. I drop down beside them and pull both of my girls into me, feeling as complete as I think I’ll ever feel. “We’re going to be a family, baby.”
“My wish is finally coming true,” Aya says. “It’s all I’ve wanted.”
“Me too,” Kai and I say at the same time.
“When do you get to move in with us?” Aya asks.
Kai looks at me in silence for a moment. “I’m ready to sell my parents’ house. I’ve come to realize it’s not the house that holds the memories, it’s my heart. I want to build on those memories, and I can’t do it there.”
“Are you sure?” I ask her, not wanting to force her into anything she doesn’t want to do, especially with that house.
“It’s been on my mind for a while. I’m ready to leave the nest.”
“We’ll take you,” Aya says.
“You can build a new nest here,” I tell her.
“Oh, don’t you worry, there are plenty of things I can do here to make it a little less of a man cave,” she says with a wink.
Oh God. My house is going to be pink and purple by the end of next week.
“Thank goodness,” Aya says. “The first thing to go is that stupid football picture.”
“Hey!” I snap.
“Dad, seriously? Put it in the basement or something.”
“What just happened?” I ask.
“You just got outnumbered,” Aya says with a raised brow as she gives Kai a high five.
I’ll take that, along with getting everything I wanted.
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Man Buns Page 20
