Rich and Bossy (Rich Boys)

Epilogue

HAZEL

“Finally. What took you so long?”

Paxton takes beers from the carrier John is holding when he joins us in our seats. It’s not the corporate box this time around, but we’re only five rows back from the fifty-yard line. “I thought we were going to have to send a search party for you.”

John grumbles, giving Paxton a hard stare. “Strangely enough, the stadium is sold out, and yet nobody decided to get in line for beers. It was the weirdest thing.” He looks right at me. “How do you stand him all the time?”

“It’s very difficult, all the time.”

It’s clear from Paxton’s grin he knows I’m kidding. I wouldn’t have things any other way, and I would hope that after what’s been the happiest year of my life, he would know it.

It’s hard to believe it’s been a year. Time has flown by, and there have been so many milestones in that year. My graduation back in May. The start of my master’s program. It’s challenging work, but I love it.

And it’s not the only challenging work I’ve got going on right now, either.

“I don’t know how you do it; have to go home with him after work.” John looks like he’s imagining the worst life possible. “Bad enough when I had to see him every day in the office.”

“As if you went to the office every day.” Paxton smirks.

“Yeah, because you were there.”

“Are you all done bickering so we can watch some football?” Paxton’s mom stares down at all of us.

“Yeah, we ready for football with Aunt Hazel!” Both boys climb onto my lap, and now I may have to go buy them everything at the gift shop.

“Hey, what about me?” Paxton glares at them. “I actually played football, you know?”

“Sure you did, Uncle Pax.” Brayden pats him on the shoulder.

John’s dying laughing, along with Poppy.

“You were only good on that field because I ran the perfect five yard slant route.” I stick my tongue out at him.

Paxton’s dad remains stoic as ever, just sitting there, but I know he secretly loves all this.

“Hey, we made it!”

My eyes go wide the second I hear the voice and I turn to Pax. “Huh?” Then I turn back. “Hi Mom! Hi Dad!” And do my best to make it look like I’m wearing a happy surprised face. Not that I don’t love my parents, but Mom can be a bit, annoying, at football games. She likes to talk a lot.

“Hey, sweetie!”

Really, though. I had no idea they were coming. Oh well, it is kind of nice to have everyone together.

“How you handling things without me?” Paxton smirks at John. “You know you can call, if you need expert advice.”

“Pfft!” John laughs. “That’s a good one.”

John is now CEO of Rapid after a major upheaval with the board. Once Paxton’s revelations came to light, the board members who weren’t directly involved with the union-busting tactics voted to remove the members who were. I’m sure it was all done to cover their asses, but they turned to John to help them save face after Paxton resigned.

I didn’t know John that well, but I’ve grown to love him. We’re kind of like best friends now. Best friends in the way we team up on Paxton to give him endless crap.

John is a good man. Paxton told me what he did when things got really bad, the lengths he went to, to try and protect Paxton, and the fact he asked about me when he found out about us. Cared more about that than what was happening to their company they founded. You cannot buy that kind of loyalty and integrity.

Man, he inherited a mess too. Pax said this challenge has really changed him even more for the better. Things were very rocky at the beginning, with volatile stock prices and big upheavals in management, but John stepped up and created a vision going forward.

So did the union vote. Hands down, that was one of the best days of my life. John has monthly meetings with all the union reps directly, and the stock price is just now back to even, but it’s back to being a company people are proud to work for. I couldn’t believe the amount of changes he was able to make in a year.

I’ve asked Paxton more than once if he misses running his company. He swears he doesn’t, that he’s much happier now than he ever was before. I don’t doubt his happiness—I even catch him whistling around the house sometimes, and John has confided in me over drinks that he would step aside in a heartbeat if Paxton ever wanted to go back, even offers him the job on occasion.

Paxton says he didn’t know how good life could be not working there. He has a seat on the board now, but that’s just a quarterly meeting. He consults with John and management from time to time, and I think that’s enough for him. He absolutely loves getting more time with his nephews.

Over time, I’ve come to understand him better than I did before. It was never about the money, it was just the challenge, to make things better, more efficient. To grow their business as big and as fast as possible. The money was always a result of the company’s growth, never the end goal. The one mistake he said they made was going public too early.

John settles in beside Paxton, while I sit on his other side, each one of us with a nephew in our lap, even though they’re more gigantic every day.

“I guess I should be grateful you have any time for me at all.” John laughs. “Surprised I even recognize you.”

Paxton laughs it off. “Saw you last month. You miss me that much, babe? Why you complaining? We’re at a football game.”

“Yeah, it is actual work running a non-profit.” I side eye John. “We can’t all delegate everything and kick our feet up on our desks.”

John nudges Paxton. “You turn her against me?” He glances over to me. “What’d he promise you to mouth off like this? I’ll double it.”

“You should know by now Hazel makes up her own mind about people. If she thinks you’re a lazy sack of shit, maybe you are.”

Brayden’s eyes go wide. “Uncle Pax, you say a bad word. Aunt Hazel, he say bad word.”

I widen my eyes right at Paxton, nodding. “Yes, he did, didn’t he?” I turn to Paxton. “And I was joking with him and you know that.”

Now I realize the two of them are laughing.

“You’re both the worst. I don’t even know why I agreed to come to this game with you two.” Secretly, I love it. I’ve learned this is how they show affection to each other, by giving each other crap constantly.

My phone buzzes with a text from Campbell which I read between downs. This game is moving extremely slow, a defensive battle, so I don’t mind the distraction with three minutes left in the half and the score tied at zip.

Paxton notices, nudging me. “What’s up?”

“Campbell wants to know if I can come out to New York City to give a talk.”

He gives me a knowing little smile. “That’s pretty cool.”

I smile back at him. “Absolutely, it’s insane.” Campbell Page, inviting me to give a talk at an event she’s organizing. I’ve become somewhat popular, after organizing the first warehouse at a Rapid, which now has fifty other unions in process.

The wildest thing is, with John as CEO now, and the board restructured to not give him any fits for the next decade, I’m not even really sure they need them. But it’s good long-term protection for the workers.

“Do you want to do it?”

“Even if I didn’t, I would. After everything she’s done for us, you know?” She and Penn have been invaluable allies throughout the process of organizing the nonprofit Paxton and I now run together.

Paxton’s experience has been invaluable too, since he can provide insight into how companies the size of Rapid are run, the best ways for workers to leverage their bargaining power. He also has a lot of financial assets that helped get us up and running, when he cashed out a lot of his Rapid shares after resigning.

Finally, halftime rolls around, and I get out of my seat before stretching.

“Where you going?” Paxton looks extremely frustrated when he asks this.

“Thought I might go to the bathroom, if it so pleases my master.” I bug my eyes at him. “Lines get long. I don’t want to miss any of the second half.”

John exchanges a look with him. “There’s some kind of big presentation going on. You’ll want to see it.”

Why are they being so weird? “I’m sure I can run up there and get back if I hurry now.”

Paxton looks toward the Jumbotron, then jerks his chin in that direction. “They’re about to start. It won’t take long.”

Obviously, this means something to him, so I’m willing to wait a little bit. I plop back into my seat with a shrug. “Okay, weirdos.”

What are they up to? It’s something.

A voice rings out over the PA system. “Ladies and gentlemen, we ask for your attention during this special presentation.” The Jumbotron goes dark—but then my face appears on it.

What?

What am I doing on the jumbotron in front of like seventy thousand people?

“What is happening here?” I glance around, wondering if anybody else thinks this is as bizarre as it seems to me. Everyone else around me seems to think it’s perfectly normal. I recognize the footage from the interview with Leslie. “What’d you do, Paxton Briggs?”

Another face replaces mine on the screen. Paxton’s, his nose red, his breath fogging up in the cold night air. “I love Hazel.”

Aww. I still remember that like it was yesterday. My eyes get a little watery as the footage jumps to me tearing off my microphone and running for the door. The whole thing is set to music.

I would ask what’s happening, but I can’t seem to find my voice. It’s enough to watch as still images begin playing on the screen. Me and Paxton on my graduation day. The two of us standing with my parents on the beach where we took them for vacation this past summer. There’s one of me standing in the kitchen with Paxton’s mom and sister, preparing a big family dinner, the twins pulling on my shirt to go play with them. There’s even one of them climbing on a frowning Paxton while I laugh myself sick in the background.

Words replace the pictures and video clips of us. I read them in a whisper. “This has been the greatest year of my life. Thank you, Hazel, for reminding me what matters most. Thank you for giving me the gift of loving you.”

I brush away a tear.

Now, a video of Paxton appears on the screen. “Hazel, would it be greedy to ask for one more gift? Look to your left.”

All of a sudden, it’s not images or words on the screen. It’s us, a live shot of me staring openmouthed at the Jumbotron. I turn to my left.

Paxton is already on one knee. The crowd goes completely quiet, the people closest to us recording with their phones. It feels like it’s all happening to somebody else, like I’m a spectator, too. Only it’s my hand Paxton is taking in his. My eyes he’s staring into.

“What?” I say it like I’m in awe that this is happening. I feel like I should’ve seen this coming, but I didn’t. I literally could only think about going to the bathroom two minutes ago. “Is this real?”

“It is.” He gives me that smirk of his, like I should know better. “I try to tell you every single day that I love you more than anything. That I’d do anything for you. When you gave me that second chance, on your porch, I promised myself I’d never hurt you again, that I’d love you fiercely, protect you, and I have spent every day since, trying to live up to that.”

I nod a little. “You have.”

“Good, because I want to make that promise to you for the rest of our lives. I want you to be my wife. Will you marry me, Hazel?”

I don’t even notice the ring. I barely register John recording all of this for us to watch later. For once even the boys are being still and smiling next to their mom.

I look right at Brayden and Brody. “You think I should?”

They both nod furiously.

“Did you just ask five-year-olds to make a life decision for you?” Paxton’s grinning at me from a knee.

I nod, smiling larger than I’ve ever smiled. “Yes.”

He smiles back. All I see is him. Paxton, the man I was never supposed to fall for, not in a million years. And still, I did. We might’ve had a rocky start, but it was meant to be. Life is funny like that.

I realize I’m still standing there, just beaming from ear to ear.

John clears his throat loud enough to be heard by everyone around us. “I think he’s waiting for an answer.”

I lean down, taking his face in my hands. “Yes. Of course I will marry you.”

At that, Paxton slides the ring on my finger, then pulls me to my feet and wraps me in a bear hug. Seventy thousand people lose their minds all around us. I never thought I’d be the type who enjoys a public proposal, but then I never imagined a man like this. I never really even imagined getting married until I met him. Now the whole world knows that we belong to each other.

I hold my hand out, looking at the ring. It’s a princess cut solitaire in a platinum setting. I love how modest it is too. He knew I wouldn’t want something gigantic and flashy, and it’s the perfect size. He knows me better than I know myself sometimes.

“I love you, you big idiot.” It’s all I manage to say before he crushes his lips against mine, but that’s fine. There are certain things that can’t be expressed in words, anyway.

He finally pulls back and says, “Yeah. I get that.”

Jerk. I laugh at his response, then he pulls me in close. “I love you too. You make me so damn happy, fiancée.”

Good, the feeling is mutual.

“Yeah, yeah, we’re all happy and love each other. Go to the bathroom, Hazel. You look like you’re about to be cool like Miles Davis.”

I start to laugh, but I can’t because I really do need to go to the bathroom. “Classic Billy Madiso n reference, don’t ever do it to me again.” I kiss Paxton on the forehead. “I’ll be right back. Promise.”

As I’m trying to get up the stairs, I hear someone yell behind me.

“She said yes, the future Hazel Briggs! And she’s already running away from me!”

I smack my forehead on the way up and don’t even bother looking back, even though I can hear John laughing it up at Paxton’s little joke.

What did I just get myself into?