The Last Thing She Wants (Chestnut Hills #1)

Epilogue

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A scream came from across the hall. I dropped the small shot glass in my hand and rushed towards the sound.

“Dude, careful!” Jake called after me. “This is the shot glass we got to commemorate our trip to Busch Gardens.” Penny laughed as he carefully wrapped it in bubble wrap and placed it in the box labeled KITCHEN while she emptied a junk drawer.

Relief washed over me as I took in Ellie and Mrs. Hudson, packing Ellie’s array of coats. Daisy emerged from my girlfriend’s soon-to-be-old-bedroom holding a whip.

“Ellie, you closet freak!” Daisy screeched, reaching new decibels. Running over, Ellie snatched it from Daisy, but not before she got a good whack on her ass.

“Hey, that’s reserved for me,” I joked.

Jake and Penny filtered in behind me. “Nice,” Jake laughed, garnering him a slap on the arm from Penny .

Ellie shyly hid the whip behind her back and sidestepped to the stack of boxes along the back wall. Her face shined a bright shade of pink as she tried, and failed, to covertly pack it away.

“No need to be shy, dear,” Mrs. Hudson said at my side. “You should see the collection Pat and I have.”

I laughed loudly at the dramatic drop of Ellie’s jaw.

“Whoa, it’s a party in here,” a new voice called.

Daisy poked Ellie’s side and talked out the side of her mouth. “What is Reid doing here?”

“What the hell is going on with you two?” Ellie asked in exasperation. She’d been suspicious of their behavior for weeks and felt that Daisy was hiding something from her. Daisy’s comment now seemed to frustrate her.

“Nothing,” they said is unison.

“We’re moving two apartments into one across town. We need all the help we can get,” I said proudly, putting my arm around Ellie.

It turned out the lease renewal thing really was a rouse. My lease wasn’t up for another two months. Though Ellie made light of my moving in joke the day we said we loved each other, she was quick to agree when I asked her again. Now, we were on our way to cohabitation in a new apartment—a new beginning.

It’d only been two months since we’d said we loved each other, but two months was all I needed to know there was no one else, and would be no one else, for me.

We managed to pack both apartments and load our moving truck before midnight, and that was enough for me. We sat on the floor of our new and empty apartment on top of a mattress we managed to wiggle out of the truck.

“Cheers, baby,” I offered, holding up my fortune cookie in a mocking cheer .

“Cheers.” Ellie raised her fortune cookie and tapped it against mine. Breaking her cookie open, she unfolded the little paper inside. “Sometimes the last thing you want is the first thing you need,” she read aloud. “Huh, fitting. What does yours say?”

Unfolding my fortune, I read aloud. “Will you marry me?”

“It does not say that!” she laughed, snagging the paper from me. “A new romance is in the future,” she read with a gasp. “It sure as hell better not be!”

Crumbling the bit of paper and tossing it aside, she refocused her attention on me. Having quickly moved to a kneeling position, I held an opened velvet box in my hands.

“Ellie Charlene Branson. From the moment I laid eyes on you, I knew you were special. Since then, I’ve been lucky enough to learn all the reasons why. You are strong, smart, kind, and a kick-ass singer. I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life as I am about loving you. Will you marry me?”

“Yes,” Ellie let out a soft sob. Putting her handout to accept the ring, she watched behind tear-filled eyes as I placed the ring on her finger.

The next morning, we woke on the mattress on the floor. Contrasting the empty apartment, my heart was full. Pulling her in close, I wrapped my arms around her and burying my face in her hair. Through cracked eyelids, I watched her snap a photo of her ring clad hand and text it in a group chat. Pride swelled in my chest seeing the ring on her finger, knowing she was now forever mine.

Ellie

Wedding season, bitches!

Daisy

WHAT THE FUCK. CALL ME NOW .

Thalia

Welcome to the family, sis

Missed FaceTime Call from Daisy

Daisy

PICK UP DAMNNIT!

Penny

Yes! I’ve been waiting for this text!