Southern Playboy (North Carolina Highlands 4)

“Hmm.”

He laughs. Sniffles. “And second, that actions really do speak louder than words. I said some really stupid shit, and I’m—Jesus, A, I’m so sorry about that. But I hope you can see that at the end of the day, I make my family a priority. Y’all will always come first, and I’m here to prove it to you. I’m done acting a fool. It’s obvious my drinking is a problem, and I’m going to try to stop.”

My heart skips a beat. “For real?”

“I made an appointment with my therapist this afternoon to talk about my anger and my drinking. I don’t know where to begin, but I figure that’s a good place to start. I can’t promise perfection, but I am gonna try my hardest, honey. Won’t be easy—”

“And that’s okay.”

“And that’s why I love you. Are you still willing to come to Vegas with us? For the season? Because I want you to marry me, Jabba.”

It’s my turn to laugh. Tears spill out of my eyes left and right, soaking my hospital gown. Rhett reaches up and wipes them away with his thumb, his touch gentle. Familiar.

His blue eyes are so earnest it almost hurts to look at them.

“This is quite the turn of events, Vader.”

“Hey, you were the one who told me to chase the wild, right? So let me do something wild. I don’t have a ring, but I have this.” He pulls a small children’s book—blue cover, cardboard—out of his back pocket. He clears his throat again. Starts to sing to the tune of “Mary Had a Little Lamb.” “Amelia has a little band, little band, little band, Amelia has a little band, it’s made up of Rhett and Li-am. Please would you consider marrying us, marrying us, marrying us? Please would you consider boning Rhett, let’smakedirtymusictogetherfor-e-ver.”

I’m laughing, and I’m crying, and I can’t believe this is his proposal. “That was terrible!”

His shoulders shake as he laughs too. “I know. Sorry. Best I could come up with on short notice. But A for effort, right?”

“Right,” I say, wiping away a tear. Joy? Sorrow? Both?

“I also have this.” His phone magically appears, and he pulls up a blurry image that appears to be a bunch of trees on the side of a mountain. “Can you see it?”

“What is it?”

“It’s a piece of land on the far side of Blue Mountain. Closer to Rose’s—not by much, but enough to count. Thought you and I could draw up our dream house while we’re in Vegas, one that’s a little more family-friendly than mine. Get to building it so we can hopefully move in when we’re back in Asheville next year.” His gaze moves over my face. “Let’s set down roots here, honey. Starting right now. Let’s make our own family—you, me, and Liam. Well, for starters, at least. I want him to call you Mama. I want him to be your son too.”

Looking at Rhett, I feel full to bursting. He’s doing it.

He’s offering me the family I’ve dreamed about for years. Our family. Our happiness.

Without thinking, I fling my arms around his neck. My IV stings, and my stomach protests, but I don’t care. I hold him to me fiercely, tears falling left and right, smiling harder than I’ve ever smiled in my life.

“Yes,” I breathe. “Yes, I’ll set down roots with you, Rhett Beauregard. I’ll come to Vegas, and I’ll marry you.”

“Amelia Fox, you got yourself a deal.”

“And a douche canoe with a really cute kid, apparently.”

He laughs loud enough for the whole floor to hear, and I revel in the joy of that sound. “I’m not perfect. But I’ll try my best to make sure that douche canoe never shows up again.”

“Good.”

A nurse pokes her head into the room. “Everything all right here?”

“Yeah,” I say on a sob.

Rhett raises his head to look at her. “We just got engaged.”

The nurse smiles. “Congratulations, y’all! But save the celebrating for when she’s recovered, all right?”

“Done,” Rhett says. “Also, I’m really sorry about the cussing.”

She waves him away. “We’ve heard worse. Here, I’ll close the door, but no funny business.”

“Now that is a promise I’m not gonna make,” Rhett says.

“Thank God for that,” I murmur into his neck. “I’ve missed you. So much.”

He runs a hand over my back. “I’m gonna make sure you never miss me again, honey. Now, how about we chase a little wild?”

And we do, if you count a session of gentle making out in a hospital bed “wild.”

Wild has never felt so damn wonderful.

* * *

THE END

Epilogue

Rhett

I wake up fresh as a fucking daisy. One of the many benefits of sobriety.

Has quitting booze been easy? Hell no. But with the help of a therapist, a sponsor, and my family, I’m doing it, one long fucking day at a time.

It’s early. The desert sun that streams through the windows above the bed is thin. Pink.