Whiskey and Country

EPILOGUE

NICHOLAS

Three years later

“Dah, are you sure it’s supposed to look like this?” I asked, trying to block the smell by breathing through the fabric of my long-sleeved dark gray sweater. “This is disgusting.”

My wife traipsed our way with a warm grin plastered on her face. “Don’t worry. It’ll be gross for a while.” She neared us. “But you’re doing great. Look at her smile. She only has eyes for her daddy.”

“Yeah, I suppose it’s worth every diaper,” I said with a wink.

I leaned forward and kissed Violet’s chubby cheek. She looked at me with her big golden eyes as if she’d never seen something so amazing, and my heart flip-flopped in my chest. Our daughter looked like a tiny replica of Dahlia with her fiery hair and porcelain skin, but with my honey-colored, or whiskey-colored, eyes as Dahlia called them.

Violet babbled as I picked her up and brushed her soft baby hair with my fingers. “Are you coming to the park with Daddy and Jack?”

She smiled, and I took it as a “Yes, Daddy, please. I wanna play too.”

I grabbed the knitted blanket Barb had gifted me all those years ago and wrapped it around my daughter, exiting her room.

“Hey son, get your mitt ready. We’re leaving in five,” I said as I knocked on Jack’s bedroom door.

“Come in, Daddy. I’m almost ready.” I opened the door and peeked inside. Royal-blue walls, white trims and ceiling. Carter Hills’s album covers, enlarged and framed were next to Derek’s signed jersey, above his bed. A large picture of his daddy, Jeff, Carter’s brother, the one Jack never got to know, was set on the opposite wall. Next to it was another one of Dahlia with the Hills brothers when they were teenagers on prom night. Jack’s guitar, the one Carter gifted him on his birthday, stood in a corner, next to a giant hippopotamus Jeff got for him before he was born and Jack-The-Bear, the stuffed animal that used to belong to his dad when he was a kid. And Rex, the dinosaur, probably hiding in its usual spot under his pillow.

On his chest of drawers, painted white, was a picture of us, he and I, the day when we went hiking to see the waterfall and another one when he was three and became my son in all the ways that mattered, the day his Mama and I got married. There was a third one of our entire family after Violet was born.

It was a beautiful collage of everyone who cared for the boy.

Jack had more parent figures at his young age than most people had in their entire life.

I helped him fix his baseball shirt and held out my hand for him to take.

Baseball was something we bonded over. During the summer months, I was the assistant coach to his Little League team, the Black Bears.

“Is Mama coming?” my son asked.

“Not today. She has to go to the store for a few hours. Violet will come with us, though.”

“Cool.”

My heart beat faster.

I had everything I’d ever wished for.

Who knew I would find it in the middle of Green Mountain, Tennessee?

I watched my kids, my heart full, still grateful to Derek for pushing me to leave my life in Chicago and go on this journey. To this day, I kept his bucket list tucked in my drawer, alongside the last letter he wrote to me and Kelly’s card with the pancake recipe. Once in a while, I read them, remembering how lucky I was. And all the progress I’d made since I chose to turn my life around and start afresh. Reminders of how far I’d come after my world had shattered.

“Can we take Spencer?” Jack asked. Spencer was our bloodhound puppy. Our newest family member. “If he stays here by himself, he’ll whine all day from his playpen.” As if he’d heard his name, the dog rushed to Jack’s legs, and the boy squatted to pat his head. “See, he really wants to come with us to the park.”

“Sure. Get his stuff and meet me in the car.”

My son pumped his fist. “See, Spencer, I told ya it would work,” I heard him whisper in his new best bestest friend’s ear as he used to say when he was a toddler. The memory of him and Buddy, inseparable, flashed through my mind. My lips turned upward. For some reason, it seemed like a lifetime ago. So many things had happened in our lives since.

I stepped outside, a giggling Violet in my arms who tugged at my ear.

My gaze lingered on the mailbox with the inscription, The Petersons, carved on the side. A moving-in-together gift Dahlia ordered from Stud the day we visited that lawyer and I found out she had put an offer on the house so that we could buy it together.

When we came back to our new home that afternoon, Greta and Brett had hung a Welcome Home sign over the front door, where they, along with Mike and a few guys from work, joined in to celebrate that life-changing event with us.

Dahlia met me after I buckled our daughter in her seat, cutting my trip down memory lane short. She kissed our baby’s chubby cheek and turned her attention to me.

“Next time, I’ll join you guys,” she said as she snaked her arms around me. “I’ll call you when I’m done. I’m having lunch with April later.” I pulled her against me and kissed her with all the love pouring out of my heart. My wife moaned in my mouth, and my body woke up.

My hand connected with her ass cheek, and she gasped.

“I promise to love you and take my sweet time tonight.”

Dahlia ground her hips against mine. “I can’t wait.”

She deepened the kiss for a long minute before letting go of me when Jack walked out of the house, the puppy on a leash.

“Have fun with your friend. Tell her I’ll give Carter pointers on how to get that baby out of her if she wants. Lessons, free of charge.” I winked, and Dahlia kissed me again.

“Is he meeting you there?” she asked.

“Yep. Can you believe it took us years to get there?”

Dahlia’s grin widened. “April is good for him. He’s happy now. We all are. It was about time we chased that storm away and we found our place in this world.”

“I agree. And you were right. All this time. Carter and I, we’re good. Derek would be ecstatic.”

“Derek would be proud of you. And I’m sure he is. From wherever he’s watching over you.” Yeah, that cloud. A wrinkle crossed Dahlia’s forehead. “Have you heard about Tuck lately?”

I thought for a second. “No. Why?”

Dahlia shrugged. “I don’t know. A feeling. The last time I talked to them was almost a month ago. When they’re distant for a while, it is usually an unmistakable sign they did something wild. You know, like the last time we were vacationing together without the kids. We should invite them over. To make sure they’re okay. And it could be fun. I miss our friends.”

“Don’t worry. I’m sure they are fine. They have so much on their plate. We’d be overwhelmed if we were in their shoes. Anyway, I’ll call him later. I’m sure he won’t refuse a weekend in the mountains. Fresh air. And some much-needed help. Anyway, we’re scheduled to taste Whiskey and Country for the first time two weekends from now. They could come to town early. Spend a few days here beforehand. With us. And the kids.”

Dahlia clapped her hand. “I like how you think. I can’t wait for all our friends to join us. We’ve been waiting three years for this moment. Riley, June, Stud, and Belle are coming to town soon and will be staying the week at one of Cart’s cabins.”

We exchanged a grin.

“Till today, that private label is still my favorite Christmas present.” I kissed her lips. “About Tuck, don’t worry. Let me deal with it, okay?”

Dahlia nodded, pressing her body against mine.

“Is Jace coming too? For the tasting?”

I sighed and shook my head. “Nah. Not that I know of. It’s like the wedding all over again.”

“I’m sorry,” Dahlia said.

“It’s fine. I could’ve bet he’d be a no-show. But he might surprise us. Let’s hope.”

“We could visit him next month. We haven’t been to Chicago in a long time.”

“Dahlia, I love you. For real. And a whole lot more,” I said. “I’d like that. Thank you.”

“I love you more. Now go play with our kids, then I want you all for myself tonight.”

I kissed her cheek, adjusted the crotch of my pants, and climbed behind the wheel. My wife waved at us as I drove away.

I eyed the kids through the rearview mirror. Jack tickled a giggling Violet.

Every piece of my heart belonged here in Green Mountain with my family.

Now.

And forever.

Thank you for reading Nick and Dahlia’s story.