“Me? Well, for starters, I regret not coming after you on prom night. I saw your note to your dad. I knew where you went. I could have driven down to the bus station and found you… But I didn’t. I let myself get angry. I let you go, and I’ve regretted it ever since. Now I know why.”
“I should have told you the truth,” I said. “I was scared, so I ran.”
“I guess all three of us are good at running,” he winked.
“I can’t believe you’re joking about all of this,” I said. He reached over and grabbed my hand, his warmth comforting me like a blanket.
“What else can I do? All we’ve got is now, Maisey. We can’t change the past, so why spend time being angry about it? And, I don’t know if you noticed, but it needs to be said - you’ve given me the greatest gift of my life, the most important gift I could ever receive. I’m proud to be Maddy’s father, she’s a wonderful kid. You’ve done a great job of raising her, Maisey,” he said, my heart melting in my chest at his words. “You should be proud of that. And you did it all alone, Maise. That’s amazing.”
“You’re amazing,” I said, smiling up at him. “I’m so lucky to have you in our lives, Jesse.”
“I’m the lucky one,” he said, leaning over to kiss me. His lips were so gentle, so warm, so loving, so fucking perfect that tears began streaming down my face.
“Why are you crying? You aren’t going to run away again, are you?”
Laughter bubbled up from under my tears, and I shook my head.
“No, Jesse, never again.”
“Good. Cause if you try it again, I’m gonna have to tackle you.”
Epilogue
MAISEY - SEVEN MONTHS LATER
“Oh, my God, I’m so excited, I’m gonna piss my pants!” Eddie cried, throwing his scarf over his shoulders.
“Eddie!” I tried to scold him, but I couldn’t stop laughing. Maddy jumped up and down at my side, and the three of us stood huddled on the sidelines in what was easily the most exciting moment of all of our lives.
Jesse had made it to the Superbowl and for the last several hours we’d been cheering them on as they played against Arizona in the Superdome in New Orleans. Jesse chartered a jet for the three of us and we’d been living it up in the Big Easy all weekend. The only sad part is that I didn’t get to spend much time with him over the last few days. He had to travel with the team and they were practicing and training every minute leading up to the game!
We’d all spent the last two weeks counting the days till we stepped on that plane, and we’d had the time of our lives. I couldn’t remember ever being this happy, and it amazed me that my crazy life could lead to this even crazier moment.
Jesse had been right about Maddy’s illness. The doctors had performed a bonafide miracle. Once she was properly diagnosed, they were able to schedule a surgery almost immediately. A month in the hospital and one little pill to take every day and her symptoms had disappeared completely. As she recovered, Maddy spent more and more time walking the hospital floors and getting to know the other girls who had come here for treatment under Jesse’s charitable program. She had a gentle grace about her, and it wasn’t long before she was friends with every patient and nurse in the building.
Maybe she would go into medicine someday… Just like me… The world was her oyster and it was all thanks to Jesse.
I’d spent years imagining what would happen if the truth came out, and I’d never imagined it turning out this wonderful. I counted my blessings every day of my life, and I did everything I could to make it up to both of them. Maddy had finally come around after a week or so, and once she realized that Jesse was here to stay, she saw it for the blessing that it was. We’d finally bonded together like a real family.
And here we were as if we’d always been like this.
I held my breath as the last play of the game unfolded before our eyes.
We were down by three points but well out of field goal range, and there were just seconds left in the game. Jesse had just called their last time out with time for one final play.
As Jesse ran over and conferred with the coach, Maddy reached up and squeezed my hand.
“Make a wish, baby,” I whispered in her ear.
“I already did!” she said. I laughed and pulled her and Eddie close as we all held hands and watched Jesse run back to the huddle for a few seconds before the teams went into formation.
Jesse took the ball from the center and rolled out right. I could feel the energy coming off his body. I knew his arm would find its target, that was where his true talent lay. He found his wide receiver and the pass was the most perfect spiral I’d ever seen. The crowd fell silent as the ball danced through the air, pirouetting gracefully until it landed square in the wide receiver’s chest. He secured it with his huge hands and turned and ran for the end zone.
The defenders launched their bodies at him in complete desperation, but he eluded their attempts like a skilled escape artist. He slid through the human barricades like a snake, sidestepping and dancing around them, leaving them fumbling through the air in his wake.
“Oh lord! Oh lord! Oh oh oh!” Eddie cried, jumping up and down beside me.
“Go go go!” Maddy yelled. My eyes traveled over to Jesse and my heart swelled when I saw the complete joy on his face as he watched the wide receiver travel safely into the end zone, throwing the ball down as the crowd erupted in joy and confetti and balloons began raining down around us. Jesse pumped his arms in the air in victory and tears sprang to my eyes. I reached down and pulled Maddy up into my arms, spinning her around as we laughed together.
“Let’s go!” I said, setting her on her feet and running onto the field. Eddie followed us and we pushed our way through the ecstatic crowd and colorful streamers. Hundreds of people surrounded the raised platform that Jesse and his teammates now stood on. We ran up on it and he threw his arms around us, kissing me hard on the lips and then turned to Maddy, picking her up and spinning her in the air. Laughter peeled from them as they beamed at each other.
“Look at that trophy!” Maddy said. He handed it to her and she held it up with both hands.
A reporter stepped forward and put a microphone in his face.
“Congratulations on your win! What are you going to do now, Colorado?” the reporter asked.
“I’m going to marry the woman of my dreams,” he said, catching my eye and winking. I gasped as he pulled me close and grabbed my hand. I heard Eddie squeal beside me as he pulled a small black box from his pants and handed it to Jesse.
My eyes widened as I watched Jesse kneel on one knee in front of me.
He opened the box and my mouth dropped open when I saw the sparkling ring that lay inside. The diamond was the size of a small mountain.
“Maisey, will you make me the happiest man in the world? Will you please marry me?” Jesse asked, his voice booming through the loud speakers, echoing through the arena, love beaming from his eyes. Love for me.
“Oh my God,” I said, the forty thousand people in the arena with us disappearing, the roar of the crowd turning to a whisper as I looked into the eyes of the love of my life. My heart swelled in my chest as my body began buzzing from the sweetest joy I’d ever known.
I’d spent my whole life running from him. Running from the fear of the unknown.
And all along, I’d been running the entirely wrong direction.
It was time I changed course.
“Yes,” I cried, “yes!”
He slid the ring on my finger and swept me off my feet, kissing me with breathless passion. Slowly, the reality that we were being watched by thousands of adoring, cheering fans dawned on us and he set me down.
“What are you going to do after you get married?” another reporter asked.
“Maddy?” he said, pulling her up into his arms. “What are we going to do, babe?”
They smiled at each other and yelled into the microphone together.
“We’re going to Disneyland!”
The end, but don’t stop now, keep turning pages because I have more surprise bonus novels in store for you! Check the Table of Contents for a full list of books included in this ebook!!!
You are the reason I write.
-Nikki xoxoxo
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