Bonus Epilogue

Piper

One Year Later

 

I stare at the image in the mirror, unable to believe the picture staring back at me. The simple white dress hugs my frame. My hands tremble slightly as I smooth them down the fabric over my hips, my pulse pounding in my ears. In a few short hours, I’m going to walk into the courthouse in Wilmington and marry Levi Anderson. I will become Mrs. Levi Anderson, and nothing has ever felt more right.

 

I peer into the bedroom that Levi and I share and watch as he sits at the end of bed tying the laces of his patent leather shoes, his bespoke black suit hugging every inch of his body. It’s hard to imagine that this all began as a fake engagement. I never would have pictured the two of us here. Certainly never thought I would wear a white dress like this or that I would be getting married. This wasn’t a dream I ever thought I wanted. Levi became the dream I never saw coming.

 

As if sensing my gaze, Levi glances up. His eyes meet mine in the mirror across the room, and everything in me stills. The slow smile that spreads across his face steals my breath, warm and certain in a way that makes my heart feel too big for my chest.

 

“Well,” he says his voice low and full of want as his gaze drifts slowly from my face down to the hem of my dress, “that’s one way to make a man forget how to breathe.”

 

I swallow hard, suddenly very aware of how my pulse hammers against my throat.

 

“You clean up pretty well yourself,” I say, though my voice comes out softer than I intended.

 

He stands then, buttoning his jacket as he walks towards me with slow deliberate steps—the kind that makes it impossible to look anywhere else. Every move feels intentional, grounded, steady. Like him… like us. When he finally stops in front of me, his gaze softens. The teasing edge fading into something deeper. Something that makes my chest ache in the best possible way.

 

“Come here, Trouble,” he murmurs.

 

And just like that, every lingering doubt, every bit of nerves melts away as he reaches for me. No matter how unexpected this relationship has been, there has never been a moment when loving Levi Anderson didn’t feel right. Before Levi has a chance to place a kiss on my waiting lips, we’re interrupted by a knock on the door.

 

“Hurry up lovebirds or the judge is going to think we’ve skipped out on the ceremony,” Gram shouts from the other side.

 

Levi and I chuckle softly, resting our foreheads together.

 

“I guess we better get this show on the road before Gram breaks down the door,” I murmur, lifting my hand to cup the side of Levi’s face. He places his hand on top of mine and gently rubs along my wrist.

 

“Are you sorry we’re not doing something more extravagant?” I ask.

 

Levi stares at me for a moment, pausing to find the right words.

 

“I don’t need a ballroom or a fancy party. All I need is you.” He takes my hand and twines it with his. “Let’s go get married, Trouble,” he murmurs.

 

“Nothing I’d rather do, Suit,”, I whisper.

 

And that’s just what we do. Make the forty-five-minute drive to the Wilmington courthouse. Don’t want the word getting out that we're eloping, hence the drive. It’s not that we don’t want to share the day with friends and family. We just want the ceremony to be private, with Gram the only family member in attendance. Tonight is our housewarming party. Levi’s parents and Libby are flying in from New York and even Luke is coming in from Boston. Everyone we love will be here celebrating our new house. It seemed like a sign to surprise everyone by getting married and turning the housewarming party into a surprise wedding reception. We don’t want bells and whistles. That isn’t really our style. No grand ballroom, no endless guest list. Just me, Levi and Gram because there was never a world where she wasn’t standing beside me.

 

Our simple ceremony in the judge's chamber, his clerk our second witness, Levi and I become man and wife. Married. Even now, the word feels foreign and impossibly right all at once. It sends a nervous flutter through my chest, equal parts excitement and disbelief.

 

I glance down at our hands threaded together, matching wedding bands sparkling in the afternoon sun, happiness filling every inch of my body. Levi squeezes my hand.

 

“You ready for this, Trouble?” he whispers against my ear.

 

I lean into him, letting the steady rhythm of his heart ground me and smile into those ice blue eyes.

 

“Ready, Suit.”

 

We walk out of the courthouse hand and hand, ready to start our lives together.

 

Later that night, after the party, after we celebrated with friends, family and what felt like the entire town of Moonrise Bay, I finally let the enormity of the day sink in. Memories of fake dates that turned real. Arguments that turned in to laughter. Quiet moments when Levi held me like letting go wasn’t an option. Somewhere along the way, the line between pretend and forever blurred until there was no difference at all.

 

Behind me, Levi slides his arm around my waist pulling me back against the solid warmth of his chest and it’s the most natural thing in the world.

 

“Happy, wife?” he whispers.

 

And in that moment, I know that this is everything I never knew I was missing.

 

“Very happy, husband.” I murmur.

 

"Good. Because I just watched the last of the taillights pull down the driveway. Gram is tucked away in her cottage, and I finally have my wife all to myself.”

 

“Say it again.” I demand, goosebumps breaking out on my skin when he says those words.

 

“My wife,” he whispers against the shell of my ear.

 

I begin to smile, reaching for him on my tiptoes, placing a sweet kiss on the corner of his mouth.

 

“Tell me, sweet husband, whatever are you going to do with me?”

 

"He smiles, that sexy as sin smile. The one that always melts my insides. The one I’ll never get tired of seeing stretched across his face.

 

“Oh, Trouble the night I have planned for you…” Levi takes me by the hand and leads me to our bedroom. We spend the night wrapped in each other, barely coming up for air. Barely getting any rest. Before the sun rises, I lay my head on Levi’s chest listening to the steady beat of his heart and for the first time since this wild plan took shape, the nerves settle into something steady.

 

This is just the beginning of our forever.