Dead River

Epilogue



FOUR MONTHS LATER


I whisper my secrets to the river. I know she can hear them. I know that she loves me, and that I will see her again. I blow a kiss across the waves, and I know, I just know, that on the other side, she will be there to catch it. That she has always been there.

And that the river always gives us a chance to wipe away our past mistakes and start anew.

I look up to the branches hanging over me. It’s a perfect day in September, warm but not hot, and the leaves and branches are still vibrant green with life. Up the embankment, Justin and Angela are setting up the tent. Yes, a tent. We’re going fishing. And I was the one who suggested it. Mostly because homecoming is next weekend and I’ve made tuxedos and high heels mandatory. I think of my boyfriend in a tuxedo instead of dirty jeans and my heart begins to flutter.

I climb up to where Justin and Angela have just about everything under control. Angela and Justin are piling kindling, piece by piece. They are so cute together, it makes me wonder why they never got together sooner. Oh, right, there was a little something standing in the way. Me.

Angela looks up at me and wipes the sweat from her brow, clearly excited. I know the outdoors makes her a little giddy, but I’ve really never seen her as happy as she’s been for the past few months. “You know, scary story time is on,” she says. “I’ve got a good one, Honey Bunches, so you’d better grab your teddy bear.”

“I’m right here,” a voice says behind me. It’s Trey, and he’s gnawing on a Slim Jim and grinning down at me. He is now addicted to them. Apparently they didn’t have them back in his old life. He’s being corrupted by a lot things, though. Wii, Hostess Sno Balls, the Fishing Channel. He’s gained weight, which, even though it makes him more of a teddy bear, has also made him better-looking.

He’s also had to get used to wearing shoes. When he walks to meet us, he stumbles a bit in his hiking boots, then straightens himself. He looks from one of us to the other. “What’s going on?” He holds up the Slim Jim. “Okay that I swiped this from the food bag?”

It’s only then I realize that Angela is also staring at him, openmouthed. I nudge her to stop. She says, “Sure, knock yourself out.” Then, when he walks away, she mutters, “God, he is so hot. Where did you find him, again?”

I grin at her. “You’re not going to steal him from me, too?”

She grins back. Angela the boyfriend stealer. She spent weeks apologizing to me, until I finally got it through her head that I was okay with it. More than okay. I was happy. And it wasn’t just because I had Trey. Some things are just meant to be.

As the sun begins to slide behind the trees, Trey puts his arms around me and pulls me close. When he says “I love you,” I know that this, us, is one of those things.

“Who’s going to make the fire?” Angela asks.

“I’m on it,” I say, holding up two sticks.

Angela and Justin look at each other and burst out laughing. “I’ll believe that when I see it,” Justin mumbles.

“Prepare to be amazed,” I say, crouching over the fire pit.

I concentrate on wanting it. Two minutes later, a good-sized fire is crackling in the pit. My cousin and my ex-boyfriend exchange glances, sufficiently impressed. Trey leans over me and whispers, “I call that cheating, kid.”

I grin. “How is it cheating, using my innate Mistress abilities?”

He bows. “Oh, of course, Your Royal Highness.”

When I try to smack him, he grabs my hand and pulls me into another embrace. His kiss is hotter than any fire I could make.

Later, we all sit in a circle, toasting marshmallows, and when it’s time to tell stories, I’m the first to volunteer. Because I have a really good one. But this one is true, and best of all, it has a happy ending.