He shifts uncomfortably under the compliment. “The bad guys got what they deserved.”
Brown interjects, “Justice. It’s always served.”
“Keep it up, fellas.”
A song begins, and I move around the terrace to find my mom. I love that I can turn around and see her again. “Will you dance with me?”
“It would be my pleasure.”
As we dance slowly, I see the woman behind the person I only saw as my mom before. She smiles and says, “Sara Jane is wonderful. I’ve enjoyed my time with her this last month.”
“Do you remember the night I thought I killed that firefly and cried?”
“I remember the night you thought it had flown away, but when you opened your eyes—”
“You told me if I set her free, she’d come back, and she did,” I whisper.
“Because the two of you were always meant to be.”
“Magic.”
“Magic.”
“Can I ask you about Neely?”
“She might be a better person to ask.”
Nodding, I reply, “Maybe, but I’d like to hear your side. Did she always know you were alive?”
“No. Like everyone else, I couldn’t tell her until I knew I could trust her not to tell anyone, even you.” She rubs my cheek. “I’m sorry about that.”
“I understand why you did it, but I don’t know why I couldn’t be a part of it.”
“Son, sometimes decisions are made that you may not fully understand but are made to protect you.”
I’ve made those with Sara Jane. I hated keeping her in the dark, but it was to protect her. Now I know it’s better if she knows. “He loved you.”
“He loved money more than me, more than his own blood. He loved power. He wasn’t meant to die. He resorted to something none of us would have chosen for him. I firmly believe he took that route because he knew he had no other outs. With all the dirty deals he had made, he would have ended up in jail eventually. He doesn’t matter now. Our goal was to secure your future, and that’s been done.”
“You really don’t want any of the money?”
“Now that I’m alive again, I have access to my own funds. Just promise that no matter how much money you have or make, you don’t lose sight of the woman over there, who can’t seem to take her eyes off you. Love her with all your heart, Alexander.”
“That’s an easy promise to make. After all, you both taught me how.” I lean down and kiss my mom on the cheek.
I pass Sara Jane’s parents slow-dancing with champagne in their hands and smiles on their faces. I nod to her dad, and he sends an approving one back. Neely and Sara Jane are chatting quietly off to the side. When I approach, Sara Jane’s hand reaches for mine. I take it, happy to have the contact. I listen as she tells Neely, “You once told me some people only shine when they’re free. I thought you meant me, but you meant Alexander.”
She nods. “You freed him from the curse he was wearing like a noose around his neck.”
“It came in the form of a coat of arms,” I add.
She squeezes my hand. “You’ve been freed.”
Neely smiles. “Blood and a last name don’t dictate the person you’re meant to be.” She reaches out and touches my cheek. “You’re so much like your mother.” There’s no need to explain which mother. Thank God I only have the one who wants the best for me. “You’re unwavering and clever, and when you love, you love big. Congratulations on the nuptials.”
I hug her. “Thank you for always being here for Sara Jane and me.”
Sara Jane adds, “Thank you.”
Smiling, Neely jokes with her, “I’ll handle things around here. You have your hands full with this one, so just enjoy being a newlywed.”
Weddings seem to bring out the sentimental in me. I lean over and hug her. “Thank you, Neely. For all you have done for me, but mostly for continuing to believe in me even when I stopped believing in myself.”
“I’d do anything for you and Sara Jane. I hope you know that.”
“I do.” Wrapping my arm around Sara Jane’s shoulders, I reply, “And we’d do the same for you.”
“Before I forget, thanks for the pay raise.”
“More than deserved.”
This time it’s Sara Jane that excuses us. “It’s been an amazing day, but I’m ready to leave for our honeymoon.”
Now that’s a plan I can get onboard with.
*
As the private jet’s engines roar to life, I reach over and take Sara Jane’s hand. “You ready?”
“You’ve already given me the ride of my life, Alexander Kingwood. I can’t wait to see what you have planned next.”
“Buckle up, baby. This journey’s just beginning.”
Epilogue
Sara Jane Kingwood
Some days it’s easier to forget what’s happened. I’m caught up in our day, our life, our love, and forget the past. Today, walking onto campus with my coffee in hand and my backpack straddling my shoulders, is one of those days.
I pass Maya, a former classmate of mine who used to drive me mad with jealousy last year. My emotions were all over the place back then, but that stuff doesn’t bother me now. I don’t have those same insecurities when it comes to Alexander. After what we’ve been through, jealousy doesn’t even enter my heart. It’s too full with our love to fit anyway. “Hi,” I say, passing her by and adding in a small wave.
As if she saw a ghost, she replies, “Sara Jane?”
I stop when she does, my hand grazing over my healing side. “Yeah, hi.”
“You’re back?”
“Wrapping up my degree this semester.”
“Where’d you go?”
“Time off. I needed some time off.”
“Oh.” She nods, a small smile tipping her mouth at the corners. But then her gaze redirects beyond me, her pupils dilate, and the smile gone. I know what that means, or who it means more precisely. “See you around,” she says and hightails it in the opposite direction.
I turn around to see Alexander coming toward me. Like my world, my breath slows in my chest as I take him in. All else fades away. The star of my universe has a wide smile on his face, his eyes intense and focused on me. Only me. My body stills to appreciate the sight of him. A white T-shirt hugs his biceps a little too tightly and stretches across his muscular chest. It’s untucked over jeans, as if that will downplay the money spent on it.
It’s like we never veered off this track. I remember him so clearly crossing the campus six or so months ago as I stood a few floors above in the library. He never fit this campus. His presence easily overwhelms us mere mortals.
I asked him years ago why he chose to stay and go to school here . . .
“You have a choice. You could go anywhere with your grades and the financial support you have behind you.”
“You ask as if I have a say in the matter.”
. . . He stayed for me.
I often thought about our vows and the unrehearsed words we spoke from our hearts a few weeks ago. He said he’d choose me. It made me uncomfortable to think he’d choose me over his mother. But maybe it wasn’t a choice between his mother dying and me living. Maybe he wasn’t choosing between us, but choosing his own destiny . . .