Here's To Box Set (Complete Series)

by Teagan Hunter

  My response?

  I kiss him.

  “I guess that’s a yes,” he teases, breaking our kiss.

  “More of a ‘hell yes,’ but yes. I love you, Tucker. I never see that changing. You’ll always be that guy for me. You’re my ‘The End.’”

  Tucker plants another kiss on my lips, understanding what I’m telling him.

  I snuggle into his arms, and we sit quietly in the night. I woke up this morning hoping to see Tucker but unsure if he wanted to see me.

  This moment, here with him? It’s way more than I could have ever asked for.

  “I don’t think I want to erase our yesterdays,” Tucker says softly, breaking me from my thoughts.

  “Hmm?”

  “They’re there for a reason. Hudson’s always told me that everything happens for a reason, and I’ve never taken him seriously before. But now I get it.”

  Sitting up, I ask him to explain.

  “When I saw you last year at Perk, you seemed lonely, afraid almost. I could see that mask of yours even then. I walked away, letting you continue to wear it. Then Rae and Hudson happened, and with that came you and Tanner. I have to admit, it broke my heart at first to witness you two together. When I thought I had accepted it, we became friends, and that whole ‘accepted’ thing flew out the window because I quickly realized that I could never just be your friend. I would always want more. And we had that for a while.” Tucker smiles, I’m sure thinking of the short amount of time we had together before and how good it was. “But I think that if we had continued it without taking a break, we would have ended up running one another off. We needed to rid ourselves of our masks once and for all. And we did. So I’m grateful for the yesterdays. Grateful for them, but still excited as hell for our future together.”

  Truth. I think deep down we knew we wouldn’t have lasted if we’d kept playing at being false versions of ourselves and skating around our history with Tanner. The break mended all that because we only focused on ourselves.

  We finally took off our masks and became who we always wanted to be.

  Us.

  Epilogue

  Maura

  Six Months Later

  “I cannot believe you’re getting married.”

  A month after Tucker left the first time, Hudson proposed to Rae. Two months later, she finally said yes.

  While the engagement may appear rushed to some, it seemed merited to the group. Tanner’s death sparked a fire inside everyone, making us realize that we don’t have a guarantee of tomorrow. All we have is today.

  “I know. I’m dying over here. This is insane. I’m too young. I quit. Let’s run away and go be weird together somewhere far, far from here.”

  I grab my best friend by the shoulders, halting her attempt to run out of the bathroom. “Not so fast, skippy. Sit.”

  Rae plops back down on the closed toilet seat and huffs. “This is such bullshit.”

  Laughing, I finish pushing in the last bobby pin and release her. “Done. Now go look in the mirror.”

  The here she’s referring to is the exact same beach house Hudson took Rae to for her birthday. The same one that houses memories both of them would rather forget. Which is exactly why they chose this spot for their wedding. They want to start over, erase those memories.

  “Holy wow! I’m hot!” Rae yells.

  I cross the hall to the bedroom and admire my best friend. I swear Rae is the only person I know who would get married in white cut-off shorts and a white Transit t-shirt. I tried talking her into a dress a million times, but she wouldn’t budge, saying Hudson would appreciate her outfit choice. She did let me do a low-key up-do for her hair, so at least I won something.

  “You look gorgeous, Rae. I’m so happy for you.”

  She grins at her reflection. “Me too. I can’t believe I’m getting married. Married. Me. Who would’ve thought? And you. You’re going to be a…” She trails off.

  “I know.”

  “And Haley’s with…,”

  “I know. I didn’t see that one coming either,” I tell her.

  It took time, but Rae and Haley have finally fully mended their relationship. I think a little bit of it had to do with Haley coming around a lot more now than before.

  “It just all seems so fast. Like life is just flying by. It’s only been a year and a half.”

  A year and a half. It’s hard to believe that’s all it’s been. It feels like just yesterday Hudson and his friends walked into Clyde’s and into our lives. Now, Rae and Hudson are getting hitched, I’m the manager of a very successful musician, Tucker, and Gaige is, well, let’s just say he surprised us all with where he is in life.

  Shrugging, I say, “I guess that’s just how it works when you’re happy and in love. Time doesn’t drag. It just happens. Life happens.”

  “I’m going to be a stepmother!” she gasps.

  I walk toward her, placing my hands on her shoulders. “You already are one. But if it makes you feel any better, we’ll do this together.”

  Rae throws her arms around me, hugging me tight.

  “Thank you for being my maid of honor,” she says, pulling away. “You’re the best best friend ever.”

  “I know.” I pat my still-flat stomach. “Maybe someday you can be my maid of honor too.”

  “Rae and I want to extend our gratitude to you all. Thank you for your support and help in putting this little shindig together. We love you all. Except you, Gaige. Cheers,” Hudson says to the small group gathered for the reception.

  He hands the microphone over to Rae, who is adamantly shaking her head, not wanting to say anything in front of the crowd.

  “You’re so mean!” Rae says, just loud enough for the microphone to pick it up. Everyone laughs, and she turns beet red. Normally not one to shy away from crowds, I think having all the attention on her today has started to make her a little nervous. She shakily brings the mic up to her mouth. “I…uh…we…um…Maura’s pregnant!” she screeches, throwing the expensive equipment off the small stage and into the sand like it’s on fire.

  Or apparently a lot nervous.

  Gasps are heard around the crowd, and I brace myself for Tucker’s reaction.

  “FUCK YES!”

  Okay, not exactly what I was expecting.

  “Uncle Tuck!” Joey shouts from somewhere in the horde of people.

  “Shit! I mean ‘shoot.’ Sorry, kiddo!” he says, rushing through bodies of guests, making his way straight to me. He scoops me up in a hug, spinning me around and whooping loudly. “I love you, I love you, I love you!”

  He puts me down and plants a wet kiss on my lips. “I’m going to be a dad?”

  I nod. “You are. And I’m gonna be a mom.”

  Tucker places his hand on my stomach and whispers, “How far along are you?”

  “Eight weeks. The doctor confirmed it Thursday. I was going to tell you after the wedding, but I guess Rae took care of that for me.” I place my hand on top of his and peek up at him. “Are you happy?”

  “Did you not hear my outburst?” he smirks, his eyes blazing with delight. “Hell yeah, I’m excited. I’ve never been happier.”

  “You don’t think it’s too soon?”

  “It’s never too soon with you, Maura. Never. I already planned on spending the rest of my life with you, so the timeline of how things happen doesn’t matter to me. As long as you’re by my side, I’ll have everything I’ll ever want.” Tucker reaches up and wipes the tears falling down my face that I hadn’t even noticed. Nuzzling my nose, he pecks my lips again. “I’ve gotta go play a few songs for the happy couple. Save me a dance?”

  I nod and watch him walk away with a new swagger to his step. Several people walk over to congratulate me, and before I know it I’m swooped up in another hug. I immediately know who it is.

  “Dallas!”

  “You little hussy! I let you move out and you go get knocked up. Why didn’t you tell me?” he asks, setting me back down.

  I shru
g. “I just found out Thursday.”

  “Well, congrats, baby girl. Little Dallas is gonna make a great addition.”

  “Dallas, huh? I like that.”

  “No way,” Gaige says, walking up to me. “If they are naming that baby after anyone, it’ll be me. Come here, girl.”

  I’m squeezed tightly again by Gaige. Just as I’m pulling away, he whispers, “Thank you for not breaking his heart, Maura. I would have hated to hate you.”

  Laughing, I plant a kiss on his cheek. “You’d never.”

  A throat clears, Tucker’s signature move, and I turn toward the stage.

  “Congratulations to my best friend and brother from another mother, Hudson. I see you, dude.” Hudson raises his glass to his friend and mouths the words back to him. “And to his bride, Rae. You’ll always be Hudson’s favorite first wife of mine.” Rae flips him off with a smile. “This first one is for Maura. She’s my yesterday, my tomorrow, my forever.” Staring at me, he gives a sly smirk, and in typical Tucker fashion, adds, “And my sugar baby mama.”

  I place my hand on my stomach, beaming up at the man I love.

  Just last year I’d have said I was a liar, a fraud.

  Now? Now I’m honest and real. I’m loved and healed. And that mask I used to wear? I’ve hung it up. For good.

  Because of Tucker. Because of us. Because of yesterday.

  THE END

  Acknowledgments

  First (always first), The Marine, I love you. It’s as simple as that. You’re perfectly imperfect and everything I could have ever asked for in a husband. Thank you. For everything.

  sMother, remember that one time when I worked at the gas station and you stopped by, giving me a note on that yellow paper you always write on? I still have it and carry it around in my wallet. I love you.

  B, fuck the distance, dude. I miss you. I miss giving you hugs and hearing your laugh. Let’s fix that, okay? Oh, and thanks for being the Maura to my Rae. Love you, hooker!

  Murphy, I think I wrote something nice about you last time, so this one is just going to say this: you’re okay. Thanks for fixing my commas. (No, but for real, THANK YOU.)

  Dawn Billings, this is regarding a certain television show I knew you’d love…I TOLD YOU SO. And thank you.

  Jamie Walker, really, dude? Get the fuck out of my brain already. This is getting ridiculous. I love you. #BrainTwinsForLife

  D, thanks for letting me be your fluffer. ;-) Now really, go finish that damn book! I want to read it already.

  Beth Thomason, remember how I said I was out of words? I lied. Your encouragements and snarky comments kept my creativity flowing when I believed I was all tapped out. Thank you for forcing me back into my brain and pulling those words from me. You were right, as always. Thank you from the very bottom of my heart.

  ChristinA, Asshole Sr., Nikki, and Carrie, you beta bitches rock! Thanks for taking a chance on me. Special shout out to ChristinA for her voice messages and trying to murder me all the time. You’re too sweet. And to Nikki for reading the book twice. You’re the best!

  Somehow in my last set of acknowledgements I forgot about a very special person: Colleen Motherfucking Hoover. You’re inspiring, grateful, and giving. You make me want to be a better person. I’ll go old school yearbook on you: don’t ever change.

  Dawn L. Chiletz, thanks for always being around, giving me courage, and sharing your wisdom.

  My BS family, I hate you all. And by hate, I mean love. Kind of.

  To my sister: thank you for always being there. I love you.

  To my family, by blood or marriage, your support means everything. Thank you.

  And to everyone I’m forgetting, because I so know I’m forgetting someone…thanks, dudes!

  Reader, thank you for all your support. It means more than you could ever know. I hope I did Maura and Tucker justice. I knew they’d end up together from the beginning, I just never knew how they’d get there. You’ll see more of them and their new family in the future. I have at least two more books planned.

  With love and unwavering gratitude,

  Teagan

  Here’s To Forever

  A Here’s To Novella

  To Will Cooper.

  You’ll always be my number one.

  #SorryNotSorryLake #BethWho

  1

  Hudson

  “You want to do what to my daughter?”

  The man speaking to me right now like I’ve lost my mind is none other than Ted Kamden, AKA, my girlfriend’s father. He’s looking at me like I’m absolutely insane. He may be right.

  Looking Ted right in the eye, I say, “Marry her, sir. I’d like to marry Rae.”

  Ted stares me down. Squinting his eyes and cocking his head, he says, “Why, son?”

  Not what I was expecting.

  I clear my throat. “Why, sir?”

  “Yes. Why do you want to marry her? That’s quite a commitment and you’re both still young. Never mind the fact that you haven’t even been together a year yet.”

  His words are true. We haven’t been together that long, but for some reason it feels like an eternity that we’ve known one another.

  A little less than a year ago, the brightest, snarkiest, and most beautiful woman I’ve ever known walked confidently into my shop. She won my heart over almost instantly with her smart mouth and captivating forest green eyes. Our connection was easy, seamless, uncomplicated. It took a while for me to work up the courage to tell her about Joey, my now eight-year-old daughter, but once she got over the initial shock, Rae accepted us both with open arms. We became inseparable, in love, and infinitely happy.

  Then life happened.

  It turned out our intense connection came from the fact that we had already sort of known one another in the past, me having rescued her from drowning at the tender age of six. It wasn’t until I took her to the beach for her birthday last year that we realized it. Being near the sea caused Rae to have a disturbing flashback where she discovered that her deep-seated fear of being a mother came from having her own stand and watch as she drowned.

  The bigger, more present issue was Joey. As Rae came to her realization, my daughter waded into the ocean a little too far and got swept away in the angry waves. Joey nearly drowned.

  It was two weeks before I spoke to Rae again.

  Once I finally did, we decided that in the end, despite what had happened with Joey, we survived it. And that meant more to us than anything else.

  Since then, we’ve managed to make our relationship more solid than ever. Together, we moved on and our once deep connection dug a hole even deeper.

  Several weeks ago, Rae moved in with me and Joey, and so far things have been incredible.

  Until life happened, again.

  Life, the fickle thing, is a small reason as to why I’m here.

  Trying to calm my nerves, I rub my palms together and sit forward. After taking a few moments to work some sentences through in my mind, I give the speech of a lifetime to Rae’s father.

  “To put it simply: I love your daughter. But if you’re looking for the long version, here it is: She absolutely completes me. Last year when I met Rae, I was resigned to a life of single fatherhood. I had Joey and she was all I needed. Or at least that’s what I thought at the time. But then this incredibly beautiful woman stepped foot into my shop and opened my eyes to what I was missing—her. Rae’s wild. She’s a little crazy, sarcastic as hell, a fighter, tough, and sweet all wrapped into one. Everything about her is amazing, even her flaws. Yes, she has them. Everyone does. And she’s fantastic with Joey. Holy hell is she amazing with her. There’s nothing that makes my heart more erratic than seeing them together,” I tell Ted honestly. “I want to spend the rest of time with her because she’s the most real thing I’ve ever had in my life.”

  Ted doesn’t say anything; he only continues to stare at me. I start getting a little uncomfortable under his stare, but I don’t back down. After another moment passes, I tell it to him straight.r />
  “With all due respect, sir, nothing you say here today will deter me from asking your daughter to marry me. Nothing. And if she says ‘yes,’ I am going to marry her. Our love doesn’t need the stamp of approval from someone who will never understand it like we do. This is all a formality.”

  A slow, almost sinister grin stretches across his face. “Brave. You’re very brave, Hudson.” He’s looking at me like the fucking Cheshire Cat, and I’m man enough to admit I’m nervous as hell right now.

  “And determined,” Ted continues, sitting forward and mirroring my position. He’s about a foot from me, holding my stare with a fierce one of his own. “Whether or not you need it, you have my blessing. I just wanted to hear you say that you loved my daughter enough to not let anyone tell you otherwise.”

  I expel a relieved breath and Rae’s dad starts laughing. “Dammit, Mr. Kamden. You had me scared for a second.”

  “Couldn’t resist screwing with you, son. And for the love of all holy things, call me Ted. I’ve already told you a million times.”

  “Sorry, sir. Shit. I mean Ted.”

  Ted gives a hearty laugh as he gets up to walk into the kitchen. “You want a beer?”

  “No, thank you. I’m driving.”

  “Good answer.”

  I sink into the couch as he disappears to the other room. He said yes. Fuck. Yeah.

  Now I just have to find the perfect way to propose. Low-key or large event? Simple or over the top? Audience or in private? How in the hell do people do this shit?

  I’ll be honest. I didn’t really think this whole thing through. I only know that I want to marry Rae. Now. Tomorrow. Next month. Next year. Any damn day. I want her. I want forever with her.

  We lost someone last month. The brother of my best friend was taken away in an unexpected accident. While we technically lost two people since Tucker is on the road, one of them still has the option to return. Tanner doesn’t. While neither one of us was much a fan of him in life, his death has still taken a toll on us. So much so that we’ve spent the last several weeks discussing what would happen to Joey if I died, how we’d handle an emergency situation, and loss in general.