“Calling me a mule is a little harsh.” His voice was smaller than Karise had ever heard it. He seemed smaller in that moment.
Karise smiled, taking his hand back. “I really hope you can let yourself off the hook for being a kid. I’d like to think that you love me for my charm and wit, not out of some sense of obligation.”
He placed his free hand over hers, leaning closer and looking her in the eyes. “I came to find you out of a sense of obligation. Once I did, I was completely enchanted by you. I’ve always known our family wasn’t complete without you; I was just waiting for you to know it, too.”
Karise took a steadying breath, blown away by his words. “Thank you. And thank you for being a mule.”
Devon laughed and kissed her hand before releasing it so they could both reclaim their coffee.
“Hey Devon?”
“What, mi princesa?”
“Have you called Papá yet?” she asked.
“No, I’m sorry, I haven’t had a chance. I’ll do it today.”
“Don’t. I mean, let me talk to Aidan first.”
“You aren’t calling the wedding off, are you? Because I finally decided to like the guy.”
“No,” she rushed to reassure him. “I’m not calling the wedding off. But I think I might postpone it. We all have such heavy hearts right now. I don’t want that hanging over my wedding day. And I was thinking, if Alex’s family is able to get away again, that maybe we could have the wedding in Ecuador. If it’s okay with you and Aidan, that is.”
“We’d be honored.” Devon smiled. “Talk to Aidan. Whatever the two of you decide will be perfect.”
“I’m only two minutes late.” Alex slid into the booth beside Karise, bumping her over with her hip. “So how come I get the feeling I’ve already missed all the good stuff?”
“Really the biggest news is that Karise is going all runaway bride on us. This makes two attempted weddings.” Devon winked at her, but that didn’t stop Karise from sputtering in response. He quickly clarified rather than end up with a cup of ice water over his head. Alex told Karise she’d still dump the glass on him.
Luckily for Devon, Karise was more concerned with opening the envelope that had been sitting in her living room for weeks. She produced it from her bag and held it up for the others to see.
“Are we ready to do this?” she asked. Three matching pairs of eyes met. Three heads nodded. “Okay.”
Karise pried the envelope open, carefully spilling the contents onto the table. They sifted through the meager belongings, not entirely sure what they were looking for. Devon was the first to pull out a prize.
He held the keys up for the others to see. “These are the keys to the old Buick.”
Alex’s forehead crinkled in concentration. “I think I remember that car.”
“It’s the one she drove to the store that day. See, there’s the keychain I made her for Mother’s Day.”
They stared at the keys for a moment. Alex was the first to speak. “You should keep those, Devon.”
Karise nodded in agreement before turning her attention back to the pile on the table. “Look. How on earth did she get these?” She began unfolding the pieces of paper to reveal photographs of each of Victoria McAlister’s three children.
“Oh my gosh.” Alex snatched up a tattered magazine page. “This is from that gossip rag that caught Daniel and I out dancing. Look, pre-tattoo by about fifteen minutes.” She handed the picture to Karise.
“Cute hair. I like you better brunette, though.”
“Me too. How humiliating. I can’t believe that’s the picture Mom had of me.”
“She had this one, too.” Devon dangled an old photograph of a toothless young Alex.
Alex swatted the photo away and turned her attention to the ones on the table. “Seriously? Are there any good pictures of me in there?”
“This is a good one.” Karise pointed to a picture of Alex and the twins.
“That was taken at a fundraiser for the hydrothermal project in Washington. How on earth did she get this? I can’t imagine many high- profile magazines covered that.”
“It looks like she printed it; she must have found it online.”
“Is that how she got this one?” Karise held up a snapshot from her college graduation.
They went through each piece of folded paper on the table. As they did, it became even-clearer that even though Victoria McAlister had left her children, she had not forgotten them. She’d followed their life in pictures. When they came to the end of the pile, they came to the end of Victoria’s earthly belongings.
“Her whole life came down to moments missed.” Karise wanted to cry. “That’s so sad.”
“Maybe it’s the best gift she could give us,” Alex suggested. “Maybe she left us a warning not to miss our own moments.”
Devon cleared his throat and wiped his eyes with his thumb. “Have we decided what we’re going to do with her ashes?”
“I think we should split them up.” The words surprised even Karise as they tumbled out of her mouth. “I think we should each spread them somewhere that’s special to us. I mean, we’re her legacy, right? I think it makes sense for her to be with each of us.”
The other heads at the table slowly nodded.
“The Point,” Alex said. “I love those cliffs. It’s my favorite place on the island.”
“My poppy field. Well, Aidan’s and soon to be mine, too.” Karise stopped herself just short of rambling.
Devon took a moment to deliberate before deciding. “My waterfall.”
They decided Karise would spread her ashes first before giving the urn to Devon, who would in turn pass it to Alex. Once that was figured out, they spent the rest of their breakfast enjoying each other’s company.
Normally, Karise would have been looking forward to seeing Aidan again. But now that she’d decided to postpone the wedding, she was dreading it instead. She swung by Kate’s house to check on its progress before heading back to the cottage to pick up Victoria’s urn.
By the time she got to Aidan’s, she’d worked herself into a full-scale panic, but all her worries scattered once she saw him. He paused from slinging hay to wave at Karise and then wipe sweat from his brow.
“Hey, handsome,” she called out as she waved back. She left the urn in the car lest Clyde knock it over with his tail, and crossed the yard to stand in front of Aidan.
“Hello, my love.” He leaned over and kissed the tip of her nose, careful not to touch her otherwise. She could appreciate that his sweat looked better on him than her, so she was grateful for the consideration.
Karise had been dreading the wedding discussion. No matter how many times Aidan told her he’d wait, she was afraid he’d perceive her postponement as more than it was. Since she was making herself a nervous ninny over the whole thing, she decided to spill it first thing. She took a deep breath.
Aidan spoke before she got a chance. “I know you talked to Kate about having the wedding at the winery, but I’ve been thinking…I’d like to hold off a bit, maybe have the wedding in Ecuador when the timing is a little better.”
Karise narrowed her eyes. “Devon called you, didn’t he?”
“How do you know I’m not just that good?”
“Darling, you are phenomenal, but you stop just short of psychic.” Humor crept into her voice followed by a wave of love. “It’s crazy how much I love you. I don’t want to look back on our wedding day and remember all of the sadness that would have been surrounding it. I think I should get both of my house projects to a good stopping point and you should close your deal out East, and then we take Zoe on a vacation and come back a real family.”
Aidan took her face in his hands and kissed her lips tenderly. “I’d follow you to the ends of the earth, love, and I’d wait for you until the end of time. I think that sounds like a wonderful idea. Zoe will be thrilled. I only have one problem with what you said – you mentioned two housing projects. When are you ever going to get a
round to redesigning ours?”
Karise had forgotten to show him the pictures in all the chaos of the past few days. She’d get around to it, but for the moment, all she could think about was him. She wrapped her arms around him, pulling him close and kissing him with as much passion and love as she felt in her heart.
Aidan rested his forehead on hers. “I’m going to get you all stinky.”
“You’re worth it,” she assured him before glancing in either direction. “Is Zoe here?”
He nodded. “She’s with Lani and Aaron, chaperoning and doing their nails.”
Karise giggled to herself at the picture of the tough cowboy getting his nails painted by 40 pounds of pure sass. “So, uh, how busy are you today?”
“Not that busy.”
“Would you tell me if you were?” She leaned back to look up at him.
“Nope.” He pulled her closer again so he could begin his gentle assault on her neck.
“Are we even going to go inside?”
“Nope.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
IN 52 HOURS, Karise McAlister would be marrying the love of her life. In her opinion, that moment couldn’t come soon enough. The past two months of her life had been a blur as she’d worked like a fiend to get Kate’s house finished and her newer contracts to a point where they didn’t need her attention. Aidan, having landed several new accounts with grocery chains, was working 16-plus-hour days on a regular basis.
It was a temporary evil while he implemented the people and resources needed to meet the uptick in demand, which had given Karise and Zoe a crash course in bonding. It also meant both of Aidan’s girls missed him terribly. With everything else on their plates, Karise hadn’t been able to run her house ideas by Aidan, though she’d won Zoe’s approval with her drawings of a pixie-themed room, replete with a bed nook that looked like a tree hollow.
Poor Aidan was exhausted, as evidenced by the fact that he slept through the entire flight to Ecuador. Karise would have dozed, but Zoe was vibrating with excitement, making Karise doubly grateful for the private plane her brother had sent. When she wasn’t wrangling Zoe, Karise spent her flight going over last-minute wedding plans with Kate.
It seemed Karise was forever battling with someone over simplicity. Most recently, Devon overrode her by insisting on importing poppies because he remembered her mentioning them once. Kate and Gavin were the only attendants. Karise’s family members were the only guests. When she’d asked about inviting Aidan’s family, he’d replied that it would take the joy out of eloping if they did. She’d considered telling him they had different definitions of what it meant to elope but held her tongue. It was his wedding, too, and if his family’s absence made him happy then it made her happy as well.
Now Zoe chattered their ears off as Karise tried to remember which road was her turn. Devon had made sure there was an SUV waiting for them at the airport. Karise had been nominated driver, being the only member of their group who’d ever been to Ecuador. Kate was in the passenger seat commenting repeatedly on the beauty of Karise’s childhood homeland.
Karise glanced at Aidan in the rearview mirror. They’d seen each other almost every day, but it had been ages since they’d shared a moment alone together. She missed him so much it hurt. Aidan smiled at her as if to say he felt the same way, too, and her heart tripped happily. Just a few more days, she told herself. Her attention turned back to the road just in time to make her turn with less grace than she’d intended, earning her some harassment from Gavin.
Karise ignored him, her excitement mounting the closer they got. She rolled her window down so the scent of the roses could greet them. Karise inhaled deeply and smiled; she’d never tire of their aroma.
At last, the main house came into view. Aidan let out a low whistle. “So this is the house that inspired you to become an architect.”
“This is it,” Karise nodded. “It’s gorgeous, isn’t it?”
“Ours is prettier,” Kate declared. “It’s perfect. I tell everyone who will listen what a good job you did. You thought of everything.”
Karise flushed under the praise. “Thank you. And thank you for the chance. I’d have been lost without you.”
“I don’t know,” Aidan mused. “You probably would have stayed in Ecuador if not for Kate. You’d be lounging in paradise instead of chasing goats with me.”
“It wouldn’t be paradise without you and Zoe,” Karise countered.
“Awwww,” Kate and Gavin unintentionally chorused.
There was a line of people waiting to greet them before Karise even had the car in park. Karise ran straight into her father’s arms. There were so many things she wanted to tell him, so many things to thank him for. For now, she settled for a fierce hug. “I love you, Papá.”
“Mi niña hermosa. I love you so much.”
Karise made her way down the line for hugs before introducing everyone. Pablo’s reception of Aidan was infinitely warmer than Devon’s had been, much to Aidan’s relief.
“I bet you have pixies here, too,” Zoe leaned in and whispered to Karise as they walked through the garden leading to the house.
“Just wait until you see the roses. You can’t tell me he doesn’t have a pixie or two in those greenhouses.” Karise’s noisy whisper earned her a curious glance from Devon. Pablo and Lucia exchanged an amused look.
The rest of the day flew by in a happy haze of tours, food and a dip in Devon’s favorite swimming hole, which even had a waterfall.
Karise remembered something he’d said to her back in Napa. “Is this your waterfall?”
Devon nodded, looking thoughtful. “I spread her ashes over there. We had a bit of a talk, first, though.”
“Have you forgiven yourself yet for being human?” She reached out to rub his shoulders.
“I’m working on it.”
“Victoria and I had a bit of a chat in the poppy field, too,” Karise admitted. “I had to let her off the hook for being human. Apparently this humanity thing is a family trait or something.”
“Which means you share it, too.” Devon turned to her, the corner of his mouth curling up slightly.
Karise shook her head. “Nope. I somehow missed that flaw. I’m the perfect one.”
He guffawed at that before throwing her in the water. She came up sputtering and grabbed his leg, pulling him in, too. That triggered an all-out splashing war that spread through the entire family. She was laughing so hard her sides hurt; laughter surrounded her. Her new world blended in easily with her old, and Karise tucked the memories away in her heart.
That night, after the house was quiet and everyone was in bed, Karise slipped out of her room and padded down to Aidan’s. She tapped softly on the door.
He opened the door and cocked his head. “You’re determined to get me in trouble with your brother, aren’t you?” He let her in with a grin.
She reached up to kiss his cheek on her way by. “At this stage of the game, I can’t imagine you’d be in too much trouble, but I’m not staying.”
“Too bad. I’ve missed you. I think we could both use a little trouble.” He gathered her in his arms, placing kisses along her jaw.
She shoved him away playfully. “You’ll have all the trouble you can stand in a couple of days. But right now, I was thinking more along the lines of a back massage.” She produced massage oil from her robe pocket.
He raised his eyebrows at her. “We could get into trouble with that.”
Karise took his fingers, loosely tugging him over to the bed. “Nice try. You look exhausted; you have for a while now. I think you need a backrub and sleep more than you need trouble.” She pushed him back onto the bed.
“If I’m ever too tired to make love to you, shoot me.” He rolled over as commanded, gathering his pillow under him.
“I’d rather not.” Karise straddled his rump.
His only response was a happy moan when she began to work the oil into his skin. Karise had intended the massage to be an act of kindness
, something sweet she could do to help him relax. But she found herself enjoying the touch as much as he. Aidan had delightful lines, and she loved exploring them. As she worked his tired muscles, she could feel them start to relax and the knots loosen. Despite his protests, it didn’t take long for his breath to even out, its steady cadence telling Karise he was asleep. She stroked his back once more in appreciation, placing a gentle kiss on his cheek and brushing his hair back before covering him with a blanket and letting herself out.
Alex’s family arrived the next day. Zoe was beside herself to see Lani again. Karise spent the bulk of the day immersed in girl time. She supposed it was close enough to call it her bachelorette party. Devon took Aidan, Daniel, and Gavin out for guy time.
That evening, the two groups came together for dinner. Zoe soaked up every possible bit of attention from her new grandparents.
“Look.” Jane put a stack of pictures in front of Karise’s face. “In all the excitement, I haven’t shown you our pics from the last trip to Guyana.”
“Are these your children?” Karise lit up, flipping through the stack. “Tell me all about them!”
Jane didn’t need further encouragement. She sat down next to Karise and spent the next twenty minutes filling her in on every detail.
That night, the tap was at Karise’s door. She opened it to find Aidan looking delectable in his white button-up and jeans.
“Have you come looking for trouble?” She moved so he could pass her by.
A grin twitched the corner of his mouth. “Wouldn’t dream of it. I came to reciprocate. I’m not the only one who’s been working late nights these days.”
This time it was his turn to lead her to the bed and gently push her back. He didn’t wait for her to roll over but took it upon himself to flip her. She giggled, wiggling into a more comfortable position.
“Wiggle like that again and there will be trouble.” He hovered closely over her, not quite touching. His deep voice rumbled so near she could feel it, making it incredibly tempting for Karise to wiggle one more time.
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