Page 39 of Resolving Rumors

“Yes, we were!” Justice yelled.

“No, we pretended to get married, just like we pretended to date. The papers were never filed - kind of like that prenup you set fire to.” I winked at her and the taunt did its job as she shrieked in response. Her parents turned their backs on her and walked away just as Austin stopped Brody’s wife from slugging Justice.

I wished he wouldn’t have because she deserved that hit, but I understood that he couldn’t let a heavily pregnant woman be abused in his club, even if the bitch did deserve it.

“Victoria Marie Mercer,” I called out into the microphone. “Would you do me the honor of being my first kiss of the New Year and the last woman I kiss in this lifetime?”

Vic was there as I jumped off the stage. I pulled her into my body and held her face between the palms of my hands as I leaned in and counted down the final seconds to midnight.

“This is our year, baby. We get to live it any way we want and forget about what everyone else thinks.”

“Okay,” she whispered against my lips as everyone shouted “ONE!” My mouth dropped onto hers and we rang in the New Year with a fresh slate, the secrets behind us, and a sizzling kiss for everyone to witness.

“I missed you,” she whispered against my ear after I pulled away.

“You’ve been in my heart this whole time, baby. It’s you and me and fuck the world.”

That made her giggle. “I like that.”

“Good because that’s our new motto moving forward.” She nodded just as flashes from cameras started to go off around us. “I hope you’re okay with the limelight for a while, my last article went live on the website a few seconds ago and it reached a national readership.”

“I think I can handle it if you’re by my side.”

“I’m not going anywhere ever again, Vic. I promise.”

I pulled the microphone back up to my lips and spoke to the crowd one more time, but I did it after dropping to my knees in front of the woman I loved. This bit, this promise of our future, was worth begging her for.

“Hopefully, one day we can sit in our rocking chairs on the porch of the house where we raised our family, and look backat this crazy time in our lives and laugh it off as our disastrous beginning. The rocky start won’t matter by then, only the rest of our story that we decide to write together. I love you Victoria, and I am begging you in front of all these people to give me another chance. A better chance to love you the way we both deserve to be loved.”

“I love that,” She said loud enough for the microphone to pick up. Everyone cheered for us and it was the best feeling after the years of worrying what everyone would think about our age difference. The distance between our years never mattered to me before. What always mattered was how much I loved the woman she was and how well she loved me back.

Epilogue

VICTORIA - 22 YEARS LATER

The horizon was paintedin purples that faded to pink and then red. It had to be the prettiest sunrise I’d ever seen. I sat there in my wooden white rocker and watched as the morning light slowly dimmed the shine of those colors only to make way for orange and golden hues to take center stage.

“Gorgeous!” I turned to see my husband walk toward me and I smiled at him.

“You should have seen it a few minutes ago. The colors were so different.”

“I wasn’t talking about the sky, baby. All of those colors pale in comparison to you.” I rolled my eyes at the cheesy line the man started spinning way back on that fateful day when he declared his love for me in front of everyone. It made me grin to think back on that moment, with him on his knees.

“What’s that smile for?”

“Do you remember that New Years’ Eve?”

“The one when you agreed to finally be mine forever?” He asked. I nodded. “Of course, I do.”

I patted the rocking chair next to mine and he came to take a seat beside me. “Well, your vision of the future is finally here. It only took 22 years, but here we are on our rocking chairs staringat the sunrise and remembering all those years of loving one another.”

“She’s a romantic today!” Devin declared to the sky and followed it up with a hoot and laughter as he took my hand in his. “I had another vision of our future.”

“Yeah?”

“Yup, a few years from now, we’ll be rockin’ our grand babies together.”

“Stop it! Jessie just graduated high school.” I mentioned as a wave of sadness hit me at the prospect of being empty nesters too soon for my liking.

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