Page 145 of All of Me

As the soft glow of the bedside lamp bathes the room in warm light, I feel utterly cherished, adored, and connected to the man who has been my rock, my partner, and my greatest love.

This is us—still as in love as the day we said “I do,” and even more certain that together, we can face whatever comes next.

extended epilogue

LIKE I’M GONNA LOSE YOU - MEGHAN TRAINOR FEAT. JOHN LEGEND

OWEN - JULY 26, 2024

The fluorescent lights of The Superstore cast a bright glow over the store as Callie and I stroll inside. I didn’t think we’d be spending a part of our ten-year wedding anniversary here but, you know what they say, “Happy wife, happy life.” When they have a buy two, get one free sale, I cannot keep my wife out of here. Maybe it’s silly, but we love doing stuff like this together.

“You’re going to have to limit how many books I can buy because I don’t want to go too crazy. You know I have no shelf-control,” she says as we make our way back to her favorite part of the store.

I chuckle, she is still the most adorable person I’ve ever met even after all these years. “Did you just say ‘shelf-control?’”

She smiles at me, incredibly proud of her pun. “Yes, yes, I most certainly did.”

We make our way into the book aisles and she peruses the romance section. I hear her audibly squeal and, I shit you not, she starts jumping up and down like a kid on Christmas morning. I am nearly doubled over in laughter when I ask her, “I take it we like this book?”

She excitedly explains that one of her favorite authors got a deal with a publishing company and this is the first time she’s ever seen one of her books “in the wild,” whatever the hell that means. She places the book into the cart more carefully than she would handle a carton of eggs.

“You know what I wish?” she asks as she puts a few more books into the over-sized shopping cart. Her voice is soft, as if she’s thinking out loud.

I lean against the edge of one of the shelves, almost knocking an entire series off the endcap. I quickly cross my arms over my chest, acting like nothing happened. “What do you wish?” I ask, but she laughs at me. She saw my misstep.

“I wish that Cedar Bluff had a place like Brooke’s so that we didn’t have to come shopping at Target for books,” she says, still smiling as I fix the display I ruined. “But instead of the small collection of donated books atBrooked & Brewed,I want somewhere that carries books like this,” she holds up the book I now know to be written by Kate Stewart, “but it would be even cooler if they carried books from indie authors.”

“So… why don’t you open one?” I ask her.

“Me?”

“Yes, you,” I say, moving behind her and wrapping my arms around her while she adds yet another two books to the cart. I place a kiss on her cheek and rest my chin on her shoulder, looking at the shelves in front of us and imagining how cool it would be for my beautiful wife to have a bookstore of her very own.

I know Callie will never admit it, but she’s still struggling to decide what she wants to do professionally. After she had Remington, she went to interior design school. She absolutely loved it but it didn’t provide her with the stable income that she hoped for. After everything she went through in her first marriage, she refuses to not work since all of our kids are in school.

As it is now, she’s working for a corporation that pays well but it’s not a fulfilling job and I know she wishes she could do something that gives her more freedom to be creative. Project Management just isn’t exciting.

“You really think I could do that?” she asks and I can tell she’s struggling to contain her excitement, but the idea clearly terrifies her.

“It could be like an extension of Brooke’s place,” I offer, knowing that Brooke’s coffee is the best coffee I’ve ever had. The idea of being able to have it fresh again like I did when Callie worked atBrooked & Brewedwhen we first met is probably more exciting to me than it should be.

“Man, that would be a throwback, huh? I’d have to dust off the old apron and remember how to make all those drinks again,” she says with a laugh. “Or… maybe I would hire someone to do that part and I’ll stick to the books. I don’t need a repeat of the disasters of Coffee-mas past.”

“You could totally open a bookstore in Cedar Bluff,” I encourage her, hoping she will really consider this idea.

Her lips part as if she’s going to argue, but then she hesitates. “It’s… a nice idea,” she says finally, her voice cautious, “But what if it doesn’t work?”

“It will,” I say firmly. “If anyone can make it work, it’s you.”

Her eyes soften, and she gives me the smile that always knocks the air out of my lungs. “You really think I could do it?”

“I know you could do it,” I reply.

She shakes her head, laughing softly. “You’re unbelievable, you know that?”

“Yeah, unbelievably right!” I tease, turning her around to face me and placing a kiss on the top of her forehead. “Besides, with your design background and coffee shop experience, it will be the coziest bookstore ever and everyone will love it.”

“Warm and cozy on one side, dark and sexy on the other,” she ponders.

---