Page 133 of Masks and Mishaps

“—while wearing a t-shirt from Salem that says, ‘Resting Witch Face’ with an arrow pointed toward your head—”

“Yep.”

“—and with a massive ring you just pulled out of your pocket, not even in a box, might I add—”

“Yep,” he replies, smiling bigger.

“—when I’m still a senior in college and we’ve only been officially dating for a week.”

“Thoughts?”

I let out a long sigh. “You are the most chaotic, messy, and unbelievably unhinged man I’ve ever met.”

Dalton nods. “I feel like I’ve worn out ‘yep’ at this point, but…yep. Will you marry me, Essie Romero?”

Smiling back at him, I weave out of Valeria and Cora’s arms and close the space between us. I stand on my toes, pull him down, and kiss him.

“Absolutely,” I reply, feeling so completely beyond fine. “I’d be honored.”

Epilogue One

DALTON

Six months later

Mymomtugsonmy white shirt collar, running her fingers against the stiff point where the fabric meets. “Where are your collar stays? I’ve told you a thousand times, you need—”

“Here,” I interject, conjuring the thin metal stabilizers from my pocket. “I forgot to put them in, but I did remember.”

My mom sighs at me right as Essie enters the foyer.

“Jesus, you look so beautiful,” I breathe, raking my eyes over her.

Tonight, she’s wearing a dress I bought for her. It’s obscenely tight and the brightest shade of white, which I had a good laugh about before I ate her ass while she held onto the headboard. She wasn’t amused by my laughter, but she gladly accepted the orgasm.

I kiss her cheek so I don’t smear her lipstick. “Do you want to get out of here?”

“Your mother isright here,” Essie reminds me, glancing at Mom.

Mom waves her hand. “Don’t worry. Dalton has been ruining my parties for years. Normally, I’d be thrilled to see him leave while conspicuously smuggling four bottles of Dom in his jacket, but unfortunately, he does have to stick around for his own engagement party.”

Essie laughs and squeezes my mom’s hand. She’s wearing the earrings my mom gifted her as a graduation present three weeks ago, and the dangling emeralds brush against her cheek when she tilts her head against Mom’s shoulder.

This engagement party is long overdue and six months in the making. Mom made me promise I wouldn’t try to elope until after Essie got her degreeandaftershe threw us the most over-the-top engagement party the District has ever seen. Waiting has been agonizing. I don’t know how many times I sat there, longingly watching Essie write lines of code with her big noise-canceling headphones on. I almost kidnapped her at least three times. One time, I even had suitcases packed.

…Christian may have had a point.

“You can leave after two hours,” Mom offers, scoffing when I stick out my lower lip in a pout. “Just make your toast early, and—”

She stops speaking when Porter Lennox walks through the front door of her house.

Porter’s brown hair is longer and his facial hair has grown. It’s only been six months, but he looks older, statelier—and more fatherly, frankly.

“I invited him,” Essie explains, tightening her grip on my mom’s hand. “I hope that’s okay.”

“Alyssa,” Porter says, approaching us. He gives Mom a lingering look before he hugs Essie and shakes my hand.

“Porter,” my mom replies, accepting a cordial cheek kiss from him—European style.

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