Page 67 of The Silent Night Stalker
Constantine - Epilogue
It’scoldoutonChristmas Eve, but I don’t care. I’ve got my jeans rolled up as small waves lap at my feet and ankles. I’m holding Winnie in my arms, who’s wearing her brand-new hand-knitted sweater in cream made by our neighbor, Iris. It looks perfect against her tawny fur. With my free hand, I finger the cross Enzo gave me all those years ago. My most precious Christmas gift, next to Winnie. It’s okay if Enzo still doesn’t believe. I believe enough for both of us. I’ll never try to change him, just like he’s never tried to change me.
I’ve been feeling okay lately. The anxiety tries to creep in, but I’ve gotten really good at pushing it back. It helps that Enzo has made every Christmas Eve absolutely perfect, and he keeps me distracted.
Having a good life has forced me to reflect on my past. Not from when I lived with Steve and my mom, but from when I’d tried to help people each Christmas Eve. I try not to think about being a murderer, and when thoughts creep in that I ended up turning into Steve, I panic again. The doubts keep trying to punch through, telling me I was wrong, that I killed those people for nothing, just like I’d been wrong about choosing Enzo.
Enzo never told me I’d made a mistake. He never told me to stop. I chose that on my own… for him. But it’s easy being in love and having someone love me back. Every single day is filled with love and support. After loving Enzo for five years, my past was a wisp of a memory. It only bugged me this time of year, like an itch I can’t reach. Most of my pain has been replaced with goodness, and so many happy memories.
My tough, strong angel takes such good care of me. He’s changed a lot, too. Enzo’s an artist now. He created an entire series of paintings of my face, expressing different emotions, and had them in a gallery. I couldn’t be prouder.
The small town has gotten to know him really well. Little do they know who and what we are, and I hope it stays that way. It doesn’t matter why I helped people or if I believed I was doing good. At the end of the day, the people in this town wouldn’t understand.
Alfonzo kept his word, and he never bothered us again. And why shouldn’t he? We were out of his hair, with a new life of our own.
Movement in my periphery catches my eye. I turn to see Enzo walking sexily down the beach, heading in my direction.
Even after five years, my heart flutters and my stomach twists with absolute love and happiness. It feels as fresh as it did when I first fell in love with him.
His hands are shoved into the pockets of his jeans, which are rolled up like mine. He’s wearing a zip-up hoodie and is also barefoot as he treads the shallow waves. The hair is new. He recently shaved and bleached it, and it looks so gorgeous, especially against his tanned skin, but he would look beautiful no matter how he wears his hair.
Enzo stops in front of me, smiling, before he presses a kiss to my forehead. It’s one of my favorite kisses. There’s just something about it. It’s tender. It’s a kiss about love and affection rather than sex.
“Hi,” he says.
“Hi back.”
He reaches for Winnie and pets her head, then he presses his forehead against mine and closes his eyes.
“I love you, Little Bird.”
I smile at that. “I love you, too. Forever and always.”
“When we met, it was a crazy time for me… for us.” He huffs a laugh, but his eyes still don’t open. “I mean, you tried to… save me. My own family wanted me dead. I lost Enrique. And in between all that stood someone special. Someone so desperate to be seen. Someone who was hurting more than I was. I never expected to fall in love with anyone so quickly. It had me thinking that maybe you were right all along, that we were meant to find each other—destined somehow. After that fateful day I found you in my bedroom, I can’t imagine my life any other way. I never imagined you would make me feel fulfilled. And I never imagined I’d find love like this. True, honest love.”
My eyes water at his words. I’m not sure where he’s going with this. Enzo isn’t exactly sentimental. He’s more into dirty talking than declarations of love. His love language is taking care of me and protecting me. But sometimes he allows himself to be open about how he feels.
I press my free hand to his face, but his eyes still won’t open. “Are you okay, Angel?”
“I’m more than okay, baby.”
Enzo finally stands tall, opens his eyes, and pulls out a black velvet box from his pocket.
My body instantly freezes, and my breath catches. Oh my god…
I press Winnie close to my face and kiss her little head as I watch him open the small box.
“I’m asking you to marry—”
“Yes! Definitely!”
He snorts a laugh. “Are you going to let me finish? I worked very hard on this speech. I practiced so much that I think even our mirror is annoyed with me.”
“Sorry.” I bite my bottom lip, but I can’t stop smiling like an idiot.
“I’m asking you to marry me on Christmas Eve, and I want to marry you next Christmas Eve. I’m going to do as many special things for you on this day as I can, so you’ll eventually forget what happened to you. There will only be happiness, Con. Then, every Christmas Eve, we can celebrate our anniversary or maybe take a trip. But I swear to you, the holidays will never again bring you pain as long as I live.”
My hot tears quickly cool on my face from the strong ocean breeze.
