Page 11 of Runaway Bride

He nods and tosses the bloody towel into the trash basket. “I know you will.”

“Are you heading back home?”

“Yeah, my flight is in a few hours. I need to head out, but I wanted to make my peace with you.”

I hold out my hand. “You have.”

Michael takes my hand and pulls me into a hug. There is still a lot to work out between us, but for now, I know that our relationship isn't damaged beyond repair. I can’t speak for Bridget, but I hope that our happiness will help her move past any pain or animosity she will feel towards Michael.

We say our goodbyes, and he heads out. I'm just about to sit down and order some room service for dinner when the suite phone starts to ring.

“Hello?”

“It’s me,” Bridget says by way of greeting. “You’re never going to believe what happened to the other girls last night.”

Epilogue

BRIDGET

The girls and I are all in the bridal suite at the wedding venue, pampering ourselves as we get ready. The makeup artist is working on Jessie, while the hair stylist works on my cousin, Claire. Veronica and my sister, Beth, are all done up and lounging on the sectional sofa, wearing the silk robes I picked as part of my bridal party gifts to them. I still have one more left to surprise them with.

It's been a year, almost to the day, since that fateful trip to Las Vegas for my bachelorette party. None of us could have imagined what that trip held in store for us. It didn’t even seem believable to any of us when we finally caught up together at the suite and told each other what had happened. Every single one of us managed to get arrested on the same night and still found love in the process. It seems almost too unbelievable for it to be true, but if I didn't live it, then I may not believe it myself.

“I could get used to pampering like this,” Jessie says as the makeup artist uses a puff to set Jessie’s face with powder.

Since that weekend, our own Messy Jessie has managed to do the unthinkable and pull herself together. Her luck has turned around since meeting her fiancé, Dylan.

After Jessie lost her job, she was open to trying out new things. She jumped around a bit from job to job but eventually, as a joke, Dylan bought her the erotic wax museum where they first hooked up. The joke was on him because Jessie loved the idea, and now the two of them have plans to relocate to Vegas so that Jessie can run the museum. It seems like a crazy idea to me, but I've never seen Jessie happier.

“This is definitely a lifestyle I can get used to living,” Beth joins in from the couch as she takes a sip of the orange juice in her champagne flute.

“Your boyfriend is Shawn Walker, the movie star,” Veronica scoffs. “I think this is the lifestyle you should start getting accustomed to living.”

"I told you that he's taking some time off. His last movie wrapped up last month, and he doesn't have any plans to jump back in for a while—maybe ever."

The scandal that broke out after it was revealed that my little sister was pretending to be the pop star Fiona Day was splashed all over celebrity news media. The fans were distraught over the idea that their favorite new "It" couple was only half of what they thought it was. Despite Shawn’s old management team trying to get him to dump her for a high-profile name, he dumped them and announced that he was going to take some time off.

“That better be a virgin mimosa," I say, pointing to the glass in Beth's hand. “I don’t want my niece or nephew getting all hopped up on bubbly in the womb!”

The moment the words leave my lips, I remember that Beth had sworn me to secrecy. Her eyes widen in surprise, and I flinch at the squeals of delight that erupt from the other bridesmaids.

“Less than forty-eight hours," she deadpans to me. "You managed only to keep your mouth shut for less than forty-eight hours."

“I’m sorry,” I wince. "But in fairness, it was Shawn who spilled the beans to me."

I don’t think having a baby was in the plan so early for the two of them, but nevertheless, they are both thrilled to become parents, especially Shawn.

The girls congratulate Beth, and I love watching her glow with excitement. She hadn’t planned on telling me the big news before the wedding because she didn’t want to detract from mine and Jordan's celebration. But I said to her that I couldn't be more thrilled to become an auntie.

“Do you know if it will be a boy or a girl?” Veronica asks.

“We haven’t decided yet if we want to know.”

“Well, just be prepared for the LVPD onesie that Dean will be sending your way when he finds out,” Veronica says. “He’s been talking more and more about babies since some of the other guys at the station started having kids.”

You'd think the exciting and dangerous way Veronica and Dean fell in love during his last undercover mission, they'd appreciate how fleeting life can be. But Veronica has been taking their relationship slow. She knows she’s going to marry him, but she wants to make sure that their love wasn’t just built on the danger they shared but something more. Although all it takes is one look between them to know that they are it for each other. And I can’t wait when she finally gets the memo—but I’m pretty sure Dean is working hard on that.

“I love that we are all back together again,” Claire says, looking around the room. “I never could have imagined one trip would have changed so much for each of us.”

---