Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 84295 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 421(@200wpm)___ 337(@250wpm)___ 281(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 84295 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 421(@200wpm)___ 337(@250wpm)___ 281(@300wpm)
He opens the envelope and reads the letter.
Dear Mason,
I love you, I think you know that. I am so thankful that fate (and your mom) brought us together. You and your family have helped me heal and have made me feel a part of your family. You make me happy every day. I’ve enjoyed the last year together, and I know we will have many years to come. Because you gave me something special, I knew I wanted to give you something that you would cherish too. I hope you like your present.
I love you! Mia
As soon as he’s done reading, his eyes take me in, and even though I didn’t read it, I can recite it word for word. I’m filled with emotion as a tear rolls down my cheek. He takes his thumb and brushes it away before latching his lips to mine. He deepens the kiss, but I force myself to pull away. “Open the gift.”
He opens the box and takes out the bottle of wine. I stand next to him and look at it with the logo and the words Fate of the Mistletoe written in big bold letters. It’s the exact design that Mason had drawn and given me. “This is why you wanted me to draw the mistletoe?”
I nod, loving the design he made. I had told him it was a logo for a tattoo I was thinking about getting. He had no idea that I was having a wine made especially for him.
“This is amazing, honey,” he tells me, pulling me in for another kiss, but I stop him with a hand to his chest.
“There’s more.”
“More?” he asks. I take the bottle from his hands so he can search in the box.
He pulls out another envelope and opens it. There’s a black and white photo. It’s almost impossible to guess what you’re looking at until you see the small typed font, “Baby Mistletoe.”
“A baby?”
“Yes!” I whisper to him.
“You’re pregnant?” he asks.
I laugh then, realizing that I really did take him by surprise. “Yes. I’m pregnant. I’m about eight weeks along, so around summertime you’ll have a son… or a daughter.”
He just stares at me with shock on his face. I put my hands at his waist. “Mason, are you okay?”
Finally, he smiles at me, wrapping his arms around me and kissing the top of my head. “I’ve never been better.”
Epilogue 2
Mason
Four Years Later
“What is happening, Mason? What are we doing here?” Mia asks me.
She’s looking around at the decorated room. I have to admit that my brothers and their wives outdid themselves on this one. The place is perfect, and I know Mia loves it. There’s Christmas lights, decorated trees, flowers, and of course mistletoe everywhere. She looks at the rows of chairs lined up behind us. When she turns around, I’m on one knee in front of her.
The confusion on her face would be comical if I wasn’t nervous right now. I’ve spent the last five years loving Mia. She’s my soul mate, which is crazy because I never believed in things like that until I met her. But yeah, she’s definitely my other half. All my pain that I kept hidden, my years in the military and the scars on my body and in the inside, she’s made me feel whole again. The day we married, right after we met, I made vows to her, and those vows are still just as important today. She’s never talked about regretting how we met, or the wedding that I put together at the damn airport. But I regret not giving her what she deserves. On bended knee in front of her, I open the small box in my hand and hold it up to her. “Mia, I love you more than anything. You’ve made me the happiest man on earth, and I want to know if you’ll marry me... again?”
I’ve surprised her. It was hard putting all this together without her finding out. She’s staring at me, her mouth hanging open. “Yes,” she says. And before I can get up, she falls to her knees in front of me with tears rolling down her face.
I close the jewelry box and cup her face in my hands. “What is it? What’s wrong, Mia? I thought you’d be happy.”
She sniffs. “I am happy.”
“Look at me,” I tell her. She opens her eyes and stares back at me.
“I’m happy, Mason. I’m sorry that I’m reacting this way. I’m so emotional, I’m a mess lately.” She finally smiles and wipes her tears. “I thought you were unhappy... I thought you were leaving me.”
For just a fraction of a second, my heart stops beating. How could she think that? Mia and our son, Mason Jr, are my life. I pick her up and take her over to one of the chairs. I can see my brother peeking at us through one of the cracked open doors. He obviously can tell something’s not right, because he holds the rest of the family back from coming in.