Page 94 of Tied

And on the very last page, they are on a motorcycle, and she’s wearing a white wedding gown, the veil trailing behind them in the wind as they head down a winding mountain road toward the little cottage pictured on the front cover. The white dog and fox are waiting for them on the porch. Five words are typed above them in the clouds, in ornate script:Believe in your fairy tale.

Tears fall down my cheeks as I hold the fairy-tale book made of us. My heart hurts as I turn the last page over and find a handwritten note:

Holly,

I’m not a prince. I don’t have a white horse. But I have a bike. And a ring. And a new house in the woods, in a town where nobody knows us. I’ll start to go out. With you. I promise. I have Poppy and Boomer. I’m a good weird.

I have all the love in the world for you.

We can fill in the words together.

Meet me outside, and I’ll take you to our happily-ever-after.

Love always,

Ty

I can’t move. I have to force myself to breathe.

Is this real?

I blink several times, but the book is still in my hands. I close my eyes and count to ten, then open them. It’s still here. I read the note again. The words are the same.

Holding the book against my chest, I slowly walk to my front door and swing it open. And there he is… leaning against the seat of his motorcycle. He smiles when he sees me, a real smile, the one I live to see every day, and he slowly swaggers over to me.

My heart gallops in my chest like a wild pony at the sight of him.My prince.

“Tyler, I—” He grabs my face and kisses me, long and slow, dizzying me, making me forget my own name and everything I wanted to say. I wrap my free arm around his neck and hold on to him tight. I don’t know much about life and love, and how it’s all supposed to work. I still have so much to learn and experience. But I do know that I want to do it all with this man, and no one else.

When we finally part, he takes a deep breath, reaches into his pocket, and pulls out a tiny box.

“I love you,” he says with throaty emotion. “I don’t want you to go. Ever. I thought letting you go was the right thing to do… but I can’t. I don’t want to lose you, or not be with you every day. And I really don’t think you want to go. We’ll go slow. Or fast. Whatever you want. I found us a perfect house. We can start new together. Away from the assholes of this town. I even had a ceiling window put in the bedroom.”

I smile and burst into happy tears. I’ve never heard him talk so fast and excited. “Ty… I love you so much…”

He flips open the box and pulls out a small ring. “Poppy wantsto know if you’ll marry me… when you’re ready?” Taking my hand in his, his eyes meet mine as he waits for my answer.

“Yes,” I whisper, smiling ear to ear. “That’s all I want.”

He gently slides the ring onto my finger and lifts my hand to his lips. “Now you’re my princess.” His crystal-blue eyes sparkle with promise. “I’m here forever. No matter what life throws at us. We’ll never be lost or alone again.”

My heart feels like it’s going to burst when I see the beautiful little bird’s nest on my hand. Before I can ask, he answers me. “I made it from my coins. There wasn’t enough to buy a ring. I screwed up the tradition.”

I laugh and circle my arms around his waist, resting my head against his chest, right over his heart. “You didn’t mess up anything. It’s so perfect. I love it.”

He strokes my head and hugs me with his other arm. “I’ve been texting with Zac for weeks. He’s not coming. He was pretty sure you would say yes.”

“Weren’tyousure?”

“I was hoping.”

“So was I… you have no idea.” I hug him tighter.

Touching my chin, he coaxes me to look up at him. “I have a really good idea what hoping feels like.” He bends down to kiss the tip of my nose. “I can’t wait to show you our new house. Poppy, Boomer, and my bed are already there. We’ll do the rest together. I’ve been texting with Feather, too. There’s a guest room with her name on it.” He takes a deep breath and takes my hands in his. “I have to stop hiding. I need to fix things with my family. I hope you’re okay with this… but Feather set up a housewarming party. Next week. Zac and Anna are coming, and your grandma. Feather and Steve. And my family. Your parents haven’t answered yet… but hopefully they’ll come around…”

I nod, letting my excitement about bringing our families into our life push the disappointment about my parents to the side. “Oh wow… I would really love that.”

“You’re gonna love the house, it’s even better than mine.”

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