Page 74 of Poinsettia Lane

“I love you," she whispers, pulling him into a kiss and realizing for the first time that she’s not at all worried about who might be watching.

Their foreheads rest against each other, lips a hair’s-breadth apart as they share the same air and Asim whispers his reply, his mouth brushing softly against hers as his lips move.

“And I love you, Everly. I love you as endlessly as the clouds form in the sky, and the rains fall to the oceans, and the grasses grow from the earth.”

EPILOGUE

ASIM

One Year Later

Asim can’t tear his eyes away from her. Everly is stunning in a shimmering gold dress that looks like it was poured over her, and he relishes the sense of pride and satisfaction that bubbles up in his chest every time the ring on her finger glints under the massive chandeliers spanning the ballroom of the Sioria.

He wasn’t surprised at all when she broached the subject of the annual holiday party a few months ago, stating she wanted to change it this year. She’s been working tirelessly on being the kind of person she wants to be, which is what led to the charity ball she’s hosting this evening. Instead of a private party at her family’s mansion, the love of his life decided to invite her parents’ wealthy friends, as well as extend an open invitation to all the locals here in Stone Ridge, to support her chosen cause—sea turtles.

Asim thinks back to when they took their first vacation together over the summer, when he proposed. He needed a break from the frustrating process of rebuilding, and his contractor said there was nothing he could do in person anyways, so they took a week off and escaped to a literal paradise.

They stumbled upon a beach that was blocked off, with signs warning it was a protected area for hatching sea turtles. Naturally, Everly turned her irresistible, big brown doe eyes on him and asked if they could stay to watch, and he couldn’t say no. He carried beach chairs and towels and set them up a short distance away from the protected area, and while her eyes were fixed to the sand, he couldn’t take his off of her.

Asim smiles to himself, remembering the tingle in his chest when he saw her face light up at the first tiny sea turtle she spotted waddling across the sand toward the water.

He’s pulled out of his thoughts and back to the charity gala by Everly’s hand on his lapel.

“What are you smiling about?” Everly asks, pulling herself into him.

“You," he says, dropping a kiss onto the tip of her nose. Everly rolls her eyes, but her cheeks pink beneath her makeup even though she tries to hide it by scrunching her nose to the side. “It looks great, love.”

“You think so? There aren’t too many poinsettias?” she asks, eyes scanning the room, then answers her own question with a snort. “Nah, that’s not a thing.”

Her smile is blinding when she turns it on him, and he wishes this party would hurry up so he could stop restraining himself. He wants to hike her dress up and devour her with his tongue, or rip it off completely and taste every inch of her skin. Giving himself a mental slap, he refocuses and takes a look around, ensuring there aren’t any last minute details he can help with. Addison and Frankie are speaking casually with the party planners and decorator, so he assumes everything is taken care of, and he turns back to Everly.

“Ready?” Asim asks.

“Ready.” She nods in emphasis, straightening her shoulders and looking him straight in the eye. His heart swells with affection for this incredible woman.

A short time later, the entire town turns up to support her. He greets many as they come in, welcoming them and wishing a happy holiday. Mr. Williams, from the senior apartments, shakes his hand with a proud smile on his wrinkled face. José Garcia, who works for the Parks and Recreation department, gives him a firm nod over the shoulder of his wife as he leads her into the ballroom with an arm around her waist. Fay, the owner of the sunset boat cruise, was here earlier but must have left for some reason as she comes striding back in with her shoulders thrown back and an air of surety about her that Asim can only admire. Chantel from the local handmade shop, Alex Gomez and Cindy Smalls, the baker and candy maker, respectively, come in like a storm trailed by a group of other locals, all laughing and joking together as they hang their coats and scope out the party.

Everly’s parents’ friends, local city council included, appear thrilled to be there, which is a relief. Everly hadbeen worried they wouldn’t like the change, but they don’t seem to mind in the slightest; if anything, they seem to enjoy the opportunity to meet the locals and be a part of something bigger than any of them individually. He’s even caught a few murmurs of how proud her parents would be, if only they were around to see the woman she’s grown into, and he hopes someone who knew them tells her as much. Asim marvels at Everly’s ability to pull together so many people from all different walks of life.

Asim keeps an eye on Everly as she flits around, ensuring everything is running smoothly and everyone is in their places. She organized every bit of this, but she doesn’t want any of the credit. Instead, Addison will be the face of the event, acting as emcee and announcing each prize before the silent auction begins for the night. As drinks and hors d’oeuvres are floated around on trays carried by straight-backed servers, the music providing a soft backdrop to the elegant gathering, Asim checks his phone for any updates from his family.

Just as he’s starting to worry, he sees his parents and sister, Farah, walk through the doors, eyes wide as they take in the grandeur. Asim slips along the wall to meet them, kissing his mother and sister on the cheek and thanking them for coming. They don’t have time for much more before Addison is taking the stage.

Asim can’t help but watch his future wife off to the side as she clasps her hands together, eyes bright and wide with cautious optimism as the main event of the night begins. Asim wants to be there next to her, holding her hand, but he also knows this is something she wants to prove to herself that she can do on her own, so he stays on the outskirts, ready to jump in if needed.

“This is very impressive, Asim," his father’s low voice rumbles next to him.

“It is, I wouldn’t have believed she did it all herself, but I know she’s capable of anything she sets her mind to.” His words are laced with reverence, and his mother reaches around to squeeze his arm.

“She’s wonderful.” She beams at him, full of pride for her future daughter-in-law.

Addison announces each donated auction item, andthere are some good ones. Mrs. Langdon didn’t show up in person, but Crooked Books donated a monthly special edition bestseller book for a full year, surprising everyone with her interest and contribution. Turns out, she’s passionate about more than just cats and books, the support reflected in the donations of many other local business owners are too.

The sunset boat cruise is donating an entire boat to the auction, the owner of the candy shop is a retired ski instructor and they’ve committed to a full ski kit and private lessons for a weekend in the mountains, Roasted Coffee House donated a free daily coffee and pastry for a year, and the Sioria is auctioning the venue for any event in the next three years (there aren’t many open dates in the next two, which he firmly believes is a good problem to have, even though Everly wanted the prize to be more immediate). Some of her parents’ friends showed up with prizes to contribute as well, much to Everly’s dismayed delight and last minute panic.

Addison finishes up and everyone wanders around the prize table to enter their bids, so Asim makes his way toward Everly.

He snags her around the waist, relishing the feel of her soft curves under his hands, and pulls her back into his chest. He leans forward, grazing her ear.

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