Farm Girl Has Bad Boy (#3)

Epilogue

“Come on, King,” I whisper to the sheepdog, clutching my small flashlight tightly. Emery had insisted I sleep in my old room tonight with Haven since he was going out to stay at Raffie’s overnight. However I instantly regret it as I creep along the grass between me and the barn.

Just like about a year ago and multiple times in between, a noise had sounded in the barn, only waking me. By now I should really know better to get someone to come with me to check, or even grab the family shotgun, but in the worried rush to go check out the noise, I forgot any sense of logic. Plus, Haven can’t be left alone in the house and I sure weren’t bringing her out here with me.

I watch as King keeps his nose low to the ground, smelling the scent of whoever had sneaked into my family’s barn in the middle of the night. Is it another one of Emery’s father’s loyal friends who have come for their revenge? Maybe even Daniel coming to convince me to leave Emery for him? Or is it one of the many ghosts’, like Emery’s father or Vince who have come to haunt me? I take a deep breath as I near the barn, knowing that there’s only one way to find out.

“Go check it out,” I whisper to King. I gently open the barn door, listening to the eerie creaking noise as it swings open. King’s ears perk up and he gently jogs inside. I listen for a quiet moment and then he’s charging right out of the barn and back towards the farmhouse, as if something had scared him. My breath catches in my throat as my fear takes over, but I do my best to quickly push it away. Holding my breath, I step into the barn and gasp.

All along the tops of the wooden stalls are white sheets that hold small, white, tea candles flickering their light along the inside of the barn. Fairy lights are strung along the rafters, cascading down the posts and turning the old barn into something beautiful. I take a step forward, looking around. I’m so caught up in the surprise that I don’t even see Emery when he steps into the aisle.

“This is becoming a tradition, isn’t it?” His midnight hair falls perfectly above his eyes as he stands there, his arms hanging limply at his sides from his black, long-sleeved band shirt. His eyes sparkle from the reflection of the lights on both sides of him as he walks slowly towards me. “Sorry for waking you up.” His lips curl up in a half-smile as he stops in front of me.

“What is all this?” I whisper, still overcome by the gorgeous surprise. I’m so caught up in it that I don’t bother asking why he isn’t at Raffie’s and instead in my barn.

“I want this to be perfect,” he murmurs, running his fingertips along my right cheek. “And now that you’re here, it is.”

“You want what to be perfect?” I mumble back, watching the light dance across his face.

“River Snow,” he calls loudly, taking a step back. “Since the first day I met you, I knew you would change my life.” He holds his arms out, gesturing around him as he grins ear to ear. “And not only that, but you changed me too. You make me a better person with you, and because of that, I know I can’t live without you. Ever.”

“Emery Hastings, what are you doing?” I whisper, raising my eyebrows.

“I know I’ve made more than my fair share of mistakes, but I want you to know that you mean the world to me and more. River, I love you so much.” he murmurs, pulling something out of his back pocket. He starts to lower himself to the ground on one knee. “I want to spend the rest of my life with you.” He looks up at me hopefully, as I feel my breath catch. He opens a small black box, revealing a small, sparkling ring.

“Oh my gosh,” I gasp, covering my mouth with my palm. Out of all the things that have happened in the past year, this is by far the one thing that gives me the most adrenaline.

It feels like time slows down as I look back to the very first moment that I saw Emery standing in my barn, under a pile of hay. How can one small encounter, one single person, completely change my life in so many ways? I don’t think I’ll ever understand it, but I know for sure that I’ll never regret it.

King stops, and begins to bark at a pile of hay that was supposed to be scattered for the cow’s tomorrow morning. I shine my flashlight around the pile when a head of black hair pokes his head out and glares at me.

“You never saw me. Leave now.” He jumps out of the hay and stands close to me, towering a head taller than me. I know I should leave, but I can’t. He’s the most interesting thing that I’ve seen in years, and I couldn’t possibly let him go.

“Did you not hear me?” He raises his voice, and pushes me towards the wooden wall of the barn. “Leave, now!”

Then, as quickly as the memory surfaced, it’s gone again and I’m left standing, staring down at Emery Hastings who’s watching me from his perch on one knee. It’s crazy to think about how about a year ago, I was in this very barn, being threatened by the same boy who’s right in front of me, holding a ring. Really, it’s crazier that out of all the people in the world, I fell in love with him.

Happy tears start to spill down my cheeks as Emery grins at me, opening his mouth to say the words that I never saw coming. I hold my breath and take his free hand in mine, intertwining our fingers together.

“River Snow,” he breathes. “Will you marry me?”