Epilogue
In summer, when roses spilled like scarlet
blankets over the high stone walls, filling the air with their
unique, almost unbearably beautiful scent, the garden at 128
Sycamore Street was the perfect setting for a wedding, and there
was no place on earth where Eve would rather be standing when she
clasped hands with Gabriel Declan Hazard and promised him
everything, and forever.
If it had been up to her, they would have done it
months before, back when March was melting into April, with nature
still waking from winter and Grand’s once resplendent flower beds
shabby and bare of blooms. They would have done it without a
harpist and a four-tier cake too beautiful to cut and a crisp white
carpet strewn with rose petals. Without the circle of white chairs
trimmed with wildflowers and white tulle bows; without dozens of
friends and family gathered to witness the start of their new life
together, and to share in their joy.
When it came to marrying the man she loved, none
of that mattered to her. What mattered was that she had come
whisper close to losing him—the one man she thought she’d never
find and worried might not even exist—and she hadn’t. In defiance
of logic and collective wisdom, and against all odds, Hazard had
opened his eyes and come back to her.
Eve would have wed him that very moment, or any
of the countless thousands of moments since, but Hazard would hear
nothing of it. He was determined she would have the wedding of her
dreams, and her sister had been quick to second the idea. And so
she was outvoted, and the months-long endeavor began, starting from
the ground up. Literally. By night Hazard studied old photographs
of the property; by day he shoveled and sweat and planted and
trimmed to restore the gardens to their former glory.
Only Rory and Grand were allowed to help. He
taught Rory a myriad of useful things, like how to use a
wheelbarrow and sift stones from topsoil and tell flower from weed,
but most important, he taught her that there are decent men in the
world, men worth waiting for, no matter how long the wait. The
physical labor was backbreaking, but whenever Eve suggested hiring
someone to help unroll all that sod or take down that dangerously
tall tree standing between the sun and the sunflowers, Rory would
shake her head and roll her eyes and remind Eve that this
was a labor of love, and a labor of love was something you had to
do yourself.
From the mouths of babes . . .
Watching from the kitchen window as the two of
them worked side by side, with Hazard teaching her niece about life
and Rory providing him with a crash course in pop culture, Eve had
to agree. The restoration of the garden was, in many varied and
subtle ways, a true labor of love. If she hadn’t already fallen
hopelessly in love with Hazard, she would have tumbled head over
heels on the spot.
Grand’s contribution to the project was to pour
lemonade and stand by, armed with an umbrella for shade and a
plethora of opinions and advice. In her own inimitable way, she had
also seen to it that every last rose and peony and lilac was in
perfect bloom when the sun rose that morning; Eve wouldn’t be
surprised if the blue sky and gentle cooling breeze were also her
work.
While the others were getting the yard in shape,
Chloe devised a plan to turn it into an enchanted garden for the
big day, with fairy lights and garlands of fresh flowers and
songbirds in gilded cages high in the surrounding trees. Eve loved
the idea, though the number of lists and phone calls and decisions
involved in making it happen left her head spinning . . . and gave
her a new, deeper understanding and respect for her sister’s
talents.
It was almost a shame Chloe was getting out of
the wedding-planning game. She’d found a kindred spirit to take
over the business, and she was returning to school to study
mythology, a youthful fascination rekindled by a new friendship
with the best man at one of her weddings . . . that March wedding
off the coast of Greece to be exact. He was a college history
professor, and also a kindred spirit.
It was still too soon to be certain where it
would lead; impulsive, fall-in-love-first-think-later Chloe had
decided to take this one slow; the romantic in her wanted to
discover if he was her one true love the old-fashioned way. Rory
considered that to be an annoying waste of a perfectly good
talisman, but Eve needed no further proof that when it came to
matters of the heart, T’airna luck had changed. The talisman had
brought Hazard and her together, and at the same time, half a world
away, Chloe had met a man who breathed life into an old dream . . .
maybe more than one.
Things were definitely looking up. And come
January and Saint Agnes’ Eve, Rory would still be a few weeks shy
of her sixteenth birthday. Maybe the next winter rose would bloom
for her.
Now finally the day had arrived. Hazard was
predictably gorgeous in a classic black tux, and she had never felt
as girly and graceful as she did in the silk chiffon and lace
confection of a dress. The late afternoon ceremony, which took
place at the heart of the garden, was simple and beautiful.
The minister, an old friend of Grand’s, read from
the Bible and from Shakespeare, and offered words of advice for the
days ahead.
“Do not think that you can direct the course of
love,” she told them, “for love, if it finds you worthy, shall
direct you.”
And then it was time for their vows.
To love and to comfort; to honor and
keep,
I give you my hand, my heart and my love.
Forsaking all others, with this ring, I thee wed.
I give you my hand, my heart and my love.
Forsaking all others, with this ring, I thee wed.
Still holding hands and looking only at each
other, they heard the words that officially merged the long and
winding paths they had traveled alone into one they would follow
together.
“I now pronounce you husband and wife—and may
your days be good and long upon the earth.”
Those last words brought a smile to Hazard’s face
that few present could fully appreciate.
“Amen,” he said softly.
And then the kiss . . . a light touch at first,
with all those people looking on, a slow brush of his warm mouth
against hers, something a little giddy and a little restrained that
grew longer and deeper because they couldn’t help themselves. With
Hazard’s hands at her waist, the kiss became a promise, and a
preamble to all the kisses to come.
Slightly breathless, grinning happily, they
turned together to the cheers and applause of their guests. Chloe,
the maid of honor, gave a little squeal of excitement and hugged
Eve before returning her bouquet to her.
After congratulating Hazard with an enthusiastic
slap on the back, Taggart grinned at Eve.
“The best man gets the second kiss,” he told her,
claiming his.
“And the grandmother of the bride gets the next,”
Grand exclaimed, opening her arms to Eve and gathering her close.
“You are the most beautiful bride there ever was. ’Tis truly a
magical day.”
“I second that,” said someone, and Eve looked up
from hugging Rory to see Jenna and her husband waiting to
congratulate them.
“Beautiful and magical,” Jenna declared, hugging
first Eve and then Hazard without missing a beat or a word. “My
God, this place is like the Brothers Grimm meets Disney . . . the
flowers . . . the birds . . . your sister is amazing. And your
dress. Oh my God, that dress is a million times more gorgeous with
you in it than when I saw it on the hanger. Don’t you agree?” she
asked Hazard, who had unleashed a roguish smile.
“Most definitely,” he drawled, his smoky eyes on
his bride.
“I know that look,” Jenna laughed. Slanting a sly
look at her husband, she added, “I’ve been on the receiving end of
such a look once or twice myself.”
Now Hazard did turn his attention to Eve’s dear
friend and used his deepest, smoothest voice. “And deservedly
so.”
Jenna preened playfully. Over the past few
months, as Hazard slowly came out of his self-imposed exile, the
two of them had become partners in teasing banter. “A
silver-tongued devil with the face of an angel. Has anyone ever
told you that you have the face of an angel?”
“Only you, Jenna,” he replied, patient as she
reached up and grasped his chin to give it an affectionate
squeeze.
“The angel of sin,” she cooed. Sighing, she said
to Eve, “You lucky broad.”
It was a perfectly Jenna-esque parting shot, and
she moved on reluctantly because others were waiting to offer their
congratulations. There was Angela Beckett and a few friends from
work, a few friends of Grand’s, Chloe’s professor and
Toby-just-a-friend from the night Rory went missing.
Eve’s smile was aching long before the whirlwind
of cocktails and dinner and dancing al fresco came to an end. When
Hazard waltzed her to the edge of the dance floor and then escaped
with her into the shadows and along the side of the house away from
the driveway, she went willingly and giggling.
“I have something to show you,” he told
her.
“I have something to tell you first,” she said
with another champagne-induced giggle.
He stopped and turned to her, moonlight gilding
the elegant lines and angles of his face. Smiling, he touched a
stray lock of hair that had escaped her chignon. “What do you have
to tell me?”
“Two things. That I love you.”
“And I love you,” he said, and dropped a soft
kiss on her mouth. “What’s the second thing?”
“My feet hurt.”
He laughed and dropped to a crouch in front of
her.
“Lift your foot,” he instructed and then slid her
strappy stilettos off one at a time, tucking them in his jacket
pockets. “Better?”
“Much.” She wiggled her toes in the cool grass
and followed him to the sidewalk and then across the street and
down a little way until they reached a house with a brick wall in
front.
He sat on the wall and pulled her down onto his
lap. “So you don’t dirty your dress,” he explained as she looped
her arm around his neck.
“Thank you. Though I don’t expect I’ll have
occasion to wear it again.” She sighed wistfully. It was a
spectacular dress.
“Our daughters might,” he said.
This time her sigh was one of pleasure. “What a
lovely thought.” She rested her head on his shoulder. “Unless we
have sons.”
“I hope to have both.”
She lifted her head so he could see her raised
brow. “One of each?”
“At least. Provided that suits you.” He paused
for a few seconds. “I grew up very much alone in my own home. I
went off to school when I was eight, and then to the Royal Navy,
and then to anywhere and everywhere. I spent years—you know how
many—telling myself I didn’t care about family and didn’t want
one.” His mouth slanted into a rueful smile. “I lied. I would love
to have a family with you . . . to start a dynasty with you,” he
said with rising passion. “I think we’d make one hell of a
dynasty.”
“I can see it now . . . born of an enchantress
and a centuries-old man . . .”
“Damn right,” he said, his arm tightening around
her waist. “I want a family; it’s why I love having your family in
the house. And that will be enough if you don’t want children, or
don’t want them right away, or—”
“I do,” she interrupted, stopping him with her
fingers pressed to his lips. “I do want them, and sooner rather
than later since neither of us is getting any younger.”
“Speaking for myself, I’m very happy to be
getting older every day.” He slid his hand higher and moved it in
small circles on her back, just above where her dress dipped low.
“I know how important your work is to you, and—”
“It’s not,” she interrupted again. “Not as
important as it was. Not as important as you . . . as us. I
don’t think it could ever be that important to me again. My life is
so different now . . . I’m different. There are a lot of
things I have to think about once things settle down; I have to
figure out how marriage and magic and family and work all fit
together.” She paused, gazing down the street at Grand’s house . .
. her house . . . their house. “I have to think about what work I’m
meant to do. How I can do the most good with all that I’ve been
given. That matters to me. It always has.”
She laughed, and pleasure rippled through her as
he lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it.
“But enough about me and my work and my dynasty,”
she joked. “You brought me here to show me something.”
“Yes, it’s my wedding gift to you.”
“I thought these earrings were my gift,” she
said, tapping one platinum and diamond earring. The earrings were
beautiful and suited her perfectly, and were so spectacularly out
of her price range she couldn’t even come close to guessing what
they must have cost him.
He shook his head impatiently. “Those anyone
could give you.”
“Anyone with pockets as deep as the Grand
Canyon,” she agreed, rolling her eyes.
“I wanted to give you something no one else
could.”
He smiled and pointed; Eve gazed up at the
turret. The tiny white lights in the windows were lit, making the
room look as though it were filled with stars. Her gaze moved
higher, and she saw what he was pointing at, the reason he had
aimed a spotlight at the very highest point on the house.
“A weather vane,” she exclaimed. “A raven. I love
him . . . and he looks exactly like the original.”
“He is the original,” he told her. “I found him
buried under a ton of junk in that old shed at the very back of the
yard. I had to clean him up and sand some rusty patches, but he’s
as sturdy as ever.”
Blinking to keep a sudden swell of tears from
spilling, Eve tightened her arm around his neck. “When did you . .
.?”
“This morning at the crack of dawn,” he said when
her voice faltered. “I couldn’t chance putting him up sooner
because I wanted it to be a surprise. I scouted out a couple of
places before deciding that this wall was the best vantage
point.”
“I . . .” She flung her other arm around his neck
and kissed him hard. “I can’t believe you did that for me. I can’t
believe it even occurred to you. I can’t believe you didn’t just
toss it out with the other junk you unearthed back there.”
“Not a chance. When I realized what it was, my
heart nearly pounded a hole my chest . . . it was like I’d struck
gold.” He found that stray lock of her hair and wound it around one
finger. “You once told me that no matter where you were playing in
the neighborhood, you could look up and see the raven and know
that’s where home was. And that it made you feel safe. That’s what
I want, Eve. For you to feel at home here again, and safe, with
me.” He turned her face to him and held her gaze. “This was the
best way I could think of to show you that.”
Before she could respond, he pulled her to him
and kissed her, and for one drifting moment the world stopped.
There was no sound, no movement; there was only the two of them,
and that perfect night, and all the perfect and not-so-perfect
nights and days ahead for them. Perfection was lovely, but not a
requirement as long as she could fall asleep in his arms every
night and wake up by his side in the morning, with a raven,
her raven, standing watch.
Dazzled by his kiss, she rested her head against
his and gazed up at his gift to her.
“Thank you, Gabriel. Now that he’s back in his
rightful place, it really looks like the home of an
enchantress.”
“And not just any enchantress,” he observed in a
tone that was only half-teasing. “None other than the Lost
Enchantress herself.”
Eve smiled into the night. “Not anymore.”