Epilogue
Anise set a freshly opened bottle of wine on her large ebony dining room table within grabbing distance of both Ginger and Kat. “When’s the wedding?” she asked.
Ginger, with a forkful of turkey halfway to her mouth shared a look with Elliot.
“May fifth,” he said.
“Not the fourth?” Anise’s husband Paul asked, disappointed. “Come on…”
“Sorry our wedding can’t be all about you and your inner nerd, Paul,” Ginger replied around her mouthful.
This Friendsgiving meal was one for the record books. She’d give it five stars. Thursday her mom was cooking and planning to serve turducken with a cranberry glaze. It would be good, Anise got her culinary talent from somewhere, but it wouldn’t be normal.
Anise snorted. “Inner nerd?”
Matt, across the table, had been fidgeting like a bomb was about to go off for the last half hour. He reached out his hand. “Wine? Ginger?”
Ginger passed him the bottle, and he poured himself another tall glass. Was it the wedding talk bugging him? The end of his own had hit him like a truck a year ago, and it was hard to tell whether his growing restlessness was a sign of an impending breakdown or a breakthrough.
Her studio job on a weekly HBO talk show had afforded Ginger a lot more time to have a life, and since 'Matched' was currently between seasons, she’d been able to spend some of it rebuilding her friendship with Kat. She wished Matt would make himself more available, but Ginger got the sense that being forced to hang out with her and Elliot rubbed salt in a wound he’d just as soon forget. Either way, more wine never hurt.
Despite his obvious angst, she was grateful he and Kat had driven up to San Francisco for dinner. Being around the people responsible for so much of her happiness was at least half of what she was thankful for that year. The other half was the guy on her right. Elliot Hale. Her perfect match. Her fiancé.
Once the social media feeding frenzy died down, Elliot quietly quit his job in Chicago and moved to LA. The paparazzi were still a problem they had to deal with daily, but proving to America they were the real deal had taken some of the vitriol out of Jenna Gibson’s supporters’ angry tweets. Of course, they’d had to make their rounds on talk shows, attend a few events, and follow through with Elliot’s contract, but with Lavonne and Davis’s high-profile help, the audience was slowly accepting their apology for violating the expectations of the show. Hopefully next season Matt and Kat would repair any damage their unorthodox romance had done by giving Cassie a happy ending.
While they may never be America’s sweethearts, Elliot and Ginger had managed not to become pariahs.
With dinner winding down, Elliot cleared the plates.
Stuffed and buzzed, Ginger pushed her chair away from the table to help.
“You don’t have to do those,” Anise protested. “I’ll take care of them later. I want to get this game of Cards Against Humanity started while I’m still tipsy.”
“Let us at least get some of the food put away,” Ginger said, and not just because she wanted to make out with Elliot in the kitchen. It was the only way to ensure she got the correct distribution of leftovers. “We’ll meet you in the living room.”
“I could a use a fifteen-minute break.” Matt rose from his seat, glass of wine in hand. He checked his pocket for his cigarettes and headed for the front door.
Ginger glanced at Kat for an explanation. “He’s gonna quit after this weekend. He promised me,” Kat said.
“Holidays hitting him hard?”
“I guess. I’ll talk to him.” She left the table, and Ginger followed Elliot into the kitchen. Anise’s old San Francisco home was closed-concept, and therefore the second Elliot slid the tray of turkey onto the counter, Ginger was able to attack him in complete privacy.
“Hey—whoa—you should let me wash my hands first.”
“I like you dirty.” Her arms slid around his waist. “Kiss me before someone catches us.”
“I always knew you were into the sneaking around. You acted like you never wanted it, but…”
“Oh, I wanted it.”
“Yeah, you did.” He kissed her finally, his mouth taking hers sweetly at first, and then, as her hands found their way into his hair, with deepening need. They might not ever agree on where to put the laundry hamper for maximum usefulness or whether to buy a starter home versus a forever home, but their chemistry was something neither of them could dispute.
“Sure you don’t want to stay here tonight?” he asked.
“I can be quiet if you can,” she said.
“That sounds like a challenge, Ginger Moon.” He managed to get a hand between her legs and coax a shivering sigh from her.
“Maybe the hotel is better.”
“That’s my girl.” He pushed some hair back from her face, holding his hand against the side of her head. “I like seeing you like this.”
“Seeing me how?”
“Happy.”
“I thought you were gonna say desperate.”
His thumb stroked the shell of her ear. “Desperate’s a given. But you are happy, right?”
“I mean—I’m not driving a Ferrari through the streets of Sydney, but if I had to pick a consolation prize, you’d for sure make it into my top two.”
“Asshole,” he said with a sweet kiss on her cheek.
She hugged him tight. “Elliot Hale, I wouldn’t trade you for all the fast cars in Australia.”
“So, you’re saying I made the right choice coming back on the show.”
“You can keep trying, but I don’t think you’ll ever get me to say that.”
“Admit it, Ginger. Your life needed a little ruining.”
Ginger kissed him, ready to be ruined again.
The End
About the Author
Amy Kathryn Jones is the author of steamy contemporary romance featuring a wide variety of swoon-worthy heroes and the women who never saw them coming. A labor and delivery nurse by trade, she’s no stranger to happy endings and new beginnings. She moonlights as a married mother of two and part-time pet wrangler, but she loves nothing better than quiet time at her home in Dallas, Texas.
A huge fan of reality TV, romantic comedies, and Pride and Prejudice, she has a soft spot for hot messes, men in glasses, hidden tattoos, and dimples that pop. Other passions include colorful pens, craft books, clever banter, and comfy clothes. After being showcased in Pitch Wars, she went on to become a 2018 Golden Heart Finalist in the contemporary romance category.
Visit her website at amykathrynjones.com